Acclaimed young adult author M.T. Anderson is now crossing into the world of adult fiction with Nicked. Inspired by true events from the year 1087, Nicked follows the heist of the 7-century-old corpse of St. Nicholas, in a thrilling and fast-moving international adventure narrated with wit and humor.
We begin in Bari, Italy, where a pox has afflicted half the town, with the other half in fear of soon joining the first. In response, the monks of St. Benedict take a week-long vigil to ask for healing, and their prayers are answered when a vision of St. Nicholas appears to a lowly monk named Nicephorus.
There is something endearing about Nicephorus which seems not of his time. Skeptical about the authenticity of his vision, which came after going without food and sleep, Nicephorus tries to dissuade the town officials from interpreting his dream as a direct order from the saint to steal his corpse from a church in Turkey. The leaders of Bari are undeterred, however, and when a relic hunter named Tyun shows up with his entourage, which includes a giant named Shchek and a dog-headed man named Reprobus, they eagerly engage his services.
Tyun, a handsome, fearless man of dubious morality, agrees to be the captain of the expedition in exchange for a huge sum of money, and the naive and pious Nicephorus is forced to join as witness and authenticator of the corpse. What follows is an epic adventure on land and sea, enjoyable not just for the Byzantine strategies and sabotage, but also because of the unpredictable pairing of passive Nicephorus with the aggressive and worldly Tyun. And there is a twist—of course there is, because what is an epic adventure without one!
Reminiscent of Indiana Jones and The Princess Bride, Nicked delivers an entertaining and grown-up adventure rooted in religion, humanity and friendship.
