Revenge

by Renate Parisek

Genres: Fiction, Westerns, Romance, Crime, Adventure

3 pages, Audio Cassette

First published January 1, 1990

Reviews

[Andy S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quietly powerful ending. Love Harrison’s prose.

[Ashleigh Griffin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review from Playboy on the Back of my 1980 edition from Oxfordshire County Library captures it perfectly: “.. like some great boulder crashing down a mountainside - look out folks, no stopping this one.”

[Tom McCleary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reads like it was written for a movie deal. There were some interesting elements and characters, but events unfolded for really poor reasons.

[Chad Manske · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jim Harrison's "Revenge" is a gripping novella that plunges readers into a world of passion, betrayal, and retribution set against the backdrop of the Mexican borderlands. This taut, visceral tale follows Jay Cochran, a recently retired fighter pilot whose affair with Miryea, the wife of a powerful Mexican tycoon named Tibey, sets in motion a chain of events that will forever alter their lives. Harrison's prose is a masterclass in economy and impact. From the haunting opening line, "You could not tell if you were a bird descending (and there was a bird descending, a vulture) if the naked man was dead or alive," the author establishes a tone of impending doom and primal intensity that permeates the entire work. The narrative unfolds with a cinematic quality, each scene vividly rendered and pulsing with tension. The characters are drawn with unflinching honesty. Cochran embodies a particular brand of masculine bravado, his brush with death only hardening his resolve. Miryea is more than a simple object of desire, her own agency and suffering given weight in the story. Tibey looms large as an antagonist, his vengeance terrible and swift. Harrison explores themes of honor, loyalty, and the intoxicating allure of danger. The novella poses difficult questions about the nature of revenge and the price of passion. As Cochran embarks on his quest for retribution, the reader is pulled along on a journey that is both thrilling and deeply unsettling. While the plot may seem straightforward, Harrison's skill lies in the nuanced exploration of his characters' psyches and the unforgiving landscape they inhabit. The Mexican setting is more than mere backdrop; it becomes a character in its own right, its harsh beauty and lawless frontier spirit integral to the story's mood. “Revenge" is a brutal, doom-laden tale that leaves a lasting impression. It's a work that demands to be read in one sitting, its momentum building to a shattering climax. Harrison's unflinching gaze and lean, muscular prose make this novella a standout in the realm of contemporary American fiction.

[Gavin Dabkowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have a couple different thoughts about this book and my rating for it as well.

First, I (am an idiot) and thought that 'Legends of the Fall' was all one story - and that the characters and plot in Revenge would carry over into the next two stories (The Man who Gave Up his Name and Legends of the Fall). I realized about halfway through that that was not the case.

Additionally, I had never read anything from Jim Harrison before, so it took me a little bit to get used to his prose and writing style. I do think however that now that I am used to his style of wording, I will enjoy the next two novellas more.

With that being said - I read this book (94 pgs) in one day, which has to mean something. I was very engaged in the plot, although at some points I was a little bit confused about what was going on. I enjoyed the ending, and especially the last 10 or so pages. With lines like "It made Cochran feel homesick until he realized he has no home" was a great line that really helped to 'wrap up' the development of Cochran's character. I also really liked the character of Amador, especially when he is described as a badass that makes people he encounters inherently feel nervous. And the part where he says "No worries my friend, I had a dream that I died of old age on my porch, and I trust my dreams and my skill, I am very good at what I do". I still need to think about more if I did enjoy the ending, perhaps I need to watch the movie as well, because I did really think that it was building up to Tibey being killed (the title of the novella is literally revenge?) but maybe it was better this way.

[Marcus Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Revenge is one of my all time favorites. Maybe it's too much of a man's "romance" story to appeal to women, yet it may inform women about men's thoughts and emotions. The prose is splendid , and yes the story is somewhat trite, this allows the reader to more easily enter the story and embrace the emotions. I'm not sure why several of the reviewers felt the ending was abrupt, it feels perfect to me.

[Hayden · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really strong beginning. Well written prose and great characters (Tibey in particular was way more complex than I expected him to be) but not a lot of depth given to any of the woman in the book. They kinda only exist to further the story of the man, even Miryea. It’s less about her and the honestly horrific things happening to her and more about how her situation makes the men around her feel. But whatever it was written in like the 80s so kinda to be expected, I guess.

[Hjalti Rognvaldsson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this as a no-nonsence revenge western. The cinematic descriptions from the author give the story an epic feel. So desolate, hot, vast.

But the story and characters... meh... Although the ending did surprise me

[Zane Hesting · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.7/5.0

[Steve Caulkins]

One of the greatest books I've ever read.

[Evergreen · Rating 4 out of 5]

He definitely made the book suspenseful. Although, it was slightly predictable.

[Karen K - Ohio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful prose. Concise, poetic and lovely imagery. Friendship, love, betrayal, vengeance and regret. But very harsh story.

[Rob Jacobs · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was absorbed by the story, and end, like many have said, just came and went.

[Josef Miyasato · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written. A different take on the revenge tale but revenge tales can only do so much for me. The male and female leads were a bit too mythic in my opinion.

[Andi · Rating 3 out of 5]

meh…love the gay man

[Julie Davids · Rating 5 out of 5]

A

[Hilary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!! I couldn't put it down.

[landon · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Revenge" begins with a man dying in a Mexican desert. The narrative perspective shifts to breathtaking effect among the animals and people involved in the incident. Between curt meditations on physicality, interconnection, and the self, a story arises. Then the narrative reaches back in time to polish its protagonist, and the book grows as trite as its title.

Cochran, the wounded man, was once perfectly masculine. But of course his machismo is only hardened by his brush with death. A love affair with a kingpin's wife got him into this, and for some reason he thinks continuing it will redeem him. Interestingly, Harrison's writing worsens as he incorporates more western clichés. It's as if he took too much time honing the first few pages and had to rush through the rest to make a deadline. "You could not tell if you were a bird descending (and there was a bird descending, a vulture) if the naked man was dead or alive." This first sentence of the novella is an example of Harrison at his best. The plot's overall trajectory, though, is summed up in sentences like, "The head of the film commission met them in the hall and seemed very nervous about Amador, which pleased Cochran who knew it was best to have a badass on your side."

The novella showed me the pros and cons of minimalistic sentences with little punctuation. When they work, by placing varied words in an even line, they force you to sculpt the sentence yourself. When you put commas around a laden prepositional phrase, for instance, its effect hits you harder than it would if it had been given to you. Writing becomes a collaborative process between author and reader in a rhythmic and syntactical sense.

But when Harrison leaves no emotionally resonant space around the sentence, into which you can bend the phrase as you see fit, a straight prose style boasts its insufficiencies. Without meaning set up beforehand, macho detail is just macho detail. The novella ends with another dying person. By then the story is so stereotypical that this death feels like watching a stranger die, not an artful martyr like before.

[Thrillers R Us · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cruising into an Oliver Stone-esque vision of dusty peyote hallucinations is REVENGE, featuring a walking bruise with a penchant for Debussy's La Mer and semiyogic stretching. The name of the open wound is Cochran and at first he's more bruise than ambulatory.

It all starts with a body found some distance from Nogales; part concussion, part contusion, part fractured bones, but all of it pure Gringo. A Vietnam veteran fighter pilot who, after separating from the military after nigh on 20 years, sees civilian life as utterly benign and is thrilled by new danger in his life that is in the form of a wealthy Mexican's wife. After going Mach II in a Phantom jet, this illicit affair gives that excitement and adrenal rush that any mammal feels.

Unlike Jonathan Ames's A MAN NAMED DOLL (2021) with a dog, this is a revenge story of A MAN WITH A DOG NAMED DOLL. Cochran was a hard man to beat; he was on his way. But beat he got and in turn somebody stole his soul. And he means to have it back. Setting off, after convalescing, with a carpet bag of clothes, a bible, a pearl-handled knife, a bottle of pain pills, and a necklace of coyote teeth, this could've been one hell of a story. Infamously made into a movie starring Kevin Costner in 1990, REVENGE works well as a [hard] title promising vengeance. In today's (more) gun-oriented culture, the novel (or novella) offers much more of an internal dialogue rather than blood soaked retaliation and should've perhaps more aptly been called recovery or remembrance. Whether retribution works is up to you: "Sleep the dream of apples" or bite into this solid story of revenge.

[The Book Nazi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A highly emotional and violent story about Love, Friendship and Honor.

The Book starts off with a recently retired fighter pilot,Jay Cochran, who goes to the coastal city of Puerto Vallarta, to enjoy the hospitality of an old friend he saves once his life on a hunting trip..

The Man he once saved is Tibby, an old ruthless tycoon who has a a beautiful ranch despite the generation gap and the fact they have nothing in common jay just chills with him playing tennis and stuff like that. But just when you think Jay is going to have some fun, he has to go and fall in lust with Tibby's wife, Mireya, a beautiful 30 something woman who surely isn't getting Love from Tibby.

Jay and Mireya don't vault into bed immediately, but neither of them lets a little thing like loyalty to Tibby get in the way of their passion. When the husband finds out, Jay is severely beaten and Mireya is scarred & banished to a whorehouse. Talk about Revenge in Mexico ha? :)

[Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jim Harrison's lyrical prose contrasts abruptly with the violence of this novella of love, friendship, and betrayal. The plot builds slowly to a rather anticlimactic turning point and ends suddenly with an unexpected twist.

[Susan Vargas-howard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sucky ending!!

[devilioxa S. Al Nuaimi · Rating 5 out of 5]

We don't forget who we are. We don't forget where we are.
I finished Jim Harrison’s Revenge last night. A great read. I wish I had read this novella long ago

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

the ending was a little abrupt

[Chuck · Rating 3 out of 5]

An intense novella that deals with vengeance tragedy and forgiveness in one brief book. Takes place in Mexico with an unusally seedy cast of characters but with a meaningful message.

[Jeremy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of his prose is really amazing.