Book - UK Kindle Storyteller Awards

The shortlist for the UK Kindle Storyteller Award has been announced by Amazon...

The UK Kindle Storyteller Award, now in its third year, recognises newly published work in the English language across any genre and was open to all authors who published their book through Kindle Direct Publishing on Amazon.co.uk between 1st May and 31st August 2019.
Readers played a significant role in compiling the shortlisted books, with those chosen based on a range of factors that measure customer interest in the titles.

The five independently published authors on the shortlist are all in with the chance of being awarded a £20,000 literary prize and, new for this year, the finalists and winning titles from all six Kindle literary awards around the world, of which the UK is one, will be evaluated by a panel of experts from Amazon International Originals on several criteria such as creativity, originality, and boldness of storytelling. One finalist will be selected to enter into a development and rights option agreement with Amazon and have their entry developed for potential adaptation into a Prime production

The full shortlist for the UK Kindle Storyteller Award is:

The Bookshop of Hopes and Dreams by Hannah Ellis

When Tara Fitzpatrick tells a string of lies during the world’s most informal job interview she has no idea of the path she’s set herself on.

Renovating the rundown bookshop with her new boss, James, turns out to be more fulfilling than she could ever have imagined. Soon, she finds herself falling in love with the quaint little shop.

And with James.

But Tara has never let herself dream of a happy ever after. Ever since she was a little girl, she knew she would never have children.

Determined not to let James sacrifice his dreams of having a family, she walks away.

Broken-hearted, Tara puts all her efforts into starting afresh. But the bond between her and James is not so easily broken. When two lives seem destined to intertwine, how long can Tara stay away?

Somehow, she needs to find the strength to face up to her past and start fighting for her future …

I Have Sinned by Caimh McDonnell

Bunny McGarry is a man on a mission. He left behind his life in Ireland to go to New York to find the woman he loves, who happens to have a lot of very dangerous people looking for her. The good news is that they don’t know where she is, the bad news is that Bunny doesn’t either and the only people that do are a rogue order of nuns called The Sisters of the Saint who have raised not being found to the level of art form.

Bunny’s one clue is a priest he thinks might know something, but Father Gabriel de Marcos isn’t willing to play ball. The padre runs a boxing club at the bad end of the Bronx, battling to keep kids out of gangs – noble, thankless work. Thing is, saints don’t typically have assassins sent after them. What sins are hidden in this priest’s mysterious past? Bunny has no choice but to save Gabriel from the demons that are on his tail. He has to manage all this while living under the rules that chill him to the very bone. No drinking. No swearing. No violence.

The Army of Wolves by Claire Moore

Eris, half-god queen of the underworld, rules Earth with a cruel heart and an iron fist.

When her son, Strife, joins a war against her, he is sure that he has left his dark past behind him. But as the battle for the throne escalates, who can he really trust? Alcyone, leader of the rebels or his lifelong protector, Nemesis, and her ferocious army of wolves?

Strife teeters on the edge of an abyss. Will he follow the path of the light or will he let the shadows swallow him up forever?

Tragedy at Piddleton Hotel by Emily Organ

1932. Growing bored in the autumn of her years, Londoner Annabel Churchill decides to buy a private detective agency in a Dorset village. The purchase brings with it the eccentric Doris Pemberley and it’s not long before the two old ladies have their first case. 

No one has made more enemies than the local busybody, Mrs Furzgate, but when she suffers a fatal fall at Piddleton Hotel everyone assumes it was an accident. The detective duo, Churchill and Pemberley, suspect murder and are soon on the case. But is it possible they’ll upset even more people than Mrs Furzgate managed to? 

With the subtlety of two bulls in a china shop, Churchill and Pemberley employ unconventional sleuthing techniques. What appears to be a shortcoming is actually a skill: being consistently underestimated enables them to spring a clever surprise.

The Picture On The Fridge by Ian W. Sainsbury

Mags Barkworth still suffers the effects of a life-changing tragedy over a decade ago.

She knows her husband loves her.

She knows he would never do anything to hurt her, or their daughter.

But what if the voice in her head, the one she’s pushed away with therapy and anti-depressants, is telling the truth?

What if it’s all a lie?

When Tam, their daughter, draws an uncannily detailed picture of a place she’s never been, Mags’ life starts to unravel.

But even in her most paranoid moment, Mags could never have guessed the secret she is destined to uncover.

An esteemed panel of judges, made up of both Amazon experts and literary authorities, including journalist and presenter Mariella Frostrup, will select the Kindle Storyteller Award 2019 winner, to be announced at a ceremony in central London on October 14th.

The panel of judges also includes the 2018 winner of the Award, author of The Afterlife of Walter Augustus, Hannah Lynn, best-selling independent authors LJ Ross and Mark Dawson, founder of The Alliance of Independent Authors, Orna Ross, and Simon Johnson, Amazon UK’s Country Manager for Books.

Mariella Frostrup, Judge, Kindle Storyteller Award, said “It’s brilliant to have had so many independent authors entering the Award this year. What makes this literary prize so special is that readers play a significant role in selecting the winner, and to see such a varied shortlist is a fantastic reflection of the landscape. It isn’t going to be an easy task, but I am incredibly excited to be a part of the judging panel to select the 2019 winner.”

Jose Chapa, Kindle EU, added “It’s been another great year for the Kindle Storyteller Award, with more entries than we’ve ever received before, and some brilliant work on show from across the UK and beyond. It’s truly an exciting time to be a self-published author, and we’re looking forward to crowning this year’s prize winner in October.”

Images & info - Amazon

Find out more about the awards here.