‘An absolute dream come true’: Rupa Mahadevan wins Britain’s biggest crime prize 2024
Joffe Books is delighted to announce the winner of the Joffe Books Prize 2024: Rupa Mahadevan, for her addictive and atmospheric psychological thriller, The Goddess of Death. She receives a two-book publishing deal with Joffe Books, a £1,000 cash prize and a £25,000 audiobook deal from Audible for the first book. This is Britain’s biggest crime prize.
The Joffe Books Prize for Crime Writers of Colour was established in 2021 to actively seek out writers from communities that are underrepresented in crime fiction and support them in building sustainable careers, while simultaneously discovering brilliant new talent to join our bestselling list.
This year, submissions included gritty police procedurals, classic cosy crime whodunnits and ambitious sci-fi thrillers.
The judges, including A.A. Chaudhuri, bestselling author of She’s Mine, literary agent Gyamfia Osei from Andrew Nurnberg Associates, Emma Grundy Haigh, former editorial director at Joffe Books and Jasmine Callaghan, commissioning editor, considered each manuscript in terms of both the strength of the writing and marketability. The judges unanimously awarded the Joffe Books Prize 2024 to Rupa Mahadevan.
From the judges: “This is a tense, fast-paced psychological thriller, with overlapping layers of intrigue and flawed narrators — all of whom have secrets. The eerie setting is fantastic and really adds to the undercurrent of unease and build-up of suspense. A truly gripping thriller with a fresh edge that sets it apart.”
Rupa Mahadevan grew up on the southern coast of India and has called Scotland home for over 15 years. She currently lives in Edinburgh with her husband and two children. When she is not grappling with Excel in her day job, she loves to read and dream up stories of her own. Her passion for becoming a published author is one step closer thanks to Joffe's Books and their commitment to promoting underrepresented authors.
Rupa says: “Winning the Joffe Books Prize is an absolute dream come true. As a writer, especially a writer of colour, it’s so easy to let insecurities take over. This win has given the writer in me the biggest validation, and I couldn’t be more grateful. I’m deeply honoured and thrilled to be working with Joffe Books, whose dedication to promoting underrepresented voices has made this incredible milestone possible.”
Jasmine Callaghan says: “It has been such an honour to have had the opportunity to read the fantastic submissions from so many amazingly talented writers. From the get-go, Rupa’s gripping psychological thriller stood out for its strong hook, tension-filled narrative and unreliable, well-nuanced cast of characters, and the judges’ decision was unanimous. Congratulations, Rupa!”
The synopsis reads: “A reunion of friends during the Hindu Dolls festival on the stormy island of Oban, Scotland, takes a deadly turn when a stabbed doll is found under a goddess statue. Leela (An outsider who has recently married a member of the group) is sure it foretells death.”
