Britton was born in Peterborough, England, in 1981. During his early childhood, he lived between England and Camlough, County Armagh, Northern Ireland, until the family emigrated to the United States in 1988.

Britton spent years in both Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Raleigh, North Carolina. After graduating from Leesville Road High School in Raleigh in 1999, Britton joined the U.S. Army as a combat engineer. He stayed in the Army for three years and served in Korea.

After his military service, Britton attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he studied economics and psychology.

Britton wrote three published novels. He made a publishing deal for his first book The American when he was 23. He followed this with his novel The Assassin. In early 2007 Britton returned to Camlough, Northern Ireland to complete the third novel of the Ryan Kealy espionage series The Invisible which was released only three weeks before his early death. Britton's books appeared on the New York Times bestseller list and were translated into several languages becoming bestsellers worldwide. Britton, an avid researcher and writer, left behind many manuscripts and his work will continue to be published.

• The American (2007)
• The Assassin (2008)
• The Invisible (2009)
• The Exile (July 1, 2010)

On March 18, 2008, Britton died at the age of 27 of an undiagnosed heart condition in Durham, North Carolina. He was survived by his mother Annie (Britton) Nice, stepfather Graham Nice, and his two siblings Christopher Vine-Britton and Roxanne Nice. Christopher, who according to his mother was despondent over Andrew's death, committed suicide on June 16, 2010. Andrew Vine-Britton is interred in the Veteran's section of Memorial Gardens Cemetery in Raleigh, North Carolina.