Nicholas Cornwell (born 1972), better known by his pen name Nick Harkaway, is a British

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire ...

and commentator. As Harkaway, he is the author of the novels '' The Gone-Away World'', ''Angelmaker'' (which was nominated for the 2013

Arthur C. Clarke award The Arthur C. Clarke Award is a British award given for the best science fiction novel first published in the United Kingdom during the previous year. It is named after British author Arthur C. Clarke, who gave a grant to establish the award i ...

), ''Tigerman'', and ''

Gnomon A gnomon (; ) is the part of a sundial that casts a shadow. The term is used for a variety of purposes in mathematics and other fields. History A painted stick dating from 2300 BC that was excavated at the astronomical site of Taosi is the ...

''; and a non-fiction study of the digital world, ''The Blind Giant: Being Human in a Digital World''. Cornwell has also written two novels under the pseudonym Aidan Truhen.

Life

Harkaway was born Nicholas Cornwell in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...

. He is the son of Valérie Jane Eustace and author David Cornwell, famous under his pen name

John le Carré David John Moore Cornwell (19 October 193112 December 2020), better known by his pen name John le Carré ( ), was a British and Irish author, best known for his espionage novels, many of which were successfully adapted for film or television. ...

. Harkaway was educated at the independent University College School in North London, and

Clare College, Cambridge Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. It was refound ...

, where he studied philosophy, sociology and politics and took up Shorinji Kan Jiu Jitsu. He worked in the film industry before becoming an author.

Fiction

''The Gone-Away World''

'' The Gone-Away World'' (2008) is Harkaway's first novel. Originally titled ''The Wages of Gonzo Lubitsch'', it concerns a number of ex-special forces operatives turned truckers who are hired to perform a dangerous mission in a post-apocalyptic world.

''Angelmaker''

''Angelmaker'' (2013) is a spy thriller detailing a clockmaker's attempt to stop a Cold War era doomsday weapon. ''Angelmaker'' won Best Novel in the 2013

Kitschies The Kitschies are British literary prizes presented annually for "the year's most progressive, intelligent and entertaining works that contain elements of the speculative or fantastic" published in the United Kingdom. Awards and criteria The Ki ...

and was also nominated for that year's

''Tigerman''

''Tigerman'' (2014) concerns a superhero origin story on an impoverished and doomed tropical island.

''Gnomon''

''Gnomon'' (2017) deals with a state that exerts ubiquitous surveillance on its population. A detective investigates a murder through unconventional methods that leads to questions about her society's very nature.

''The Price You Pay'' (as Aidan Truhen)

''The Price You Pay'' (2018) concerns a drug dealer's quest for revenge on those who took out a contract on his life.

''Seven Demons'' (as Aidan Truhen)

''Seven Demons'' (2021), a sequel to ''The Price You Pay'', is a heist thriller about an attempt to rob a high-security bank in Switzerland.

Non-fiction

''The Blind Giant'' (2012), Harkaway's first work of non-fiction, dealt with the effect of digital change on society and what it means to be human.

Views on Google Book settlement

Harkaway has been an outspoken critic of the Google Book Search Settlement Agreement, posting on his blog, speaking out on BBC Radio’s

The World at One ''The World at One'', or ''WATO'' ("what-oh") for short, is BBC Radio 4's long-running lunchtime news and current affairs programme, produced by BBC News, which is currently broadcast from 13:00 to 13:45 from Monday to Friday. The programme de ...

in May 2009, and appearing on a television debate with Krishnan Guru-Murthy and Tom Watson MP in September 2009.

References

External links

*
Review of ''The Gone-Away World''
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'' * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harkaway, Nick 1972 births 21st-century English novelists English science fiction writers Living people Alumni of Clare College, Cambridge Date of birth missing (living people) English male novelists Novelists from Cornwall 21st-century English male writers People educated at University College School English male non-fiction writers 21st-century pseudonymous writers