Irish author Paul Murray has been awarded Novel of the Year for his book The Bee Sting, at this year's An Post Irish Book Awards.

Winners of this year’s Irish Book Awards also include Liz Nugent, Mark Moriarty, Róise Ní Bhaoill, Roz Purcell, Mark O’Connell, Sophie White, Paul Murray, Katriona O’Sullivan, Colin Walsh and Sarah Binchy.

The awards, which have been running since 2006, were held in Dublin's Convention Centre last night, seeing winners from 20 categories recognised for their 2023 literary efforts. Also amongst the winners were Eimear Ryan, Claire Keegan, Peter Donnelly, Sarah Webb and Lucinda Jacob, as well as Moïra Fowley.

Katriona O' Sullivan took home two prizes for Poor, winning Biography of the Year and Listeners' Choice Award, whilst chef and new Irish Times recipe columnist Mark Moriarty, won Cookbook of the Year with Flavour.

Likewise, Halfway up the Stairs in Greystones, Co Wicklow was crowned Bookshop of the Year.

An incisively crafted Irish tragicomedy, Murray's novel is the multi-faceted story of the well-to-do Barnes family, charting the dysfunctional and hapless trajectories of their lives. Having been picked as Eason's novel of the year, The Bee Sting is also shortlisted for the Booker prize, alongside fellow Irish writer Paul Lynch, who was also present at last night's ceremony for his dystopian novel Prophet Song.

📚 The WINNER of the 2023 @easons Novel of the Year is...

'The Bee Sting' by Paul Murray (Hamish Hamilton / @PenguinIEBooks)#APIBA #ReadersWanted pic.twitter.com/963yOB6ooc

— An Post Irish Book Awards (@AnPostIBAS) November 22, 2023

Murray described the award as a "dream come true."

"What a wonderful honour, I mean the shortlist this year was just out the door, the talent that we have in this country is astonishing, it is really world class," Mr Murray said, adding that "it means so much to be recognised in your own country".

Ahead of attending the Booker Prize Ceremony in London on Sunday he said: "I'll say it to you straight up, this is probably the craziest week of my life, two award ceremonies, that is not a typical week for me."

He said he was "delighted to be travelling (to the Booker Prize Ceremony) with my friend [author] Paul Lynch."

Amongst the awarded writers, Professor Roy Foster was also presented with the Bob Hughes Lifetime Achievement Award. Having published an extensive amount of significant works on Irish history, including a two-part biography of WB Yeats and his books on Irish history include The Revolutionary Generation in Ireland, 1890-1923; Foster has also taught at some of the world's most prestigious universities, such as Oxford, Princeton and London.

This year’s Irish Book of the Year will be announced on RTÉ One on December 6th, which will look at the final six books up for the overall award, as selected by a  judging panel including Madeleine Keane, Sinead Moriarty, Rick O’Shea, Cyril McGrane, Elaina Ryan and Tomás Kenny.

Libraries and bookshops showcase the shortlisted books and winners in each category are decided by a combination of an online public poll, where thousands of readers vote, and a voting academy poll.

Amongst the nominees for this year are Martin Doyle for Dirty Linen: The Troubles in My Home Place; Ross O’Carroll Kelly for Camino Royale, Emer McLysaght, nominated with Sarah Breen, for their book Aisling Ever After and Alan Titley, whose work Ag dul i bhfad was nominated for Irish Language Fiction Book of the Year.

Of the annual An Post Awards, Chairperson Brenden Corbett said in a statement:

“The An Post Irish Book Awards has established itself as a highlight of the Irish literary calendar and we are immensely proud of what we’ve achieved through a broad coalition of readers, writers, publishers, sponsors, booksellers and librarians.

"Many Irish books have been published during the last year, not only by established writers but also by a number of incredibly talented newcomers who are a wonderful addition to the Irish literary scene," he continued. "We are delighted to congratulate all of this year’s winners of the An Post Irish Book Awards.

A full list of winners for the An Post Irish Book Awards 2023:

Eason Novel of the Year

The Bee Sting – Paul Murray (Hamish Hamilton, Penguin Random House)

TheJournal.ie Best Irish-Published Book of the Year

Sunday Miscellany: A Selection 2018 – 2023 – Edited by Sarah Binchy (New Island Books)

Bookselling Ireland Biography of the Year

Poor – Katriona O’Sullivan (Sandycove)

Cookbook of the Year

Flavour – Mark Moriarty, photography by Cliodhna Prendergast (Gill Books)

Bookstation Lifestyle Book of the Year

The Hike Life – Roz Purcell (Black and White Publishing)

Dubray Non-Fiction Book of the Year

A Thread of Violence – Mark O’Connell (Granta Books)

Eason Sports Book of the Year in association with Ireland AM

The Grass Ceiling – Eimear Ryan (Sandycove)

Library Association of Ireland Author of the Year

Claire Keegan (Faber and Faber)

Irish Independent Crime Fiction Book of the Year

Strange Sally Diamond – Liz Nugent (Sandycove)

Sunday Independent Newcomer of the Year

Kala – Colin Walsh (Atlantic Books)

National Book Tokens Popular Fiction Book of the Year

My Hot Friend – Sophie White (Hachette Books Ireland)

Foras na Gaeilge Irish Language Fiction Book of the Year Award

Imram agus Scéalta Eile – Róise Ní Bhaoill (Éabhlóid)

The Last Word Listeners’ Choice Award

Poor – Katriona O’Sullivan (Sandycove)

New Voices: The An Post Writing Prize

The Border / Кордон – Valeriia Shmyrova

International Education Services Teen and Young Adult Book of the Year, in honour of John Treacy

Black and Irish: Legends, Trailblazers and Everyday Heroes – Leon Diop and Briana Fitzsimons, illustrated by Jessica Louis (Little Island Books and Black and Irish)

Specsavers Children’s Book of the Year – Junior

The President’s Dog – Peter Donnelly (Gill Books)

Specsavers Children’s Book of the Year – Senior

I Am The Wind: Irish Poems for Children Everywhere – Edited by Lucinda Jacob and Sarah Webb, illustrated by Ashwin Chacko (Little Island Books)

Writing.ie Short Story of the Year

Such A Pretty Face – Moïra Fowley (Eyes Guts Throat Bones, Orion)

Listowel Writers’ Week Poem of the Year

Vectors in Kabul – Mary O’Donnell

An Post Bookshop of the Year

Halfway up the Stairs – Greystones, Co. Wicklow