Chilean novelist Antonio Skarmeta is this year's winner of the Planeta prize, one of the most coveted literary prizes in the Spanish-language world.
Skarmeta won the award, which carries a $699,000 cash prize, for his latest novel, "El Baile de la Victoria" ("Victory Dance"), which tells a love story during the dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet in his native Chile.
The award, decided by a jury of writers selected by the Planeta publishing group, was announced Wednesday at a reception in Barcelona, Spain.
Spanish writer Susana Fortes was chosen as runner-up for her upcoming novel "El Amante Albanes" ("The Albanian Lover").
Skarmeta achieved international fame with "The Postman," a book that depicts the friendship of a mail carrier and the well-known Chilean poet Pablo Neruda.