AN author has won an international award for his debut novel, which he poignantly dedicated to his late brother and the Daily Echo's former production chief, Chris Parnell.

Edward Parnell's The Listeners, a tale of family secrets, grief, love and loss, was joint-winner of the 2014 Rethink New Novels Competition.

Soon after Edward won the award, Chris, who first joined the Echo in Bournemouth in1998 and worked his way up to head of multimedia production for Newsquest Dorset, was diagnosed with terminal cancer.

Sadly, he passed away in October last year aged 46.

Edward, who grew up in Lincolnshire and now lives in Wymondham in Norfolk, said: “Although my brother never got to handle the physical printed book, he was a great champion of The Listeners and did get to see the final proofs.

“I hadn’t told him, so when he read the dedication on his computer screen he was really touched.”

Edward began writing the book, which is set in an isolated west Norfolk village over a momentous weekend in May 1940, while studying for an MA on a creative writing course at the University of East Anglia.

As the prize for his award, Rethink Press published the novel, which is now available to buy on Amazon in paperback, hardback and on Kindle, and at various UK bookshops.

Edward said: “It’s taken a lot of work and a lot of rewrites, but it’s great to finally see the novel in print. I’m really thrilled that Rethink have chosen to publish The Listeners.”

Nature also plays a strong role in the book, which reflects Edward’s lifelong interest in wildlife and previous employment as a press officer at BirdLife International and the Norfolk Wildlife Trust.

He said: “Growing up in the stark landscape of the Lincolnshire Fens, I always loved visiting my grandmother’s house, which was in a small village near Swaffham.

"With magical birds like the barn owl that quartered the nearby meadow and local tales of bottomless pits haunted by the devil, the surrounding woods and fields were, to me, gothic places full of mystery and possibility."

Lucy McCarraher, managing editor of Rethink Press, said: “The judges all found The Listeners a beautifully written, atmospheric story, which paints a compelling picture of family life and of a strained rural community trying to come to terms both with its own past and the rapidly escalating Second World War."

She added: “Our 2014 winners, Edward Parnell and Carol McKee Jones, are exciting new novelists who we are thrilled to publish."