Nancy Affleck McKenzie (born February 19, 1948) is an American author of

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which a fictional plot takes place in the Setting (narrative), setting of particular real past events, historical events. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literatur ...

. Her primary focus is

Arthurian legend The Matter of Britain (; ; ; ) is the body of medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and Brittany and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur. The 12th-century writer Geoffr ...

Publishing career

McKenzie published ''The Child Queen'' in 1994, and its sequel, ''The High Queen'', a year later. ''The Child Queen'' won "Discovery of the Year" from

Del Rey Books Del Rey Books is an imprint (trade name), imprint of the Random House Group, a division of Penguin Random House. The imprint was established in 1977 under the editorship of Judy-Lynn del Rey and her husband, author Lester del Rey. Today, th ...

in 1993, and the Washington Irving Medal from Westchester Library Association, NY the following year. The two novels were combined into '' Queen of Camelot'' in 2002. McKenzie wanted to rediscover Guinevere in her true fifth century environment. "I decided to write about Guinevere because I never understood her. I wanted to make her into someone a 20th-century person could understand," McKenzie said in an interview. Two sequels followed, '' Grail Prince'' and ''Prince of Dreams'', following by two

young adult In medicine and the social sciences, a young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence, sometimes with some overlap. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages ...

novels, ''Guinevere's Gift'' and ''Guinevere's Gamble''. ''Prince of Dreams'' tells the story of

Tristan and Iseult Tristan and Iseult, also known as Tristan and Isolde and other names, is a medieval chivalric romance told in numerous variations since the 12th century. Of disputed source, usually assumed to be primarily Celtic nations, Celtic, the tale is a ...

, and takes place after King Arthur's death. One reviewer wrote of the novel, McKenzie "explores the vulnerability of women in a violent and patriarchal society". McKenzie recently stated "Thus far, my published books are all Arthurian adventures/ romances, but I am deeply interested in ancient Egyptian culture and hope to write an archaeologically up-to-date life of

Akhenaten Akhenaten (pronounced ), also spelled Akhenaton or Echnaton ( ''ʾŪḫə-nə-yātəy'', , meaning 'Effective for the Aten'), was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh reigning or 1351–1334 BC, the tenth ruler of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, Eig ...

in the near future".

List of works

* ''The Child Queen'' (1994) * ''The High Queen'' (1995), combined with ''The Child Queen'' and republished as '' Queen of Camelot'' in 2002. * '' Grail Prince'' (2003) * ''Prince of Dreams'' (2004) *''The Chrysalis Queen Quartet'' series: :*''Guinevere's Gift'' (2008) :*''Guinevere's Gamble'' (2009)

Personal life

McKenzie was born in

Princeton Princeton University is a private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the Unit ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

to James G. and Callie K Affleck. She graduated from

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It is the oldest member of the h ...

in 1970, and achieved her

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

from

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, with additional facilities in Boston and Grafton, as well as Talloires, France. Tufts also has several Doctor of Physical Therapy p ...

in 1973. She married Bruce Gordon McKenzie in 1972, and they have three daughters. McKenzie resides in Danbury,

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. In between her novels, McKenzie ran a freelance desktop publishing business from 1989 to 2000. She has listed Mary Stewart as one of her favorite authors, along with

George Eliot Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wrot ...

and .

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McKenzie, Nancy 1948 births Living people Writers from Danbury, Connecticut Writers from Princeton, New Jersey Novelists from Connecticut Novelists from New Jersey Writers of modern Arthurian fiction American historical novelists 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American women writers Mount Holyoke College alumni Tufts University alumni American women historical novelists