Hysterical named Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards Winner
Today, Amber Dean is pleased to announce Hysterical has been named a winner in the 28th annual Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards.
HYSTERICALPRESSLGBTQ+
6/5/20261 min read
Hysterical named 2025 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards Winner
Today, Amber Dean is pleased to announce Hysterical has been named a winner in the 28th annual Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards.
Foreword Reviews, a book review journal focusing on independently published books, announced the winners of its INDIES Book of the Year Awards today. These awards celebrate the outstanding books published in 2025 by small, independent, and university presses. You can view all of the winners here:
https://www.forewordreviews.com/awards/winners/2025/
“Each year, as our number of entrants increases and diversifies, the job of narrowing each genre category to a select few finalists gets harder,” notes Editor-in-Chief Michelle Schingler. “But that also makes the judges’ ultimate selections all the more exciting. We so look forward to their final choices, and we are so proud to celebrate this year’s exemplary slate of winners”
“Winning a Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Award is an incredible honor. When I released Hysterical, I never imagined this raw, unapologetic, self-published horror novel would receive recognition from such a respected awards program. To see it honored in the LGBTQ+ category is especially meaningful and deeply validating to me as a queer-identifying author. This is a major milestone in my writing career, and I am profoundly grateful to everyone who helped bring Hysterical to life, and to every reader, reviewer, and supporter who continues to champion this story.”
- Amber Dean, Author of Hysterical
Since 1998, Foreword Reviews has provided trade book reviews of the best titles from independent presses. In print, and online, its FOLIO: award-winning design and editorial content makes the magazine a favorite among librarians, booksellers, and readers—an excellent resource when it comes to purchasing books. Foreword INDIES and the fee-for-review Clarion service complement our online content and print magazine, helping to showcase diverse independent presses and their authors for over 26 years. The Library Insights Summit, held pre-ALA, is a collaborative, day-long conference co-hosted by Foreword, which provides publishers and librarians space to network and learn from each other.