Review: Alchemy of Revenge by Athan Noel

In Alchemy of Revenge, author Athan Noel unleashes a visceral and unpredictable homage to vengeance.

When a lustful mistake spins out of control into obsession, harassment, and even costlier consequences, it seems that Leo Vitali’s life is falling apart before his eyes. His lawyer and father figure has a heart attack and he confesses his misdeeds to his wife, but that’s nothing compared to being arrested for a murder he didn’t commit. Betrayed by those closest to him, the perfect life of this Miami shot-caller is teetering on the edge, as his beloved family is fed poisonous lies by a jealous and manipulative fiend.

After a moment of desperation brings him to the brink of death, he sees a light in the long tunnel of incarceration – the opportunity for revenge. A daring rescue mission frees Leo from a decades-long sentence, but it also costs him 18 months of his life, and plenty of physical scars as well. His years of training had already changed him into an enlightened warrior, but with freedom, spycraft, and powerful allies behind him, Leo’s schemes of revenge can finally be realized.

A kind of modern revision of The Count of Monte Cristo, but on a slightly shorter timescale, there are plenty of nods to that seminal masterpiece of revenge. This includes the character Edmondo, son of a powerful cartel boss, whom Leo and his mentor, Iacovo, vow to protect inside the walls of the prison. Leo is even called “Zatarra,” a direct reference to Alexandre Dumas’ Edmond Dantes, and at some points, the writing feels like a mirror image of that classic story: “You must prepare and create a new persona for the man you have become. You must be patient, investigate everything carefully. You must learn about your enemies and you must plan your revenge with great precision.”

The writing style has a decidedly male energy in both the language and the lens. Whether it is the arrogant bravado of corporate boardrooms or the violent undertones of prison life, there is plenty of masculinity to go around, but there is also a clear transition away from those tropes in the protagonist. His mind may be fixed on getting back what was stolen from him, but he matures quite visibly on the page. He also develops powerful, nuanced relationships with various supporting characters, including Iacovo, Edmondo, and Enrique Spada, each of whom exposes more and more about Leo’s true, complex nature. As Leo’s grand plans unfurl, leading to an explosive and satisfying conclusion, the pace ramps up, pulling readers deeper into this cerebral minefield of a read.

In terms of editing, the first-person narration throughout much of the book can get a bit stale, with “I” sentences making the action feel more like telling than showing. The other narrative perspectives, such as chapters looking in on Leo’s wife and son, come across more organically. There are also enough grammatical slips and errors, as well as misspelled or improperly used words, to warrant a final proofread. While the rough edges could be smoothed, there is an imperfect brutality to the prose that is alluring all the same.

A slow-burning novel steeped in drama, twists, and sharp dialogue, this celebration of unlikely escapes and meticulously plotted vengeance is a thrilling and well-spun tale of retribution.