STEF Penney arrived as a new author last year, but she gained real prominence last week when she won the Costa Book Award, previously the Whitbread Book Award. Her debut novel is set in 1867 in the Canadian outback and revolves around a murder and the sea

STEF Penney arrived as a new author last year, but she gained real prominence last week when she won the Costa Book Award, previously the Whitbread Book Award.

Her debut novel is set in 1867 in the Canadian outback and revolves around a murder and the search for a 17-year-old accused of the killing.

It is more remarkable as all the author's research on the period and the Canadian setting was carried out in the British Museum.

And it's not just a crime novel. There is much adventure and suspense along with human emotions which make the book a worthy award-winner.