Nicola Dinan won the inaugural New Adult Book Prize for her exquisite novel, Disappoint Me.

Our panel hailed Nicola Dinan’s acute observations about modern dating, the struggle between personal identity and cultural traditions and the battle between how you are perceived versus how you feel.

Disappoint Me follows Max who, following an accident on New Year’s Eve, wants to make a change and so she starts dating Vincent, a corporate lawyer, who cares deeply about her. However, Vincent’s past threatens to derail the relationship.

Judge Lizzie Damilola Blackburn described the winning book as "thought-provoking, gut-wrenching and ultimately hopeful" while Emma Whittle, programming strategic lead and VOICEBOX producer at Cheltenham Literature Festival said: "Disappoint Me is a beautifully relatable exploration of love, identity and the challenges of staying true to yourself." Chair of the prize, Katie Fraser called Disappoint Me a "triumph".