The Kitschies, the annual tentacle-themed prize for works containing elements of the “speculative and fantastic,” have announced the winners for the most “progressive, intelligent, and entertaining” fiction of 2017.
The hand-crafted tentacle trophies were awarded at a ceremony held at London’s Star of Kings on April 9. The winners included a science fiction tale in a future of mercenaries and interstellar monopolies; the tale of sisters reunited and the struggle to believe memories over reality; and an epic narrative following three generations of beekeepers from the past, present, and future.
Below find the complete shortlist, with winners in bold.
The Red Tentacle (Novel), judged by Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Leila Abu El Hawa, Joshua Idehen, Ewa Scibor-Rylska, and Alasdair Stuart:
- Winner: The Rift by Nina Allan (Titan)
- Black Wave by Michelle Tea (& Other Stories)
- We See Everything by William Sutcliffe (Bloomsbury)
- Fever by Deon Meyer, translated by L. Seegers (Hodder)
- City of Circles, by Jess Richards (Hodder)
The Golden Tentacle (Debut), also judged by Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Leila Abu El Hawa, Joshua Idehen, Ewa Scibor-Rylska, and Alasdair Stuart:
- Winner: Hunger Makes the Wolf, by Alex “Acks” Wells (Angry Robot)
- How Saints Die by Carmen Marcus (Harville Secker)
- Age of Assassins by RJ Barker (Orbit)
- The Black Tides of Heaven by JY Yang (Tor.com Publishing)
- Mandelbrot the Magnificent, by Liz Ziemska (Tor.com Publishing)
The Inky Tentacle (Cover Art), judged by Dapo Adeola, Sharan Dhaliwal, Jet Purdie, and Stuart Taylor:
- Winner: The History of Bees by Maja Lunde, design by Jack Smyth and the S&S Art Department (Scribner)
- The Land of Neverendings by Kate Saunders, illustrated by David Dean (Faber and Faber)
- Black Wave by Michelle Tea, illustrated by Rose Stafford at Print Club, design by Hannah Naughton (& Other Stories)
- The Real-Town Murders by Adam Roberts, jacket design and illustration by Black Sheep (Gollancz)
- Our Memory Like Dust by Gavin Chait, design by Richard Shailer (Transworld)
Congratulations to all of the winners!
