OH MAN!! What a ride! I absolutely LOVED this book by Canadian talent Mona Awad! Set on a university campus and featuring Miranda, a tenured theatre professor who lives with chronic pain from an accident long ago. This was one of the best books I've read showing how exhausting and frustrating it is for someone who has chronic pain and has to deal with disbelieving doctors and friends. Miranda's marriage dissolves because of her accident, friendships fall apart and even her job comes under attack. When she stages All's well that ends well for the Shakespeare production her class revolts leading to an epic fight between her and her students as well as a adjunct professor who is out for her job.

This book was a bit fantastical and read like its own mini play but I was totally there for all the bizarre Shakespearean references and elements. I HIGHLY recommend this book for theatre lovers, Shakespeare lovers and anyone who wants to try to understand what life with chronic pain is like. This one far exceeded all my expectations and was excellent on audio too! Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my advance review copy!

Hey book lovers! I apologize for not posting for a while. I've been enjoying summer, including a long-awaited trip to Newfoundland to see my family. I'm here with a book review for All's Well by Mona Awad, a Netgalley arc inspired by All's Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare.

Here's a short video with a summary of All's Well That Ends Well https://youtu.be/XuC8FNrWLFk

Title: All's Well

Author: Mona Awad

Publication Date: August 3, 2021

Publisher: Penguin Random House Canada

Suggested Reader Age: Adult

Genre: General Fiction, Fantasy (Magical Realism), Horror

Triggers: chronic illness

›" 'All's Well That Ends Well,' the dean repeats, winking at me again. 'Just great. That one of the comedies or tragedies, Professor Fitch?' 'Both,' I say. And my own voice sounds richer, deeper to my ear. 'It's both.' "

All's Well truly is a comedy and a tragedy. AND a horror, and a mystery. Miranda Fitch is a 37 year-old who had a happy marriage to Paul until her hip injury after falling off the stage during a performance. She believes the bad recovery following surgery led to her chronic leg and back pain. The accident led to their divorce and her taking a job as a theatre professor in a high school. Her "enemy" is Fauve, the music professor who wants Miranda's job. This year's play will be All's Well That Ends Well. Briana is the leading actress playing Helen (Miranda doesn't like her), her boyfriend Trevor is playing Bertram, and shy Ellie (Miranda's favourite student) is playing the King. Miranda has a crush on the school handyman, Hugo. He's an an ex-con who fell in love with Shakespeare while in prison and now helps design and build the sets. Miranda swings by the pub after rehearsal where she meets a strange man. The bartender gives her a drink called "the golden remedy".

"He's still a fuzzy blur even though I've wiped my eyes."

Ellie offers Miranda a bath bomb/bag mixture of natural ingredients to help Miranda's pain, just like Helen offered to the King in the play. The next time Miranda visits the pub, the strange man is there with two other men. They somehow know her name, and they ask her if she'd like to see a trick.

"Blue skies in my blood blacken. Great weight on my chest. Spinal cord a column of fire. Can't breathe. Can't speak. On the floor. Cheek resting now on the cold floorboards. Three pairs of shiny black shoes pointed toward me, tapping. Tapping along to music. Music somewhere. Familiar. Old movie music. Making the floor shake beneath my temple. What's happening?"

What's happening indeed!

The three strange men are in a band called "The Weird Brethren", which is an interesting name...The weird religious member...Hmmm...and Miranda talks about hearing the song "Get Happy" and "Me and My Shadow" by Judy Garland.

Get Happy Lyrics:
Forget your troubles, c'mon get happy
You better chase all your cares away
Shout "hallelujah", c'mon get happy
Get ready for the judgement day

Me and My Shadow Lyrics:
And when it's twelve o'clock, we climb the stair
We never knock, cause nobody's there
Just me and my shadow
All alone and feeling blue
Me and my shadow
Strolling down the avenue

"Our remedies oft in ourselves do lie,
Which we ascribe to heaven: the fated sky"
- All's Well That Ends Well, Act One, Scene One

From here, it's a wild ride that barely makes any sense at all. Are Ellie's bath mixtures helping? Does magic exist? We don't know if Miranda is losing her mind, and we don't know what's real or fantasy. Embrace the madness.

› I use the CAWPILE method to rate books.
0-3 Really bad
4-6 Mediocre
7-9 Really good
10 Outstanding

› Characters: 8

› Atmosphere: 9

› Writing Style: 10

› Plot: 9

› Intrigue: 10

› Logic: 8

› Enjoyment: 9

Average 9

1.1-2.2 = ★
2.3-4.5 = ★★
4.6-6.9 = ★★★
7-8.9 = ★★★★
9-10 = ★★★★★

My Rating ★★★★★

› Final Thoughts
• All's Well is one of the best books I've read in 2021. Even after reading the book TWICE I'm still not sure I understand what was real or fantasy and I don't understand the ending at all, and I don't care. LOVED THIS!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review.


*Quotes taken from an ARC copy and subject to change*

This is a strange but interesting read. Awad's distinctive, immersive writing style shone through in descriptions her protagonist Miranda's all-consuming struggle with chronic pain and her challenges staging a student production of Shakespeare's "All's Well that Ends Well". Unfortunately, I found the storyline to be a bit slow and tedious, and ultimately DNF.

* Thanks to Penguin Random House Canada and Netgalley for an advance copy for review purposes *

Miranda Fitch used to be an actress and her career seemed to be heading in the right direction until a fall and a botched surgery left her in chronic pain. Her marriage and friendships did not survive the fallout. Now she barely manages to get through the day with copious amounts of painkillers while doing the bare minimum as a professor in a small college. This year, she intends to stage "All is Well that Ends Well", one of Shakespeare's lesser known plays and a reminder of her days of glory, and it does not seem that has any chances of happening until some mysterious characters step in and fantastic things start happening.

The first few chapters were extremely difficult to read, but more people should give them. Mona Awad gets us into the head of a woman with chronic pain, and lets us experience her depression, her grief over all that she has lost, and the trauma from interactions with the medical system. It is very realistic and hopefully is eye opening to many readers. I really felt for Miranda and understood her pain and her frustration at the lack of support around her and the lack of belief in her pain. Fortunately, after that, the author weaves in humour, magical realism and some thriller elements to give us something that I can't even describe. I'm still trying to make sense of the ending, as it is hard to tell at that point what is real and what not, and figure out how do I feel about it.

This book was really weird! But in a good way! It was kind of all over the place but it worked. It was a really fun read, it took you through so many emotions and atmospheres. It was a bit exhausting but I liked it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.

All's Well captured my attention from the first page. Miranda's voice was unique, dark and drew me in with her honest perceptions and criticism of the able body people around her who don't understand her chronic pain. She is angry and unhinged as she makes her way through life trying to get by with physical pain and strong feelings of loss for her previous life - a life with a loving husband and a healthy young body.

The dream sequences were strange and dark with magical elements. The story seemed to seeped into my pores and leave me with a heavy feeling of dread. I was never able to tell which way the story would unfold but I always had the feeling that something sinister was lurking around the corner.

I highly recommend All's Well - especially if you love Shakespeare, are a drama nerd and enjoy dark and mysterious tales with unreliable narrators.

All's Well is a book for fans of Bunny, and those who love bizarre and twisted stories, especially about theatre!

Miranda Fitch is an actor turned theatre professor who suffers chronic pain from a career-ending fall from a stage. Now she's leading the production of All's Well That Ends Well; however, her cast isn't sure this lesser-known play is the play for them— they'd prefer Macbeth. Miranda seems to be living in a strange fever dream of pain and drugs to deal with the endless pain in her leg, hip, and back and feels disregarded and hopeless. Her husband, friend, and physiotherapist all struggled to believe her pain was anything but psychological, and the betrayal stings Miranda deeply.

One day, she meets a trio of strange characters at a pub who provide her a way to get her vibrance back and to leave the pain behind, but at what cost?

This novel was a fascinating study of chronic pain and where one can go when pushed to the limit. Awad's writing is twisting and swirling and some of the most creative I've read. It was an impressive work to read; however, I found it a bit slow-going. I think it would have benefitted from a little more editing to deliver greater impact.

Big thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

I was intrigued with this story from the very beginning. A big part of my interest was the author’s ability to so accurately capture the MC’s pain and her desperation to rid herself of it. Equally accurate is the way that the medical professionals and her loved ones seem to increasingly discount her pain and wonder aloud if it’s even real. Ugh, this so resonated with me as I know people that have gone years without being properly diagnosed for a condition/illness. Wading through the healthcare system can be a tedious process when you’re suffering. And not finding answers can be truly disheartening. In Miranda’s case, her pain is all too real and she desperately wants to believe that she can be cured of it, even though she’s starting to lose faith in all the experts. The description of Miranda’s plight seems to go on for a long time and I have to say that my interest started to wane at a certain point. But then I began to wonder if this was the author’s intention, to get the reader to start feeling like Miranda’s friends and caregivers, less than enthusiastic about her chronic condition. What a sobering thought!

Miranda’s story takes a twist when she meets three odd fellows at her local watering hole. They seem keenly interested in her. They also seem to know quite a lot about her. After meeting these strangers, the trajectory of Miranda’s life changes. While working on a production of Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well, her health improves greatly causing her to become more upbeat and positive. But at what cost?

Leading up to the end of the book, I wasn’t sure what was happening. Was I witnessing Miranda’s descent into madness? Or was something else afoot? I’ll leave my musings there and let future readers work that out for themselves as I don’t want to give too much away. Suffice it to say that while I was sometimes confused, I was always fascinated. This would be a great book for a bookclub as I think the discussion would be fascinating!

My thanks to NetGalley & Penguin Random House Canada for an advanced copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Miranda Fitch teaches drama at an underfunded college, where she is tasked with directing the yearly Shakespeare play. She has chosen *All's Well that Ends Well*, but her students would have prefered *Macbeth*. Suffering from chronic pain, which most medical professionals and friends believe to be psychosomatic, Miranda is depressed and desperate for relief. When she meets three mysterious strangers in a bar, her life changes for the better, but at what price?

Oof, this book! It is so strange, and dark, yet in the end it gave me such a feeling of hope, that I don't really know how to describe it. Miranda is a very self-centered and selfish character, which I usually find off-putting, but the writing kept me mesmerized throughout so that I needed to know how her fate would resolve itself. I felt a pervasive dread as I read, almost like this was a thriller, which kept me turning the pages until that perfect ending dissolved the dread like the sun dissolves mist. I really, really encourage you to read this book, it is absolutely brilliant.

That being said, you must be able to handle a certain amount of vagueness, I think, in order to enjoy this book, because there are events that are so dreamlike that they could be hallucinations, fantasies, or they could be a manifestation of the supernatural. Awad weaves bits of *Macbeth* and *All's Well* through her narrative, which makes the reading more fun for someone familiar with these two plays, I think. Yet there is enough information provided that a reader unfamiliar with Shakespeare would not find themselves lost. If you like Shakespeare "off-shoots", you absolutely need to read this book.

What did I just read? Miranda is a former theatre star living with chronic pain, surviving as a theatre professor. Her students are resentful when she overrides them and decides that the play for the year will be All’s Well instead of Macbeth.

The writing parallels Miranda’s descent into drug-induced madness/hysteria/hallucinations. What starts out as beautifully described and well thought out writing, swiftly degenerates into run on sentences that end abruptly leaving you to wonder, is Miranda really experiencing this or is it a dream?

I found the writing style frustrating and ended up skimming parts just to get through it. I also didn’t really relate to Miranda and just wanted her to get on with it and move forward in her story.

Received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I don't want to do this. I wish I wasn't about to do this but *sigh...I did not enjoy this book 🙈. Blame my (severely) lacking knowledge of any and all things Shakespeare, blame my possible inability to grasp the deeper social commentary (because there was definitely a lot to unpack here), just blame me all around it's fine, I'LL TAKE IT. But from a technical standpoint, there just wasn't the same engrossing and deliciously weird pull that 𝑩𝒖𝒏𝒏𝒚 had on me

It wasn't the quality of the writing, because Awad will ALWAYS thrive there, it was the narrative's overall ability to feel both tedious for long periods, and then completely rushed when it felt like it should matter (a.k.a. the conclusion). I found myself skimming large portions at the end, hoping for something redeeming, but then finding that I would just need to settle for disappointment *more sighing

All of that to say, Awad still remains, and will forever be, one of my most-loved authors, and I will literally read ANYTHING she puts out until the end of time. I hope some of you enjoyed this a lot more than I did!

This book was so interesting and confusing and full of emotions.

As someone who has acted in Shakespeare many times the parallel story of All’s Well was very compelling along the story of Miranda’s own play that seems to be taking over her life.
Chronic pain is something I can’t relate to however I do know several people who do, and it definitely helped me understand more.
I was left questioning what exactly happened in this book and also a bit lacking of closure in the ending for me.

Miranda had been a stage actress until a fall put an abrupt end to her career and left her in constant pain. Now she is a director in a small college theatre department. Each year, the class enters a Shakespearian play competition and this year, Miranda has chosen All’s Well That Ends Well, an unpopular choice with her students. Unfortunately, between her unremitting pain and the increasing rebelliousness of the students, Miranda seems in a downward spiral - that is, until she meets three very strange men in a bar who seem to know everything about her and offer her the golden cure for her pain, a cure with rather shocking consequences.

All’s Well by Mona Awad is a beautifully written novel infused with empathy, dark humour and magic and it grabbed my attention from the very first page. Awad’s description of Miranda’s constant pain was vivd and realistic and her characterizations of the differing theatre types, despite being very funny, somehow managed to avoid cliches.

My only problem -I often felt at sea thinking I was missing important references that would have been more clear had I ever read the original play. But that’s on me and a problem I plan on rectifying in the future. Overall, though, I really enjoyed the book so a definite high recommendation from me.

<i>Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review</i>

Miranda’s promising career as an actor was cut short by a hip injury. Her life is now in tatters—she has persistent pain (and no one believes she is in pain nor can they explain why the pain remains), she works as a professor in a failing theatrical program and none of her students are interested in the production she is directing. All seems lost until she meets three mysterious men and suddenly everything seemingly changes for the better….

Wow, this was quite the book! While it started off slowly, it heated up and I felt compelled to read it right to the end in one sitting. I could not predict the ending which was fantastic. I loved the irony in the book as well as the Shakespearean themes. It’s highly likely I willsuggest this book as a pick for the book club I’m part of.

I believe I made a good decision when I requested the title from NetGalley and would like to thank the publisher for sending me a copy of the book to review.

I wanted to love this as much as I loved Bunny, but I didn’t. I think it’s largely to do with the main character being largely unsympathetic, despite her suffering.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Mona Awad for providing an advanced reader copy in exchange of an honest review. All’s well follow the main character Miranda Fitch who has extreme pain in her back and leg. Doctors dismiss her pain and claim its all in her head and slowly everyone around her believes she is faking. Miranda is put in charge of directing a college play with a bunch of college students who are reluctant to put on the play All’s well that ends well instead they want to put on Macbeth. One day after an exhausting rehearsal Miranda goes to a pub where three strange men show up with a weird amount of knowledge about her claiming to have the magic remedy to all her problems. I loved All’s well as the characters were so well formed and the plot was a little hard to get into but slowly, I became very invested in the story. All’s well is classified as both thriller and horror although I didn’t really find it super scary, so it really is more of a thriller. One of my favourite things about All’s Well is that you think you have finally grasped onto the plot and then boom you turn the page and you’re like what the heck. This was very enjoyable as it kept me interested and wanting to read more. The pacing of the plot was done remarkably as it never felt rushed and by the end I was satisfied with the speed. Another notable thing isthat the main character slowly turns into the villain. After reading All’s Well I have the urge to read the Shakespeare play all’s well that ends well. Honestly the book has given me so many emotions and overall was amazing and honestly probably one of the best books I have read in 2021. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys dark comedies.

Just like Awad’s previous book “Bunny”, this novel was strange, unique, and very creative. Miranda’s character is complex; I really felt for her and the pain she was forced to suffer through - numerous doctors and drugs that never seemed to help or make her worse, and the fact she was forced to give up her career. Now teaching Shakespeare and directing one of his plays, Miranda must watch as younger, more able-bodied students live out the life she wishes she could have back. Just to give a taste, this book includes tricks, witchcraft, illusions, and three strange men who impact Miranda in an unbelievable way. While I personally liked Bunny more, this one was very reminiscent of it, and even though this won’t be for everyone, I would suggest giving this one a try if you enjoyed Awad’s previous work. Side note: this cover is amazing and I absolutely love it!

Miranda, a somewhat successful former stage actress, is the theatre director at an obscure college, I think in Rhode Island but it wasn't very clear as I recall. She suffers from chronic pain as a result of a fall while performing on stage in the past. She's insistent on the students putting on "All's Well That Ends Well" as the annual Shakespeare production even though they'd rather do "the Scottish play". I'm not big on Shakespeare and wasn't familiar with All's Well before this. I had to google it to get a sense of what the play is about.

This book descended into madness quite early on and I was very confused a great deal of the time. Like another reviewer, I spent most of the book not really sure how I felt about it. It's told in a stream of consciousness by Miranda and her mind is quite a labyrinth, probably not helped by the amount of drugs and alcohol she consumes. It was agony reading descriptions of her pain but I never really felt sorry for her; in fact I didn't like her much at all. At times her stream of consciousness veers into Yoda territory, like "Darker the sky is getting now" which was really disconcerting. At first I wasn't sure if I would be able to finish the book but after a while I found I was almost mesmerized and couldn't stop reading it. Still I can't really recommend the book although a lot of readers seemed to like it more than me. I'd give this 2.5 stars rounded up. If I never hear the phrase "Am I right?" again, it will be too soon!

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada for granting me access to an ARC of this novel.

Published August 3, 2021

In All's Well, Mona Awad offers up a darkly funny commentary on society's inability to see and acknowledge female pain. Miranda's tale unfolds down familiar routes, the frustration felt by the character all too clear for any woman who has needed to seek medical attention. The thinly veiled judgement of the characters around Miranda speak to the current social justice warrior trend where support for disabilities or social causes is a thin veneer put forward for the sake of following trends yet the true judgement still lies shallowly hidden under the mask.

The writing felt a little fuzzy sometimes, like a dream more than a fully realized vision but the writing was engaging and drew comparisons in my mind to a more mainstream version of Janice Galloway. Readers will not be disappointed in the journey All's Well will take you on.

Just as addictive as Bunny. I never wanted to put it down, and I was always excited to pick it back up. With Awad, you truly have no idea where the story’s going, and that’s exciting.

I’d be curious to read more opinions on how disability, with Miranda’s chronic illness, was represented in the book. I feel like there were some weird bits, especially towards the middle of the book (trying not to spoil). I get that she was probably going for commentary, with a layer of irony, but it wasn’t always immediately clear.

The main character, Miranda, felt a little one-dimensional. That was also the case in Bunny, where we focused a lot on Samantha’s loneliness, but it fit the story better, in my opinion, especially since she kind of loses herself in the group of bunnies. Here, I guess Miranda loses herself to… theater? The play? But I would’ve loved to know more about her.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. If you liked Bunny, you’d definitely like All’s Well.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the advance copy of this book.