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Lucy Popescu presents the debut novelists shortlisted for the Authors’ Club Best First Novel Award. Come and meet the authors, buy their books and hear them read ahead of our winner’s announcement on 22 May.

One Small Voice by Santanu Bhattacharya (Fig Tree)

An atmospheric, multilayered coming-of-age story, set against a backdrop of Muslim-Hindu tensions, and a poignant meditation on childhood trauma and its far-reaching effects.

The New Life by Tom Crewe (Chatto & Windus)

A highly accomplished novel exploring homosexuality in the late 19th century. The quality of Crewe’s writing is outstanding.

Fire Rush by Jacqueline Crooks (Jonathan Cape)

An evocative panorama of a novel that transports us from Britain to Jamaica. The story’s pace and plot never falter.

Pearl by Sian Hughes (The Indigo Press)

Hughes’s writing is both economical and evocative in this searing account of grief and loss. Her powers of description and imagery are stunning.

All the Little Bird-Hearts by Viktoria Lloyd-Barlow (Tinder Press)

A perceptive and nuanced novel that beautifully illuminates issues around neurodiversity. Lloyd-Barlow skilfully portrays her protagonist’s complex relationships and interactions.

Close to Home by Michael Magee (Hamish Hamilton)

A compelling exploration of masculinity, and a richly detailed portrait of Belfast that fizzes with energy. A superb debut.

Lucy Popescu, chairing the judging panel, commented: ‘Six brilliant debut novelists tackle complex themes including religious violence and trauma, masculinity and male desire, neurodiversity, love and loss. There are intense explorations of belonging and identity as well as rich evocations of time and place.”