Revenge: A Short Story

by Emily Josephine

I am not a country-clubbing kind of woman. In fact, I’d rather get a root canal than mingle with the kind of women that socialize at country clubs. I don’t fit in with them. I am what you might call unconventional when it comes to the mainstream ideas of beauty and fashion. But when my best friend – and cousin’s wife – Marilyn invites me to her pool party with her country club friends, I kind of have to accept. First, my children and I have been staying with her and my cousin for the past month while my husband has been away. So we’re already at her house. It would be kind of awkward not to show up in her backyard. Besides, the kids love to swim. Second, my husband is coming home today, and I have nothing else to do while I’m waiting for him. As I predicted, one of Marilyn’s country club buddies immediately begins to find fault with me. Then another comes to join her in her subtle insults. At least the third who shows up is actually nice, and begins to stick up for me. But, whatever. Let the snooty, perfectly manicured, new-hairstyle-every-week women look down on me. Because my husband will be here soon, and when he shows up, I will get sweet revenge…and they will get the shock of their lives. ******************* This short-short story is 4,764 words. If you love stories with surprise endings, you’ll enjoy this one. If you’re a woman who has felt the sting of not living up to societal standards, of constantly feeling the need to compete with supermodels in order to be accepted, you’ll love this story with its eyebrow-raising ending that will give you lots of warm fuzzies and lots to think about. Download it now, and get your laugh for the day. PS - The first review refers to the former subtitle of this story, "A surprisingly HOT short story."

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

Audible Audio

Published March 15, 2024

About the author

Assuming she's still alive when you read this, Emily Josephine lives somewhere on Planet Earth with a couple of people she refers to as "family" when she's in a good mood, writing stories with characters who lead much more interesting lives than she does, with an eye toward entertaining readers as well as encouraging them to grow into the person God created them to be, and in so doing endeavoring to kick the habit of writing run-on sentences; however, she sometimes waxes Charles Dickens-ish and is at such times unable to help herself - and speaking of famous people, if you look for "Emily Josephine" on any social media site or on YouTube, you will find more than one person going by that gorgeous name, but it will not be THE Emily Josephine, the author about whom you are now reading, because Emily Josephine The Author is severely and deathly allergic to both social media and YouTube, and if anyone tries to assert the proposition that such an allergy is an absolute and certain impossibility, she will stoutly deny their denial, "stout" being an absolute and certain absurdity in this context as there has never been anything stout about Emily except for the blessedly brief period of her life when she was pregnant and a mommy to a newborn baby.

Reviews

[CG.]

Where's your poolside manners, Danielle?

It read a little like a fanfiction about someone showing up the resident "mean girls" and marrying a super star, but it was easy to breeze through.

[TL *Humaning the Best She Can*]

I didn't see how this was "hot" but it was amusing to see the reactions of some of the other women.

Not interested in reading the rest but don't regret reading this one.

2 = just okay for me.

[Andrea Barbuto fleury]

Mystery guest

What a great book. A group of chatting woman bragging about there lives . But one woman just listens. She says nothing. Only she knows her secrets. She laughs to herself. Wait till my husband arrives . the faces they will make

[Vanessa Ouellette]

Short sweet simple

[Deliah Lawrence]

This is the first contemporary short story I’ve read by Emily Josephine and I found her writing style engaging. The storyline revolves around Rachel and her two kids who are staying at her cousin Joe’s house for the past month while waiting on her husband to return and pick them up.

She’s enjoying Marilyn’s (Joe’s wife) mid-summer pool party when she’s approached by some snooty and condescending country club woman who immediately start judging her appearance—her sloppy ponytail, lack of makeup, no nail polish, and unshaved armpits. They even question whether her kids are adopted based on their skin tone and their names (Natalia and Diego).

Their mean-girl vibes are enough for Rachel to want to roll her eyes, but she squeezes them instead during the awkward conversations. However, when a song by pop star Julio Estrella plays on the radio and the women start swooning over how hot he is, she can’t help but smile inwardly—because she knows something they don’t. She patiently waits for the perfect moment to deliver her revenge when her husband arrives.

Overall, this was a quick and enjoyable read that scores one for women who are judged for their looks rather than who they truly are. I loved the ending, and without giving anything away–the revenge was absolutely perfect! Two thumbs up!

Some of my favorite lines:

Feigning ignorance of Danielle’s insinuations, I ask, “So, describe your perfect man.”

Danielle turns to lean back against the lounge chair back, nearly pressing her feet against Melanie’s backside. “Drop-dead gorgeous, for one.” She looks at her fake red fingernails and flicks an imaginary piece of dirt out of one of them. “Muscular. Commands respect wherever he goes. Has a stable career that pays him good money.” She lifts her head and meets my gaze. “Has eyes only for me.”

Her own eyes fill with pain, communicating in a couple of seconds a lot more than she would ever voice to me, then she breaks eye contact. A pang of sympathy twinges in my gut. Hurting people hurt people, I once heard.

[Samantha]

She isn’t a country-club type and feels out of place among its polished, fashion-forward crowd. Still, when her best friend (and cousin’s wife) Marilyn invites her to a pool party, she goes—she and her children are staying there while her husband is away, and the kids want to swim. As expected, a couple of women quickly judge and insult her, though one offers kindness. She doesn’t mind the condescension; her husband is arriving soon, and his appearance will deliver a satisfying, unexpected revenge.

A mother’s attempt at a peaceful pool day is interrupted by a group of condescending, well-to-do women who waste no time in making her feel out of place. I read this as a fast, late-night choice from my Kindle library, expecting something far more dramatic—perhaps even violent—when it came to her “revenge.” Instead, the payoff was easy to predict and, in my opinion, underwhelming. While she technically gets the last word, the ending lacked impact, and the story didn’t leave much of an impression.

[Dan]

Rachel, 30, is visiting the Chicago suburbs with her husband Tony.

After sketching out an overly-complicated family and friendship tree: Rachel is Joe’s cousin. She, Tony, and their kids are staying at Marilyn’s (Joe’s wife’s) house in the area.

Rachel is plain. She doesn’t put effort into her appearance. No makeup, sloppy hair, unpolished nails, unshaved armpits…

Diego and Natalia are their two kids (twins, age 5).

Danielle Pointer has lots of questions for Rachel, who is very defensive.

But Rachel isn’t any better than Danielle, Bev, and the other stuck-up ladies. In fact, she’s just as nasty and condescending as Danielle and her minions.

Apparently, we’re supposed to hate Danielle after reading this. (?) Not effective.

And so what if the other women don’t want to be Hairy But Happy Homely Hippies?? It’s not a look.

Helen Keller could have seen this ending coming.

*Not sure why this is labeled “hot.” Rachel and Tony…kiss. 💀 😂

[Hannah Lindley]

This was a fun piece of contemporary fiction that can be read in one brief sitting. As verified by the author in an addition to the official blurb, it doesn’t even equal five thousand words in length. For the first third to half of my reading time, I was getting the vibe of efforts towards psychological horror or even weird girl, but with a little too much comedy to qualify for either. Though shortly after, too many hints were dropped for the ending to be a mystery at all, Emily Josephine found her footing as an author within the tiny creative space, and I enjoyed women who thought they were better than their peers getting their comeuppance. As this was originally published nearly ten years ago, I want to read more of Emily’s work to see how she has grown as a writer.

[Samantha Holland]

The story is not "HOT" but still worth the quick read!
It's only 16 pages on the Kindle app and can be read within a lunch break during the week.

It was not at all what I was expecting from the word ~revenge~ BUT I was pleasantly surprised.
From the moment the radio turned on, I knew what was up and couldn't wait for the other ladies to realize it. A good lesson in not judging people based on their appearance and understanding that everyone has their own beliefs and preferences.
Don't yuck other peoples' yums, y'all.

[Cristina]

A sweet short story

A sweet short story about how people sometime judge others by their appearance and life choices, splayed out in a funny manner.

While it is a short story, it conveys all the perfect spots a book should contain : salt and pepper.
The story has a Mean Girls vibe, due to one of the characters whom don't stop giving someone a hard time, only for things to...take a full 180 when the main character’s husband shows up to pick her and the children up.

That was some other kind of revenge indeed.

[Laura]

First impressions can make lasting impressions. What you say to a stranger, and how you say it, can make a friend or can make your own words taste sour and rancid.
When a woman and her two young children are at a party without her husband, the other guests, who know each other, form opinions. Some are stated loudly, others expressed with an eye roll.
Who makes the final impression?
Is revenge really sweet?

[Jennifer]

Ah, revenge is so sweet...

I really enjoyed this quick read. Fast-paced, nothing wasted. Very much to-the-point. Everything probably happened within the space of a few hours at the most. But because nothing was wasted, it was fantastic. Excellent characters, as well as their development and characterization. I mean, I have met the types in the book, and I quite resemble the heroine in many ways. Probably took me about 15-20 minutes to read. But well worth it!

[Stephen A. Matthews]

A quick light read with some funny moments!

This was a quick light read with some funny moments. The main problem was that the ending was telegraphed (in part by the title of the story) and thus there was no real surprise. The delivery of the story was thus important. For the most part the barbs and retorts in the dialogue were fine if based on numerous social class stereotypes.

[Sammie Porter]

The Foolishness of Snobbery

It's amazing to me that people can be so mean so often, for no other reason than to try to make someone else feel less than, hoping to make themselves feel better. "Hurting people hurt people" is one of my favorite sayings. It's soooo much fun seeing snobs getting their comeuppance!! Good stuff!!

[Debra]

For a short read this story has just the right amount of angst that kept me entertained till the end. I enjoyed reading this book. Will look into other books by this author. Wish the story that this is connected to was still available.

[Richard Goodrum]

Exceptionally short, but fantastically great story. Underdogs rule.

Easy-to-read. Entertaining. Happily Ever After. Informative. Inspirational. Page-turner. Romantic. Unpredictable. Whimsical. Witty. Wonderful characters.

[Joyce Hartley]

Another great read

Sometimes it's nice to have a short read, especially if you are waiting for someone else. Emily writes long and short reads, but are always clean with no curse words or yucky sex. Keep up the good work.

[Judith Holley]

Short and sweet

I especially liked the eventual build up to the end, but really, I enjoyed the whole story. It's great for anyone who doesn't have time for a long book, or who loves a good revenge story.

[Linda Elliott]

Loved this short story

What person hasn't wish to be able to put rude people in their places. That's what this well written book is about. While it stereotypes country club wives you almost cheer with the ending.

[Jenny Ring]

The best kind of revenge is the other person screwing themselves over without you having to lift a finger. This is why you don't judge or assume things about people. Nobody likes a snob other than fellow snobs.

[David Bryan]

Cute Story

A story about just what you would want as pushback with some overbearing people. In a way, though, it would have been fun if Rachel's hubby had bee a mechanic or plumber. Gonna have to look up Ms. Josephine to see if she pens books as well.

[Stephanie E. Bell]

Short, sweet, and just enough revenge to keep things interesting. 😏 I was entertained, but I needed a little MORE—more drama, more mess, more payoff! For a short story, it did what it came to do, but I closed the book thinking, “Wait…THAT’S IT?” 😂

[Julie Balzum]

I enjoyed this little story. It's quite short, took me about 10 minutes to read it, and I anticipated the surprise ending, but I quite liked it.

[Leila E.]

Cute short story

This was a cute, short read as described. It was easy to get annoyed with some of the characters and root for Rachel.

[cheri wright]

A feel good short story that has a great lesson to it, never judge people the end of this story made me smile.

[Madee]

A random short story .

[Kelly (the book hussy)]

Apparently this is linked to His Precious Treasure. Sort of like an epilogue I guess. Unfortunately I have no desire to read the other book.

[Mandy F.]

Short story that had some good parts but a predictable ending- I like to read these to cleanse the reading palette in between books

[Tiffany Lloyd]

Not bad

I was intrigued at first, but it was a little boring. The ending did make me smile though. Danielle was so rude!!

[LaShana Royaltey]

I was so invested in this story! I'm so sad that it was a short story that had to end. But I look forward to reading the full-length novel related to this story 😊