Teenage Girl Assaulted by Author After Leaving Honest Review

In 2014, 18 year old Paige Rolland, a nursing student from Fife, Scotland, often sought an escape from the pressures of her studies in the pages of her favourite books, losing herself for hours in fantastical worlds of fairy tales and romance.

That same year, she was excited to stumble upon a newly-released book online entitled 'The World Rose'.

The story followed its protagonist, a young girl named Ella, as she navigated the trials of finding true love and the obstacles that stood in her way. The book was a self-published novel, written by 28 year old Richard Brittain, a man from Bedford.

Between 2006 and 2007, Richard appeared on several daytime TV game shows, including Countdown and Brain Teaser. His impressive mathematical skills earned him victories on both programs, along with trophies and a total of £1,500 in prize money.

But behind the persona of this seemingly bright young man lurked a far darker and more sinister side.

In 2012, Richard attended the University of Greenwich in London, where his attention was drawn to a fellow student named Ella. After befriending her, he invited her to join his university quiz team—an offer she happily accepted.

However, when she submitted her application, which included personal contact details and her home address, Richard began to exploit that information. He sent her a Valentine’s Day card, added her on Facebook, obsessively commented on her posts, and even showed up at the bar where she worked.

Ella made it clear that she was not interested and wanted his attention to stop, but Richard refused to respect her boundaries. He left multiple voicemails, professing his love and relentless in his pursuit.

Richard was fully aware that his behaviour was wrong; he even chronicled his obsession with Ella on his online blog, chillingly titled “The Benevolent Stalker.” In one post, he admitted that his actions had become increasingly erratic, escalating whenever Ella made it clear she did not share his feelings.

Richard’s behaviour escalated to the point that Ella had no choice but to involve the police. Even a stern warning to stay away did little to deter him.

After months of relentless harassment, Ella, fearing for her safety, relocated over 400 miles away to Glasgow. For a time, Richard went quiet. But months later, she received a chilling Facebook message: he wanted her to read his self-published novel, in which he had cast Ella herself as the princess.

Disturbed, Ella blocked him and tried to move on. Then, one day while walking down the street, she froze—there was Richard, having tracked her across the country.

He later detailed the encounter on his blog, claiming he had hoped Ella would run away with him so they could stage a kidnapping and become famous. But his plans were foiled when Ella called the police once again.

Defeated, Richard returned to London.

Meanwhile, back in Fife, Paige had read Richard’s book for herself and found it lacking, unimpressed both by the writing and its numerous grammatical errors.

As she did with all her reads, she turned to the platform Goodreads to leave a review, sharing her honest thoughts so that others could decide for themselves whether the book was worth reading.

Unaware of the unhinged author who she was insulting and the drastic events it would lead to, Paige rated the book one-star.

What Paige didn’t realise was that her review had caught Richard Brittain’s attention—and he was consumed with a desire for revenge. Fuelled by growing rage, he was determined not to let anyone dare criticise his book.

Using Paige’s name from her Goodreads account, Richard quickly tracked down her Facebook profile, which revealed her hometown of Glenrothes, Scotland, and her place of work—an Asda superstore in town.

Just as he had done with his first victim, Richard made the 400-mile journey north, this time in pursuit of the teenager who had dared to criticise his writing.

He arrived in Fife on October 3, 2014, and immediately headed to the Asda store where Paige was working. After stalking the aisles, he found her bent over, restocking shelves in the cereal section.

With a bottle of wine in hand, seized from the alcohol aisle, Richard crept up behind the unsuspecting teen. Consumed by rage and a desire for revenge, he swung the bottle down onto Paige’s head with all his strength before fleeing the store.

With other shoppers witnessing the unprovoked attack, emergency services were called as Paige lay in a pool of blood, her gaping head wound later requiring stitches.

CCTV footage from the store quickly identified the attacker, allowing police to track him down. By the end of the day, Richard had returned to London, but cell tower data placed him in Glenrothes at the time of Paige’s assault. A search of his home also uncovered train tickets showing he had travelled to Scotland—not only on the date of the Asda attack, but on previous occasions when Ella had reported him turning up at her new address.

Richard was arrested and charged with the assault of Paige and the stalking of Ella. His trial began in November 2015, during which he pleaded guilty to both charges and was sentenced to 30 months in prison.

If Paige thought this would be the last she heard from him, she was wrong. Despite an indefinite non-harassment order, Richard continued sending her handwritten notes, professing that he would love her “forever.”

He would also write a poem for Paige in which he commented: "This page is torn because we are torn without each other".

Like Ella, Paige has been forced to relocate for her own safety. The ordeal has left her with severe anxiety, requiring medication to cope, and the stress caused her to withdraw from her university course. She continues to live in fear that Richard may one day track her down again.

Even after his release, Richard has sent Paige private messages on Facebook, hinting at his temptation to take a bus and visit her once more.

Because Richard was under an indefinite order prohibiting contact with his victims, Paige reported his continued harassment to the police. However, prosecutors chose not to pursue further charges, citing Richard’s mental health.

Paige was also denied criminal injury compensation, as authorities determined that she had not suffered long-term physical health effects from the attack.

Today, Richard Brittain is a free man.

His time in prison clearly did little to rehabilitate him, as his repeat-offender behaviour shows he feels little fear of the consequences of his actions. All that remains is hope—that he does not harm anyone else in the future.