Clara Usón has been awarded the 2025 Dashiell Hammett Prize for the best crime novel written in Spanish for Las fieras, as part of the Semana Negra de Gijón. The jury praised the novel for its ability to rethink the conventions of the genre, crafting a precise narrative structure that gives real-life figures a powerful literary depth.
Set during the most violent years of the Basque conflict, Las fieras follows the parallel stories of a young ETA militant and the teenage daughter of a member of the GAL (Antiterrorist Liberation Groups). The novel offers a critical and nuanced perspective on two opposing forms of violence, delving into themes such as identity, loyalty, and inherited trauma.
The jury — Eva Cosculluela, Luisa Etxenike, Javier Sánchez Zapatero, and Álex Martín Escribà — highlighted the novel’s stylistic boldness and its ability to subvert expectations while maintaining narrative tension.