Katherine Roberts is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

author, best known for her fantasy trilogy

The Echorium Sequence The Echorium Sequence is a fictional young adult fantasy trilogy by Katherine Roberts. The trilogy comprises ''Song Quest'' (1999), ''Crystal Mask'' (2001), and ''Dark Quetzal'' (2003) and follows the tales of The Echorium - the singers located on ...

. She spent most of her childhood in

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

and

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. She is the daughter of Derek Robert, an electrical engineer, and Dorothy Margaret, a teacher.

Early life

Katherine Roberts spent most of her childhood in

and

where she was born.Katherine Roberts' biography at
/ref> She first entered education at an infant school in

Redruth Redruth ( , ) is a town and civil parishes in Cornwall, civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. According to the 2011 census, the population of Redruth was 14,018 In the same year the population of the Camborne-Redruth urban area, ...

(

), later on joining the Oldway County Primary School in

Paignton Paignton ( ) is a seaside town on the coast of Tor Bay in Devon, England. Together with Torquay and Brixham it forms the unitary authority, borough of Torbay which was created in 1968. The Torbay area is a holiday destination known as the Engli ...

(

) and then moving onto

Torquay Grammar School for Girls Torquay Girls' Grammar School is a Selective school, selective grammar school for girls aged 11–18, in Torquay, Devon, UK. It is situated directly beside Torquay Boys' Grammar School, and became one of the first schools to achieve Humanities C ...

(also in

). She graduated with a first degree in Mathematics from the

University of Bath The University of Bath is a public research university in Bath, England. Bath received its royal charter in 1966 as Bath University of Technology, along with a number of other institutions following the Robbins Report. Like the University ...

. Following on from that, she has had numerous jobs associated with programming computers, looking after racehorses and a job in a pet shop.

Writing career

In 1999, her first book ''

Song Quest ''Song Quest'' is a fantasy novel by Katherine Roberts. It is the first book in The Echorium Sequence, followed by '' Crystal Mask ''and'' Dark Quetzal''. The novel was first published in 1999 by Chicken House as a hardback copy; later on in 20 ...

'' was published, winning the

Branford Boase Award The Branford Boase Award is a British literary award presented annually to an outstanding children's or young-adult novel by a first-time writer; "the most promising book for seven year-olds and upwards by a first time novelist." The award is s ...

for children. She later published ''

Crystal Mask ''Crystal Mask'' is a fantasy novel by English writer Katherine Roberts. It is the second novel in The Echorium Sequence, and it is the sequel to'' Song Quest''. The novel was first published in 2001 by the Chicken House. is set in the world ...

'' (2001) and ''

Dark Quetzal ''Dark Quetzal'' is a fantasy novel by British writer Katherine Roberts, first published in 2003 by The Chicken House. It is the final book in The Echorium Sequence and is the sequel to'' Crystal Mask'', set 11 years after the events of that b ...

'' (2003) which were both in the same series. In 2001, she published the first novel in The Seven Fabulous Wonders series called ''

The Great Pyramid Robbery The Seven Fabulous Wonders is a fantasy series by Katherine Roberts currently comprising seven novels based on the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World: ''The Great Pyramid Robbery'' (2001), ''The Babylon Game'' (2002), ''The Amazon Temple Quest'' ...

'', which the ''

Sunday Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet ...

'' said was "A terrific tale of plots, curses and evil forces set in ancient Egypt".Quotes on

br>
/ref> This was followed on with ''

The Babylon Game The Seven Fabulous Wonders is a fantasy series by Katherine Roberts currently comprising seven novels based on the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World: ''The Great Pyramid Robbery'' (2001), ''The Babylon Game'' (2002), ''The Amazon Temple Quest'' ...

'' in 2002, which was said to be "Incredible... adventures that twist and turn and will have you spellbound on every page," by the Children's Book of the Week, South Wales Evening Post.Quotes on

br>
/ref> The same year, the third book in the series, '' The Amazon Temple Quest'', was published, and in 2003, ''

The Mausoleum Murder The Seven Fabulous Wonders is a fantasy series by Katherine Roberts currently comprising seven novels based on the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World: ''The Great Pyramid Robbery'' (2001), ''The Babylon Game'' (2002), ''The Amazon Temple Quest'' ...

'' was also published. Following on from this, in 2004 and 2005, '' The Olympic Conspiracy'' and '' The Colossus Crisis'' were also published within the series. The series concluded in 2006 with the seventh book, '' The Cleopatra Curse''. Katherine Roberts has also produced other books such as ''

Spellfall Spellfall is a fantasy novel by English writer Katherine Roberts, published on 19 October 2000 by The Chicken House and aimed at pre-teens. Plot introduction The story concerns a 12-year-old girl named Natalie who is kidnapped by a wizard n ...

'', which ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' Children's Book of the Week said, "this magical and fantastical story from Roberts has lessons for real children about taking responsibility.",Quotes on ''

'

/ref> and its sequel ''Spell Spring'' (2016), and an epic novel about Alexander the Great from the horse's mouth '' I Am the Great Horse'' (2006). She mainly writes within the

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

genre. Since 2014, she has been a Royal Literary Fund Fellow in universities, helping students with their academic writing.

Bibliography

Katherine Roberts has written a range of books, mostly belonging to

and The Seven Fabulous Wonders series. She has also written several short stories.

The Echorium Sequence

* ''

'' (1999) * ''

'' (2001) * ''

'' (2003)

The Seven Fabulous Wonders

* ''

'' (2001) * ''

'' (2002) * '' The Amazon Temple Quest'' (2002) * ''

'' (2003) * '' The Olympic Conspiracy'' (2004) * '' The Colossus Crisis'' (2005) * '' The Cleopatra Curse'' (2006)

Pendragon Legacy

* '' Sword of Light'' (2012) * ''

Lance of Truth The English term lance is derived, via Middle English ''launce'' and Old French '' lance'', from the Latin '' lancea'', a generic term meaning a wikt:lancea#Noun">lancea'', a generic term meaning a spear">wikt:lancea#Noun">lancea'', a generic ...

'' (2012) * ''

Crown of Dreams A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

'' (2013) * ''

Grail of Stars The Holy Grail (, , , ) is a treasure that serves as an important Motif (narrative), motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miraculous healing powers, sometimes providing eternal ...

'' (2014) * ''Horse of Mist'' (prequel) (2014)

Earthaven

* ''

'' (2001) * ''Spell Spring'' (2016)

Other books

* '' I Am the Great Horse'' (2006) * ''Magical Horses'' (2009) * ''The Horse Who Would Be Emperor'' (2018) * ''Mythic & Magical'' (2011) * ''Weird & Wonderful'' (2012) * ''Heroic & Historical'' (2014)

Awards

* Raconteur Award (1995) - ''Across the Water'' * Story Cellar Award (1994) - ''Mars Take Seed Make Man'' * Grotesque Readers Award (1996) - ''Fatstock'' * Broadsword Fiction of the Year Award (1996) - ''Under the Eyemoon'' *

(2000) - ''

References

External links

Katherine Robert's website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Katherine English children's writers Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People from Redruth Writers from Torquay Place of birth missing (living people) People from Paignton Alumni of the University of Bath People educated at Torquay Grammar School for Girls