historic love story set within the First World War has been named because the winner of the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize 2023.

In Memoriam, by Brooklyn-based author Alice Winn, was described as “comfortingly classic yet daringly original” by judges.

Winn was introduced because the winner of the prize at a night ceremony on the Waterstones flagship bookshop in Piccadilly on Thursday.

Voted for by Waterstones booksellers, the prize consists of £5,000 and the promise of ongoing dedication to the winner’s writing profession.

It is a very gorgeous feat of fiction which manages to be directly desperately heart-shattering and filled with hope, and comfortingly basic but daringly unique.

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Inspired by outdated clippings from a pupil newspaper, In Memoriam traces the love story between two troopers, while meditating on the tragedies of battle and the valuable sanctuary that may be present in deep human connection.

Bea Carvalho, head of books and campaigns at Waterstones, says: “We were all blown away by Alice’s powerful and emotive storytelling, and intimate command of her epic historical canvas.

“It is a truly stunning feat of fiction which manages to be at once desperately heart-shattering and full of hope, and comfortingly classic yet daringly original.”

Winn grew up in Paris and was educated in British boarding faculties, happening to acquire a level in English literature from Oxford University.

She now lives in Brooklyn, New York, the place she writes screenplays.

In Memoriam was the e-book I wrote nearly accidentally, after I had determined to cease losing my time writing unpublishable novels. This is a completely joyful and sudden consequence.

Winn mentioned: “In Memoriam was the book I wrote almost by accident, after I had decided to stop wasting my time writing unpublishable novels.

“This is a wholly joyful and unexpected result.

“It was inspired by the student newspapers from my old school during the First World War, and I wanted it to be a quick and hopeful read despite the bleak subject matter.”

Winn fended off competitors from 5 different shortlisted writers for the prize; Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, Jacqueline Crooks, Michael Magee, Cecile Pin and Colin Walsh.

Last yr’s winner of the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize, The Rabbit Hutch by Tess Gunty, was instantly propelled into the bestseller chart.

The novel went on to win each the 2022 National Book Award for Fiction and the Barnes and Noble Discover Prize – and has since additionally been optioned for display screen.