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WHAT HAPPENS AFTER REVENGE?

Kate Thompson thought avenging her father’s death would help her sleep easier, but nothing has been easy since she killed the notorious outlaw Waylan Rose. Then Jesse Colton rides back into her life and the nightmares that used to visit her each evening begin to fade. At least until the papers bring word of train robberies in the south—heists staged by a man claiming to be Waylan Rose’s half brother.

Knowing that the ghosts of her past may come to claim her, Kate will have to choose: cut Jesse loose and face the Rose Riders alone, or follow her heart—even if it means risking everything she holds dear.

Previously available only to readers who preordered Retribution Rails, don’t miss this thrilling novella that bridges the gap between Vengeance Road and Retribution Rails.

89 pages, Paperback

First published August 29, 2019

433 people want to read

About the author

Erin Bowman

18 books1,967 followers
Erin Bowman is the critically acclaimed author of numerous books for children and teens, including the Taken Trilogy, Vengeance Road, Retribution Rails, the Edgar Award-nominated Contagion duology, The Girl and the Witch’s Garden, and the forthcoming Dustborn. A web designer turned author, Erin has always been invested in telling stories—both visually and with words. Erin lives in New Hampshire with her husband and children. You can visit her online at embowman.com, on twitter @erin_bowman, or on instagram @heyerin.

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PLEASE NOTE: Erin does not check goodreads mail. If you message her this way she will not see it. For contact methods, visit Erin's website.



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Community Reviews

5 stars
86 (37%)
4 stars
96 (41%)
3 stars
39 (16%)
2 stars
8 (3%)
1 star
1 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
Profile Image for Melissa ~ Missy (FrayedBooks).
725 reviews65 followers
December 15, 2019
I loved this novella, I love the Vengeance World road and would read even more stories in this! It’s been a while since I read VR and Retribution Rails But it all came back to me pretty easily. I love Kate’s voice, so strong and independent. Jesse is understanding. MY ULTIMATE OTP!

If you’ve read Vengeance Road, I’d highly recommend reading this too! It’s available on Amazon an an ebook :)
Profile Image for Delaney (flairforfiction).
183 reviews25 followers
September 1, 2019
Vengeance Road is one of my favorite novels so it was nice to return to this world and these characters, even if only for a little while.

Kate’s voice is still one of my favorite voices I’ve ever read in a book. It’s so unique and really immerses you in the story from the start.

I loved getting to see more of Kate and Jesse and to see how they got from the end of Vengeance Road to where they ended up in Retribution Rails. It was nice to see how their story unfolded further and to just spend a little more time with them as a couple.

My only issue with this book is that not much happens in it. It is just a novella, however, so this really didn’t detract from the overall story for me that much.

Overall, I really enjoyed this and would recommend it for fans of Vengeance Road who want to stay immersed in the world as long as possible.
Profile Image for Christina.
256 reviews269 followers
December 17, 2019
4 stars

You can definitely read these books without this novella, but I really enjoyed getting to find out about Kate's life after the events of Vengeance Road.
Profile Image for Helen White.
943 reviews13 followers
September 1, 2019
Sweet little novella which fills in some of the gaps between Vengeance Road and Retribution Rails. How's Kate and Jesse's relationship continues. It's a nice little story worth reading if you're already read the others.
Profile Image for Megan.
33 reviews24 followers
September 4, 2019
Perfect Companion

I really enjoyed seeing Kate and Jesse's life between vengeance road and retribution rails. It felt like the missing piece for me.
Profile Image for Louisa.
8,843 reviews99 followers
August 4, 2023
This was a really great story, I'm glad that we got this time, and I can't wait to finish out this duology!
1 review
May 2, 2019
I’d really love to see Kate and Jesses love life go on a bit more. When I read the first book when the love happened i freaked out I thought it was gonna be will :/
Profile Image for Corey Beth.
351 reviews3 followers
April 17, 2024
HEA for our heroes

This novella is such a perfect little bite of Kate and Jesse's HEA. I am so glad that I found it on Kindle Unlimited, so was able to read it with my subscription. Although, in my opinion, it would've been worth buying just to see how things turned out for them. Kate & Jesse picks up pretty much exactly where it left off at the end of Vengeance Road, with Jesse arriving at Kate's homestead. There's no high action or anything, but yet I enjoyed this story so much. It serves as an extended epilogue and shares some of what Jesse & Kate experience, for good and for bad, over their first few years as a couple. It is written in the same dialect as Vengeance Road, also told from Kate's POV. It is a fun piece of fluff, and left me feeling warm and fuzzy. If you were a fan of Vengeance Road, this is absolutely a must read, as it rounds off the beginning of Kate & Jesse's road together. I wouldn't recommend reading this without having read Vengeance Road, as it likely won't make as much sense & certainly will lack the emotional impact I felt.
Profile Image for Nats Garden Of Reading .
50 reviews
May 4, 2025
Vengeance Road
Kate and Jesse
Retribution Rails
By Erin Bowman

I've posted these 3 books together because they really should be read as a set. Before starting retribution rails, I thought it would be a stand alone story from the blurb but after getting a third of the way through I realised it had the original characters in it so I bought the ebook novella to get a long epilogue of sorts.

This was my first time reading a western, but I decided to give this genre a go after taking part in a murder mystery with a Western theme, this lead us to watch a few western movies as a family which I surprisingly enjoyed after never really enjoying them before.

They were so well written, very engaging and gripping. Both vengeance road and retribution rails were very hard to put down. If you are curious about Westerns, I think these will be a great introduction.
Profile Image for Theresa.
30 reviews59 followers
September 1, 2019
I loved Vengeance Road and this is the perfect novella that connects it to Retribution Rails.
It answers the question of what happened to Kate & Jesse!
I admire Kate so much for her strength and resilience. Not to mention how smart she is. Living in constant fear that the Rose Riders or someone else will show looking for her gold has made Kate come up with a plan should they have to leave her house.
Jesse is perfect for Kate, even though her may not always agree with her choices, he does respect her!
If you have been yearning for a little bit more of Kate and Jesse, you'll definitely want to pick up this novella!

Profile Image for Jim.
3,098 reviews155 followers
January 11, 2022
It has been a few years since I read the two novels this tale bridges, but Bowman is such a wonderful writer, and crafted such wonderfully deep characters, it sure didn't take long to fall right back into the world. I would suggest this is only read between the two novels, not before them or after them. It doesn't create any new story tangents, just fills out the relationship between Kate and Jesse. The tone and language is perfect, again, and this is a lot of fun to read. Less gun-fightin' and more life-buildin' but quite amazing all the same.
Profile Image for Janelle.
2,237 reviews75 followers
September 7, 2019
I love Kate so damn much! 💖 This story sees Kate and Jesse in the time between book 1 and 2 as they navigate their budding relationship, town gossip, Rose Rider aftereffects, and eventually building their house in the clearing. It was such a joy to return to this world and Erin Bowman has creates such a distinctive voice for these characters.
Profile Image for Zaneta .
430 reviews8 followers
May 1, 2020
I loved this so much!

Though short and sweet, I loved reading about Kate and Jesse and what happened to them after Vengeance Road. Kate is one of my favourite characters ever! And as much as I hate romance in books I adore Kate and Jesse together and so this was everything I could've wanted and more.
Profile Image for Emily.
80 reviews4 followers
August 8, 2020
This was a super sweet aside to Vengeance Road, but I’m not sure I got what the description promised. I kind of expected more to do with the half brother and there’s very little, honestly. Otherwise I enjoyed this. I like these characters and getting to know a little more about how their story played out.
Profile Image for Megan W. (pnwbookworm).
740 reviews26 followers
September 3, 2019
This novella was fabulous! This book, which bridges the gap between Vengeance Road and Retribution rails was great way to get back to Kate and Jesse and I loved reading more about their relationship! If you enjoyed Vengeance Road then you should definitely check this out!
3 reviews
May 13, 2020
Great!

It's a great continuation of the love story of Jesse and Kate. It picks up right were you left of in Vengance road. This book made my heart warm and I highly recommend this book if you liked Vangence road.
Profile Image for Ashley Lynne.
890 reviews5 followers
February 15, 2021
I never would have guessed the Vengeance Road duology to be one of my favorite YA book series of all time but it is, and this little addition to the story made me so happy! I want to reread the books at some point and maybe listen to the audiobooks when the time comes.
Profile Image for Irene.
789 reviews37 followers
July 29, 2021
This novella reminded me a lot of Little House on the Prairie with Kate and Jesse's new home and the town and all that. Sweet epilogue to Vengeance Road and - woot woot - my hatred of Jesse's character went down to a mild dislike.
Profile Image for Bookluvr7.
498 reviews5 followers
August 12, 2022
I loved Vengeance Road! So I figured I would love this too. I love Kate and Jesse’s story and I’m so excited I got to see their story become closer. The novella is a must read if you loved Vengeance Road. 4/5 stars.
Profile Image for Samantha Bunce.
291 reviews3 followers
January 25, 2020
5 stars

I’m glad this exists because I wasn’t ready to leave Kate and Jesse. The Wild West is a fascinating topic and this series has everything you’d want
Profile Image for mikaela (spinebreaker).
1,373 reviews57 followers
April 15, 2020
They're so squishy together 😭 I adore them. And I think this was even better having read the companion first, so I know what happens with them. I love them SO MUCH.
Profile Image for s ♡.
121 reviews25 followers
February 2, 2022
i love reading professional fanfic about one of my fave pairings
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews

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