Out Of Africa: Nigerian-British Writer Oyinkan Braithwaite Shortlisted For 2025 Nero Book Awards
Braithwaite has been shortlisted in the Fiction category for her new novel Cursed Daughters. The full shortlist, featuring books nominated in multiple categories, was published on the Awards website on 20th November 2025. This year’s shortlisted books offer a vast range of subjects and themes for readers of all tastes. Histories of all kinds feature, […]
Black News 
Braithwaite has been shortlisted in the Fiction category for her new novel Cursed Daughters.
The full shortlist, featuring books nominated in multiple categories, was published on the Awards website on 20th November 2025.
This year’s shortlisted books offer a vast range of subjects and themes for readers of all tastes. Histories of all kinds feature, including: forgotten crafts and culture, under-recognised groups who have made great contributions to British life, crucial periods in recent geopolitical history, forgotten artists, and historic prejudices – as well as more pressing contemporary issues such as the small boats crisis and the climate.
Braithwaite is the best-selling author of My Sister The Serial Killer (2018), which has now been translated into 30 languages and sold millions of copies. It won the 2019 LA Times Award for Best Crime Thriller, the 2019 Morning News Tournament of Books, the 2019 Amazon Publishing Reader’s Award for Best Debut Novel, and the 2019 Anthony Award for Best First Novel. It was also shortlisted for the 2019 Women’s Prize for Fiction, and longlisted for both the 2019 Booker Prize and the 2020 Dublin Literary Award.
Braithwaite has published several short stories over the last few years for a variety of publications and platforms, including Audible and McSweeney’s. She also wrote a novella The Baby Is Mine in support of adult literacy. Alongside her work as a novelist, she is also a screenwriter with two projects in development for television and one feature film, the latter an adaptation of her first novel.
Her book Cursed Daughters (published by Atlantic Books) tells the story of a curse handed down from generation to generation, ruining families and breaking hearts. After falling in love with a handsome boy she saves from drowning, daughter Eniiyi must finally confront the family history or escape the mysterious fate that befell her aunt. The Fiction judges for this year’s awards — Sarah Gwonyoma, Sinéad Gleeson and Chrissy Ryan — have described it as “a mesmerising literary ride packed with superstition, humour and love.”
The mission of the Nero Book Awards is to point readers of all ages and interests in the direction of outstanding books and writers. Uniquely celebrating books across multiple genres, the Awards feature shortlists and winners across four categories — Children’s Fiction, Fiction, Debut Fiction and Non-Fiction — and culminates with one book being crowned overall winner of the Gold Prize Book of the Year. The Nero Gold Prize winner will receive £30,000, while category winners will receive £5,000 each.
Established as a not-for-profit organisation, the Nero Book Awards are run by the independent, family-owned coffee house group, Caffè Nero, in partnership with the Booksellers Association and Brunel University of London.
“I’m hugely impressed by the quality of the books in this year’s shortlists. It really showcases the talent and quality of writing across the country. I know the judges found each category very strong and selecting the shortlists took a lot of debate. When I set up these Awards it was to celebrate great writing and great books to read and to showcase books which you would recommend to friends, family and people you know. This list more than does that. This is the strongest list of books the Nero Book Awards has seen yet and is indicative of the Awards going from strength to strength”, said Gerry Ford, Founder and CEO of Caffè Nero, commenting on this year’s shortlist.
The category winners will be announced on 13th January 2026. The 2025 Nero Gold Prize will be announced live at a ceremony in London on 4th March 2026, when the Book Of The Year will be selected from the four category winners.
