Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns – Lauren Weisberger (2013)

Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns by Lauren Weisberger, published in 2013, is the much-anticipated sequel to the bestselling The Devil Wears Prada. Set nearly a decade after Andy Sachs walked out on her tyrannical boss Miranda Priestly at Runway magazine, this follow-up novel explores the evolution of Andy’s personal and professional life. Now the co-founder of a successful bridal magazine and on the cusp of marrying a media heir, Andy appears to have moved on from her past – until Miranda re-enters her world, threatening everything she’s built.

Plot Summary

On the morning of her wedding, Andrea Sachs awoke from a dream that chilled her to the bone – a blizzard, ruined shoes, and Miranda Priestly’s voice slicing through the storm like a dagger. The past she thought she had buried beneath success and love had clawed its way back into her consciousness, icy and unwelcome. But Max Harrison, her fiancé and heir to a media dynasty, was lying beside her, warm and real, grounding her in the now. The Monique Lhuillier gown hung ready. The guests were arriving. Her magazine, The Plunge, was thriving. Everything she had worked for was finally in place. Or so she believed.

Andy had come far from the trenches of Runway magazine, where Miranda had ruled with a diamond-crusted fist. She had escaped that world, built a new one with Emily – once her nemesis, now her business partner – and was about to marry into New York’s most powerful publishing family. But fate, and Miranda, had not finished with her.

The day began to unravel when she entered Max’s suite, supposedly to retrieve a necklace left by his mother, Barbara Harrison. She found a letter instead, tucked discreetly into his duffel bag. Its words cut through the fragile joy of her wedding morning: a plea from Barbara to Max not to marry Andrea. The woman wanted someone else for her son – someone from the right family, with the right pedigree, not a girl from a broken home with a career that dared to compete with a man’s legacy. And the most damning part – a mention of Katherine, the ex-girlfriend Max had supposedly run into on his bachelor trip. A woman Andy never knew he had seen again.

Nausea struck, panic seized her chest, and yet the preparations marched on. Faces bustled around her, stylists dabbed at her eyes, planners chirped nervously, and through it all, she wore the dress, said the vows, and smiled for the cameras. The celebration went off flawlessly, the ballroom shimmered with elegance, and Max looked every inch the devoted groom. But inside, Andy churned.

In the weeks that followed, the marriage settled into something sleek and shiny but faintly hollow. Barbara’s disdain continued to hover like perfume – cloying and impossible to scrub away. Emily noticed Andy’s edge, but neither woman spoke of it. They were too busy navigating The Plunge‘s rise in the wedding magazine world. Subtle slights from Max began to collect like dust – missed dinners, distracted nods, evasive glances whenever Katherine’s name surfaced. Andy didn’t press. Not yet.

Then came Miranda. Out of nowhere, her name flashed across Andy’s phone screen, resurrecting all the old anxieties with surgical precision. Andy ignored it, at first. But Miranda wasn’t a woman used to being ignored. The calls kept coming. A proposal followed: Runway’s parent company wanted to acquire The Plunge, and Miranda was the face of the offer. Suddenly, Andy’s carefully walled-off life had a crack, and Miranda slithered through.

Emily, ever the pragmatist, was enthralled by the offer. It meant money, prestige, a kind of vengeance against the industry that had once looked down on them. But Andy saw something else – a trap, a loop, a return to a past she’d fought to outgrow. She hesitated, resisted. But pressure mounted. Max was quietly supportive of the deal. Their board members leaned in. Emily grew increasingly impatient.

As negotiations progressed, Andy found herself spiraling. Miranda, with her icy charm and inscrutable gaze, needled at Andy’s confidence with passive mastery. Andy’s dreams returned – the puddles, the cold, the voice – and reality began to blur with memory. Meanwhile, she discovered that Max’s bachelor reunion with Katherine in Bermuda had not been an accidental brush but a planned dinner. Harmless, he claimed. Irrelevant. But he had lied. And when Andy confronted him with Barbara’s letter, he dismissed it as family nonsense.

Andy began to feel the weight of compromise. Her career, her marriage, her very sense of self were bending in directions she hadn’t intended. In her heart, she knew what Miranda wanted: not just a business merger, but control. An echo of the past, wrapped in high fashion and lucrative promises.

Emily and Andy’s partnership frayed under the strain. Emily accused her of sabotaging their dream, of letting personal insecurities cloud professional judgment. Andy questioned Emily’s loyalty, wondering whether her old ambition had merely been redirected rather than tempered. They weren’t enemies, not like before, but something fundamental had shifted.

The final blow came not with Miranda’s signature, but with Andy’s growing clarity. She realized that Max loved her image more than her essence – the polished editor, the successful woman who fit neatly into his world. He hadn’t fought for her. He hadn’t protected her. And she was beginning to see that she didn’t want to be protected – not like that.

In the echoing silence of her apartment, she sat with Stanley, her loyal Maltese, and wrote a letter. Not to Max. Not to Barbara. To herself. A reminder of what she had once vowed on a Paris street years ago – never again. Never again would she let someone else dictate her worth, her choices, her future.

She walked away.

From the marriage. From Miranda. From the deal.

She took The Plunge with her, carving a new path. Emily eventually understood, though it took time. They rebuilt their partnership, not on ambition alone, but on mutual respect. Andy didn’t escape her past so much as reclaim it, shaping it into armor instead of chains.

And Miranda? She disappeared as suddenly as she had returned. No rage, no retribution. Just silence – the kind that says everything.

Main Characters

• Andrea “Andy” Sachs – Former assistant to Miranda Priestly, Andy is now a confident magazine editor and entrepreneur. Driven, idealistic, and introspective, she is determined to live life on her own terms after her traumatic time at Runway. Her arc reflects a tug-of-war between lingering trauma and the desire for reinvention. She begins the story seemingly triumphant but is soon forced to confront unresolved demons.

• Miranda Priestly – The chilling and charismatic editor-in-chief of Runway magazine, Miranda looms large over Andy’s psyche and the narrative. Her return is as menacing and manipulative as ever, reminding readers of the psychological grip she has on her former assistant. Though her on-page time is limited early on, her presence is deeply felt, haunting Andy like a specter.

• Emily Charlton – Andy’s former rival and current business partner at The Plunge. Sharp-tongued and fashion-obsessed, Emily has mellowed slightly but retains her icy edge. Their professional bond is strong, though their personal lives occasionally pull them in different directions. Emily provides comic relief as well as biting commentary.

• Max Harrison – Andy’s fiancé and eventual husband, Max is charming, successful, and heir to a media empire. His charisma masks a complex relationship with his mother and former flame, and a buried note from his mother shakes Andy’s faith in their future. His actions – or lack thereof – become pivotal in Andy’s internal conflict.

• Barbara Harrison – Max’s imperious and controlling mother. A true Manhattan matriarch, Barbara is coldly dismissive of Andy and represents the oppressive societal expectations Andy has fought so hard to overcome. Her letter urging Max not to marry Andy introduces a critical strain into the narrative.

Theme

• Power and Manipulation – Whether through Miranda’s omnipresent influence or Barbara’s meddling, the novel explores how powerful women can wield control in both professional and personal spheres. Andy’s struggle to remain autonomous is a central conflict.

• Identity and Reinvention – Andy’s attempt to redefine herself post-Runway is a recurring motif. Her shift from harried assistant to polished editor symbolizes a deeper desire to shed the scars of her past, yet the reemergence of Miranda questions how much of that identity is truly left behind.

• Trust and Betrayal – The revelation of Barbara’s letter and Max’s hidden truths underscores the fragile foundation of Andy’s personal life. As she reevaluates her marriage and friendships, the novel probes how trust is earned and how quickly it can be eroded.

• Female Ambition vs. Societal Expectations – Weisberger juxtaposes Andy’s career aspirations with the pressure to conform to traditional gender roles. The story critiques how women’s ambition is often undermined or expected to take a backseat to domestic life, especially in elite social circles.

Writing Style and Tone

Lauren Weisberger’s prose is crisp, witty, and saturated with cultural references that ground the novel in the glitz and grind of New York’s media world. The tone is sardonic yet emotionally attuned, with moments of introspection softened by humor and irony. Dialogue is sharp and authentic, particularly in scenes involving Emily or Miranda, where snarky exchanges reflect both rivalry and reluctant camaraderie.

Weisberger also excels at immersing the reader in upscale settings without sacrificing emotional realism. She captures the superficial glamour of society weddings and media parties while peeling back the layers to reveal anxiety, doubt, and betrayal. Her narrative voice is that of a seasoned observer – stylish but skeptical, glamorously jaded yet still hopeful.