Vanessa Riley is an American novelist of Caribbean Descent of historical fiction, romance fiction, and mystery fiction.
Early life and education
editRiley's mother encouraged her to read the works of Jane Austen, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Henry David Thoreau.[1] Riley earned a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Stanford University. She started reading romance fiction when she was at Stanford.[2][3] She lives in Atlanta.[4]
Career
editRiley writes multicultural romance.[5][6][2] Some of her works are of the Regency romance genre.[1] Her early works were published digitally. Her print debut novel, A Duke, The Lady, and a Baby (2020), was inspired by the film The First Wives Club (1996).[1] Island Queen (2021), a novel of historical fiction about enslaved-turned-landowner Dorothy Kirwan Thomas, was optioned for film by Julie Ann Robinson.[7] Riley has written for The Washington Post.[8]
Critical reception
editRiley's books Sister Mother Warrior (2022); The Duke, The Lady, and a Baby (2020); An Earl, the Girl, and a Toddler (2021); and A Duke, the Spy, an Artist, and a Lie (2022) have received starred reviews from Booklist, Library Journal, and Publishers Weekly.[9][10][11][12][13] Publishers Weekly called A Duke, the Lady, and a Baby a "bewitching Regency series opener".[11] It criticized An Earl, the Girl, and a Toddler for its "choppy writing" that "slightly undermines the otherwise riveting romance".[5] Publishers Weekly wrote of the final book in the Rogues and Remarkable Women series, "Riley masterfully plays up the will-they-won’t-they between husband and wife as the emotionally charged romance twists to its conclusion. This sends out the series on a high note."[12]
Library Journal called Sister Mother Warrior a "sweeping, powerful historical novel based on two remarkable real women".[13] Her mystery debut, Murder in Westminster (2022), was reviewed positively by Publishers Weekly, which wrote, "Riley offers a vibrant picture of the roles Black and mixed-race people played in Regency life," though Publishers also noted, "the backstory introducing series characters sometimes feels clumsy and the modern language can be distracting".[6] Carole V. Bell of The New York Times wrote positively of Island Queen: "Though Dorothy’s life is extraordinary, the reason her triumphs and stumbles hit so hard is that Riley does a brilliant job of connecting those events to something bigger... Evocative and immersive, Riley’s narrative bears that weight with grace."[14]
Selected works
edit- Unmasked Heart: A Regency Romance. Gallium Optronics, 2016.[15]
- Island Queen. William Morrow, 2021.[16][17][18][14]
- Sister Mother Warrior. William Morrow, 2022.[9][13]
Lady Worthington mysteries
editRogues and Remarkable Women series
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d Lenker, Maureen Lee. "Vanessa Riley on how 'The First Wives Club' inadvertently inspired her new Regency romance". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ a b Saidi, Janet (April 21, 2023). "Author Vanessa Riley on writing Regency romance: 'Romance has always been that happy place.'". KBIA. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ "Vanessa Riley". HarperCollins Canada. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ "Vanessa Riley". Atlanta History Center. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ a b c "An Earl, the Girl, and a Toddler by Vanessa Riley". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ a b c "Murder in Westminster by Vanessa Riley". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (July 15, 2021). "'Bridgerton's Julie Anne Robinson & Adjoa Andoh Team On Screen Adaptation Of Vanessa Riley's 'Island Queen'". Deadline. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ "Perspective | Female-centered historical novels are dogged by questions of accuracy. Hence the author's note". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ a b Sister Mother Warrior by Vanessa Riley. Booklist Online.
- ^ a b Earl, the Girl, and a Toddler by Vanessa Riley. Booklist Online.
- ^ a b c "A Duke, the Lady, and a Baby by Vanessa Riley". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ a b c "A Duke, the Spy, an Artist and a Lie by Vanessa Riley". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ a b c "Sister Mother Warrior". Library Journal. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ a b Bell, Carole V. (July 8, 2021). "A New Novel Gives Wings — and a Megaphone — to a Complex Woman". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ "Unmasked Heart: A Regency Romance by". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ "Island Queen by Vanessa Riley". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ Island Queen by Vanessa Riley. Booklist Online.
- ^ Faulkner, Tianna (August 13, 2021). "Vanessa Riley releases New Book "Island Queen"". The Atlanta Voice. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ "Murder in Westminster (audio)". Library Journal. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ "Murder in Westminster". Library Journal. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ Duke, the Lady, and a Baby by Vanessa Riley. Booklist Online.
- ^ "An Earl, the Girl, and a Toddler". Library Journal. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ Duke, the Spy, an Artist, and a Lie by Vanessa Riley. Booklist Online.
- ^ "A Duke, the Spy, an Artist, and a Lie". Library Journal. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
- ^ "A Duke, the Lady, and a Baby". Library Journal. Retrieved April 24, 2023.