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Rosaline Riley
ALLi Author Member
Location: United Kingdom (the)
Genres: General Fiction, Literary Fiction, Womens Fiction
Skills: Speaking Engagement/Lecture, Reading/Literary Event
I was born and grew up in Lancashire. I now live in South London, near Streatham Common. In between, I have lived in North London, Birmingham, Bristol and Solihull.
For many years I was a literature tutor in the Lifelong Learning Department at Warwick University. I taught some poetry and plays but specialised in teaching 20th century and contemporary novels, both on the university campus and in outreach locations around the area. For me this was a dream job. Studying novels with groups of interested readers – what could be better?
When I moved to London in 2006 I began writing seriously. I have been on writing courses at Birkbeck and the Faber Academy. And to date, I have written three novels, The End of the Road, Clad in Armour of Radiant White and Livistona Love Songs, all of which are available on Kindle and in paperback form.
Rosaline Riley's books
The End of the Road
Friendship, family relationships, betrayal and deception.
Jane, slowly recovering from the shock of her husband Neil's sudden death three months ago, is looking forward to a weekend visit from Fran, her friend and the mother-in-law of her daughter, Lucy. But almost before the weekend gets under way, Fran goes missing, a seemingly inexplicable happening which throws Jane's life and those of their inter-related families into turmoil again. In the months following this traumatic weekend, as one guilty secret after another comes to light, she is forced to re-assess both her marriage and her relationship with Fran.
The End Of The Road is a novel about family relationships, friendship, betrayal and deception. The wise, we are told, forgive but do not forget. But is forgiveness ever really possible when some things are impossible to forget?
Clad in Armour of Radiant White
Friendship, religion, sexual awakening, love, loss and longing.
An engaging and often humorous novel about the joys and sorrows of growing up.
It is September 1959 and two significant things happen to eleven year old Ellen McCann; she goes to the Convent school in the neighbouring town of Turneley where she meets Erica Latimer, and, back at home, she falls in love with Michael Chadwell.
During the months and years that follow, her school life and her home life continue along parallel tracks. Her friendship with Erica develops and intensifies, and she gets drawn into a series of Latimer family intrigues and revelations which ultimately and unexpectedly lead to tragedy. Meanwhile, her childhood love for Michael Chadwell appears to have run its course. Or has it?
She leaves for university in September 1966, looking forward to the opportunities that lie ahead but still grieving over the losses she has incurred along the way.
'A perceptive and well-expressed portrait of particular people . . . at a particular time.'
Rosaline Riley 'does a superb job of presenting characters on the page'.
Livistona Love Songs
‘Imaginative?’ she said, raising her eyebrows. ‘Fiction isn’t necessarily imaginative though, is it? Or even fictitious for that matter.’
I had no idea what she meant.
Lydia, awaiting the arrival in Australia of her boyfriend, finds herself in a small coastal town – Livistona Bay – staying in the childhood home of Pam, a friend of her parents. Here she meets local resident Annie who looks after the property.
Livistona Bay just happens to be one of the locations for Goodbye Creek, a popular Australian soap opera. And it is here in Pam’s house, which is also used for filming purposes, that Lydia meets one of the actors, Clyde.
Reality and fiction begin to merge as Lydia agonises over her relationship with her absent boyfriend, and episodes from Pam and Annie’s past become intertwined with a big, somewhat dark, Goodbye Creek storyline.
A novel about love, loss and longing.