She is the author of five books: Brick Lane, Alentejo Blue, In the Kitchen, Untold Story and Love Marriage, is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and in 2003 was named as one of Granta’s Best of Young British Novelists.
"There’s an enormous appetite for SFF titles among the CB team and we’re actively looking for new, exciting writers in this area so we couldn’t be happier that CBC will be applying their unique, thoughtful and supportive approach to this new course," said Steph Thwaites, head of the book department at Curtis Brown.
Anika Hussain’s This Is How You Fall in Love, published by Hot Key Books, is a charming fake dating rom-com in which Zara pretends to be in a relationship with her best friend Adnan to conceal the identity of his secret girlfriend.
Making up the shortlist for the prize – now in its 20th year – are Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent (Sandycove; Penguin Ireland), In the Blink of an Eye by Jo Callaghan (Simon & Schuster UK) and Killing Jericho by William Hussey (Zaffre, Bonnier).
The academic publisher, which has signed up to the United Nations’ list of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), “aligns many of its operational and publishing activities with the SDGs through its ongoing commitment to environmental sustainability, operating ethically, and supporting the communities it serves".
