Browne Candidate [Paperback]

Nicole Givens Kurtz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2002

Aurora Browne begins her latest assignment with the Williams's as she has with every other assignment since she was sold into slavery at the age of eight by her mother. She performs her duties as a candidate, women who produce children for wealthy women who can not. When Browne meets Bain, the Williams's' butler, she learns of a world beneath New England Tre. It is a place of freedom. As her love grows for Bain, will she risk her life for freedom? The last attempt almost cost her life, and Browne has the scars to prove it.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The dialogue flows smoothly and the pace is steady throughout...BROWNE CANDIDATE is a wonderful choice." --Romance Readers Connection, 2002

"Browne Candidate is a very well written, downright chilling tale of a future that might one day be ours." --Simegen.com, 2001

"Kurtz has a talent for storytelling and for engulfing the reader. I couldn't put this one down..." --Escape to Romance, January 2002

From the Author

BROWNE CANDIDATE is my first venture into science fiction writing, and well, Aurora proves to be not only one of my most favorite characters, but one who continues to hide secrets from me. She is mysterious and still maintains a certain level of nobleness that thrawts each attempt to crumble her or make her weak.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 148 pages
• Publisher: Crystal Dreams Publishing (April 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591460255
• ISBN-13: 978-1591460251
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 6.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,048,825 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A bleak future but a good read, November 26, 2005

By 

constantread "constantread" (NM) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Browne Candidate (Paperback)

I was introduced to an author new to me with this book. One of very few African-American women writing speculative fiction, Nicole Givens Kurtz makes a grand debut. She takes us into a physically, politically and morally devasted world where most women are not valued except as babymaking machines and adjuncts to their husbands and most people are not free. Except that her lead characters are people of color, the world is reminescenet of the world of The Handmaid's story. The two women featured in this book are Aurora, who was sold into servitude by her mother and has since borne children for three women who were unable to produce, and Angel who is seeking to be fertilized even though she isn't ready to become a mother (to shore up her marriage). The two men who are featured are brothers: Boy toy Bain who is in the same household as Aurora and Ren who is a leader of the resistance.

Both women leave their situations: Aurora runs away with Bain (assisted by Ren) and Angel is kidnapped by Ren. this takes us into the world of the Resistance.

It's not hard to see why Aurora is attracted to the handsome Bain even though he seems somewhat immature. she can't really remember being cherished for herself and he says he loves her.

It is interesting to watch these women progress through the novel. But maybe the best thing about the book is that it is an action thriller populated by people we come to care about.

If you want to know what happens to these people, pick up the sequel, Zephyr Unfolding.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Bleak, Plausible Vision of the Future, November 25, 2005

By 

RaeLynn Blue "RaeLynn Blue" (Denver, CO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Browne Candidate (Paperback)

Browne Candidate by Nicole Givens Kurtz is a short shot of reality. With the onset of many diseaes and chemicals to both assist women with getting pregnant or not, I found the very real possiblities presented in this novel to be both hair-raising and slighlty frightening.

Although shorter than most novels, I did find the plot of Aurora and her lover, Bain, to be both classic and original at the same time. I was drawn into their world immediately, and found Aurora to be both a strange and very odd character. Not withstanding, her childhood was ripped from her, sold by her mother, and forced into a life of servitude, I would probably be very wierd myself.

Bain isn't as well rounded as Givens Kurtz's other characters, or his counterpart, Aurora. However, she falls for him, and I can see why. He's handsome, her tutor to more worldly things and the sole male in the house outside the "father." However he isn't your typical alpha male. His brother, Ren, who shows up later in the novel, appears to be fit that role.

I also enjoyed the comparions between Angel and Aurora. One who seeks to become pregnant, and one who does not wish to be so--one wealthy, one a slave. When they finally come together, it is a lesson for us all on relations and the reality that we perceive and the one we hide from.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, and recommend it to others seeking some ethnic science fiction thrillers. I also happily recommend it's sequel, Zephyr Unfolding, which expands upon the Resistance, and focuses more on Angel, Ren, and what happens to them after the results of this novel. Givens Kurtz demonstrates maturity and a more sophisticated level of writing in the sequel to this book.

However, this being her first novel, it was a finalist in the EPPIE's best science fiction category, and as a finalist for best science fiction novel in the Dream Realm Awards.

And I agree. There is good stuff in this novel. So, if you're looking for a quick, suspenseful, fun, and outright solid science fiction novel. This is one to try.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Dark Tale of Love and Action, December 6, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Browne Candidate (Paperback)

Author Nicole Givens Kurtz's tale of a dark future is easily one of the best reads this year. Aurora Browne's ordeal as a candidate, women utilized as surrogates under the guise of religion, is one that is harrowing and somberly realisitc.

If you're looking for some excellent new fiction, this novel may be for you. It's a quick read, but well worth it.