2025 Culture Award

A sweeping memoir of the author's journey from her youth in India to her life in America. Stories of her English style schooling are juxtaposed with the immigrant experience. Her reflections on identity, culture, and traditions reveal the secret chemistry of belonging in a global, everchanging world...
The untold story of love, friendship and betrayal inspired by Freddie Mercury’s escape from the Zanzibar revolution of 1964.

No Woman Left Behind is the story of how one woman leaves Madison Avenue to tackle the global maternal health crisis head on. Through vivid firsthand accounts of surgeons toiling in remote corners of Africa & Asia, we see inside the fight to restore hope to some of the world's most vulnerable women.

When siblings Kya and Neo step through a mysterious archway in their Grandmother's shed, they are transported to magical realms, each tied to a lesson from the Thirukkural. Facing thrilling quests, mind-bending trials, and deep self-discovery, they must unravel ancient wisdom to find their way home.
When a burnt-out pharmaceutical ad writer with bipolar disorder learns her estranged father is dying, she travels to Bangkok—where she was born and he now lives—in search of answers. What follows is a reckoning with identity, grief, and the messy work of making peace with the people who shaped her.
Years after betrayal tore them apart, Anya pursues ambition in New York City while Zayed chases a forgotten legacy. When their worlds collide, hidden truths emerge and survival means choosing between the past that haunts them and the future they never dared to want. - One Day meets Normal People
Sisu: The Power to Rise chronicles my journey from overcoming personal trauma to becoming an RCMP officer, only to face systemic harassment and betrayal within the force. This is a story of resilience, speaking out, and finding the courage to leave behind a career that once held so much promise.
In 1945, a commander defies orders to save a young man sent to a suicide mission. Seventy years later, his estranged brother returns to uncover the truth and face the past.
A sweeping story of love and war, laced with dark humour, based on the true account of an African serviceman who became a POW to the Japanese but was rescued by his boyhood friend and returned to his loved ones before America bombed Tokyo in WWII.

The Passion, is not your typical love story. It’s a journey through the depths of wild emotions, unexpected turns, and intense personal transformation. Blending fantasy with the raw edges of real life, this novel challenges our understanding of love, ambition, and the power of inner fire. It’s about...
A bright Tanganyikan girl called Redemption finds unexpected humour on the tropical island of Zanzibar until revolution and the threat of conjugal slavery separate her from the man she has grown to love. A tale of betrayal, courage and salvation.
A mage prodigy attempts to rescue a beloved woman from a beast while navigating the uncharted waters of his new marriage to a fellow young mage.

In Wicked Shadow Whispers, the line between salvation and damnation is heartbreak-thin. Whether it’s a new race born from the climate crisis, a lovesick vampire, a lover come back from the dead, or a cursed Halloween prank, each story pulses with raw emotion, eerie magic, and high-stakes decisions.
Three Americans seeking an Ayahuasca cleanse and fun in the sun, meet in the Mexican Riviera and unexpectedly become trapped in a subterranean cave system by an ancient trickster spirit in a psychedelic adventure. They must conquer their demons to escape or remain stuck in the Mayan Underworld...

Seven women, bound by tradition yet driven by desire, reveal the untold truths of love and intimacy in their African homeland. In a world where passion collides with cultural expectation, their voices weave a tale of longing, defiance, and the silent battles fought behind closed doors. This novel...

A rebellious daughter and her traditional mother find connection and understanding through cooking, turning food into a bridge between their worlds.
On her journey into adulthood, a devout Muslim woman navigates the delicate balance between her family’s expectations, sexual fulfilment, and the idea of marrying for love.