The Fertile Earth by Ruthvika Rao won the £10,000 (about $13,370) Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize, sponsored by the Wilbur & Niso Smith Foundation. The book is only the second debut novel to win the award.
Judge Costanza Casati commented: "The Fertile Earth is an epic, ambitious story of adventure, class and family. Written in a language so beautiful that it tears at your heart, this book is fearless in the way in which it tackles the complexities of the human soul, and how our personal choices often affect the great political changes of our countries. A book that is hard to forget."
Prize founder Niso Smith said: "I am so impressed by the honesty of The Fertile Earth, with its cruel, proud and hopeful characters. But mostly I admire the story itself, which helps us to see a part of a country and its people at a time of transformation. Ruthvika's writing and the scale of this book make it soar. She takes us from village to city, letting us experience a rich and vivid southern India in both its magical and unforgiving forms. The voices of Krishna, Vijaya, Ranga and Sree are so real they will live on in readers' minds forever. Huge congratulations to Ruthvika!"
Five writers were selected as winners of this year's New Voices award, designed to unearth and support aspiring authors to take a fledgling idea from work-in-progress to complete first draft. Each winner receives a year of mentorship and one-to-one editorial guidance. The winners of the Author of Tomorrow short story award for young writers aged 21 and under were also named.