Japanese-born Kazuo Ishiguro has won the Nobel Prize for Literature for uncovering “the abyss beneath our illusory sense of connection with the world,” the Swedish Academy said on Thursday on awarding the 9 million crown ($1.1 million) prize.

The award marks a return to a more mainstream interpretation of literature after the 2016 prize went to American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan.

The Swedish Academy stunned the world in 2016 when it awarded the Nobel Literature Prize to U.S. counter-culture icon and rock star Bob Dylan.

The first singer-songwriter to win the prestigious prize, the rock legend didn’t comment on his Nobel for several weeks and then snubbed the formal prize ceremony in Stockholm.

The Academy is known for its cloak-and-dagger methods to prevent any leaks, resorting to code names for authors and fake book covers when reading in public.

Pundits therefore tried to dissect the Academy’s latest interests to guess the winner, while punters had a field day on betting sites. On October 4, novelists Haruki Murakami of Japan and Ngugi wa Thiong'o of Kenya had the lowest odds on numerous sites. They were followed by Canada's Margaret Atwood, whose novel The Handmaid's Tale was recently made into a well-received TV series, and Israel’s Amos Oz.

Related Topics