This was a confusing one for me - I kept going back and forth on whether I liked it or not. Main character Miranda's spiral was an anxiety-inducing minefield of is this real? Is this not real? And I'm not sure whether I was able to full immerse myself into the magical realism of this book. I mostly was just constantly worried about her health and safety, haha.

Miranda is not okay! After a terrible stage accident, Miranda lives with chronic pain while directing college theater. Though she has decided to put on ALL’S WELL THAT ENDS WELL her undermining cast tries to force a change to MACBETH. Desperate in more ways than one, Miranda makes a Faustian bargain with a trio of mysterious old men who know more about her than they should. This book is a Black Swan fever dream with endless Shakespeare references and reality blurring to the point that by the end your brain is just printing out ??? over and over. And yet I really enjoyed it. My notes describe Miranda as “Manic Macbeth Theater Girly 💅” and end with “WTF” so the weirdness is top notch! (Why do I love a book that makes my brain scream WTF?) If you’ve ever been exhausted by the bureaucracy and bullshittery of academia then you’ll appreciate the insanity here.

I couldn't get through this title. It ended up not being for me, but I hope it finds a hope with other readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This is a fun exploration of the power and intensity in a theater relationship -- as a pained and disappointed theater director becomes hell-bent on staging a production of All's Well That Ends Well, with mysterious help pulling the strings and a cast that needs cajoling and coddling as they find Macbeth more up to their talents.

I tried but I didn’t connect with this one. I didn’t feel connected with the protagonist and that’s unusual for me! But, maybe that was the point. This was definitely out there so I think the author was on point for what she was trying to achieve! Thank you for the arc!

Mona Awad can do no wrong! I am obsessed with BUNNY and I raced through this one! Perfect blend of suspense and contemporary horror. Awad knows her dark academia! I cannot wait to read ROUGE! Love, love, love!

Someone remind me not to wait so long to read a Mona Awad again. All’s Well was an incredibly weird yet very vulnerable and critical look at how we view women and their pain, especially when it’s not on display for us.

Awad has a knack for blending tough topics with humor and surreal plot lines that can make you laugh at Miranda’s inner monologue one moment and feel her pain the next.

I’m a huge theater fan and loved that it was one of the main focuses of the novel. The writing met the theatrics you’d expect. From chance encounters at a bar to aspects of a play happening in real life, there’s this really amazing magical feel to every page.

I feel like this is a hard one to review because, like Bunny, you just have to experience Mona Awad’s storytelling for yourself. It’s a delightful fever dream mixed with fun house mirrors that takes new shape with each page.

You never know what you’ll get 🖤

Loved the satirical mania of this book. Felt very much like taking psychedelics and having a bad trip. I preferred Bunny, but really enjoyed reading this. Mona Awad is definitely one of a kind.

3.5 stars, rounded up.

I’ve read from this author before and the best way I can describe her writing style is unique. This was my favorite from her so far - I didn’t care for the others much.

This story follows Miranda, who used to be a theater actress but is now a professor after suffering an injury that caused her chronic pain. I enjoyed reading from her perspective and felt a lot of empathy towards her (especially in regards to the pain meds she was coping with). The atmosphere is really what drew me into this boom because I am a fan of plays and magical realism. I can’t lie, I was a little confused by the time I finished it, but it’s definitely something that captivated my attention and will leave me thinking about if for a long time.

An interesting book with a different premise. Using theater to tell a story that’s basically about changing your own life was interesting.

I requested this as an ARC because I'm a huge Shakespeare person but this book struggled to keep my attention. I read Bunny and kept waiting for the big surprise or twist and felt the same way while reading All's Well. They're both well written, don't get me wrong, but I struggled to finish this book. Maybe Awad's writing just isn't for me.

I read Bunny earlier this year and after finishing All's Well, I think it's safe to say Mona Awad is a new auto-buy author for me. All's Well follows main character Miranda Fitch who is a former budding actress who's career failed short following a stage accident which has left her in chronic pain which doctors seem to be unable to help relieve. Her marriage fell apart as a side effect of this pain and she is now teaching theater at a local college. Her doctors treat her like an experiment rather than a human, her colleagues and students pity her. The only good thing Miranda seemingly has in her life is the upcoming production of Shakespeare's All's Well that Ends Well but even that dream goes up in smoke when her students try and undermine her by convincing the school board to let them do Macbeth. Just when Miranda thinks life has finally brought her to her breaking point, she meets 3 mysterious benefactors and that's when the real fever dream begins. I loved this book is told completely from the mind of Miranda giving us a front row seat into the pill addled, paranoid, and often delusional thoughts she's experiencing making her the best unreliable narrator. There's not much else I can say without giving too much away but I absolutely loved this wild novel.

Mona Awad is one of my favorite writers, and I was honored to have her on my podcast, Reading the Room, to discuss All's Well, horror, theater, and more! https://youtu.be/fAQAT4cw0Wk

Mona Awad is a brilliant author whose work has only improved with every novel she has released. Prior to this, I had read 13 Ways of Looking at A Fat Girl and Bunny, and All’s Well felt like a natural development. It branches away from the teen girl/young adult female friendships that defined those previous books, and focuses almost entirely on the inner life of main character Miranda Fitch.

Miranda Fitch is not a very pleasant person, she is totally wrapped up in her own issues with almost no thought for anyone else, she is quite possibly losing her absolute mind— and I adore her. She touched me more than most of the other “unlikeable female protagonists” currently floating around the literary sphere, mainly because she is driven by far more than just a vague sense of malaise.

The tapestry of Miranda’s mind and her descent into obsession is so intricately, painstakingly woven by Awad. Though the events of the novel are increasingly absurd and often confusing, even maddening, everything moved forward with purpose towards some essential shimmering mirage at the center of Miranda’s spiral. The Shakespeare plays that were central to the plot sometimes served as road maps and sometimes as red herrings, obscuring reality. I just loved it honestly and it’s hard to articulate please just read it!

After finishing the book, I knew it would require several rereads to get the most I can out of it. 4 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and going back on my shelf to revisit soon. Thank you to Simon & Schuster and Netgalley for the eARC :)

Miranda’s acting career was ruined by an accident that left her with chronic pain and a dependence on opioids. Now, she’s struggling to keep her job as a college theatre director. When a mutinous student cast threatens to upend her production of All’s Well That Ends Well in favor of staging Macbeth, she meets three strangers who make a mysterious offer to make all of her problems go away.

This book is at turns bizarre, hilarious, and terrifying, but always completely brilliant. As someone with chronic pain, I felt seen by this book in a way I never have before. It's rife with Shakespearean references and plot devices, and full of unforgettable characters. I can't imagine what it's like inside the mind of Mona Awad, but I'll definitely read anything she writes!

This is such a tricky book to review as it truly did feel like a fever dream.

What starts out as a misunderstood narrator quickly delves into the manic crumbling of a woman's brain due to drugs.

I think I would've enjoyed this more if the synopsis wasn't so misleading.

I love Mona Awad. After devouring 'Bunny' and '13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl', I know she is an author that I can turn to for original stories, disturbing content, and characters that slip fluidly between the known world and dreamlike states of fantasy. He books are journeys and 'All's Well' is no different.

All is not well with Miranda Fletcher. A chronically ill college drama teacher, Miranda suffers from constant pain leftover from a horrific stage accident that cut her promising acting career short. She's found herself addicted to pain pills, jettisoned from her failing marriage, and on the verge of losing her job if she cannot get her act together in time for the end of year play. She's determined to put on a performance of Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well, but her cast of students revolt and instead set about performing Macbeth (don't say the name within the theatre, please!).

Just when Miranda seems to be at her breaking point, three curious strangers appear and offer her everything. Everything Miranda thinks she needs to fix her life...but at what cost.

First, if you are in higher education, you will love this book. The cringy moments between Miranda and administration are almost painfully accurate.

Second, Awad does not hold anything back, and as her readers already know, her books can and do pack a serious punch of edge-of-your-seat dread and anticipation.

Thank you to NetGalley, Edelweiss+, the publisher, and the author for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my early copy of this that I unffortunately didn't get to in a timely manner!

I listened to this one and the strange story reminded me a lot of Bunny, her previous book, Weird characters. I really liked the aspect of the women being ignored about her illness and no one believing about her pain. That really speaks to how women are treated by medicine and society in some ways.

A different story. I will definitely check out this author in the future.

Unfortunately ALL'S WELL by Mona Awad was a dnf (did not finish) for me. I made it to about halfway when I lost interested. Maybe I'll pick it up again later

Mona Awad does it again in her newest novel All’s Well. Mona does what she does so beautifully well with this one!! What is it, you ask … another creative, unique story that you’ll enjoy but think after … WTH did I just read?!?! Mona had me at this cover and Shakespeare! Even though this was good, I didn’t enjoy the very anti climatic ending. The ending left me super confused and with many questions. But then I think, it’s Mona, isn’t that how I’m supposed to be left feeling?!?!

Thank you to the publisher for this copy in exchange for my honest thoughts! Even though this was a three star for me I still highly recommend and look forward to Mona’s future books!