I wanted to like this book so much. I really did. I kept putting it down and going back. but I just couldn't ever get into it. The Macbeth theme was WAY overdone. I was never invested in any of the characters, really. Jo Nesbo is one of my favorite authors, but this book just didn't work for me.

This was my first Jo Nesbo book. I have been wanting to read his work for so long and I’m glad I finally got the chance to do so with Macbeth. I had heard rave reviews of this and I must say they were not wrong. It was clever and entertaining. It must have been a tremendous undertaking to do a retelling of Macbeth and yet Nesbo did so with ease and intelligence. I felt connected with the characters and never got the feeling that they were just at a level above my understanding.

This is the first Nesbo book that I've read. It won't be the last. I was hypnotized by the intensity of his characters. You really don't know who to root for since the good guys ultimately aren't so very good, and they keep changing. The action picks up fairly quickly and doesn't slow down until the bitter end. No real moral lessons are to be found in this book, but rather a bit of a warning as to where we could wind up, particularly in the world we find ourselves in today.
I also haven't read the Shakespeare work, Macbeth, which this book recreates in a more recent setting. Since I knew it was an important part of the story, I read a summary which helped to place the characters and setting into perspective. I'm quite sure that fans of the original Macbeth will find this to be an intriguing take on Shakespeare and equally violent.
My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this title.

When I saw this book was coming out I was intrigued. I’d seen the film THE SNOWMAN based on the Harry Hole novels of Jo Nesbø. While I’d never read any books in the series the movie was entertaining enough if not memorable prompting me to want to read something written by Nesbø. When the opportunity came to read his latest, MACBETH, I jumped at the chance. Unconnected to the Hole series of books I wish I’d have gone after those instead.

The story revolves around the small town of Fife in Norway in the 70s. A once prosperous industrial center the town has fallen on hard times. Control of the drug trade goes back and forth between a cartel and a local biker gang. As a police unit led by Duff goes in to take down the biker gang they’re surprised and under attack when the elite SWAT team led by Macbeth shows up to take over and save the day.

Duff resents Macbeth and his tactics finding him untrustworthy. In reality Macbeth is dedicated to his job and taking out criminals without concern for petty police politics. Unfortunately for both men all of that changes when the police chief promotes Macbeth to the head of their Organized Crime unit over Duff. Macbeth accepts the promotion but still has no loftier ambitions.

Changing his attitude on that is Lady, the owner of a local gambling parlor/hotel and possible brothel. Lady and Macbeth are lovers and seriously care about one another. When he gets the promotion rather than see that as an achievement to stay in, Lady sees it as a means to an end, a chance for her to manipulate Macbeth into moving ever upward. In so doing he could also provide her the clout she needs to make her casino the only one in town.

If you’re familiar with the original MACBETH story then you’ll know how this goes. Other items from the original are inserted as well but in the end the book moves along at a snail’s pace and becomes far too boring. To be honest I was not quite halfway through the book and found it such a tedious chore that I couldn’t bring myself to continue with it. That’s rare for me and the few times I’ve done so I’ve always gone back and finished what I started, feeling a tug from the book to bring me back. I’ve not had that with this book feeling I was wasting my time here.

Others may enjoy the book and the updating of an old classic tale but for me the book was lacking. When reading I find that being boring is the worst possible thing to have while turning the page, often making me more sleepy than excited. This book made me doze often enough that I abandoned it. If you enjoy it, more power to you. For me I’ll move on.

Confession: I was well into this book before I realized this was a modern retelling of Shakespeare's play. Yes, yes, I know the name of the book, and title character, are a dead giveaway. As is the fact that Macbeth's lady love is, in fact, called Lady. And it's only been a year since I've seen the play! Which may account for why it was the secondary character's names that started to ring a bell with me. No need to shame me; I'm already hanging my head in shame.

Here's my only excuse: for the first 75 pages or so, this was just the wrong book at the wrong time. My mind was just not engaged. Until the little light bulb went off in my head. As soon as I wised up to the fact that this was a modern retelling of one of Shakespeare's greatest plays, I was hooked.

The mood is dark, the action is nonstop, and Nesbo has done an impressive job moving the story into a 1970's, post-industrial country. And an even more impressive job of keeping the reader sucked in to a story when the outcome is a given.

Have you ever read or seen the play and felt sorry for the Macbeths? No, I'm sure your answer is no. Because as brilliant as Shakespeare's play is, the Bard gave us zero information on their histories. Nesbo takes advantage of his longer medium, giving his characters backstories that make readers, if not care for them, at least understand their motivations. The payoff is that it's even harder to watch so many of them die. Because they are going to die. We know that going in (well, at least those who aren't me and know that this is the Macbeth).

If you're a fan of Nesbo, you will not be disappointed. If you're a fan of Shakespeare, you will not be disappointed. I accepted this book for review simply because it was time for me to read something by Nesbo. Count me now as one of his fans.

I'm placing Jo Nesbo's retelling of Shakespeare's Macbeth back on my to-read list. I know I rated it. What I read so far was great. My high school (ETHS) didn't require that we read too much Shakespeare. I remember only reading Romeo & Juliet and the Midsummer dream one. Although I've never read Macbeth it didn't exempt me from hearing about it and some out damn! spot scene. Unless I'm confusing it with some other Shakespeare work.

Either way. I rated it 4-stars because Nesbo manages to modernize Macbeth in a way that allows readers to be like "Shakespeare who?". Nesbo's Macbeth is dark and dense. Maybe the density of this work is what urges me to move on. I should not have walked away from this read for as long as I did. Whenever I pick it back up, I am hit with the realization that I don't have the time to handle this read.

Therefore, I'll throw in the towel (for now) and place it back on my to-read shelf.

Copy provided by Crown Publishing via Netgalley

I’ve read most of Nesbo’s books, and this is, by far, my least favorite. I have no idea why anyone would enjoy this book. Macbeth and Lady are vile, and most of the characters are stereotypes. Macbeth’s sudden and inexplicable dive into evilness is irritating and unbelievable. That he would love someone so twisted and manipulative as Lady also begs believability. I was profoundly disappointed.

Jo Nesbo is one of my favorite authors and for that reason alone I gave it two stars. This updated version of Macbeth was just not for me. I couldn't get the original time period of the writing out of my mind. I alternated between finding the update so dark and depressing for modern times that I felt depressed to finding the writing laugh out loud at how the characters/images translate to a modern setting.

A retelling of Macbeth with a modern style. Well modern, back a few decades from our current time. This is Nesbo's contribution to The Hogarth Shakespeare project, which is modern retellings of Shakespeare's plays. While I am not a huge Shakespeare fan (don't hate me), this retelling was quite good and I really enjoyed reading this retelling. This story stars with actions and pretty much does not stop until the end. There are many reviews of this book on Goodreads, so I am not going to say the same things everyone else has already said, but I will say, this book needs to be on your summer reading list. I am giving this a solid 4-star review and looking forward to going back and reading other books by Mr. Nesbo which I have missed.

Murder, betrayal, corruption, drug abuse, power struggles - this books had it all.

While not quite a page turner, I did find this to be a pretty compelling read. With only a few exceptions, most every character has a game plan that is not based in goodness or morality. This does become a good versus evil story and all I can say is,there are few survivors.


I think the Hogarth Shakespeare series is the best thing since sliced bread. I have never read Shakespeare and I love going into these stories with no preconceived ideas. The series has gotten me to read more about Shakespeare. In the back of my mind I have this little feeling that I may even try to read an original Shakespeare story. Holy smokes! Never say never.

I received this from Crown Publishing via Netgalley.

Jo Nesbo, with his Scandi-Noir credentials, reinterprets Shakespeare's Macbeth within the provinces of a police force in the 1970s in a bleak declining town riven with gang warfare, drug addiction, corruption and all other manner of darkest deeds and where little differentiates the cops from the criminals. This novel mostly follows the trajectory of the original play, albeit in a suitably blood drenched and twisted fashion. Nesbo gives us a tale of ruthless political ambition, betrayal, treachery and murder, with a mesmerising and compelling antihero in the ex-drug addict, Macbeth, as the head of the heavily armoured SWAT team with a troubled past from which he was rescued by Banquo. The Police Commissioner is none other than Duncan, with Malcolm as his deputy and Duff heads the Narcotics unit. Recently promoted after a policing debacle, Macbeth has a skill and penchant for daggers despite the armoury of weapons at his disposal. There is an intense, heavily atmospheric, menacing setting of a rain sodden anarchic town, infested with a dense, poisonous, and ominous mist providing the perfect background to the rivers of blood that are unleashed in Macbeth's path to power.

The manipulative Hecate is a drug lord serving up the addictive and lethal crack like 'brew' that so many need and cannot exist without. His 'witches' seduce the insecure power hungry Macbeth with the prophetic promise of the highest office of Police Commissioner, providing he leaves the drug business alone. Macbeth is egged on by the casino owner and his love, Lady, but needs to partake of the 'brew' to access the murkier qualities of his younger self to find the courage required to stab Duncan in his sleep, whilst laying the blame elsewhere. Macbeth succeeds beyond his wildest dreams, but all is not well. The delusional Macbeth's life begins to unravel at a startling rate with the rising tide of the dead as he descends into a drug fuelled psychotic haze of paranoia and hallucinations where everyone is suspect and a threat that has to be eradicated. If you are familiar with the play, then you will be aware of where all this is heading, although not quite perhaps in the way you might expect.

Nesbo succeeds in providing us with a thrilling version of a contemporary reworking of Macbeth, which is one of my favourite Shakespeare plays, having first studied it at school. However, if you are in search of a tale that is anchored in reality, then you are doomed to be sorely disappointed. To get the most out of this retelling, you will need to suspend your disbelief on a number of occasions. I have seen many versions of Macbeth in a variety of settings through the years, Nesbo's Macbeth stacks up well with the best of them. It had me reading as fast as I could, desperate to find out how it all ends. Highly entertaining and providing you are not a purist, highly recommended.

The Hogarth Shakespeare Series is a project started in 2015 where bestselling authors retell Shakespeare plays in modern settings and stories. Macbeth has been retold by award winning author, Jo Nesbo, (most famous for his bestselling Harry Hole series) in a modern-day (1970s) thriller wherein the police force, headed by Duncan, the chief of police, is trying to stop a serious drug problem in a small industrial town. Hecate is the villain, of course, and is powerful enough to thwart the efforts of the police.

Jo Nesbø is an excellent storyteller, and while most of us are familiar with the storyline of the original MacBeth, has skillfully inserted twists and turns, so that readers will be on the edges of their seats while reading this novel. It is amazing how Nesbø has developed the original Shakespeare characters into believable modern-day people.

Shakespeare enthusiasts will definitely enjoy this novel, but it will also be enjoyed by readers who just like to curl up and read a well-written suspenseful novel. The original play has plenty of suspense, and Nesbø has kept with tradition to keep the suspense building throughout this novel.

The novel is quite dark (just like Shakespeare’s original play), and is not a fast or easy read. The characters aren’t particularly likeable, as it should be. It is, however, written in modern language, so that it is easier to understand than the original play. Macbeth is a novel that will take an investment of time, but the reward of reading an excellent novel will not be forgotten.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

I read Macbeth in High School. And while I remember being a fan of all the Shakespeare I had been exposed to, I didn’t remember much about the original play. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing, keeping me from being able to guess what was going to happen, or a neutral thing (I can’t see a reason for it being bad.) Either way, I enjoyed the hell out of this book from near-start to finish.

When I say “near-start” I’m talking about the first 4 or 5 pages. In a very Shakespearian way, Nesbo gives a few pages of info dump to give us the state of this world. It’s not the time of Kings and Lords, it’s the 1970s and our players are all law enforcement. Instead of seeking crowns and thrones, they seek to head departments and political power.

When we meet Nesbo’s version of Macbeth, he’s the leading officer on the SWAT team. But events quickly unfold that thrust him into power, and once he has a taste, no amount of power is enough. Especially with ‘Lady’ whispering in his ear.

First, let’s talk about what author Jo Nesbo did well…

The action is intense. Shakespeare’s play didn’t have a lot of that. Talking and soliloquies, sure, but action? Not really. Nesbo’s scenes are action-packed and very tense. Gun fights, narrow escapes, rescues, ambushes…. WAAAA! It was all so awesome.

The characters are awesome. Sure, they weren’t all original characters, and some of them already had some of their characteristics from Grandpa Willy, but even so, Nesbo fleshed them out into deep, believable, flawed people. Each one made you want root for them, and hate them, and sympathize with them through it all. This chapter’s villain might be the next chapter’s hero, or victim, or both.

Tragedy. HOLY CRAP! I know Shakespeare was known for it, and let me tell you this: Nesbo’s tragedy game is on point! There were moments that made me want to cry, moments that made me angry enough to throw the book across the room, and moments that made me want to curl into a ball and contemplate life.

Now let’s talk about what could have been improved on this book… nothing.

Okay, okay. You got me. No book is perfect. The only thing that struck me as odd was how quickly some things happened. Political struggles end up with friends turning on friends, especially in the beginning. Some of these betrayals seem to happen like the flick of a switch. They’re best friends on this page, but when you turn the page they’ll be trying to kill each other.

I got the impression that this only came about due to the influence of the original material. But really, it’s such a small thing and it’s gone before things really get moving along.

I recommend this book to everyone and anyone. Just as I predicted in my First Impression Friday, this book was 5 stars for me. Loved it.

Jo Nesbo’s novel Macbeth is a departure from the Harry Hole novels, and instead, this is one in the Hogarth Shakespeare series novels. The story is set in the 70s in a grimy unpleasant, town—a dreary port town which has suffered a severe economic downturn–not that the town was ever that great:

The raindrop went from shiny to grey as it penetrated the soot and the poison that lay like a constant lid of mist over the town despite the fact that in recent years the factories had closed one after the other. Despite the fact that the unemployed could no longer afford to light their stoves. In spite of the capricious and stormy wind and the incessant rain that some claimed hadn’t started to fall until the second world world had been ended by two atomic bombs a quarter of a century ago.

At one time the “country’s second-largest and once most important industrial centre” it’s now a “quagmire of corruption, bankruptcies, crime and chaos.” The former police chief commissioner, now dead, has been replaced by Duncan, and of course, he’s expected to ‘clean up’ the town. The factories may be closed, but the drug trade is booming and the town’s two casinos are more popular than ever.

Macbeth

The dagger-obsessed Inspector Macbeth runs the SWAT team and his wife, known as “lady,” runs a casino. With the stage set (not to mention Shakespeare’s plot) for a power struggle, we know this story is going to be violent and bloody.

The book is at its best with its strong, grim atmosphere, with the glittering Inverness casino and Obelisk, a “twenty-storey glass hotel and casino that stood up like an illuminated index finger from the brownish-black four-storey wretchedness that constituted the rest of the town.” The imagery of these casinos as alluring lighthouses for the desperate depressed is strong, but for this reader, other aspects of the tale did not work:

So that was why Banquo waited until he saw Macbeth reappear on the other side of the square and walk into the light by the entrance to the casino, from which a tall woman with flowing flame-red hair in a long red dress emerged and hugged him, as though a phantom had warned her that her beloved was on his way.

The names alone interfered in the tale with the result that the gritty update seems to be artificially glommed onto Shakespeare’s great tragedy.

Translated by Don Bartlett

Review copy

Jo Nesbo gives Macbeth a modern spin in this latest entry in the Hogarth Shakespeare retellings. The setting is a decaying industrial city plagued by drugs and crime. Macbeth is the head of the SWAT team, and Lady is the owner of the Inverness, an exclusive casino. When Duncan is selected as the new chief commissioner of police with an anti-corruption agenda, Lady and Macbeth plot to kill him so that Macbeth can become the chief commissioner, because he would do a better job of cleaning up the corruption. Apparently they're of the opinion that the end justifies the means. A reference to Hiroshima and Nagasaki having occurred 25 years earlier places this novel in the 1970s.

I struggled with the first half of the book. I just couldn't buy into the motivation for Duncan's murder, and many of the other parallels also seemed too forced. I found the second half of the book more engaging as events began to play out. This retelling is better than Tracy Chevalier's take on Othello, but it doesn't succeed as well as Margaret Atwood's retelling of The Tempest.

This review is based on an electronic advanced readers copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley.

I love Jo Nesbø. But. I think this book suffers a lot because of its original source material. I believe at least some Shakespeare scholars think that <i>Macbeth</i> is incomplete, being much shorter and less filled out than his other tragedies. I found this book to have the weakness of the original (as I see it) - Macbeth's motivation is completely unclear, and as such the entire plot just rings false. However, Nesbø does a brilliant job moving the plot into a "modern" (1970s-ish if you believe the blurbs, although the city is clearly a fictional amalgam of multiple Scottish cities) format. The whole drug war aspect is just not my cup of tea, and I could tell from the first ridiculously descriptive scene (SWAT action to stop a drug deal) that I was going to struggle through this book. And I did, because of the subject and because of the aforementioned flaw with the original. But you have to give Nesbø credit for such a brilliantly conceived and executed "translation." So I can't say I was disappointed because I didn't expect to be enraptured, but not my favorite. Somewhere there are readers who will love it, however - because Nesbø is just brilliant, and if this is your genre, there's a lot to be impressed with here.

I was loving this one and devoured most of it in one day. I loved how Nesbo seamlessly transported these beloved characters and their lives into a police station in 20th century Scotland. However, the ending went a bit to far and the magical aspects in it did not quite gel. Overall, it is worth reading and may be one of my favorites in this series.

Thanks to Netgalley for my copy.

This is part of the Hogarth collection for the modern adaptations of Shakespeare.

This is the modern day version of Macbeth and I do believe some knowledge of the original story is beneficial. This is a dark and gritty tale of Macbeth the head of a swat team with some addiction issues and his battle with a drug lord Hecate.

I did have some problems with this book in the beginning. I kept starting and stopping and then reading something else before returning to it. About halfway through however something clicked and then I was more immersed in the characters.

I was given the opportunity to read and electronic copy of Macbeth (Hogarth Shakespeare) via NetGalley. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

As I would rather read a book for review without any preconceived notions, I mainly choose novels based on my familiarity with the author or the advanced praise it has received. Jo Nesbo is an accomplished and skilled mystery thriller writer, but Macbeth does not hold a candle to the author's previous works. Nesbo is able to skillfully capture the character traits of William Shakespeare's famous players, though the plot leaves a little to be desired.

Set in the decade of the 1970's, Macbeth centers around the police force in a dilapidated town, overrun by drug issues. As Macbeth is manipulated by one of the drug lords, his paranoia and his increasingly erratic ways have the power to destroy the town and everyone within its periphery.

Jo Nesbo almost did his job too well, in the retelling of this Shakespeare classic. The problem with using established characters in a new setting is that readers who are already familiar will spend the entire book knowing what may eventually transpire. Because of the confines of the project, the end result is a book that is a poor representation of the author's talent. With the novel being entirely too long, Macbeth drags so much in the middle that I had to force myself to continue reading. For these reasons, I would not recommend Macbeth to other readers.

Macbeth (Hogarth Shakespeare) by Jo Nesbø is one of the best books I have read this month. I am rather sad that this review is so late so I do apologize for my late review but go out and get this book. I have a confession when I was in college I did 15 weeks of Shakespeare in college and this is by far my favorite Macbeth. I like many readers found the beginning very slow but a good thriller should be like a good whiskey and give you a nice slow burn. Set in the 1970's, this book focuses on a police force attempting to shed its drug problem. A dangerous drug lord named Hecate has high connections in the city and will use them to get what he wants - absolute power. He is manipulative and clever. Macbeth is a man with demons. He has addiction issues and is prone to violence and paranoia. He also just so happens to be the head of the SWAT team. I found each character complex and unique and for someone like me that is what keeps me engaged. The drug bust in this book is the turning point which keeps the reader turning pages. I find greed ambition and police corruption make for an awesome read. I actually think this would be an awesome tv show to watch. I look forward to reading more books by Jo Nesbo in the future I am very impressed by this novel. I have only read one other by him. This is a much enjoyable departure hands down you have made a new fan. Thank you Netgalley and all parties involved this was a fun ride.