It's time to unveil the winners! But first and foremost, a huge thank-you goes to the judges for their hard work.

✨ Horror/Paranormal | Pixelmum (pixelmum )
✨ Science Fiction | Miya (MiyaHikari )
✨ Fantasy | Ren (backto541 ) & Fiadh (WolfHusky88 )

They actually finished judging all the shortlisted entries around 10th January! How amazing is that?

The only reason we didn't post the results sooner is because of the hosts' personal circumstances that delayed mini category judging. We do apologize for that!

And now, congratulations to the winners of the Imaginaria Realm Awards! There was tough competition, so this is a massive achievement that you should be proud of! The judges loved your work!

HORROR/PARANORMAL WINNER

★ Cocytus by Katie (empiresofwater )

Review:

This was an incredibly difficult contest to judge because the quality of the entries was so high. In the end I chose this book simply because the sense of dread began in the first few sentences, and then the suspense kept building and building, compelling me to keep reading. Even the lighter character-study scenes have a sense of ominous foreboding woven throughout them, supported by complex and memorable characters, each with their own fears and burdens to bear. The Cocytus herself seems like a major character, complicit in the dark dealings of Captain Danby. Rich language is used masterfully, with really careful motifs and imagery serving to illuminate the characters' struggles, the horrors on board, and adding to the sense of grim destiny for this doomed ship and her crew. I found myself unable to stop reading this and I would gladly recommend this book to anyone!

HORROR/PARANORMAL HONORABLE MENTION

★ Heart of Sparrow by Ann (annkreeves )

SCI-FI WINNER

★ Furnace (Hunter-Killer #1) by Jamie Harris (words_are_weapons)

Review:

Furnace is an action-packed sci-fi that I thoroughly enjoyed. The author has constructed a vivid world and brought it to life (metaphorically though, as I understand Rychter to be a dusty, drab brown type of place). While this is often not the case when I read, I found Ryke to be a likeable protagonist. Despite his frustration, Ryke still extends a helping hand to a stumbling side character who later steals his spotlight. His determination paired with the realistic plot twist won me over—though Amelia may snipe the spotlight in my heart later too with her dead-eye aim. The stakes are high in piloting machines that'll kill you in a few years, the pacing doesn't let up, and the writing style is clear and concise. This book is perfect for fans of Ender's Game or Shingeki no Kyojin and is one I soon plan on adding to my list of completed reads. Kudos to the author for a well-written story.

SCI-FI HONORABLE MENTION

★ Velocity To Never Exceed by Rachel Reiss (RachelReissAuthor )

FANTASY WINNER

★ The Whispers of Petals by Kara Carreira(KaraCarreira )

Review:

I think that your book was a truly wonderful read on all fronts and I'm glad that I got to read and judge your work! To start, I really loved your cover because I thought it was eye-catching and pretty. The colours are *great* and overall I think all the elements came together to give us something beautiful. In that regard, I think you worked well with your designer to create something that absolutely matched the sense of mystery and magic that is contained within your book's title. Moreover, I also really appreciated how well your title, The Whispers of Petals, pertained to the overall story. Not only does it have that fantastic fantasy vibe, but I also felt that it naturally nudged readers into continuing on with the rest of your book.

In terms of writing, I think you write fantastically. When judging, I don't think I came across anything that I would have wanted to nit-pick, or any suggestions to improve your work. I felt that your sentences flowed seamlessly, and once I started reading, I quickly found myself at the end of your chapter. So in that sense, it was engaging! Additionally, as someone who enjoys being able to ground themselves in a scene, I particularly liked how nicely you wove in all your descriptions, from the soaring buildings in the city, all the way to the fine detail of a shimmering lark's wing. Furthermore, I really loved how you made use of sensory details to not only expand on the environment around your character but also give insight into what sort of person Esmera is. I believe that you have many strong moments in your book, far too many for me to list out here, but sentences such as "she wanted to feel the storm's fingers against her skin, reminding her that she was real," and "her eyes belonged to the stranger, and that scared her," packed a punch and therefore continued to pull readers into the world of your story, as well as leading us to care for Esmera's hopes and determination for her future. Additionally, I also felt that you did a tremendous job of balancing the world of magic with the realities of our world. I liked it. I think there was a real sense of wonder when reading about the lark and its gifts, and you presented it in a way that just felt right. But I quite enjoyed how it made me think of how magic would look if we were to come across it. Overall, I think your pacing was good. You give readers enough time to properly absorb the information they are presented with, and not once did I feel bored or desperate to move on.

 I like Esmera, and I do hope that she will find a place where she not only feels less alone but also truly has people she is comfortable being with by her side. I am no expert, but I liked the way that you touched on her past. Esmera's decisions weren't easy, and moments such as the comparison between rings, birds, and cages resonated and brought home the strength that Esmera has within her. In terms of how her backstory was presented to readers, I thought it flowed organically because each memory was fueled by a tangible experience or sense in the present day. In other words, it felt seamless, and I never found myself stumbling to understand where I was in the text. Finally, the interactions between your characters (or the two characters I got to meet while reading for the contest) felt smooth. Particularly, I felt that the dialogue flowed naturally between the two, and I think I got a good sense of a budding relationship (in terms of friendship) and understanding. Secondly, I loved how you took that moment and gave readers a chance to continue learning about your world-building without feeling like we were being handed a dictionary. Again, it was engaging, and the mystery of a place that even the great Google doesn't know about was something to make the brain cogs turn.

Overall, I loved getting to read The Whispers of Petals, and I definitely think it's a novel that I would find myself returning to sometime in the future!

FANTASY HONORABLE MENTIONS

★ Whisper of Blade by Miya Hikari (MiyaHikari )

★ Throne of Dragonix by Ankita Pal (Baqkns )

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Congratulations again! What happens now?

The winner stickers will be sent to your inbox with a WeTransfer link. The link will expire in 7 days, so make sure you download within that time. The interview form will also be there. We will hand out the other prizes soon.

For the character art prize, please head over to the Prize Claiming page and fill out the form!