Saara El-Arifi’s Faebound was declared the winner of this year’s prize. As one of our judges put it: “El-Arifi is reinventing romantasy and smashing down walls and records while she’s at it.” The novel’s rich fantastical land- scape and cast of compelling characters, inspired by African mythology, caught our panel’s imagination, enticing non-fantasy and fantasy readers alike.

“I couldn’t put it down,” said one judge; “a rich and imaginative read,” added another. HarperVoyager’s “impressive” campaign propelled this romantasy tale to the top of a “busy market”, making El-Arifi the only British author of colour to get a whole-market number one in 2024.

Voyager’s approach ensured that Faebound was visible throughout the year; not only did the publisher tap into the appetite for special editions, but it created a genre-defying, decadent cover and held standout events such as the Fae Ball. Faebound was declared a “triumph” by our panel and a true testament to El-Arifi’s skill as a fantasy author.