NTSIKA KOTA, SOFIA MARIAH MA, CECIL BROWNE, DIANA MCCAULAY AND MARY ROKONADRAVU 

This collection is titled after the overall winning entry by Eswatini’s Ntsika Kota – a tense, frightening portrait of a killer. A young hunter in a rural village ruthlessly plots his rise; fascinated by the moment of death, whether of beast or human, he is alert to every gesture, every opportunity …

The other winning stories – by Sofia Mariah Ma (Singapore), Cecil Browne (England), Diana McCaulay (Jamaica) and Mary Rokonadravu (Fiji) – feature climate change-wracked oceans, a child of escaped slaves turned detective and struggling communities where harsh realities force good people into bad decisions.