Browne, N.M. (Nicki M. Browne, Nicky Matthews Browne)

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Browne, N.M. (Nicki M. Browne, Nicky Matthews Browne)

PERSONAL:

Born in Burnley, Lancashire, England; daughter of a painter and teacher (father) and a teacher (mother); married; children: four. Education: Attended New College, Oxford and King's College, Cambridge; Manchester Business School, M.B.A.

ADDRESSES:

Home—London, England. Agent—Mic Cheetham Literary Agency, 11-12 Dover St., Green Park, London W1S 4LJ, England. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Writer, novelist, and educator. Worked as a teacher and as an oil company executive.

WRITINGS:

YOUNG ADULT

Warriors of Alavna, Bloomsbury Children's Books (London, England), 2000, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 2002.

Warriors of Camlann (sequel to Warriors of Alavna), Bloomsbury Children's Books (London, England), 2000, Bloomsbury Children's Books (New York, NY), 2002.

Hunted, Bloomsbury Children's Books (New York, NY), 2002.

Basilisk, Bloomsbury Children's Books (New York, NY), 2004.

The Story of Stone, Bloomsbury Children's Books (New York, NY), 2005.

The Spellgrinder's Apprentice, Bloomsbury Children's Books (London, England), 2007, published as Silverboy, Bloomsbury Children's Books (New York, NY), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

N.M. Browne was born in the north of England of Welsh parents, both of whom were teachers. Browne was a teacher for a while, but she chose to be a writer while raising her family. Critics have praised the imaginative plots of her novels and their characters.

In Warriors of Alavna, the first of Browne's young-adult novels, two very dissimilar British students are engulfed in a yellow fog while on a field trip. When they emerge on the other side, they find themselves in Britain at the time of the Roman conquest, and with special powers. Ursula, six feet tall and a loner, and Dan, a popular athlete and student, join a Celtic tribe that has lost its women and children in a massacre. The teens use their new powers to help the tribe defeat the Romans. Ursula must adapt to a time when women's roles were restricted, and her ability to change shape allows her to sometimes take the form of a male warrior. Dan becomes a killer called a "berserker," and although the book is written for young readers, it contains considerable violence, as noted by Linda Saunders in School Librarian. Saunders also wrote that the book is "fast paced" as well as "well written and original." A reviewer for Books for Keeps noted, however, that the "inappropriate use of contemporary language" some- times mars the flow of the narrative. A Kirkus Reviews contributor praised the secondary characters and called the plot "great," adding that Ursula and Dan develop skills and mature as the novel progresses. "The world-building," continued the reviewer, "in which ecological, historical, and cultural elements both support and energize the plot, is masterful."

In Warriors of Camlann, which a Kirkus Reviews contributor described as "that rarity: a sequel more polished and engrossing than its predecessor," Ursula and Dan have been separated but are reunited in the fifth century, the age of Camelot. They find that they have lost some powers but gained new ones. School Library Journal contributor Patricia A. Dollisch wrote that "Browne has created a strong, fierce young woman and an introspective, sensitive, young man" and praised the story as "fascinating and thrilling."

Browne's American debut, Hunted, is a fantasy that begins in the present time, when Karen, the protagonist, is assaulted by a gang of girls. As she loses consciousness in the arms of her grandmother, she imagines herself to be a fox attacked by a vicious pack of dogs. She awakens as a fox in medieval times, where she is rescued by a shepherd named Mowl. He believes her to be a supernatural being known as an arl, a creature that can survive only twenty-four days without a transformation back into its original state. Mowl is also in danger because of his father's alleged treason, and they escape together to find an Adept who can cause the necessary change in Karen. A Publishers Weekly contributor wrote that "the mythology and culture of Mowl's realm are fascinating, and the fight scenes, escapes, and revelations will swiftly propel readers through to the conclusion." A Kirkus Reviews critic called this third Browne novel "clever and compelling."

Basilisk is about the two worlds above and below the city of Lunnzia. The anarchically minded "Combers," such as the character Rej, are free from oppression but must live underground in order to remain so, while the "Abovers" work as servants of the ruler Arkel and the regime that runs the city. Donna, an assassin who relies on poisons, is assigned to work aboveground as the scribe of the evil Melagiar and is then given charge of Rej. When Donna and Rej meet, they discover that they share the same vivid dream of flying dragons. Together they try to understand the dream and the fearful weapon that may destroy both worlds. A contributor to Kirkus Reviews called Basilisk "suspenseful and rather original, marred only by pedestrian language." Amanda Craig wrote in the London Times that Browne "has the gift of making you care about her teenaged protagonists, to feel for them as they struggle for courage and love and also to see them as intensely attractive presences."

The Story of Stone weaves together the lives and actions of three very distinct personalities in a tragic history that spans many generations and hundreds of years. Jerat is a member of the Bear-Men, a fierce and powerful group that serves as the warriors of their agriculturally based society. When Jerat's brother becomes gravely ill, there seems to be nothing that can save him. In desperation, Jerat kidnaps Moon-Eye, a member of the mystical Night Hunters who live in the lush forests. Jerat hopes the legends are true: that a captured Night Hunter can be compelled to cast a supremely magical spell that will fundamentally remake the world. The magic is released, but Moon-Eye's growing love for her captor and other factors cause the spell to go wrong, creating catastrophic events that change their familiar world in unexpected ways. Hundreds of years in the future, would-be archaeologist Nela is drawn to a small black stone unearthed at one of her father's digs. When she touches this stone, she is overwhelmed with scenes from Jerat and Moon-Eye's world. Soon, she learns their story and discovers that repercussions from Moon-Eye's spell can still be felt in her day. This "densely written fantasy" is "lushly detailed and mythic in scope," commented Jennifer Hubert in Booklist. Reviewer Steve Engelfried, writing in School Library Journal, named The Story of Stone a "fully realized fantasy," and remarked that "compelling writing and vivid characters make immersion in these carefully constructed worlds quite enjoyable." A Kirkus Reviews critic remarked that "strong writing and a setting containing three vividly nuanced invented societies will carry readers along" through a "complex fantasy" story.

Silverboy, published in England as The Spellgrinder's Apprentice, tells the story of Tommo, a fifteen-year-old magician's apprentice whose task has been to grind the mystical spellstones from which magic is derived. The spellstones, however, are highly toxic, and few apprentices survive to become spellgrinders themselves. Tommo already displays many of the deleterious characteristics of exposure to spellstones: his skin has taken on a phosphorescent silver glow, and he has early symptoms of the quivers, the condition that proves fatal to most apprentices. After seeing his friend die of the quivers, Tommo flees his apprenticeship, determined not to become another victim of spellstone magic. His flight is difficult, and he is soon near death from lack of food and water. Tommo is saved, however, by Akenna, the daughter of an abusive fisherman. They join forces to escape the terrible conditions of their lives, but soon realize their troubles are much greater than they expected. When both Tommo and Akenna begin displaying magical powers, they realize they will attract the attention of the tyrannical Protector, who will go to murderous lengths to remove magical threats from his realm and retain his own iron grip on power. Soon, Tommo and Akenna have gathered unexpected allies and are involved in a struggle to change the very structure of the land in which they live. Fantasy fans "will find a spellbinding drama here," remarked a Children's Bookwatch contributor. London Times reviewer Amanda Craig called the novel a "striking and addictive fantasy," while Kay Weisman, writing in Booklist, remarked that the story's complexity and plot twists will "keep fantasy buffs glued to the pages until the book's happy ending."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, April 15, 2004, Jennifer Mattson, review of Basilisk, p. 1450; October 15, 2005, Jennifer Hubert, review of The Story of Stone, p. 40; February 1, 2007, Kay Weisman, review of Silverboy, p. 41.

Bookseller, January 23, 2004, review of Basilisk, p. 28.

Books for Keeps, November, 2000, review of Warriors of Alavna, p. 27.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, July-August, 2004, Timnah Card, review of Basilisk, p. 457; March, 2006, Heather Morrison, review of The Story of Stone, p. 303; May, 2007, Cindy Welch, review of Silverboy, p. 361.

Children's Bookwatch, May, 2007, review of Silverboy.

Kirkus Reviews, June 1, 2002, review of Hunted, p. 801; September 1, 2002, review of Warriors of Alavna, p. 1305; May 15, 2003, review of Warriors of Camlann, p. 746; April 15, 2004, review of Basilisk, p. 391; September 15, 2005, review of The Story of Stone, p. 1022.

Kliatt, July, 2002, Paula Rohrlick, review of Hunted, p. 7.

Library Media Connection, August, 2007, Lu Ann Staheli, review of Silverboy, p. 66.

Locus, June, 2002, Carolyn Cushman, review of Hunted, p. 35.

Magpies, March, 2006, Lyn Linning, review of The Story of Stone, p. 38.

Publishers Weekly, July 1, 2002, review of Hunted, p. 80; April 19, 2004, review of Basilisk, p. 62.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 21, 2004, Sue Bradford Edwards, review of Basilisk, p. E3.

School Librarian, winter, 2000, Linda Saunders, review of Warriors of Alavna, p. 211; winter, 2005, Chris Brown, review of The Story of Stone, p. 210; summer, 2007, Tricia Adams, review of The Spellgrinder's Apprentice, p. 100.

School Library Journal, August, 2002, Beth Wright, review of Hunted, p. 182; July, 2003, Patricia A. Dollisch, review of Warriors of Camlann, p. 124; June, 2004, Hillias J. Martin, review of Basilisk, p. 135; November, 2005, Steven Engelfried, review of The Story of Stone, p. 128; May, 2007, Cheri Dobbs, review of Silverboy, p. 129.

Times (London, England), April 3, 2004, Amanda Craig, review of Basilisk, p. 17; March 3, 2007, Amanda Craig, "Psst, Want to Join a Conspiracy?," review of The Spellgrinder's Apprentice.

Times Educational Supplement, May 5, 2000, review of Warriors of Alavna, p. 23.

Voice of Youth Advocates, October, 2005, review of The Story of Stone, p. 318; April, 2007, Kathleen Beck, review of Silverboy, p. 60.