Author Bashed Teen With Bottle Over Negative Book Review
A self-published author has been convicted in an assault involving a teenager who had left a negative review on something he had written. Investigation Discovery’s Crimefeed reports that 28-year-old Richard Brittain admitted to his actions in a case that is getting a lot of attention on social media, which has saved him from having to go through a lengthy trial.
The incident reportedly took place in October, 2014, — more than a year ago. However, the 28-year-old U.K. man entered a guilty plea in court this week, and is now awaiting sentencing. Since he has admitted to his crime in court, the details have been published, which is why the case is getting so much attention right now.
Shocking. Former Countdown champ Richard Brittain’s brutal attack on 19 year old Paige. https://t.co/qwU6sBU8Sm pic.twitter.com/c4kd3TJCZ4
— The Daily Record (@Daily_Record) November 10, 2015
The Daily Mail reports that 18-year-old Paige Rolland unwittingly triggered the indie author’s anger when she left a less-than-stellar review on the Goodreads profile for his book, The World Rose. The review itself has been removed from the internet, but media sources like ID and Gawker have posted what they believe to be the offending post.
“As a reader, I’m bored out of my skull and severely disappointed in what I might have paid for. As a writer (albeit an amateur one) I’m appalled that anyone would think this was worthy of money. Not only does it begin with “once upon a time” which you could argue is perfect as this is a fairytale (and it doesn’t work, it’s incredibly pretentious), but it’s filled with many writing no-nos. Way too much telling, pretentious prose, and a main character that I already hate. Ella is the perfect princess (true to fairytales, so we can at least give him a little credit despite how painfully annoying this is coupled with a complete lack of real personality shining through).”
This is certainly a negative review that probably stung when Brittain read it. However, most writers know that negative reviews are part of the industry. Even greats like Stephen King and Anne Rice have negative reviews on Amazon for their books. Neither of these two famous authors have ever been known to lash out at readers for simply disliking their work. However, Richard Brittain isn’t either of those writers. Instead of brushing off the negative book review, he did something he should have never done.
Brittain reportedly researched and cyberstalked the young woman who left the negative review, until he was able to find her place of employment. After he tracked her down by driving 500 miles away to her job, where he confronted her. By confronting her, actually bashed her in the head with a bottle of wine, from behind. She didn’t see the attack coming, and would not have ever known who it was had she not later viewed surveillance footage of the attack.
Richard Brittain’s revenge over bad review isn’t first time people have hit back https://t.co/fj0DksfFiw pic.twitter.com/oQTpkuZHe7
— Daily Mirror (@DailyMirror) November 10, 2015
The teen also declared that the attack had knocked her out cold. It also split open her scalp on the back of her head where the wine bottle made the impact.
“I heard the tinkle of a bottle on the floor and I thought that something had fallen on me. Blood was covering my hands and dripping down my arms. I couldn’t believe it. The attack has left me nervous and fearful. I find it difficult to meet new people and am nervous in big crowds.”
The author admitted to his actions in court, but his sentencing has not yet been determined. It’s not known at this time if he will face any jail time associated with the attack that left a teenage girl bloodied and emotionally traumatized. Meanwhile, it’s been reported that Steven Brittain has a history of stalking women.
[Photo: Steven Brittain’s Twitter]
