Macbeth by Jo Nesbø
Macbeth
by Jo Nesbø (Goodreads Author)
M 50x66
Lou Jacobs's review
Feb 25, 2018 · edit

really liked it

Nesbo has successfully crafted a marvelous modern day retelling of Shakespeare's famous tragedy: Macbeth. He forcefully illustrates the ramifications of unbridled ambition and quest for power at any cost. In a noirish tone he depicts a downtrodden town plagued by massive unemployment with massive shutdowns of factories and lorded over by a corrupt government. In reaction to the dismal outlook they turn to two universal vices .... drugs and gambling ... This forms the foundation of this ingenious story.
Instead of a Scottish general we find Inspector Macbeth and his assistant Banquo confronted by a trio of "witches" : Strega and the two Asian sisters ( Who we later learn are employed by the drug lord: Hecate) ... who expound a prophecy that propels the story into motion. As the drama unfolds, we are confronted by a multiplicity of characters: "Lady" , Macbeth's mistress and proprietor of Casino Inverness, who is consumed with ambition and spurns Macbeth into action ... the Murder, of the present Chief of Police Commissioner, Duncan. And like the plays Macbeth he is subsequently wracked with guilt and paranoia .... resulting in an avalanche of murder and mayhem. While, "Lady" the original impetus of the murders, devolves into madness. Other notable characters include: not only Banquo, but his son Fleance .... Macduff appears as "Duff" ... Sweno appears as the opposing drug lord .. and leader of a motorcycle gang .... supporting roles are played by: Lennox, Angus, Cawdor, and and Caithness.
Nesbo even manages to weave into the narrative... Macbeth's famous soliloquy: "Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow ... " The thrilling denouement unfolds as the famous confrontation between the forces of Macbeth and "Duff" leads to a ingenious conclusion.
Thanks to Netgalley and Random House for providing an Uncorrected E-Book for my enjoyment in exchange for an honest review.

Another worthy edition to the Hogarth Shakespeare series, where popular modern authors retell the Bard’s tales. The story of Macbeth is a tough order. Besides its relentless darkness, there’s the cascading evils as Macbeth commits murder after murder to cover up murders, and no trace of the humor Shakespeare uses to ease the tension in the other great tragedies. With those “constraints,” Nesbo artfully sets the story in a town corrupted by drugs and gambling. Macbeth is head of the SWAT team and...

While at times you’ll shake your head and think, “How did he and Lady ever think they could get away with this?”, that’s true of the original play as well. Instead of dismissing the events as implausible, consider the motivations of love, power, altruism, protecting those you love, escape, and more. How might each of us be vulnerable?

Thanks, Netgalley, for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Oh, how I wanted to love this book. I am a huge fan of Jo Nesbo, and I love his Harry Hole series. But this book, bleechhh!!!!! I couldn't even get through it, and I NEVER quit in the middle of reading a book. I was half way though and called it quits. Too much corruption, too much murder, too much reality in the sleaziness of cops and politics. We have to live it in real life right now. I couldn't finished the book. But, thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the perusal. I gave it 3 stars because he writes so beautifully and eloquently..hated the book!

This is part of the Hogarth Shakespeare undertaking, in which modern author reimagine the Bard’s most famous works. In this offering, Jo Nesbø (of The Snowman fame) brings Macbeth into a Northern city amidst overwhelming police corruption. Duncan has recently been promoted to Chief Inspector, following the downfall of the former, highly corrupt chief. He quickly promotes his SWAT commander, Macbeth, to oversee a new department aimed at stopping the flow of drugs and violence into the city, most especially “Brew”, peddled by drug kingpin, Hecate. What follows is the age-old tale of murderous ambition, and the consequences of putting ends before means-wrapped in a dark, police thriller package.

Nesbø does a great job of sinking his story into the mud and the grit and keeping it there. The story is undeniably a dark one, and Nesbø pulls no punches. The entirety of the story takes place in dreary grayness or in the darkness of the night. Nesbø has given us a setting that is downright claustrophobic.

I’ve read several of the Hogarth stories so far, and I think this may be one of my favorites, I always enjoyed the Macboeth story, and Nesbø’s interpretation makes the story feel new, even as we trod old ground.

An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

You know the story; giving into his deeply internalized desires and the machinations of his power hungry wife, formerly noble soldier Macbeth does whatever it takes to ensure his rise to power, but is brought down by prophecy and the purity of men who hold onto the idea of ruling for the good of the people rather than the selfish goals of one man.
In the hands of bestselling Norwegian crime writer Jo Nesbo, readers are treated to a fresh, contemporary masterpiece that present the bard's tale in a new light- though set in a bleak run-down town in the 1970's that is focused on eradicating the drug trade that is decimating their community, Macbeth's story is still full of the love, betrayal, justice, and psychological games that we have come to expect from the classic tale.
This is another win for the Hogarth series of Shakespeare reimaginings.

I have heard quite a bit of praise for Jo Nesbo in the past and saw this as a chance to evaluate the author. I loved the setting and the descriptions. 1970s gritty is perhaps my favorite setting for fiction. I grew up in the 1960s and 70s in a very gritty city myself. I really like the start of the book but after a while, the Shakespeare seemed forced into the story. It was like the story and the Shakespeare were fighting each other for dominence. I could not fall into the story.

Thank you for allowing me to have this ARC, but sadly I could not get into it . It started dark and apparently ended dark. I have enjoyed other Jo Nesbo books ( Harry Hole).

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34616200-macbeth" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="Macbeth (Hogarth Shakespeare)" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1489801350m/34616200.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34616200-macbeth">Macbeth</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/904719.Jo_Nesb_">Jo Nesbø</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2154581223">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
Netgalley #9<br />2018 Reading Challenge: involves a heist<br /><br />Many thanks go to Jo Nesbo, Random House especially Hogarth, and Netgalley for the free copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review.<br /><br />I recently learned about the Hogarth series and had to have ALL THE BOOKS. Macbeth is the latest in the series. Nesbo is well known for his Harry Hole thriller series, Nordic noir. This was just superbly written. It was quite easy to follow the Shakespeare plot though the story. In fact I caught myself asking, "this should be about when such and such happens. Will he write that in?" And BOOM he somehow symbolically had it there all the elements while still telling his own story of a poor city ruled by vice with a corrupt police force and a renegade cop who may just succeed in saving the day. <br />Macbeth is ruthless. Lady is a former prostitute who now owns a gambling den. Duncan is the police commissioner. Well you see where this is going. <br />But my biggest chill was at the end-"I was not born of woman." <br />This was just simply amazing. I'm afraid I've been ruined for all other books in the series by reading this one first.
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/6595648-bam-the-bibliomaniac">View all my reviews</a>

This was Jo Nesbø's attempt to bring Shakespeare's Macbeth up to date. He made it dark, had corrupt drug dealers, policemen, and motor cycle gangs. It was bloody from the start. It was rainy but it was sunny on the other side of the tunnel. It was a town that had seen better days. The corruption was from another former police commissioner but followed with the greed of the people. I liked how he had the ghosts come to Macbeth and also to Lady. They didn't seem to haunt anybody else. I would recommend this book to my readers.

This is the first book by this author that I have read, and I found the introduction extremely difficult to get through. I tried to read it several times and gave up.

I really wanted to love this book as I enjoy Shakespeare immensely. Granted, Macbeth is one of the few plays I haven't read, so I can't say how the book compares to the play, although I'm certainly aware of the main plot and conflict of Macbeth. This was also my first Jo Nesbo, so I definitely went into this blind!

Ultimately, I really wanted to enjoy this book. I love dark and dense novels with strong characters, but for some reason, this just didn't grab me. I don't know if it's because the pace seems to plod along a bit to me although much happens or if it was because I had trouble understanding the motives of the characters. Macbeth seems too much of a pawn for Lady's whims, and it frustrated me that he was so easily persuaded by her, particularly when it came to his close friends and confidantes. This could very well have happened the same way in the play, but it just didn't jive with me.

Although I didn't love the book, I see its merits and think it will have a place among many readers' bookshelves. We will certainly be ordering it for our library as we have a lot of lovers of the Hogarth series. As an aside, my favourite Shakespeare plays are "Much Ado About Nothing" and "Taming of the Shrew," so it's possible that because I'm not a big fan of Shakespeare's tragedies that this version of Macbeth didn't work for me.

Before this book, I have never read anything written by Jo Nesbø. Recently I've heard a lot about him and his work, due to The Snowman releasing in theatres, and as a result, I put him on my TBR. Then a coworker of mine brought to my attention a group of authors who have been asked to reimagine Shakespearean plays, Margaret Atwood among them. While looking up more information on Hogarth Shakespeare I learned that Macbeth had been given to Jo Nesbø, and being that Macbeth is my favourite of Shakespeare's plays I immediately added the future release to my TBR and it skyrocketed to be my most anticipated read of 2018 so far.

Fortunately enough for me, I was able to get an eARC from NetGalley of this upcoming release, in return for an honest review.

My honest review is this, I was excited as all get out to get my hands on a copy of this book from the moment I first heard about its existence, and I am excited still to buy a physical copy as soon as I am given the chance. This reimagined tale of Macbeth was everything I could have hoped for and more. Translating a medieval tale of kings into a modern-day crime story was a brilliant move and done absolutely flawlessly (in my opinion). Instead of King, the goal is Mayor, and instead of garnering new titles and land, the climb is done by rank and stature among the police force.

It's by no means a light read, the book is dense but in the best way. I was captivated from the get-go and loved every moment of my time reading it, every moment I spent among the walls of HQ and the Inverness. There are layers upon layers of character development throughout, many strings interwoven and working together to tie up the end we all know is coming. So of course, while I knew the story of Macbeth Jo Nesboø was still able to wow me at every turn of the page with his new telling.

At the end of the book, I am now a huge fan of Nesbø and will be soon moving on to read more of his work. This one is a must-read this year for sure!

The metaphor at the beginning of the book was telling. The reader follows an unsullied raindrop as it is blown across a ruined city until it drops and, now sullied with poison and sludge, a crime occurs. On the one hand, it is inspired, reflecting what will happen in the course if the story. It sets the tone and the world. But good lord, does it go on. It's a few lines, then a paragraph, then so long one forgets where they are in the metaphor. Then there's yawning and distraction and I am forcing myself to read each next line.

And the thing is, the premise is perfect. A new police commissioner (Duncan MacDuff) fights a gritty, corrupt world, held in the hands of Hecate, a drug lord. MacBeth, a man from the streets and the only one amongst the police team who wasn't elite or privately educated. Lady--that is her name--owns the classier casino/bordello in town. Clearly, there was so much thought that went into setting up this book. But it is mired down in way-too-many-words and passive tone of the book.

Could have been riveting.

Macbeth is my favorite. I neither want nor need to force myself to slog through a retelling not holding my attention.

So, I don't. DNF at 20%. Sigh.

I found this to be very slow and I didn't get the feeling that I wanted from a Macbeth retelling. I was distracted trying to match each character to the one from the original play and couldn't concentrate on the plot enough, because it didn't engage me.

What a cast of ruthless psychotic killers!

Is anyone NOT a cold blooded assassin in Jo Nesbo's reimagined take of Shakespeare's MACBETH? Is there even a hero to root for? Well, you'll have to read it to find out. Having not experienced the classic myself, I have nothing to compare to, but will surely be reading it sooner than later. My interest is now peaked!

DARK and DEADLY from start to finish, I could not believe the betrayals....the backstabbing....the threats....the blackmail....the corruption, or the NUMEROUS egotistical power hungry political types. No human regardless of age is exempt from murderous annihilation....so beware, some parts are pretty tough to take.

I did have my ups and downs with this novel along the way. There were times it even felt a bit long and wordy, but then Nesbo would throw in another bizarre character type or development and I was hooked again.

As the story begins, it's raining....it's ALWAYS overcast and rainy in the small polluted town of 6,000. There's a wasteland of industrial factory closings and no jobs....except in the two rivalry casinos or law enforcement....or unless, of course, you're a drug lord or dealing junkie.

AND NOW, after 25 years, corrupt police commissioner Kenneth is finally dead, and it seems EVERYONE is vying for his job or others that will become available because of anticipated change....thus the battle for power begins. Who can clean up the town? Is there a savior?

Just remember, no one can be trusted in Nesbo's MACBETH, and there's much going on here....lots of strange characters to follow. I have not even made mention of the Norse riders, the mysterious Lady Macbeth, other worldly beings...or the ending...hehehe, but enough said already. If Nesbo is your man, you have a little patience, and you're in the mood for a treacherously creative tale, you'll like this one.

Many thanks to CROWN PUBLISHING and NetGalley for the ARC COMING APRIL 10, 2018 in exchange for my review.

I have not heard of the Hogarth Shakespeare Project before, but have read all of Jo Nesbo books, so was intrigued by this effort. I read Macbeth LONG ago, so the story was somewhat familiar, but Nesbo took it to a whole other level. Outstanding character development as is typical from Nesbo, and just could not put it down, even reading into the wee hours of the morning knowing I had to be up early! I also loved his detail to atmosphere and descriptions. Blew me away! Thank you to NetGalley for this amazing look at a classic.

3.5 stars

The Hogarth Shakespeare project invites current writers to update Shakespeare’s plays, setting them in modern times with modern characters.

"Macbeth" by Jo Nesbø is a retelling of Shakespeare's play "Macbeth", which was set in the Middle Ages. The original story centers around a high-ranking Scottish military leader named Macbeth who - urged on by his ambitious wife Lady Macbeth - secretly murders the King so he can take the throne. Afterwards, the usurper becomes a murderous tyrant who orders the death of anyone who opposes him or threatens his power. I'll admit that - to refresh my memory before reading Nesbø's book - I watched the 2010 movie "Macbeth" starring Sir Patrick Stewart and Kate Fleetwood.

*****

Nesbø's retelling of Macbeth, set in the early 1970's, substitutes the police department of a downtrodden European city for the Scottish royal court. In Nesbø's story, Macbeth is the head of a SWAT team who - persuaded by his girlfriend Lady - murders the police department's Chief Commissioner to take over his position. Macbeth then engineers the death of anyone who suspects him of murder or endangers his position.

Macbeth, in a magnificent feat of self-delusion, asserts that his ultimate goal is to clean up the city, wipe out corruption, and help the people - many of whom are addicted to a cocaine-like drug called 'Brew.' Unknown to Macbeth, however, his ascension to Chief Commissioner - as well as his ongoing ambitions - are being covertly manipulated by a major drug lord/drug manufacturer called Hecate.....who wants Macbeth in his pocket. In fact Macbeth himself soon becomes addicted to 'Brew'.....and later to an even stronger drug called 'Power.' (LOL)

Macbeth has no loyalty and no conscience. Early in the story Macbeth orders the death of Banquo, a father figure who took Macbeth in when he was a homeless teenage addict.....and cleaned him up. Later on, Macbeth sends his henchmen to wipe out Duff, a steadfast friend from childhood who saved Macbeth from a child predator in their orphanage.

No evil is too base for Macbeth, who's ultimately responsible for the murders of numerous men, women, children.....and a baby. Though Macbeth's depravity is off the charts, he stoically claims that - in the long run - 'it's for the public good.'

All manner of things are seen in this book, including: ghost appearances; witches; spying; double dealing; gambling; drug snorting; a motorcycle gang; gatling gun massacres; sleepwalking; adultery; a demon; and more. There's a wide variety of action and intrigue....and even a bit of seduction and romance.

Overall, Nesbø's book (more or less) faithfully follows the trajectory of the original play, so - if you're familiar with that - you'll have an idea of what happens.

Jo Nesbø is the best-selling author of the 'Harry Hole' detective series - about a troubled, alcoholic Norwegian cop whose cases always involve gruesome murders. Thus, it's natural for Nesbø - who seems very familiar with the politics of law enforcement - to set his updated "Macbeth" in the environs of a police force.

Nesbø's tale is well-written, compelling, and held my attention throughout. That said, the book feels overlong - with so many murders and battles that they feel repetitive. Moreover, the continuous treachery and barbarity becomes hard to stomach (for me).

Nevertheless, I'd recommend Nesbø's "Macbeth" to readers who enjoy Shakespeare; the Hogarth series; and/or thrillers. It's well worth reading.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author (Jo Nesbø), and the publisher (Knopf Canada) for a copy of the book.

In the retelling series of the famous Shakespeare's Macbeth which I had read in high school. I liked this one better than the original..is that sacrilegious to say? Great story in Nesbo style

I love the idea of the Hogarth Shakespeare series and have read all of the books in the series to date. I don’t know what parameters were given to the authors, if any. This modernization of Macbeth has a clever premise, but it didn’t fully work for me. I have found in several of the novels in this series, the story can get bogged down when the authors stick to the multiple characters and story lines in the original. That happened for me here. I enjoy Nesbo’s writing, but this one felt forced and cluttered, which seems like an issue with sticking to the original complicated narrative.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free digital ARC of this book. This book is true to its title description. The reader won't be disappointed when reading this book.