Karyn Monk is a Canadian author of historical

romance novels A romance or romantic novel is a genre fiction novel that primarily focuses on the relationship and romantic love between two people, typically with an emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending. Authors who have contributed to the developme ...

. Her books have appeared on the ''USA Today'' Bestseller List, and have won numerous awards.

Biography

Personal life

Monk is the fourth child of John and Lorraine (Spurrell) Monk. Because her parents had expected a boy, they had not chosen a girl's name, and decided to name their new daughter after the delivery room nurse. Neither parent was sure how to spell the name "Karen," though, leading to the unique spelling they chose. Monk graduated from university with a degree in history. She planned to work in

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a Product (business), product or Service (economics), service. Advertising aims to present a product or service in terms of utility, advantages, and qualities of int ...

and in her spare time perform in local musicals. While auditioning for a part in an original musical called "Last Tango in Fargo North Dakota," she met her future husband, Philip, who was that show's

music director A music director, musical director or director of music is a person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert ...

. The marriage produced three children: Genevieve (b 1998), Carson (b 2001), and Adelaide (b 2005). The family lives in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Writing career

With her husband's support, Monk soon left her job in fashion advertising to pursue her dream of writing. After two years of work on her first manuscript, she obtained an agent, who eventually sold her book, "Surrender to a Stranger," to Bantam. The novel was later nominated for Best First Book by ''Romantic Times''. A ''USAToday'' bestselling author, Monk has received critical acclaim for her sensual, powerful novels. She has been awarded many honors, including the Aspen Gold, Barclay Gold, the National Readers' Choice Award, and a ''Romantic Times'' Career Achievement Award. Monk took a break from writing, beginning in 2005, to spend time with her three young children.

Awards and recognition

*1995 - Romantic Times nominee for Best First Historical Romance, ''Surrender to a Stranger'' *1998 - Romantic times nominee for ''The Witch and the Warrior'' *2003 - Romantic Times Career Achievement Award for Historical Adventure *2004 - Daphne du Maurier Award winner for Mystery/Suspense for ''My Favorite Thief'' *2004 - Second place in the Barclay Gold Award for ''My Favorite Thief'' *2004 -

Romance Writers of America Romance Writers of America (RWA) is an American non-profit writers' association founded in 1980. Its mission is to "advance the professional and common business interests of career-focused romance writers through networking and advocacy and by inc ...

RITA Award finalist for ''My Favorite Thief'' *2004 - Golden Quill Award finalist for ''My Favorite Thief'' *2004 - Aspen Gold Award finalist for ''My Favorite Thief'' *2004 - Orange Rose Award finalist for ''My Favorite Thief'' *2004 - Booksellers' Best Award finalist for ''My Favorite Thief'' *2005 - Aspen Gold Award winner for ''Every Whispered Word'' *2005 - Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense winner for ''Every Whispered Word'' *2005 - Romantic Times Nominee, ''Every Whispered Word''

Bibliography

Single novels

*''Surrender to a Stranger'', 1994 *''The Rebel and the Redcoat'', 1996

Warriors Series

#''Once a Warrior'', 1997 #''The Witch and the Warrior'', 1998 #''The Rose and the Warrior'', 2000

Kent Family Saga Series

#''The Prisoner'', 2001 #''The Wedding Escape'', 2003 #''My Favorite Thief'', 2004 #''Every Whispered Word'', 2005

Anthologies in collaboration

*"Saving Celeste" in the anthology ''MY GUARDIAN ANGEL'', 1995 (with Sandra Chastain, Kay Hooper, Susan Krinard and Elizabeth Thornton)

References

External links

Karyn Monk Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monk, Karyn Living people Canadian women novelists Canadian romantic fiction writers Place of birth missing (living people) Canadian women romantic fiction writers 20th-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian novelists 20th-century Canadian women writers 21st-century Canadian women writers 1960 births