Of the 20 books on this year's Orange prize longlist, seven are from first-time authors, according to the Guardian. Kirsty Lang, chair of the judges, said, "There were lots of big names in contention this year and stiff competition for places, so we were surprised and excited to find so many new voices that fought their way through."
The Orange prize longlist includes:
- The Blood of Flowers by Anita Amirrezvani
- The Room of Lost Things by Stella Duffy
- The Keep by Jennifer Egan
- The Gathering by Anne Enright
- The Clothes on Their Backs by Linda Grant
- The Master Bedroom by Tessa Hadley
- Fault Lines by Nancy Huston
- Sorry by Gail Jones
- The Outcast by Sadie Jones
- The Voluptuous Delights of Peanut Butter and Jam by Lauren Liebenberg
- When We Were Bad by Charlotte Mendelson
- In The Dark by Deborah Moggach
- Mistress by Anita Nair
- Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O'Neill
- The Bastard of Istanbul by Elif Shafak
- The Septembers of Shiraz by Dalia Sofer
- The End of Mr Y by Scarlett Thomas
- Monster Love by Carol Topolski
- The Road Home by Rose Tremain
- Lottery by Patricia Wood
The shortlist for the £30,000 (US$59,912) prize will be announced April 15, and this year's awards ceremony will take place in London's Royal Festival Hall on June 4.