The Authors' Club Best First Novel Award is awarded by the

Authors' Club The Authors' Club is a British membership organisation established as a place where writers could meet and talk. It was founded by the novelist and critic Walter Besant in 1891. It is headquartered at the National Liberal Club. The Authors' Clu ...

to the most promising

first novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

of the year, written by a British author and published in the UK during the calendar year preceding the year in which the award is presented. It has been awarded to the following: ''This list is incomplete'' *1954 -

David Unwin David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

- ''The Governor's Wife'' *1955 - Brian Moore - ''

Judith Hearne ''Judith Hearne'' (later republished as ''The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne''), was regarded by Irish-Canadian writer Brian Moore as his first novel. The book was published in 1955 after Moore had left Ireland and was living in Canada. It was ...

'' (later republished as ''The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne'') *1956 -

Harry Bloom Harry Saul Bloom (1 January 1913 – 28 July 1981) was a South African journalist, novelist, activist and lecturer. Early life and career Solomon Harris Bloom was born into a Jewish South African family. He was educated at the University of the W ...

- ''Episode'' *1957 - Edmund Ward - ''Summer in Retreat'' *1958 -

Alan Sillitoe Alan Sillitoe FRSL (4 March 192825 April 2010) was an English writer and one of the so-called "angry young men" of the 1950s. He disliked the label, as did most of the other writers to whom it was applied. He is best known for his debut novel ...

- ''

Saturday Night and Sunday Morning ''Saturday Night and Sunday Morning'' is the first novel by British author Alan Sillitoe and won the Author's Club First Novel Award. It was adapted by Sillitoe into a 1960 film starring Albert Finney, directed by Karel Reisz, and in 1964 was ...

'' *1959 -

David Caute John David Caute (born 16 December 1936 in Alexandria, Egypt) is a British author, novelist, playwright, historian and journalist. Background Caute was educated at Edinburgh Academy, Wellington College, Wadham College, OxfordJames Vinson, D. ...

- ''At Fever Pitch'' *1960 -

Lionel Davidson Lionel Davidson FRSL (31 March 192221 October 2009) was an English novelist who wrote spy thrillers. Life and career Lionel Davidson was born in 1922 in Hull in Yorkshire, one of nine children of an immigrant Jewish tailor. He left school ...

- '' The Night of Wenceslas'' *1961 - Jim Hunter - ''The Sun in the Morning'' *1962 - John Pearson - ''Gone to Timbuctoo'' *1963 - David Rubin - ''The Greater Darkness'' *1964 -

Robin Douglas-Home Cecil Robin Douglas-Home (8 May 1932 – 15 October 1968) was a British aristocrat, jazz pianist and author. Life Robin Douglas-Home was the eldest son of the Honourable Henry Douglas-Home from his first marriage to Lady Margaret Spencer. His u ...

- ''Hot for Certainties'' *1965 - James Mossman - ''Beggars on Horseback'' *1966 -

Leslie Thomas Leslie Thomas, OBE (22 March 1931 – 6 May 2014) was a Welsh author best known for his comic novel ''The Virgin Soldiers''. Early life Thomas was born in Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales. He was orphaned at the age of 12, when his mariner fath ...

- ''

The Virgin Soldiers ''The Virgin Soldiers'' is a 1966 comic novel by Leslie Thomas, inspired by his own experiences of National Service in the British Army. It was Thomas' debut novel; he had previously published an autobiography. ''The Virgin Soldiers'' sold mill ...

'' *1967 - Paul Bailey - ''At the Jerusalem'' *1968 -

Barry England Barry England (16 March 1932 – 21 May 2009) was an English novelist and playwright. He is chiefly known for his 1968 thriller ''Figures in a Landscape'', which was nominated for the inaugural Booker Prize. Life and work England was raised ...

- ''

Figures in a Landscape ''Figures in a Landscape'' was Barry England's first novel. Published by Jonathan Cape in the summer of 1968, it was hailed by critics as an exemplary addition to the literature of escape. Two professional soldiers, Ansell and MacConnachie, hav ...

'' *1969 -

Peter Tinniswood Peter Tinniswood (21 December 1936 – 9 January 2003) was an English radio and TV comedy scriptwriter, and author of a series of popular novels. He was born in Liverpool, but grew up above a dry cleaner's on Eastway in Sale, Cheshire. Early ca ...

- ''A Touch of Daniel'' *1970 -

Rachel Ingalls Rachel Holmes Ingalls (13 May 1940 – 6 March 2019) was an American-born author who had lived in the United Kingdom from 1965 onwards.Rosemary Hawley Jarman Rosemary Hawley Jarman (27 April 1935 – 17 March 2015) was an English novelist and writer of short stories. Her first novel in 1971 shed light on King Richard III of England. Life Jarman was born in Worcester, England, Worcester. She was educa ...

- ''We Speak No Treason'' *1973 - Jennifer Johnston - ''The Captains and the Kings'' *1975 -

Sasha Moorsom Sacha, Sasha, Sascha, or ''variant'' may refer to: People * Sasha (name), includes list of people with the name and the variants Sascha or Sacha Musicians * Sasha (DJ) (born 1969), born Alexander Coe * Sasha (German singer) (born 1972), born Sas ...

- ''A Lavender Trip'' *1977 -

Barbara Benson Barbara may refer to: People * Barbara (given name) * Barbara (painter) (1915–2002), pseudonym of Olga Biglieri, Italian futurist painter * Barbara (singer) (1930–1997), French singer * Barbara Popović (born 2000), also known mononymously ...

- ''The Underlings'' *1978 -

Katharine Gordon Katharine Elsie Bain Gordon ( Hogg, born 12 June 1915) was a British author who wrote eight romance novels from 1978 to 2001. For her debut novel, "The Emerald Peacock", she won in 1978 the Authors' Club First Novel Award, and in 1979 the Roma ...

- ''The Emerald Peacock'' *1979 -

Martin Page Martin George Page (born 23 September 1959) is an English singer-songwriter and bassist. Page has collaborated with artists such as Paul Young, Starship (band), Starship, Robbie Robertson, Earth, Wind & Fire, Heart (band), Heart, Robbie William ...

- ''The Pilate Plot'' *1980 -

Dawn Lowe-Watson Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's hori ...

- ''The Good Morrow'' *1981 - Anne Smith - ''The Magic Glass'' *1982 -

Frances Vernon Frances Vernon (1 December 1963 – 11 July 1991) was a British novelist. She was the daughter of the tenth Baron Vernon. Novels Vernon was encouraged in her writing by her first cousin, the photographer and author Michael Marten. She wrote her ...

- ''Privileged Children'' *1983 -

Katherine Moore Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and Catherina, other variations are feminine Given name, names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria ...

- ''Summer at the Haven'' *1984 - Frederick R. Hyde-Chambers - ''Lama: A Novel of Tibet'' *1985 -

Magda Sweetland Magda is a feminine given name, sometimes a short form (hypocorism) of names such as Magdalena, which may refer to: * Magda Apanowicz (born 1985), Canadian actress * Magda B. Arnold (1903–2002), Czechoslovakian-born American psychologist * Mag ...

- ''Eightsome Reel'' *1986 - Helen Harris - ''Playing Fields in Winter'' *1987 - Peter Benson - ''The Levels'' *1988 -

Gilbert Adair Gilbert Adair (29 December 19448 December 2011) was a Scottish novelist, poet, film critic, and journalist.Stuart Jeffries and Ronald BerganObituary: Gilbert Adair ''The Guardian'', 9 December 2011. He was critically most famous for the "fiend ...

- ''

The Holy Innocents The Holy Innocents may refer to: * The victims of the Biblical Massacre of the Innocents, and any of several artistic depictions of this massacre (e.g. by Giotto di Bondone) * The Holy Innocents (Adair novel), by Gilbert Adair ** The Dreamers (20 ...

'' *1989 -

Lindsey Davis Lindsey Davis (born 1949) is an English historical novelist, best known as the author of the Falco series of historical crime stories set in ancient Rome and its empire. She is a recipient of the Cartier Diamond Dagger award. Life and career ...

- ''

The Silver Pigs ''The Silver Pigs'' is a 1989 historical mystery crime novel by Lindsey Davis and the first book in the Marcus Didius Falco Mysteries series. Set in Rome and Britannia during AD 70, just after the year of the four emperors, the novel stars Marcu ...

'' *1990 -

Alan Brownjohn Alan Charles Brownjohn (born 28 July 1931) is an English poet and novelist. He has also worked as a teacher, lecturer, critic and broadcaster. Life and work Alan Brownjohn was born in London and educated at Merton College, Oxford. He taught in ...

- ''The Way You Tell Them'' *1991 - Zina Rohan - ''The Book of Wishes and Complaints'' *1992 - David Park - ''The Healing'' *1993 -

Nadeem Aslam Nadeem Aslam FRSL (born 11 July 1966 in Gujranwala, Pakistan) is a British Pakistani novelist. His debut novel, ''Season of the Rainbirds'', won the Betty Trask and the Author's Club First Novel Award. His critically acclaimed second novel '' Ma ...

- ''Season of the Rainbirds'' *1994 -

Andrew Cowan Andrew Cowan (13 December 1936 – 15 October 2019) was a Scottish rally driver, and the founder and senior director of Mitsubishi Ralliart until his retirement on 30 November 2005. Early years Cowan was raised in Duns, a small town in the S ...

- ''

Pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus s ...

'' *1995 - T. J. Armstrong - ''Walter and the Resurrection of G'' *1996 -

Diran Adebayo Oludiran "Diran" Adebayo FRSL (born 30 August 1968) is a British novelist, cultural critic and academic, best known for his tales of London and the lives of African diasporans. His work has been characterised by its interest in multiple cultura ...

- ''Some Kind of Black'' and

Rhidian Brook Rhidian Brook (born 1964) is a Welsh novelist, screenwriter and broadcaster. Biography Brook was born in Tenby in 1964. He attended Churcher's College in Hampshire, leaving in 1982. His first novel, ''The Testimony Of Taliesin Jones'' (HarperCol ...

- ''The Testimony of Taliesin Jones'' (shared) *1997 - Mick Jackson - '' The Underground Man'' *1998 -

Jackie Kay Jacqueline Margaret Kay, (born 9 November 1961), is a Scottish poet, playwright, and novelist, known for her works ''Other Lovers'' (1993), ''Trumpet'' (1998) and ''Red Dust Road'' (2011). Kay has won many awards, including the Guardian Fictio ...

- ''Trumpet'' *1999 - Ann Harries - ''Manly Pursuits'' *2000 -

Brian Clarke Brian Clarke (born 2 July 1953) is a British painter, architectural artist and printmaker, known for his large-scale stained glass and mosaic projects, symbolist paintings, set designs, and collaborations with major figures in Modern and conte ...

- ''The Stream'' *2001 -

Carl Tighe Carl Tighe (26 April 1950 – 8 May 2020) was a British academic, essayist, novelist, and poet. He taught in Poland during the Cold War and was the first Professor of Creative Writing in the UK at the University of Derby. Biography Carl Tighe ...

- ''Burning Worm'' *2002 - Ben Facini - ''The Water Breather'' *2003 -

Dan Rhodes Dan Rhodes (born 1972) is an English writer, possibly best known for the novel '' Timoleon Vieta Come Home'' (2003), a subversion of the popular ''Lassie Come Home'' movie. He is also the author of ''Anthropology'' (2000), a collection of 101 st ...

- '' Timoleon Vieta Come Home'' *2004 - Susan Fletcher - ''Eve Green'' and Neil Griffiths - ''Betrayal in Naples'' (shared) *2005 -

Henry Shukman Henry Shukman (born 1962 in Oxford, Oxfordshire) is an English poet and writer. He was educated at the Dragon School, Oxford. His father was the historian Harold Shukman and his brother is the BBC News reporter David Shukman. He is of Jewish an ...

- ''Sandstorm'' *2006 -

Nicola Monaghan Nicola Monaghan is an English novelist and author of ''The Killing Jar'', ''Starfishing'' and ''The Okinawa Dragon''. She grew up in Nottingham, England, and gave up a career in finance to pursue an MA in creative writing at Nottingham Trent Uni ...

- ''

The Killing Jar "The Killing Jar" is a song written, produced and recorded by English rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees. It was released in 1988 as the second single from the band's ninth studio album, ''Peepshow''. Music and reception The song is an uptem ...

'' *2007 -

Segun Afolabi Segun Afolabi is a Nigerian novelist and short story writer, born in Kaduna, Nigeria, in 1966. He is the son of a career diplomat with his wife. With his family, he moved frequently throughout his childhood, from country to country in Africa, Asia ...

- '' Goodbye Lucille'' *2009 - Laura Beatty - '' Pollard'' *2010 -

Anthony Quinn Manuel Antonio Rodolfo Quinn Oaxaca (April 21, 1915 – June 3, 2001), known professionally as Anthony Quinn, was a Mexican-American actor. He was known for his portrayal of earthy, passionate characters "marked by a brutal and elemental v ...

- ''The Rescue Man'' *2011 -

Jonathan Kemp Jonathan Kemp (born 18 March 1981 in Wolverhampton) is a professional squash player who represented England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its n ...

- ''London Triptych'' *2012 -

Kevin Barry Kevin Gerard Barry (20 January 1902 – 1 November 1920) was an Irish Republican Army (IRA) soldier who was executed by the British Government during the Irish War of Independence. He was sentenced to death for his part in an attack upon a Bri ...

- ''

City of Bohane ''City of Bohane'' is the debut novel by Ireland's Kevin Barry. The book is set in the year 2053, in a world with minimal technology. It received largely positive reviews and won the 2013 International Dublin Literary Award. Synopsis ''City ...

'' *2013 -

Ros Barber Rosalind Barber (born 1964) is an English novelist, poet and academic. Education She has a BSc in Biology, an MA in creative writing, the arts and education, and a PhD in English literature, all from the University of Sussex. She also has an Op ...

- ''

The Marlowe Papers ''The Marlowe Papers'' is a novel by Ros Barber published in 2012. It won the Hoffman Prize in 2011, the Desmond Elliott Prize in 2013 and was joint-winner of the Authors' Club Best First Novel Award. The novel, written in blank verse, is a ...

'' and I. J. Kay - ''Mountains of the Moon'' *2014 - Jack Wolf - ''The Tale of Raw Head and Bloody Bones'' *2015 - Carys Bray - ''A Song for Issy Bradley'' *2016 - Benjamin Johncock - ''The Last Pilot'' *2017 - Rowan Hisayo Buchanan - ''Harmless Like You'' *2019 -

Guy Gunaratne Guy Gunaratne (born 1984) is a British journalist, filmmaker and novelist. Gunaratne identifies as non-binary and uses he/they/them pronouns. In 2019 their first novel, ''In Our Mad and Furious City,'' won the Dylan Thomas Prize, the Jhalak Prize ...

- ''In Our Mad and Furious City'' *2020 - Claire Adam{{Cite web, title=Best First Novel Award, url=https://www.authorsclub.co.uk/prizes/best-first-novel-award/, access-date=2021-05-18, website=The Authors' Club Since 1891, language=en-GB - '' Golden Child'' *2021 -

Ingrid Persaud Ingrid Persaud is a Trinidad and Tobago-born writer, artist, and academic, who lives in the United Kingdom. She won the BBC National Short Story Award in 2018, and the Commonwealth Short Story Prize in 2017, with her debut effort ''The Sweet Sop ...

- ''Love after Love'' *2022 -

Tish Delaney ''TISH'' was a Canadian poetry newsletter founded by student-poets at the University of British Columbia in 1961. The publication was edited by a number of Vancouver poets until 1969. The newsletter's poetics were built on those of writers associa ...

- ''Before my Actual Heart Breaks''

References

First book awards English literary awards British fiction awards Awards established in 1954 1954 establishments in the United Kingdom