Ava Reid continues to wow with her storytelling and writing. This Macbeth retelling was playing on her strengths yet again. Her female characters throughout all of her books continue to grow. I really enjoyed how Lady Macbeth was portrayed in this story and the aspect of the witches and the bit of mythical aspects tide into it

Ava Reid has done it again: gothic, grimy horror, brilliant retelling. Macbeth was one of my favorite Shakespearian pieces and to have a story about the woman who kicked off the plot in that book is something I never thought I needed until Ava Redi's book announcement. The characters are written in a way that stays true to the story and the person. One of my biggest worries for retellings is when authors spin the characters' personas in a completely different direction, but Ava completely avoids this.
Lady Macbeth - manipulative mastermind, intelligent, morally grey (more morally grey female characters!!), uses her feminine characteristics as a weapon
Macbeth - relentless brute, violent, power-hungry
These two were made for each other in the best and worst ways possible.

Can't wait for this book to be officially released to the world!!

Almost fan fiction-y??? it was a good read but i had to force myself through it. i love retellings but this fell short for me somewhere. i’ve seen some shady stuff about the author (although i’m not sure if it’s true)

Wavering between 3 and 3.5 stars.
CW: blood, murder, physical abuse, implied torture, rape (fade to black and implied), sex

First, I have to say that I generally love Ava Reid, both for her writing as an author but also for the perspectives and opinions she shares online. I was excited to recieve this ARC of this this story, and while I did enjoy some of the prose and physical writing of the book, I feel a bit let down in story and character development.

First, as expected from Reid, the prose is stunning. It is written in a way that feels like the myths and stories from medieval Europe. While it took a little getting used to, there are definitely lines where after reading them I would sort of look up from the page and just think "damn".

This story is not shy about its feminist commentary, going more for the "hit you over the head" style commentary on the potential brutality of the patriarchy. That said, I did feel disappointed that it never truly felt like Roscille/Lady Macbeth ever regained her agency in any significant way. Not being particularly familiar with the play, I would have liked to see this version of Lady Macbeth follow more of the original story in terms of descent into madness, less as a "all women go crazy" and more as a true reflection of ambition and society. It felt like the story tried at times, but it fell short of every really diving into Roscille's character beyond her being pretty and being told she was a witch.

Perhaps relatedly, it felt like we never really got to know any of the characters and some of the story plot points felt either jammed in to fit a plot point or just completely unnecessary (I still don't understand the plotline for Duncan's sons). This felt like it was trying to be a character forward story, but both the characters and the plot got lost in the ambition of the writing.

Overall, while I appreciated some of the ambition of what Reid was trying to do with this story, I think it ultimately fell flat. For those who appreciate Reid's other writing, I think this is worth a shot, but keep in mind it is very different in style, even if some of the gothic themes are still present.

Thanks to NetGalley/Del Rey for the eARC.

Lady Macbeth was a thrill ride from the beginning. Roschille had so many things stacked against her, beginning with her father to others to Macbeth himself. The writing is beautiful, I literally could feel everything she felt. There were intense moments and her "curse" was brilliant. I was not expecting some of the revelations that occurred at all. It was so so good. I enjoyed every minute and I was surprised when I got to the end because I just wanted to keep hearing more of her and her story. The love aspect of this book is also beautiful and compelling. And Macbeth himself? Overpowering and entitled, and a well fleshed out character. I love this author and will always read anything she writes!

This was… so gothic and atmospheric that it was boring. At least for me. The book where not much happens for the first 100 pages and it’s only 208 pages long. Read if you like the work “ermine “ used over and over and over and… well… You get the gist.

I've admittedly never read <i>Macbeth</i> nor seen it performed, so my knowledge of the source material this book draws from is, admittedly, thin. I do think I'd call this a reimagining of the <i>Macbeth</i> story before I'd call it "Macbeth from Lady Macbeth's perspective", because even I, with little prior knowledge of the play, knew that several liberties were taken here. This will bother some readers, but I didn't mind it so much. More than anything, I wondered why, in a tale that takes several dramatic departures from even what I do know of <i>Macbeth</i>, this story needed to be rooted in <i>Macbeth</i> at all.

This is a razor-sharp, scathing, and powerful tale of female agency denied, set in a world in which men hold all the power and women have very little recourse from lives of being their "pleasure slaves", to borrow the grotesque and apt phrase the narrator of the tale utilizes. In many ways, it's a mirror to the way that patriarchy still poisons in the modern day, and I appreciated it greatly for that fact alone. I also enjoyed following Roscille, the titular Lady Macbeth's, machinations to try and create a place of safety and empowerment for herself in an overwhelmingly male world that, for all her cleverness, she still, at times, cannot fight against. All of these were very good, very interesting discussions that were woven cleverly into the tale.

My question about why this needs to be a <i>Macbeth</i> story at all, then, has to do with the fact that the parts I liked least about this book were the parts where the story deviated so sharply from its source material as to be unrecognizable. Other reviews have pointed out that the seventeen-year-old Lady Macbeth of this telling bears very little resemblance to the Lady Macbeth of Shakespeare's play, and even with my limited knowledge thereof, I could see that, and it took me out of the book every single time. I can totally buy a book where someone turns into a giant dragon, but if that book is a retelling of </i>Macbeth</i>...that's less easy for me to buy.

I think this book definitely has an audience, and a lot of value in what it has to say; it just didn't hit quite as hard for me as I'd been hoping.

Thanks Random House and Netgalley for the eARC!

I feel complicated about this book, because I had really high hopes for it (I’ve really enjoyed Ava Reid’s previous books and I was excited about a Macbeth retelling focusing on the women of the tale). And I was disappointed on how that was carried out.

It’s hard to express what my issue was with the plot without coming across as someone who cares way too much about Shakespeare. But I don’t care about faithfulness to the text out of respect to The Bard. My disappointment comes from the fact that Lady Macbeth is super cool in the original text! As some other reviews noted, she’s extremely gaslight gatekeep girlboss: she’s already a great character to take and focus on to craft a story about complex, manipulative, clever women. And instead, Reid seems to have tried to force the square peg of Lady Macbeth into the round hole of a classic YA protagonist girl backstory (mean father, brutish husband, ugly friend, ~powers~, supposed cleverness that we never actually see). It’s just not a good fit, and feels very formulaic when I was excited for the fun characterization opportunities. Roscille is just, kinda, boring? Not particularly smart (though we’re constantly told how clever she is), enamored with a random prince, determined to start machinations that she can’t see through, and have we mentioned how pale/blond/small she is? (she’s creepy too, so it’s unique!)

I’m sounding like I hated it at this point, but I honestly didn’t. To be fair to this book, the writing and line-level craft was quality. The thing that kept me reading was largely how much I liked the prose itself, and the feeling of obligation to the first ARC I’d requested and received. and the story itself was not awful, just really underwhelming in contrast to the potential I thought the concept had.

also, somewhat a side point, but I felt uncomfortable with how all the Scottish men were portrayed. kind of icky to depict all the men of one particular ethnicity as brutish and have the one alright dude be part English. just absolutely unnecessary?

planning to post my review on Instagram in the next week or two. will update my feedback with the link when I do. (EDIT: link added)

Ava Reid is one of my auto buy authors and where her other books I adore and love, this was missing something.

The writing was beautiful and being a retelling I would think I would been all for it, but unfortunately something didn’t work.

I wish I could pin point what. Not sure if it’s pace or lore, but this one is not my favorite.

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

"Lady Macbeth" by Ava Reid is a reimagining of the classic Shakespearean character, offering readers a fresh perspective on one of literature's most intriguing figures. However, my experience with the book was cut short as I stopped reading at the 40% mark due to several issues that hindered my enjoyment of the story.

While Reid's attempt to delve into the lore surrounding Lady Macbeth is commendable, I found myself struggling to follow the intricacies of the world-building. The lore was dense and complex, making it difficult to fully grasp the nuances of the supernatural elements woven into the narrative. As a result, I found myself feeling disconnected from the story, unable to fully immerse myself in the world Reid had created.

Additionally, the storyline itself felt somewhat convoluted and confusing, with multiple plot threads vying for attention and competing for clarity. Characters and motivations seemed muddled, and I found it challenging to keep track of the various storylines and their significance to the overarching plot.

Despite these shortcomings, there were elements of "Lady Macbeth" that showed promise. Reid's prose is lyrical and evocative, capturing the dark and atmospheric tone of Shakespeare's original work. The exploration of Lady Macbeth's character and her descent into madness held potential for a compelling narrative, but unfortunately, I was unable to fully appreciate it due to the aforementioned issues.

Everything Ava Reid writes is compelling and expertly written, with so much to ponder. Lady Macbeth is no different — 4.5 ⭐️

This follows Roscille, a 17 year old French girl who has been shipped off to be Macbeth’s new wife. But Roscille is witch-kissed and can compel men to do her bidding with just her eyes. What may seem like a gentle doe that has landed in Glammis is actually a determined girl who is trying to survive and succeed in any way she can.

I think this is best enjoyed as a novel that has taken some inspiration from Macbeth. It is not meant to be a faithful retelling of that very popular play, because that is a story we all know. This shows an unmoored girl finding her teeth in a bleak and sometimes inhospitable place. Reid does not romanticize certain aspects of this book (something Reid does so well in all of their works) like the large age gap and Macbeth’s simmering domestic violence. The political factors of this paired well with Roscille’s attempts at scheming and I very much felt like I was in her shoes based on the narration.

I so enjoyed the addition of the monster. The feminist take on the witches was very satisfying. It is gothic and gritty and gut-wrenching and it sure is infused with female rage. The female rage in this is perhaps a bit different than what we are used to, but I enjoyed this a lot.

Two quotes I really resonated with: “Madness, of all things, is the most unforgivable in a woman.”

And: “If she cannot have safety, if she cannot have love, at least she can have this. Vengeance.” 🗡️

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced readers copy. This did not affect my review in any way!

Thank you to Del Rey and Ava Reid for the eARC of Lary Macbeth.

I want to start by saying that I love Ava Reid, and I don’t have a strong attachment to the original Macbeth. So I am not sure how that would change my views on this book.

I loved that this felt like a redemption of power, a woman working within the constraints of the male dominated world around her and learning how to be both powerful and cunning. This was a younger woman finding where she belonged and pulling on the power of those before her.

I enjoyed the magical aspects of the witches and the land. I did also enjoy the dragon in the story, I think as in the end it speaks to the monster you embrace versus that which you pretend does not exist, but I don’t want to expand too much and veer into spoilers.

This is a slower book, but I think the prose was really beautiful and the story itself felt so atmospheric and you could feel the loneliness and cold that Lady Macbeth was feeling throughout as well

This felt very much like an Ava Reid book and I’d highly recommend if you enjoyed their other works!

This is a gripping retelling of Shakespeare's classic tragedy, offering a fresh perspective and feminist take. The author continues with psychological depth and beautiful historical detail yet if you’re expecting a story true to manuscript, this wouldn’t be for you. You have to throw everything out the window you think you know. But true to theme for Ava Reid she leaves us deep within our thoughts and her gorgeous dark academia writing. I absolutely enjoyed it and definitely recommend it!

Being a Shakespeare fan, I devoured this in less than two days. Unfortunately, I finished it feeling confused and unsatisfied. Reid has an undeniable talent for cultivating atmospheric worlds and beautiful prose, but it threw off the pacing and muddied the plot at times. It deviated so significantly from the source material that it was like a completely different story, so Shakespeare purists be warned. This is more reimagining than retelling, which is still enthralling but ultimately lacked to me personally.

Giving the Lady a voice and her specific backstory was creative, adding to the intrigue of the 'villain origin story' I knew was coming. However, the love affair and later plot twists with a *certain* character were completely out of left field. In a way, Roscille's decisions in relation to the Prince are completely in character with what she has fallen victim to at the hands of Macbeth. However, the abnormality of the Prince's arc and his overall importance to the story seem forced and used as a device to create unnecessary drama.

The first half of the book may have been slow, but it followed canon and was mysterious. I personally enjoyed that. Reid successfully wrote a build-up that was both quiet yet charged, but that upward momentum plummeted with the choice of a supernatural subplot.
And Roscille became very unlikeable following this. I'm still unsure if that was Reid's intent (since the Lady is the villain in the original 'Macbeth'), but it was a lazy pivot. It's an insult to the character to write her outsmarting and surviving an evil man, only to have her rely on another man to save her in the end. Girl, WHAT HAPPENED!!

Said ending was also quite rushed, considering I as the reader would have thrived off seeing Roscille make Macbeth suffer for the shit he put her through. Instead, he meets a quick end and the Lady's happy future is left to the imagination, all in a matter of a handful of pages. Talk about anti-climactic!

Overall, this wasn't an awful book. Reid wove some real goodness into this one but I felt a bit robbed at how everything played out. It could have easily been longer, if it had gone in a more realistic and classicly-Shakespearean direction.

I enjoyed this title. Having not read Macbeth the play, I was able to follow the plot very well. The point of Lady Macbeth being a witch who can entrance men with her eyes was fascinating, and an excellent way to take the story and give her the power she lacks in the original story. She has a voice, and she's strong. I can't tell if the author means to paint her as a hero or a villain at some parts of the story- like when she kills the king. I saw her as a hero the entire time, and felt for her as she went through her life married to Macbeth. The ending where she gets her freedom was powerful, and I thought it was a perfect ending to the story. My only complaint is that I sometimes got lost in the plot and didn't know what was happening, which is my own fault for not reading the play!

Unfortunately I had to dnf this book as I could not finish it. I have tried picking it up multiple times over the last few months but it never grabbed my attention. I love Ava Reid but this book lacked something I can't quite pinpoint. it pains me to leave this review but I really tried.

Lady Macbeth tells the story of one of Shakespeare's most infamous characters, but from the female gaze.
I'll be honest, I'm not well versed in Macbeth. I remember reading it in high school, but I don't really remember all of the details of the story.
I enjoyed Reids more magical interpretation of the story. Truly embracing Lady Macbeths connection to the supernatural. This book also humanizes her in a way that we don't get to see in the original.
I found the pacing of the story odd. It would drag at times, and then feel like it's speeding through the plot. This reimagining in my opinion could have taken more risks. It felt more like a reinterpretation or retelling based on Reid's interpretation of the source material versus a true reimagining that could have expanded the story, lore, and world.
Ultimately I liked this book, but I didn't think it did anything remarkable.

If Heathcliff was your first book boyfriend, odds are you will love this.

I myself am constantly chasing the high I got after reading Wuthering Heights for the first time in high school, and this retelling of Lady Macbeth sated my gothic romance appetite.

Ava Reid’s reimagining of Lady Macbeth’s story has it all; scheming, murder, romance, vengeance, witchcraft, and even a dragon.

I devoured this ARC, and I highly recommend it to my fellow gothic romance lovers ♥︎

I don’t think I've read a book that has emotionally moved me, this deeply, in quite some time. This book made me feel so much anger for our main character, Lady Macbeth. I was rooting for her the entire time. I felt so much anger and sadness at how this 17 year old was thrown into a world ruled by men all on her own. I was eagerly waiting for Roscille to get her vengeance. You get to read about a woman’s role during this time period and feel the pain Roscille feels on being forced as a pawn and suffering at the hands of men who relish in being violent and brutish for the sake of power. You feel a sense of claustrophobia from reading of how women were forced into positions of powerlessness and a complete lack of autonomy.

Ava Reid fully had me immersed with their work of imagery. I was right beside Roscille in that cold, dark, and dreary castle. I felt miserable reading how Roscille saw her new home. It all just made the book come to life for me. I absolutely enjoyed it. Ava Reid accomplished what they set out to do with the retelling of Macbeth. I felt so much for Roscille, Lady Macbeth, that when the ending came around I was so happy and content with the conclusion. I loved this book so much. I don't think I can recommend it enough. It had such a satisfying ending.

Will be posting this review on my goodreads (goodreads.com/songreqst) as well as on my Instagram (instagram.com/bookreqst). Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This novel is a fantastic take on one of Shakespeare’s most memorable plays. I felt as though the internal monologue we received from our protagonist was not only informative to the reader but also held so much value in what the plot ended up being. If you go into this novel having zero experience with Macbeth you will find it a delightful and rich fantasy novel circling Roscille, a puppet master to the men she should be subservient to, and her journey in her new life. This is a great novel for any reader.