Sutton author wins prestigious national award

Michelle, who writes under the penname D Michelle Gent has won The Frederick Forsyth award for Fiction for her novel Ash and the Faceless Man

Run by The People’s Book Prize, this is a coveted award, held annually and voted on by the public.

A former Nottinghamshire county councillor for Sutton Central, Michelle Gent was thrilled to win the award - the second time she has been honoured for her writing after he book Ash and the Favour Man won an award in 2024.

Michelle was born and raised in Derbyshire before moving to Sutton with her husband to start a family.

After three decades in Sutton working as a door supervisor in nightclubs in Mansfield and Nottingham, running her own business, and later, a political career, Michelle has a wealth of experiences to draw on for writing and books.

Whilst working in one of the nightclubs in Mansfield, an idea came to her for her first book, Deadlier… Than The Male and she has been writing ever since.

Michelle is recovering from a life-altering cancer diagnosis, treatment and operation, and has retired to France.

Michelle said she was delighted that her second book in her ‘Ash’ series has won the Frederick Forsyth award for Fiction and has plans for the final book in the series to be written in the coming year.

Over the years, she has written and published seven novels, a collection of short stories and a set of seven short stories on e-book.

You can buy her books at the usual outlets, and signed copies directly from the publisher Gingernut Books at gingernutbooks.co.uk