The announcement was greeted with cheers at the glittering award ceremony at the City of Manchester Stadium. Over 400 young people from high schools, reading groups, libraries and homework centres, who had voted for their favourites, were there in force to rub shoulders with the shortlisted authors and find out who the outright winner would be.

Guest of honour was the Lord Mayor of Manchester, Cllr David Sandiford and the Lady Mayoress. The event was compered by Reading Champion and basketball star Paul Sleem, with performance from Mike Garry.

Three of the six shortlisted writers were there to hear last year’s winner, best-selling and hugely popular author Jeremy Strong, announce this year’s winner.

Heavily pregnant Ally Kennen had to stay at home in Bristol, as her baby was due the following day. Accepting the award on her behalf was her publisher Marion Lloyd, who then used her mobile to call Ally from the stage.

“I’m thrilled and honoured that my book, Beast, has been awarded this prize. I am so excited and it means so much to me, especially because this is my first novel. I want to thank the Manchester Book Award team for their hard work and also the young people who read, liked and voted for Beast. I will be celebrating for a very long time!” Ally later said.

The novel tells the story of Stephen, a boy with a dangerous secret. For four years he has kept a terrifying creature locked up in a remote hiding place. Once just a vicious little baby, it is now a powerful predator, big and hungry enough to break free from its rusting cage. Stephen has other problems too: a mother he never sees, and a father he wishes were dead. His foster family is scared of him – he’s not a boy who plays by the rules.

Beast was chosen as winner by reading group members and young library customers across the city. Here’s what some of them said:

“Wow ! What a super cool book! You’ll wanna cry, you’ll wanna laugh – it’s a book every teenager can relate to. It’s the best book I’ve ever read!” Zoneera.

“BEAST was just my fave book. I couldn’t put it down.” Abbie.

“It is an amazing book. I recommend this to everyone.” Lewis.

Big thanks go to all the young people who worked together to choose a brilliant shortlist and a worthy winner.

The Manchester Book Award is organised by Manchester Library and Information Service, and designed to create a reading community of young people in the city. The story began with 24 of the best teenage fiction titles published in the UK this year. Reading groups in schools, homework clubs and libraries read and debated, then whittled this list down to six finalists:

• Helen Dunmore for Ingo
• Catherine Forde for The Drowning Pond
• Alan Gibbons for Hold On
• Nigel Hinton for Until Proven Guilty
• Ally Kennen for Beast
• Nicky Singer for The Innocent’s Story

The shortlisted authors were delighted to receive framed copies of the prize-winning artwork from the cover design competition and hear review of their books from the prize-winning reviewers.

The cover design art winners were:

• Paige Pargeter, East City Library /Wright Robinson Sports College, for Ingo
• Liam McIntosh, Clayton Youth Centre / Wright Robinson Sports College for The Drowning Pond
• Zia James, Whalley Range High School for Until Proven Guilty
• Chloe Elliot, Parrs Wood High School for Beast
• Georgia McMahon, Parrs Wood High School for Hold On
• Madelaine Cole, Parrs Wood High School for The Innocent’s Story

And the winning reviewers were:

• Lily Ozanne, Chorlton High School for Ingo
• Qesma Mohammed, North Manchester High School for Girls for The Drowning Pond
• Aaron Yeatman – North City Library Homework Centre / North Manchester High School for Boys for The Innocent’s Story
• Shannon O’Toole – Wright Robinson Sports College, for Until Proven Guilty
• Mehak Kazmi – Whalley Range High School, for Hold On
• Zoneera Raja – Longsight Homework Centre (Whalley Range High School for Beast

Special awards were made to two lucky prize draw winners who read all 24 of the long-listed novels:

• Josie Howl, Chorlton High School and Simon Fidler, King David High School

And to…

• Amy Hughes from Parklands High
• Chelsea Yeatman from North City Library reading group (North Manchester High School for Girls)

...who were judged to have showed outstanding commitment and enthusiasm for the award scheme.