This one’s dark and gripping, with a slow burn that pulls you deeper than you expect. Reid’s take on the Lady MacBeth legend twists familiar themes into something raw and intense. The characters feel complicated and real, even when they’re brutal. It’s not an easy read, but it stays with you — the kind of story that lingers after the last page.

If Ava Reid writes it, I will read it! I first read Macbeth in high school but didn't really remember the details aside from the overarching plot prior to reading this book. That proved to be better for me reading this one because while this book is a reimagining of the original play, it is also a wholly original work. Reid has a writing style that is so distinctive across all her works and I feel like it really worked for this story. The lyrical prose really creates a very atmospheric read. Roscille is such an interesting character and I felt like she was very well developed. Her journey throughout the book was interesting to read about and lend to a great book club discussion. Even though I don't remember details from the original, I do know that this is a very different book and that might be polarizing for some, but I thought this book was really well done and it was a great read. Reid's writing style remains unique and I can't wait to read more!

Honestly really disappointed with this one. For being marketed as a Lady MacBeth retelling, it felt nothing like its Shakespearean counterpart. Ava Reid’s Lady MacBeth is watered down and a far cry from a “feminist version”. The only redemption for me was the beautiful prose; I just wish the same attention was paid to the plot.

4.25 ⭐️
Let them call you witch, as they do any woman who professes strength.

I've read a few of Ava Reid's other books and truly love everything about the atmospheric, gothic elements that are woven into this "retelling" of Lady Macbeth. This is an extremely loose retelling of Lady Macbeth's story - I have not read Macbeth, so I lack the context to compare the original work and this reimagining by Ava Reid. I loved the feminist take on this tale with Roscille taking charge as a conniving character, manipulating and punishing men who underestimate her. The question of WHO has control is the overlying theme. If you love the mental chess of different mind games, this is truly for you. The book is a bit low on actual plot, but the vibes are immaculate.

✨ Lush, haunting prose
✨ Reimagining of Shakespeare's most infamous woman
✨ High on VIBES
✨ Prophecies, breaking and enabling them

If she cannot have safety, if she cannot have love, at least she can have this. Vengeance.

Thank you NetGalley and Del Rey for sending this book (Physical & eARC) for honest review.

I was really excited for this book and while I read the whole thing, it was more out of curiosity for where the story was going to end up. I love Ava Reid’s books, and have loved the very loose retellings of tales she’s written. However, I wasn’t sure what source material or older versions of Macbeth she was pulling from? As someone familiar with the play- this really went way out of left field and I felt a little taken out of the story because of it.

Really enjoyed this title! Loved the voice that Ava Reid gave to Lady MacBeth to create a unique spin on the classic tale through her perspective. There were some changes, such as making the main character French and adding more fantastical items that caught me off guard, but not in a bad way. Will for sure be picking up more titles from this author!

Thank you for the ARC of Lady Macbeth. This one wasnt too bad but it took me awhile to read it. I had to put it down a lot just because I wasn't all to into the story like i was hoping for. The plot of the story was easy to understand and straightforward but just fell kind flat for me.

The way I jumped up and down out of excitement when I first heard about this book! I love anything related to Shakespeare, and was so excited to see this retelling!

Atmospheric, gripping, haunting, full of gothic elements, and so much more, "Lady Macbeth" is an enthralling retelling of Shakespeare's "Macbeth" focusing on the character of Lady Macbeth (here called Roscille), both from the play as well as history itself. Ava Reid does a phenomenal job of weaving the various aspects of this novel together, focusing on Roscille's life with both themes from Shakespeare's original play as well as some new to this retelling, and I truly could not put this book down!

I highly recommend this book!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Del Rey for the e-ARC of this novel, it is incredible! All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Love Ava Reid’s books since The Wolf and the Woodsman, but I’m still deciding how I feel about Lady Macbeth.

I usually like Ava’s feminist take and her FMCs, but I don’t know how I feel about Roscille. Look I’m all about women taking power and punish men that underestimate her but in Roscille’s case she truly is manipulative and conniving character so it was a bit hard to root for her.

I also didn’t care about the romance in the book and the man came through at the end to somehow save the day.

I didn’t read Macbeth before so I can’t compare this reimagined story to Shakespeare’s work. I still love Ava’s writing and will always read her work, but not sure this one’s for me.

3.5 ⭐️

In recent years, Ava Reid has become one of my favorite authors. I've eagerly read every one of her releases. Her ability to blend folklore and classic fiction with a modern-gothic twist makes her one of the most promising new writers in the 2020s. I was very excited to receive a NetGalley ARC, and I read the book in one sitting. I've put off writing the review because as much as I love her writing, the book fell flat for me. I love feminist retellings of classic tales, especially with gothic under (or over) tones. Her ability to build atmospheric suspense is at its best in Lady Macbeth. The feeling of being trapped with a monster in the house, whether mortal or mystical, makes you question your sanity as the heroine does.  

I've struggled to characterize my thoughts about this book independent of her other releases. If viewed individually, I would give it a 4. If viewed within the canon of her other literature, especially in the order of the book's releases, I would give the book 2 stars. To be fair to the merit of this individual book, I chose to give it 3 stars. I appreciate Reid's attempt to do something new in the recent trend of feminist retellings. My rating I believe, is reflective not of Reid herself, but of the editors and publishing house which did not point out the similarities between Lady Macbeth and A Study in Drowning. I don't want to give away any spoilers. But there were repeated uses of tropes that made the experience of reading the books very similar. In The Wolf and the Woodsmen and Juniper & Thorne, Reid showcased her ability to use tropes and classic fairytale conventions in a new and innovative way. But I saw a lot of what I thought was original in Juniper & Thorne and A Study in Drowning in Lady Macbeth.

Another minor point of contention for me - the age of the titular character. I see the value in aging her down from the original matronly and cunning Lady Macbeth of Shakespeare. However, I did not like that she was 17. She could have been a few years older which would have made the romantic scenes a little easier to read. In regards to the romance, the slow burn of The Wolf and the Woodsman has given way to a rushed and unbelievably fast-paced romantic coupling. I simply didn't care to see the two romantic leads get together. They did not have enough page time or meaningful scenes together to make their connection seem anything but lust. 

One of the main points of gothic literature is to make one question their sanity. It seeks to make the main characters and the reader ask "Am I mad, or is everyone else?" In Lady Macbeth, Reid touches on this by reinventing some of the characters from the play to give them more agency. But like with the romance, she falls flat. Lady Macbeth remains an agent of men's desire for power, not her own. For this, I blame the editors for not pushing hard enough for more well-rounded character development. When there is a writer who has talent, I have to assume when a novel does not live up to the abilities of the author's prose and story crafting that the gap between talent and execution lies with the editors. Other gothic tropes like men turning into creatures (I don't want to give spoilers away but it will be obvious who I am referring to) were also only partially thought through and executed and didn't really add any real value to the plot.

I honestly wonder if this story might have been better off pitched as a standalone story outside of the influence of the Bard. There simply weren't enough similarities between the original Lady Macbeth and the girl of this one. I think readers should decide for themselves on if they should pick up this novel. I think there is a lot of good, but I agree with another reviewer who summed up her criticism as "What's the point?" I think if the reader can figure that out for themselves, they might enjoy this novel more than I.

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me this digital reviewer copy in exchange my honest opinions.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an e-arc of this book. First of all, this was one of my most anticipated reads of the year. Ava Reid is one of my favorite authors, and her books are an auto-buy for me.

That said, Lady Macbeth wasn't my favorite of hers. I didn't connect with the characters as much as I wanted to, so I wasn't really rooting for anyone in particular. However, the writing was luscious and the vibes were vibing. The atmosphere sucked me in and the creepiness was what kept me going. Overall, I'm glad I read this book and would recommend if you love dark fairytales.

This is my second book by Reid (first being The Wolf and the Woodsman), so I was prepared for their slightly slower-paced, very atmospheric, style of writing. And that style fit this retelling perfectly. There is a trance-like magicality to the writing, as expected. But that was also mixed with a slightly unmooring, jumpy pacing. That makes sense, based on this being adapted from a stage play, I think. Though partially it may also have been related to Roscille’s (Lady Macbeth’s) narrative style. Normally, I might have disliked that, but it, too, fit here. I felt like I was simultaneously there, in the Scottish Highlands, with the scene/aura-setting, and at the same time, felt like I was watching the actual action unfold from afar. All the violence and horrors and discomforts were at a sort of remove. A fascinating combination that really worked here.

I also loveddd the supernatural aspects. The light werewolf lore/shapeshifting curse situation was awesome. Not super subtle, but I always have a soft spot for a “who is the real monster, the monster-looking creature or the monster-acting human?” lesson. It never gets old. The way the witches’ characters were included was horrifying, but exactly right. I appreciated that one was never quite sure if they were actually magically gifted, or just playing a role really well (though I leaned into believing the latter, myself, and hats of to these women scrabbling to hold on to whatever power/protection they could manage in such an unsafe and unforgiving world). Similarly, Roscille’s “power” to compel men to obey – is it real or a role played by both herself and the men affected, as an “excuse” for actions that society would readily accept/forgive. Of note, there was no shying away from the traditional dark sides of mistreatment of women (and the general roles/power women are allowed to have), and the general terrible actions of men, as they never tire of reaching for more power/influence. But there were also darkly deserved endings for those who did so, which is satisfying. The classic gothic elements – spooky, remote, ghost-ish storytelling vibes – were spot on.

I feel like Reid maintained fully the original vibes, and key elements while reframing them into a fresh story and giving Lady Macbeth more voice (if not necessarily more agency), maintained as she holds on to her true name, Roscille. And that’s what a retelling of this kind aims to do, I feel. Gorgeously dark, literally and figuratively, I really enjoyed how it played out.

This was unfortunately a DNF for me. While the idea of it was great, the execution left a lot to be desired. I normally love Ava Reid’s pacing, but this was more than slow… I couldn’t get through it.

i DNF this book unfortunately. i may go back to it, but for now i have to soft dnf, im not sure what exactly made me DNF, it could be the slow pacing or how the writing was, but unfortunately it just wasn’t for me!

I’ll admit upfront—I didn’t finish Lady Macbeth, but not because of the writing. Ava Reid’s prose is, as always, lush, haunting, and utterly atmospheric. The only reason I didn’t see it through is simply that Macbeth has never really been my thing, and that preference carried over here.

That said, what I did read was deeply compelling. The dark, moody vibes are perfect, and Reid brings a bold feminist lens to the story that adds rich layers and nuance to Lady Macbeth’s character. It’s clear she approached the material with depth and intention, and I really appreciated the psychological tension and thematic weight she brought to the retelling.

If you’re a fan of Shakespearean drama and love a dark, feminist reimagining, this one is absolutely worth diving into. Even as someone who didn’t finish it, I can still admire the craft and atmosphere Reid created.

As always, Ava remains an auto buy auto. While this story didn’t quite take the turns I expected, I found myself in awe of nearly every line written.

I will continue to recommend her work to friends, family, and followers — and continue filling my shelves with every edition of her books.

This book was a lot of vibes and little plot, which I like sometimes. This time around, I was a little more than bored and a little confused. I didn’t know anything about Macbeth going into this and maybe that’s a good thing. I had nothing to compare the story to so therefore I had a good time, not a terrible time (from what I hear). Overall, it was an enjoyable read and I will be picking up Ava’s next book!

Thank you netgalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Lady MacBeth by Ava Reid is a retelling of MacBeth by Shakespeare - which I did not brush up on before reading. The story gives her a first name and explores the facets of her role as a woman in medieval Britain - as a daughter, as a wife, as a friend, as a lady, as a lover. It explores her agency as a woman, and the way in which she is able to undermine the expectations of her situation in order to claim her power for herself. It is a brilliant retelling, in particular the tone and language use makes you feel like you are right there with her.

Something about the pacing was very off to the point where I couldn’t enjoy it, even by the time I was finally intrigued by the plot. This was definitely outside of what I typically read, so I very well could be the problem.

Ava Reid’s Lady Macbeth is beautifully written—super atmospheric, dark, and full of that moody gothic vibe she does so well. I loved how it reimagines the character with a focus on power and womanhood, but I wished Roscille had a bit more fire. She kind of fades into the background when I expected her to take center stage. The pacing dragged a little in spots, and the fantasy stuff (like dragons) felt a bit thrown in. Still, it’s a really compelling, unique take that I’d totally recommend. 4 stars.