Dundee International Book Prize shortlist drawn up

A 13-strong shortlist of authors from across the globe has been chosen to compete for this year’s prestigious Dundee International Book Prize.

Dundee United fan Lorraine Kelly is on the judging panel. Picture: PA

The competition has attracted entries from budding writers from as far afield as Texas, Japan, and Belgium, making this year’s shortlist the most geographically diverse selection of novels to date.

A publishing deal with Cargo Publishing and £10,000 – the largest cash prize for unpublished work in the UK – is up for grabs.

The winning novel will be picked by a stellar panel of judges comprising literary agent Clare Alexander, award-winning architect Sir Norman Foster, TV presenter and author Lorraine Kelly, COSTA prize-winning author A.L. Kennedy and Brian Cox, Hollywood actor and Dundee University Rector.

Anna Day, director of Literary Dundee, said: “Once again we have received an exceptional standard of entries and the process of narrowing them down to just 13 has been difficult enough.

“Getting that number down to a final three, and then to a single winner, will not be easy so I don’t envy our judging panel in that regard. The quality of the novels that made our shortlist is incredible so I would encourage anyone to download their copy or pick one up from our office.”

Mark Buckland, head of Cargo Publishing, said: “After the great success of last year’s winner ‘The Man Who Wouldn’t Stand Up’, I’m really pleased that once again we have a diverse, exciting and eclectic shortlist that makes it tough for the judges to pick an overall winner.”

The shortlist for the 2013 Dundee International Book Prize is:

Light in the Blood (Nicholas Murgatroyd) – a literary mystery set at a writers retreat in Romania.

All Things End in Yes (Lily Barker) - the tale of a London food critic who discovers an Iranian carpet embroidered with cryptic messages.

Falling Fast (Neil Broadfoot) - a contemporary crime novel set in Edinburgh which uncovers the secrets and lies of an MSP at Holyrood.

A Brief Eternity (Paul Beaumont) - an immortal love story that finds non-believer Jerry caught up in the Rapture and headed for Heaven.

Beware of Men with Moustaches (Elizabeth Kay) – the tale of four poets trapped in a nightmare of Kafkaesque proportions.

Dog Mountain (Iain Maloney) - a magical realist thriller which takes the reader through the history and mythology of Japan.

The Society of Unexampled Brilliance (Paul Warnes) - a dysfunctional family reunion at a house in Cornwall after a violent attack on a young girl.

Kissing Trisha Six Times (Dandy McGregor) - a highly original novel of medical malpractice, witchcraft, S&M and insurance fraud.

In the Rosary Garden (Nicola White) - a grisly discovery in the grounds of a convent school in 1980s Dublin sparks a complicated case for the investigating detective.

Mango (Jeff Hayden) – a novel based on a true, and as of yet unsolved, murder case in 1950s Puerto Rico.

The Confession of Stella Moon (Shelley Day Sclater) - a dark, brooding tale of matricide and infanticide mixed with a touch of the supernatural.

The Killing Pool (Phillip Kurthausen) – a military lawyer’s struggle with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as he takes on a new case.

What to do with Lobsters in a Place Like Klippisfontein (Colette Victor) – an examination of racial tensions in a small, rural, conservative town in South Africa.