Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

“She’s coming for you. And there’s nothing you can do to stop her.”

I was so excited to finally pick up one of Jackie’s books after meeting her at The Book Party back in October ’24, and this my friends is one you need to read. I’ve read a few revenge thrillers this year and really enjoyed all of them, and this one is just as jaw-dropping! The layers of revenge, the drama, the lies and deceit – what a ride! I’m so happy to be joining Insta Book Tours today and sharing my review of The Revenge Plot by the fabulous Jackie Kabler!

About the book

When Ella Leonard arrives at work one Monday morning, she’s stunned.

The place isn’t just shut – it’s gone. Boarded up, closed down.

Days later, she gets home to find she’s been evicted from her flat, her belongings piled on the doorstep.

It’s as if, bit by bit, someone is taking her entire life away from her.

Who, and why? And how much worse can it get?

The answer? A lot worse.

The beginning

If you arrived at work one Monday morning to find it boarded up and empty, what would be going through your mind? That’s exactly what Ella discovers and what I was mulling over when I started this book, and my god it sucked me in right from the start! I love short, sharp chapters in a thriller and as soon as I realised this was one of those books, I could not stop reading. It instantly felt like a binge read kinda book. Not only has Ella’s workplace gone – her gorgeous cafe, Mug & Meadow – but a few days later, when she arrives home, the same thing happens to her flat. She’s been evicted with no notice, everything she owns left on the doorstep. I found the hook to be brilliant, something that really gets your mind going. And Jackie’s writing! So easy to read, beautifully put together and constantly intriguing with each passing chapter. I could tell this would be a book I’d be thinking about in each waking moment. I could already sense some betrayal; someone was behind all this and I was looking forward to seeing how it all unravelled. Such a brilliant start!

“I’m going to Harrow, to the house I grew up in. I’m going to Harrow, because the more I think about the events of the past couple of weeks, the more I’ve convinced myself there can only be one person behind it all.”

As well as all this, we also dive deeper into Ella’s past and learn more about who she is and where she’s come from, right up until she meets Lena and jumps into a brand new life at the café. I felt so sorry for her as everything continued to fall apart and stranger things began to happen. It really felt like she was being personally targeted by this point, and the more I got into it, the more it intrigued me. Who would want to mentally hurt her so badly? And where the hell was Lena?! Her boss seemed to have disappeared off the face of the earth which was very suspicious to me. I really felt just how lost Ella felt, the panic in her actions as she does all she can just to survive without a place to live or a stable job. But as Ella thinks she’s hit rock bottom, she thinks about her old friend, Harriet. They were close once, after all. Surely she’d help her now, when she needed her the most? As we reach part two, we see a shift in perspective, and I loved hearing from Harriet’s POV as well as Ella’s. Harriet and her husband, George, seemed genuinely lovely, welcoming and generous people. Would I think differently later on? Things were about to get interesting…

The middle

It seems Harriet has a secret of her own – she’s also been harassed in some way. Not to the extent that Ella had (yet), but still a very interesting element to throw into the mix. I loved how well the perspectives of Ella and Harriet were written, and I was so curious to learn more about their history. I really enjoyed getting to know Harriet better and to dig deeper into her life and experiences, and oh my god, that midpoint twist!! It was brilliant, perfect. And it really turned everything on its head. This is a book about revenge alright, and much deeper than I could have imagined at first. We start to understand who is behind all the awful things Ella experiences, and I loved how the author has always ensured we’re brought up to speed where it mattered, and also left in the dark in all the right places. I loved how different the storytelling was compared to so many other books I’ve read! So refreshingly unique. But then it gets better as we’re introduced to a third woman in this puzzle, Nisha. The one who has had enough of being ignored. I smell trouble…

“Not empty threats after all then. Is she finally going for it? Has she finally decided to try and take what she wants, to get from me what I’ve refused to give her?

And so it begins. And so it begins.”

The layers in this book. It was quite something! As everything ramps up in danger and severity for both Ella and Harriet, I really felt the stress for the both of them. I put myself in their positions and it genuinely made my head throb. How would anyone even cope going through all that? With the weight of it all on your shoulders day and night, the uncertainty of how the next day would unfold, and then the next. Harriet really suffers and I’ll admit, I really felt for her, even though she certainly wasn’t the nicest person in the world. We slowly understand the pressure she’s under. And Nisha. Oh my god what a character. She’s a horrible person, but she was written to perfection. I loved that I loathed her so much. Her revenge (and the lengths she was willing to go to get it) was probably the worst of all and I couldn’t look away. I didn’t have a clue how any of this could be resolved without something going so drastically wrong for one, two or all of these women. I started speed reading to that ending because I was so desperate to see how things unfolded!

The end

I couldn’t take any more stress!! (I could, I’m just being dramatic. Gimme more!) The tension towards the ending was so strong and I could feel it in my bones. There were so many layers of revenge being, well, plotted, and being at the centre of all that from a reader’s perspective felt bloody wonderful. My eyes were glued to the pages and on multiple occasions I found myself reading late into the night. The lives of these women were a complete MESS, but Jackie has written each one of them so brilliantly that I’m not sure sure how she’s managed to unravel and organise it all. Characters unexpectedly team up at this point (or so they think) and the layers of revenge continued to run deeper and deeper, like a massive revenge loop. Revengeception. Yep, I just made that word up, but it fits so well. It seemed karma was coming for certain characters here and as anxiety-inducing as it was, it was all so satisfying. I had no clue where things would go from here and how this would all end, and I certainly was not ready for that final twist!!

“I genuinely thought she’d forgiven me. But it clearly wasn’t just a little glitch, was it? It was the beginning of the end, the beginning of something I could never have imagined in my worst nightmares.”

The build up to those final chapters was excellent. There were so many hints at what the final showdown with all these women in one room would entail and I loved the excited feelings running through me as I tried to guess what would happen. Of course, I was wrong, and as the puzzle pieces slotted into place, I was reading with wide eyes and a feeling of disbelief. Whaaaaaat?! What a plot twist! I loved it, and even though I thought I probably should have seen something like that coming, I absolutely didn’t. I loved how things were rounded up and I loved just how much is left to the imagination. I spent a good amount of time when I’d finished the book thinking of the future of these characters and where they’d go, and especially what they’d lost and gained along the way. What a ride! I really enjoyed this book and I’m really excited to work my way through Jackie’s other books now. I definitely recommend you pick this one up if you like a revenge thriller! Also, if you have any other recommendations for revenge thrillers, throw them my way!

Overall thoughts

The Revenge Plot is a twisty, drama-filled and suspenseful revenge thriller that well and truly hits the spot. Over the course of the book, we follow three different women with very different life experiences, but they’re all linked together as a brutal revenge plot unravels. It’s so brilliantly layered and I couldn’t get enough. It’s one of those books that effortlessly keeps you reading and surprises you at every turn. It’s hard to root for a particular character because of none of them are really likeable, and it’s just as hard to trust any of them (as you’ll find out) but the way each character is written and their motives will make you stay for that finale. And oh is it worth it!! Perfectly paced, brilliantly twisty and as satisfying as they come. If you love a revenge thriller, add this one to your list, ASAP!

Huge thanks to the author, Jackie Kabler, Vic at Insta Book Tours and One More Chapter for my copy of the book and place on the tour and readalong! You can grab your own copy of The Revenge Plot right now on Amazon or wherever you buy your books. Make sure you’re following Jackie over on Instagram and X/Twitter for more updates!

Looking for book reviews?

If you’re in need of reviews for your own book, do get in touch to get on my submissions list! All the information you need is on my book reviews page. If you enjoyed this review and would like to support my blog, you can buy me a coffee 😊