We’re delighted to announce the HWA Crown Awards longlists for 2023: 36 books celebrating the best in historical writing, fiction and non-fiction, published during 2022–2023. There are three awards categories: HWA Gold Crown, HWA Non-fiction Crown, and HWA Debut Crown.
Here are the longlisted books and what our judges say about them.
The books longlisted for the HWA Crown Awards for 2023 are:
Gold Crown Award 2023 longlist
River Spirit by Leila Aboulela (Saqi)
1890s Sudan. A compelling, urgent, necessary and masterfully told story. All the more valuable for its uncompromising voice and control of craft. Immersive and fascinating.
Bad Relations by Cressida Connolly (Viking)
From the battlefields of Crimea down to the present day, generations of the Gale family navigate traumatic bereavements and the scars they leave behind on the living. Epic in theme yet delicately written, Bad Relations is a haunting exploration of loss, memory and history that stays with you long after the final page.
Trust by Hernan Diaz (Picador)
A brilliantly sharp and cool story of one of the most spectacular periods in American history, its structure and psychology as clever and ruthless as a tycoon’s empire before — and after — the Wall Street Crash.
The Colour Storm by Damien Dibben (Michael Joseph)
A vivid, richly evocative trail of romance, ambition and intrigue through the paint-spattered studios and marble halls of Renaissance Venice. Dibben writes as though he possesses a sixth sense, and an eye that observes with the grace, energy and, yes, colour of the painters he captures so well on the page. Beautiful, emotional, thrilling.
The Weather Woman by Sally Gardner (Head of Zeus)
Set in Regency England, in a world where the supernatural collides with scientific developments, this glittering jewel of a novel tells the story of Neva Tarshin, who is born with the gift of predicting the weather. Using her skill to gain mobility and social independence at a time when most young women had no option but to marry, the orphaned Neva defies the restrictions of her gender and in doing so embarks on some dangerous adventures. Charismatic, magical, with fascinating characters, The Weather Woman is the work of a talented writer at the height of her powers.
Spear by Nicola Griffith (Tor)
Griffith delivers on an impossible challenge: taking the all to familiar Arthurian saga and makes it fresh again, with a captivating hero and expert myth-making. Beautifully written and constructed.
The Walled Garden by Sarah Hardy (Manilla Press)
Young wife Alice Rayne struggles to reconnect with her traumatised husband returned from the Second World War and seeks solace in returning her neglected Suffolk garden to life. Powerful and moving, The Walled Garden explores the damage wrought by war and the resilience of the human spirit.
The Dance Tree by Kiran Millwood Hargrave (Picador)
Kiran Millwood Hargrave creates an incredibly vivid and poignant tale of 1518 Strasbourg and the effects of faith, love, hope, and power. A beautifully-created set of characters find their way into your heart. Journey along with them as they face a multitude of events resulting in this remarkable, evocative narrative. The Dance Tree is a book that will remain with you, always.
The Great Reclamation by Rachel Heng (Tinder Press)
In this beautifully-written novel, the age-old life of Singapore’s kampongs is shaped by both visible and impossible forces, but when the Japanese invade Ah Boon and Siok Mei must survive in a completely changed world.
The Chosen by Elizabeth Lowry (Riverrun)
A beautifully-written study of Thomas Hardy’s first marriage which explores grief and regret in an incredibly human way. Lowry’s prose is powerful and compelling and demonstrates not just a love of Hardy’s work but also real insight into the tales we tell ourselves to mask our frailties and delusions.
A Wild & True Relation by Kim Sherwood (Virago)
Devon smuggler Tom West takes an orphan girl aboard his ship disguised as a boy, their lives entwined and haunted by the death of her mother. Generations of writers explore the legend they became in a vivid adventure, propulsively written. Brutal, wild, unforgettable.
Dark Earth by Rebecca Stott (4th Estate)
A spellbinding tale of two sisters fighting for their survival in a post-Roman London where violence and superstition stalk their every move. Filled with folklore and myth and evocative world-building, this is an immersive and endlessly vivid novel.
The HWA Gold Crown Award judges are: Emma Darwin (chair), Theodore Brun, Essie Fox, Catherine Hokin, Miranda Malins, Amy McElroy and Sunny Singh.
Non-fiction Crown Award 2023 longlist
The Treasuries: Poetry Anthologies and the Making of British Culture by Clare Bucknell (Head of Zeus)
A wonderfully compelling book that draws you into the fascinating, largely unexplored world of anthologies. Bucknell grounds these collections historically and shows how, over centuries and in different ways, anthologies have been used by so many groups in society to share ideas and to influence.
The Siege of Loyalty House by Jessie Childs (The Bodley Head)
Sumptuously thick in exquisite and meticulously researched detail, The Siege of Loyalty House allows the reader to see, hear, smell, and feel the Civil War era as never before. Jessie Childs skilfully transports us between a microhistory of Basing House in Hampshire and the broader canvas of 17th-century England — and the globalising wider world — in this sometimes gory, but always enjoyable and remarkable book.
Woman’s Lore: 4,000 Years of Sirens, Serpents and Succubi by Sarah Clegg (Head of Zeus)
Contemporary myths surrounding mermaids, sirens and demons are taken by the horns in this compelling book. Clegg reveals that these often terrifying figures are actually rooted in women-centred ritual activity from the ancient past and have accompanied us — and been transformed — over millennia to the present day.
Courting India by Nandini Das (Bloomsbury)
A revelatory account of England’s first diplomatic mission to India in the early 17th century, told with great finesse and scholarly heft. A global history with global appeal.
The Captain’s Apprentice by Caroline Davison (Chatto & Windus)
A classical composer’s search for authentic English folk music evolves into a powerful and poignant story of working-class life, culture and memory at the turn of the 20th century. ‘Microhistory’ at its very best.
China After Mao by Frank Dikötter (Bloomsbury)
In Frank Dikötter’s truly expert hands, the complexity of the Chinese political system and transformation of China’s economy is laid bare for the reader in lucid, gripping prose. Careful with the facts, mined from archives across the country, and unafraid to bust a few myths, China after Mao reveals the blood, sweat, tears — and gambles — that made a superpower.
Command: The Politics of Military Operations from Korea to Ukraine by Lawrence Freedman (Penguin)
The strategy of war from Korea in 1950 to present-day Ukraine. An excellent history by a first-class historian. This will be the standard work for years to come.
The Age of Uncertainty by Tobias Hürter, translated by David Shaw (Scribe UK)
The story of the creation of modern physics between 1895 and 1945 told through biography and the interaction of physicists with each other. An ambitious history of a different kind of reality, thrillingly told.
After the Romanovs by Helen Rappaport (Scribe UK)
After the Russian revolution thousands of emigres arrived in Paris, eager to make a new life but deeply attached to their homeland. Helen Rappaport tells their stories in a gripping book that conveys the plight and the possibility of the migrant experience.
Super-Infinite by Katherine Rundell (Faber)
Magnificent. If you want to know what the word metaphysical really means, and why John Donne was its greatest exponent, turn to Katharine Rundell’s fascinating portrait of his metamorphosis from lover to priest.
The Holocaust: An Unfinished History by Dan Stone (Penguin)
In this important — and unsettling — book, Dan Stone uncovers the story of the Holocaust well before and far beyond the Nazi death camps. He lays bare the reality of the many other peoples who brutalised and murdered Jews across Europe in a tale of endless horror that many will be unfamiliar with and everyone should read.
The Dress Diary of Mrs Anne Sykes by Kate Strasdin (Chatto & Windus)
Challenging the notion that women’s fashion is not a serious subject for history, Kate Strasdin’s enthralling prose takes us from Lancashire to Indonesia and back again as she traces the fragments of a lost Victorian life.
The HWA Non-fiction Crown Award judges are: Jagjeet Lally (chair), Jad Adams, Sushma Jansari, Jacqueline Riding and Ros Taylor.
Debut Crown Award 2023 longlist
Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati (Michael Joseph)
Ancient Greece comes to life in this thrilling tale of power and prophecies, of hatred and love. A fresh, powerful story which showcases the life of a remarkable woman in wonderful prose.
The New Life by Tom Crewe (Chatto and Windus)
Set against the backdrop of the Oscar Wilde trials, this is a fascinating, immersive story of bravery and love with a great sense of place and time – a beautiful read from the first page to the last.
Theatre of Marvels by Lianne Dillsworth (Penguin)
Following Zillah, a brilliant and ambitious hero, on a search for justice through London society, this is a wonderfully immersive and evocative story of Victorian theatre with a compelling plot.
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (Doubleday Books)
An exploration of women’s lives in the 1960s, combining food, science, and celebrity. Wholly original and entertaining, funny and quirky and full of attitude.
Weyward by Emilia Hart (The Borough Press)
Moving between the stories of three women across five centuries gives a unique angle to this bold, witchy story. Gripping from first page to last.
The Lost Diary of Samuel Pepys by Jack Jewers (Moonflower)
An ingenious premise proves a wonderful way of bringing Samuel Pepys to life. An absorbing mystery which immerses the reader into an unsettled and fascinating period.
The Secret Diaries of Charles Ignatius Sancho by Paterson Joseph (Dialogue Books)
Superbly written, the story plunges us into Georgian London vividly bringing the man and his times to life. A heartfelt, touching, witty, and eye-opening read.
The Secrets of Hartwood Hall by Katie Lumsden (Michael Joseph)
Gripping Victorian gothic, deliciously written and with a superb sense of place, this fresh, compelling take on the ‘governess in a lonely house’ novel sends shivers up the spine.
Death and the Conjuror by Tom Mead (Head of Zeus)
Murder and magic in 1930s London. A great homage to Golden Age mysteries and a fresh angle on them, this is a witty, enthralling and atmospheric page turner with a fabulous setting and a striking cast of characters.
The Circus Train by Amita Parikh (Sphere)
A circus travelling across Europe in the shadow of World War II is the setting for this brilliantly realised, captivating story. Flowing prose and impeccable structure create a novel which is illuminating, immersive, and magical, too.
River Sing Me Home by Eleanor Shearer (Headline Review)
A personal and poignant quest across the 19th-century Caribbean. It reads like a classic, a truly powerful story, rich in atmosphere, assured, enlightening and very moving.
Bonny & Read by Julie Walker (Hodder and Stoughton)
A wonderful story of two female pirates and their adventures on the high seas. Rip-roaring adventure with a gripping story, unforgettable characters and absorbing details of pirate life.
The HWA Debut Crown Award judges are: Ayo Onatade (chair), Dan Bassett and Susan Heads.
Congratulations to all the longlisted authors!
And thank you to our hard-working judges. Their work isn’t over yet; each list has to be narrowed down to six for the shortlist and then to just one winner.
HWA Crown Award shortlists announced: 18 October, 2023
HWA Crown Award winners announced and awards ceremony: 22 November, 2023
Follow #HWACrowns23 on Twitter/X
The HWA Dorothy Dunnett Short Story Competition longlist will be announced on 27 September, 2023.
