An extract from There's a Monster Behind the Door by Gaëlle Bélem, translated by Karen Fleetwood and Laëtitia Saint-Loubert
In 1980s’ Réunion, monsters lurk beneath the surface of vibrant island life, ready to pounce at the slightest disturbance
Gaëlle Bélem
Award-winning author Gaëlle Bélem is from La Réunion
She has published two novels – Un monstre est là, derrière la porte and Le fruit le plus rare – in 2020 and 2023 respectively. She also teaches Latin, History and Geography to secondary school students and works as an associate judge in a juvenile court. There’s a Monster Behind the Door, the English translation of Un monstre est là, derrière la porte, was longlisted for the International Booker Prize 2025.
In prose that throbs with verve, humour and pain, this story set on the island of Réunion brings to life a narrator beset with the history of her family and her people
— The 2025 judges on There's a Monster Behind the Door
All nominated books
In 1980s’ Réunion, monsters lurk beneath the surface of vibrant island life, ready to pounce at the slightest disturbance
