FOUR authors have been shortlisted for the Hall & Woodhouse Writing Prize at Dorchester Literary Festival.

Chosen from more than 70 entries, this year's selection is an eclectic mix, ranging from a collection of short stories set in locations across the world to a personal account of the massacre of Italian villagers by the retreating German army in 1944.

Paul Atterbury, co-director of the Dorchester Literary Festival, said: "This year’s books are particularly timely, with their themes of identity and acceptance. And we were delighted to note that, coincidentally, all four finalists are women. Our thanks go to our local judges and everyone who took the time to enter the competition originally."

Susmita Bhattacharya, who was born in Mumbai and now teaches contemporary fiction at Winchester University, powerfully explores themes of identity, loss and belonging in her short story collection, Table Manners. Notions of acceptance and grief come to the fore in The Chicken Soup Murder, the first novel by Maria Donavan who was born and raised in Bridport.

Emma Timpany, author of Travelling in the Dark, moved to England from New Zealand in the 1990s and tells the story of a woman coming to terms with her past, while Dee La Vardera, in The Road to Civitella, tells the true story of the two British officers who brought a devastated Italian village back to life.

The four books will now be read by a leading literary agent and publisher. The winner will then be announced on Thursday, July 18 at an event hosted by Hall & Woodhouse at the Duchess of Cornwall in Poundbury. Best-selling author Minette Walters will be the guest of honour, presenting the £1000 prize.