OH MY GOD. This is the perfect story of revenge and ultimate girl power.

Foul is Fair is a beautiful retelling of Mabeth, and it brings the classic play straight to the 21st Century. This novel is extremely dark, with luscious imagery and thousands of Easter eggs. Please do yourself a favor and read the source material before you read Foul is Fair. You will fall in love with the story even more.

The novel dives into the mind of a young girl who desperately grasps for power after one night of feeling utterly powerless, and what that power does to her already fragile mind.

This book is also full of possible triggers. Personally I'm not affected by triggers, so they didn't bother me, But I know a lot of todays readers are sensitive to certain topics. Without giving away the plot or revealing any of the twisty turns, please know this is a very dark story of revenge and power, and what lengths a girl would go to to right a wrong. Please read at your own discretion.

For any Shakespeare teachers out there, this contemporary MacBeth retelling is going to be an incredible pairing. It's wicked, dark, and intense, violent and enraging. It not only hits all the right notes as an homage to Shakespeare, but it updates the issues excellently, making the issues of power horrifically clear. It's been a hot minute since I've been an actual student studying Shakespeare, but this makes the themes brilliantly clear without resorting to Cliff Notes.

Also, just a moment of appreciation for Wednesday Books and their cover designs?

*A huge thank you to St. Martin's Press for inviting me to participate in a blog tour for Foul is Fair and a free e-arc in exchange for my honest review!*

Okay.
Wow.
Um. How do I even begin?

This novel BLEW ME AWAY! If you're into dark, emotional, "sorry-not-sorry" fiction that hits you in the gut than this is the read for you. Foul is fair is empowering, unforgiving, incredible, and tragically beautiful. Capin's writing style drags you in and doesn't let go until you've finished the wild ride. The main characters are so strong, so unbreakable, and so unashamed of who they are. Vengeful, violent, beautiful, and powerful girls who will take what they want with no "f*cks" given.

Take the trigger warnings that accompany this novel to heart as some of the passages will definitely get to you if you've ever experienced a similar trauma to our main character, Elle "Jade" Khanjara.

These girls get the ultimate revenge after Elle is assaulted by a group of wealthy, entitled, perfect little rich-boys who think they are untouchable and that they run the world. These boys are in for one hell of a reckoning executed perfectly by our fearless and ruthless coven.

This haunting, fast-paced retelling of Shakespeare's Macbeth is a must read for any girl who may feel powerless. Foul is Fair tears down the "boys will be boys" mindset of the world and pulls rape culture apart at the seams to expose the raw and bleeding truth of it all for us to see.

*This review will be posted on my blog on February 24th, 2020, as part of the official blog tour for Foul is Fair*

5 bloody stars

She's beauty, she's grace, she's going to put them all in their place—the grave.

Welcome to Hannah Capin's version of revenge. "For the girls who have had enough," indeed.

Concept: ★★★★★
Writing style: ★★★★★
Characters: ★★★★★
Pacing: ★★★★★

I had no idea what I was getting into with Foul is Fair, but I'm here now and it was amazing—twisted in the best way, dark in the best way, and so validating in its satirically dark version of female victim agency.

Elle goes to a party for St. Andrews Prep boys when she was 16. She's chosen as a target for their non-consensual idea of "fun." Imagine what a group of untouchable rich, white boys could do to a vulnerable girl with a drink of who knows what. Yes, that. Yes, in the way it is portrayed in so much media. Trigger warnings for those who cannot handle that subject matter.

They picked the wrong girl.

Elle now goes by Jade, and she's got a plan.

Those boys might be golden, but they're not invincible—all men can bleed. And it's their time to pay up.

Jade enrolls at St. Andrews Prep, and Foul is Fair truly begins.

I honestly cannot distill into words how glorious this novel was. First off, it was brilliantly written. Semi-stream of consciousness, semi-loose form narrative, Foul is Fair has the kind of writing that is hard to get into, but once you're in it you can't stop. It's a rolling train and the brakes are gone. Read this one on a weekend, folks, when you can devote some time to reading it in large chunks.

On top of the writing, we have a Tarantino-esque surrealist violent plot line. Jade's got a hit list, and a swat team of girlfriends who are here to take them down from the inside. Now, obviously, I am not a fan of killing people. That's not the point that Foul is Fair is making. It's not a glory piece on violence. That concept is merely a device the author uses to convey the visceral emotions on behalf of every girl who's been abused, every girl who's been the victim of male violence. In a world where women are still fighting for their right to their own bodies and their own safety, this novel is the best kind of social commentary. I was so, so happy that the author chose to be this unflinching.

What a great novel. This one is unforgettable for many factors, the least of which being that you will never read another novel like this it. New all-time favorite, and a new author to watch.

Thank you to Wednesday Books via NetGalley for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

If it was socially acceptable, I would quit my job tomorrow and spend the rest of my life standing at street corners handing this book to every person crossing my path. Alas, I am but a humble (and broke) human so this review will have to convince you to read this book.
Foul is Fair follows young Elle Jade who, together with her coven of popular and powerful friends, rules LA. The world at their feet, there is little these girls can do that would lead to trouble.
On the night of Elle’s sixteenth birthday, they decide to crash a party that will the trajectory of their lives. Drugged and raped by not one but four golden boys who drip privilege down their snotty noses, Elle decides to make them pay. Not just for herself, but for every girl that came before her. She will be the last girl these boys ever touch without consent. And she will be the last face they see before they die. They have picked the wrong girl to cross. Jade is relentless and angry. After having control stripped from her in one of the most crucial moments in her life, she will do anything to get it back. To move from the status of victim, beyond the survivor narrative to something else altogether: Avenger.
With a powerful, bomb-shell attitude, a new name and look and her coven of friends who would do anything for her, Jade changes schools to attend St. Andrews and infiltrate the group of friends for one reason and one reason only: to annihilate the people who violated her. With the help of the supposed “golden boy” of the St. Andrews royalty, Mack, and her devoted friends, Jade embarks on a carefully orchestrated path of revenge, to take the boys down one by one.
I don’t know how to do this book justice with words because all I want to do is scream into the void in my heart because this story was exactly what I needed.
Foul Is Fair is a revenge story. There is nothing pretty about it. It, quite like its protagonist Jade, is ruthless and full of wrath and by God, I could not put it down.
There is not a lot of exposition or flowery description and it works perfectly for this novel. You don’t need to know every single detail about a person’s appearance or their home to connect with them. Capin excels at putting you into Jade’s shows, at making you feel the frustration and the armor she puts on herself, the denial and the urge to bring justice upon those who have wronged her. The writing is compulsive and draws you right in, there are no lull moments in the plot – this is a story driven by emotions and it will keep you flipping the pages with the sheer power behind that anger and determination. Certainly, there is a level of suspension of disbelief that you need to have to go into this story – to accept that this will not be pretty. That there will be blood and that this girl manages to unravel this group and get people to murder for her within the span of fourteen days. That these are the people with powerful families that have lawyers waiting to get murder charges thrown out before the gruesome homicides ever cross the newspaper headlines. But once you start that story, you cannot stop until you finish it because you need to see what happens to those who tried to destroy Jade – and failed. And now have to pay for it.
This is a polarizing book. People are either going to love it or hate it, I don’t think there will be much middle ground. And in a way I think that comes down to what you have experienced in your life or who you know in your circle of loved ones who may have lived through this. For far too many women (and men!), sexual assault and rape is at the forefront of their minds. There are far too many situations we find ourselves in where this is the possible outcome, and sometimes we can escape it and sometimes we don’t. It is inhuman, it is frustrating, it is disgusting and horrible and five thousand other words that will never make others understand the sheer terror we feel in those moments. We feel powerless, we feel like the victims, we are coddled with empty words or left stranded but in Foul Is Fair, one of us takes the power back. One of us picks herself up off the ground and gets the payback so many of us would love to have but perhaps never will.
An unapologetic, addictive tour de force that will leave readers entranced and empowered, a fantastically grafted story with an inevitable ending that you won’t soon forget. Perfect for fans of Euphoria, Cruel Intentions, Nikita and Killing Eve, this is for everyone who ever needed the hope of being avenged.

This was totally outlandish and implausible and SO MUCH FUN.

I loved the writing style, it turned what could have been a ludicrous revenge story into an almost fairytale. Everything about it just worked.

This book surprised me in many ways. It was BLOODY and it was BRILLIANT. Can I just say BLOODY BRILLIANT? I applaud the execution of the references to Shakespeare's Macbeth!

I admit that I wasn't a fan of the author's previous novel but Foul is Fair, in my opinion, was more than what I expected. The writing style just fits the mood of the story and the voice of the character. I don't know what else to say that the premise had not already mentioned. Just note that it was MESSED UP. BUT WOW I ENJOY HOW MESSY IT WAS.

I'm a sucker for a complex revenge plot, and I'm also a sucker for Shakespeare, so Foul is Fair was one of my most anticipated reads. This story reframes Macbeth in the modern age, focusing on Jade, our Lady Macbeth, and her quest to kill the high school royalty who wronged her.

Content warning for rape/sexual assault, as it is a central catalyst in the story, though it is handled well and never lingered on in detail or visited in any light except for the trauma Jade is experiencing. After rich boys from the local private school assault Jade at a party, she reinvents herself with her coven (this book's Three Witches) in order to infiltrate their inner circle. As part of the plan, she romances Mack, the noblest member of the group, to gain his help in destroying the group from the inside.

Foul is Fair reframes Macbeth so the central story elements are present, but take on an entirely new light with Jade/Lady Macbeth at the forefront. The thriller-style execution kept me on the edge of my seat, but still retained enough of Shakespeare to feel like a brilliant homage.

I loved that Jade was an unapologetically angry, unapologetically vengeful protagonist. It was satisfying to see a woman get to be angry about her trauma with the support of her friends and family. Like many male revenge stories, Jade's desire and justification for revenge is never questioned, nor is her violence abhorred by the people who care about her. If you're looking for a female revenge fantasy, this is truly grade-A content.

The epitome of the wronged girl's revenge fantasy.

Honestly this story was freaking fantastic. This is a story of not only revenge, vengeance, perseverance, and indomitable self-confidence; this is a story of iron-clad friendship, of never letting your focus waver, of setting out on a course and seeing it through to the end, no matter what. Once I'd finished this novel all I could think was "This is a story for all the books where the girl is isolated, condemned, ostrasized, mocked, ridiculed, and just plainly not believed. This is a story for all the books where the guy(s) get away with everything. This is a story for all the books where the girl's life falls apart while nothing in the man's changes."

I loved every second of this book. I finished it in three days, and it would've been even sooner if not for work. This was a totally unique and original piece of fiction that completely satisfied me. I loved how brutal Jade was. She was absolutely unforgiving and unrepentant. She's the kind of anti-hero I want to read more about. And even better, her friends were behind her one thousand percent. They never tried to stop her or make her second-guess herself. They reality-checked her a few times, but otherwise they were completely behind her. That kind of friendship is so rare and so awesome to see.

I've only said this about one other ARC (Red, White, & Royal Blue) out of the dozens and dozens of ARCs I've received over the years: I absolutely want to / will buy a physical print copy of "Foul is Fair" when it's released. This is the book to turn to when you feel like some characters didn't get what they deserved. This is the book to turn to when you're feeling vengeful and hardcore. Phenomenal job!

Oh my goodness this book. I wasn't expecting anything like this. But it was captivating to read. The heroine is one of the strongest characters I've ever read about. She suffers so greatly and yet she fights throughout the entire story to take back what has been stolen from her. And I'm just shook in the best freaking way!

This one didn't work for me. This is a story about a girl who gets raped at a party by a group of boys at a different school and she takes revenge on them. Which I get....but I really had to suspend my belief for this. I have a hard time needing to suspend belief on a contemporary book, which is supposed to be relatable and believable. I had a hard time with the fact that she told her parents she was raped and they didn't react, at all. In fact, they were absent. I had a hard time with her showing up at this school in disguise and literally took over as a popular "queen" within 6 hours. I also had a hard time with her convincing someone else to kill all of his friends. Without much fight or conflict. It was just unbelievable to the point where I didn't enjoy it. Also, a ton of cursing. Which doesn't normally bother me, but this was excessive when it's for teens. Just not the book for me.

Rating: 3.5/5⭐️⁣
Rationale: Overall this was a quick YA read with a strong feminist story; but with it being such a niche “Shakespearian retelling”, I hesitate to recommend it broadly.⁣
⁣
𝗪𝐡𝐨 𝐈’𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐭𝐨: someone who is both a Shakespeare fan and a feminist, or someone who is looking for an abstract story that champions revenge. This book is marketed as “a retelling of Macbeth for the Me Too era” and the team who worked on that tagline really hit the nail on the head.⁣
⁣
𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐝: I felt motivated to read SparkNotes prior to the book to refresh myself on the story of Macbeth and I highly recommend that strategy to anyone who is not familiar with Shakespeare, because it really added to my enjoyment of the book. Drawing all of the parallels and spotting the similarities was a fun, atypical aspect of this book that kept me engaged throughout. I’d also like to commend the author for her thoughtful content warnings at the beginning of the novel—the book was inclusive of LGBTQ+ narrative and addressed those themes with the utmost respect.⁣
⁣
𝗪𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞: This book was a bit abstract and had fantasy/imaginary aspects that didn’t appeal to my personal tastes (e.g. the narrator referring to her coven, or to spreading her wings and “flying” over a scene). I think I’m too literal of a reader to enjoy that writing style.

I read this in one seating, wanting to continue on after I finished each chapter. I love the writing and the pace, but I'm sad that I really didn't care for any of the characters. When I thought I was close to catching character feelings it slipped away fast. I can't say that I was surprised on how everything played out, I guessed a 'twist' of sorts around 20% in and wasn't really surprised about how it all ended. It was good though and something I would definitely read again because I really did love the writing style and how fast paced it was. I will definitely read more from this author.

Imagine combining a Macbeth retelling with all the dramatics of teenage revenge film. I did not immediately fall as hard into this book, but once I really gave myself over to the writing style I read it as fast I could. This is dark, and there is a trigger warning here that should not be ignored. Following an act of violence, Jade and her coven/best friends set revenge against a group of privileged boys and they do not hesitate. This book is violent in a way that young women are rarely allowed to be violent. Jade's choice powers this novel and her voice pushed me through each chapters until I was at the end and sad to say goodbye to her. When I was reading, all I could wish is that this book had existed as a movie that I could watch while I was getting through high school and being forced to sit through man-centered story after man-centered story. It's completely feminist and dark and I enjoyed it, but please, please please read the trigger warning.

Thank you so much NetGalley, and St Martin's Press. This book was kick ass! I mean really kick ass!! Although yes, there is a trigger warning here as it does deal with rape.
I was reminded of twisted version of The Legend of Billie Jean mashed in with a little Heathers and that this book!

I absolutely loved this feminist Macbeth retelling! I’m a sucker for a revenge plot and evil people getting what they deserve. This story is pretty much Mean Girls meets Heathers. Jade and her “coven” plan to murder the boys who raped her at a party. This story is dark and twisted and may not be for everyone, but I was totally here for it. TW: sexual assault, rape, murder, ptsd, self harm.
ARC received by NetGalley and Wednesday books for honest review. Thank you!

This book was crazy and not for everyone. A lot f bombs and disturbing behaviors. 16-year-old Elle got gang raped and she is looking for revenge. Unfortunately, we hear stories like that in real life, and how quietly everything is swapped under the carpet. Interesting style and fast action.

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for a fair review.

If there is one thing I can say about this book, it’s that it’s definitely over the top, it was almost too much. This is a very triggering book, so this might not be for everyone, there is a trigger warning at the beginning of the book, so keep that in mind.

I’ve seen there have been a lot of positive reviews that have been coming out from people who enjoyed everything this book had to offer. I think I’m going to have somewhat of an unpopular opinion on this book, I just don’t think that it was a book for me, I didn’t connect with the characters the way I wish I wanted to. I can recognize that this was a well written and unique book, and I can see why others may have enjoyed it, it just wasn’t for me.

This is not a book for the faint of heart. This one is all sharp edges. The pages are blades and the words are poison. It is a blood soaked revenge tale that is relentless, uncomfortable at times (most of the times) but also shamefully entertaining. It can read a little disjointed but I think it was purposefully done that way. Definitely feeling those Shakespearean vibes and a more contemporary Heathers/Cruel Intentions (on steroids...and maybe like bath salts too lol). It's amped up and bloodthirsty and venomous. Maybe a bit too over the top but mostly in an enjoyable way. I'd like to read more by this author in the future.

That you St Martin's Press and Net Galley for the chance to review this arc. Where do I start with this book? It was a book about revenge (trigger: rape, murder, children), massive bloody ruthless revenge. And I get it, sort of. However, rather than rooting for the main character, I found myself hung up on the moral question of "two wrongs don't make a right." I get that sexual assault is horrendous and more people seem to get away with it in society, but I couldn't get on board with the fact that multiple murders were justified. Compound that with the fact that we are talking about 16-year olds, and I was just disturbed. In fact these teenagers seem to be the least-monitored group I've ever heard of. Compound THAT with the juvenile handling of murder scenes - "oh I'll just casually walk in there and put my hands all over the near-dead corpse, and sleep with the murder weapon in my bedroom, wipe off some accidental blood droppings, wear a shirt that had blood on it (that I washed off in the sink so it's ok) the next morning in front the detectives, and STILL not get caught" made the plot line completely unbelievable. By the end of the book, I was left with the feeling that I was GLAD she got caught, not that she exacted her revenge. And I was struck that this girl had some serious mental issues, NOT that she was a victim of a terrible crime.