Revenge Plot Review

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Cover image: Berkley (Penguin Random House), used under fair use for review.

Some writers chase an agent with a query letter. Arnie Tenderton shows up at her Christmas rental with a manuscript and a plan. Revenge Plot by Stephanie Wrobel (Berkley, November 10, 2026) is a snowed-in psychological thriller from the author of The Hitchcock Hotel and Darling Rose Gold, and the setup is pure holiday nightmare fuel.

All Arnie wants—all he’s ever wanted—is to be a published author. After decades of almosts, he thinks he’s finally written the perfect book. He needs the best literary agent in the business: Claudia Conley, who already rejected him once. He finds out she’s spending the holidays alone in a remote house in the Catskills, and he decides to make the pitch in person. Because his book is about her. And he’s not leaving until the story ends the way he wants.

Grab Revenge Plot on Amazon — hardcover, Kindle, or Audible.

Bottom Line

If you like claustrophobic thrillers with publishing-world bite, dark humor, and a Christmas dinner that goes very wrong, early reviews make this look like an easy yes. It’s less “who did it” from page one and more “how far will a desperate writer go to be read.”

Why it works on paper (and in your ears)

Wrobel structures the story around one tense Christmas dinner—courses and all—then widens it with a book-within-the-book: the manuscript Arnie brought to force Claudia’s attention (she’s said as much herself). Early reviews say the draw is the power flip between a gatekeeper agent and a writer who refuses to stay in the slush pile, and the publisher’s own pitch already promises he’s not taking no for an answer.

Publishers Weekly and Library Journal both gave it starred reviews, and Kirkus called it a madcap psychological thriller with dark humor and publishing-insider detail. Wrobel has also said the novel winks at Stephen King’s Misery—flipped, so the deranged party is the writer, not the fan—which is all the tone warning most readers need.

Prefer ears? The Penguin Audio edition, narrated by Jennifer Rubins, runs 11 hours and 42 minutes—just under 12 hours of snowed-in tension for a commute week. Prefer paper? The hardcover runs 416 pages, and Kindle is the easy pick if you want this on release day without waiting on a truck.

Wins and watch-outs

Wins

• A premise that grabs fast: rejected writer, remote Christmas, manuscript about the agent. That’s a lot of hook for one book jacket.
• Publishing satire with teeth: agents, ambition, and the gatekeeper problem—early reviews say it plays for dread as much as laughs.
• Tight holiday clock: early notices say one snowed-in dinner (and what surrounds it) keeps the pressure on.
• Strong early notices: starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Library Journal before pub day.

Watch-outs

• Violence and obsession: this is a psychological thriller, not a cozy Christmas mystery—check your limits.
• Industry in-jokes: early reviews lean hard on publishing-world detail; if that world bores you, some beats may land softer.
• A real commitment: 416 pages or nearly 12 hours is longer than a quick weekend thriller.

Skip it if…

Skip it if you want a gentle holiday read, or if “writer vs. agent in a remote house” already feels like too much cabin fever. Everyone else: clear your commute.

Conclusion

Revenge Plot is the one to hand a friend who likes publishing gossip and can’t look away from a bad dinner guest. Publishers Weekly called it Wrobel’s best yet. Read it in hardcover, on Kindle, or let Jennifer Rubins narrate the snowstorm on Audible.

Buy or listen to Revenge Plot here.

Behind the bookmark

Lane Adler

Lane Adler writes Aladyne Reads for busy people who still want the next good read. He covers Personal Growth plus Romance, Thriller, Mystery, Sci-Fi, and Fantasy, and picks books he’d actually recommend to a friend. Life doesn’t leave much quiet couch time—so the reviews lean Audible and Kindle, with print still welcome when you want paper in hand.