4.25/5 <3

Ava Reid is one of my favorite authors, and fairytale retellings are one of my favorite type of books!! She really did this one justice. I will always be in awe of her beautiful writing!!!

I've enjoyed Ava Reid before, and am a Shakespeare fan so I was very excited for this one! sadly it didn't really live up to my expectations at all - she completely redid the whole character of Lady Macbeth and I didn't love the direction of the story.

Ava Reid is a master of gothic atmospheric writing and Lady Macbeth was no different. The pacing for this novel was a bit slower than some of her others, which took me a while to get used to. Additionally, this is not a direct retelling of Macbeth from Lady Macbeth’s point of view so readers need to keep that (and the fact that this is fiction) in mind before jumping in. Readers who enjoy dark/gothic atmospheric writing will enjoy this one.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

Overall I really enjoyed this book. I thought the changes to the story were interesting and pulled in several other pieces of folklore and legend such as bluebeard. I really loved the ending.

Ava Reid is the QUEEN of gothic vibey novels, and this one is no exception!!

Macbeth reimagined, Roscille has been married off to Lord MacBeth by her father. Being young, she has not quite come into her own, and we watch as she learns of the harsh realities of men and power.

I know many were disappointed that this Lady is nothing like Shakespeare’s Lady, but it’s a reimagining not a retelling!!! I loved how Ava took Roscille from being naive to really coming into her own. Plus Ava’s writing style is absolutely unmatched.

I love this book and if you come into it knowing it’s not going to be the original Lady Macbeth, I think you’ll love it too!

4/5 dark, dark stars!

Give me all the books by Ava Reid! Seriously, I'll read this author's grocery list at this point. LADY MACBETH was such a treat, and the perfect book for the autumnal season!

I am so thankful to Del Rey, Ava Reid, and Netgalley for granting me advanced access to this galley before publication day. I really enjoyed the dialogue and plot of this book and can’t wait to chat this one up with my friends!

I have always been fascinated by the mysterious characters of Hamlet. A story of ghosts and murder, and just so much room for interpretation. I thought this perspective of Lady Macbeth was fascinating, and I loved returning to this Shakespearian world from a different POV. Ava Reid writes such lush scenes, the setting felt real to me, and Lady Macbeth became such an intriguing character.

dnf @ 13%




Yet another highly anticipated book did not hit the mark for me! I've LOVED every book by Ava Reid I've read, so I was very much looking forward to this one. & the prose is just as good as those other books!

However.

When I see an author's note at the beginning saying, "Hey I wanted to preserve these variations in regional naming to convey the complexities of the medieval world!" I, as a reader, will be led to believe that the author wants to create a story that is trying to transport back to the early medieval world and that she is trying to present said time period in a more accurate & nuanced light.

Not here! We are ACTUALLY going to be treated to the most Victorian (via modern eyes) medieval worldview possible! Which is so, so incredibly frustrating!!! bc the Victorians were absolute KINGS of medievalism, not of accurate medieval history. At first I was praying for there not to be early modern conceptions of witchcraft; and only a few pages later, I was wishing that we weren't shitting on medieval women's ability to have power within society.

I kept thinking, Are we supposed to be viewing this with the knowledge of Victorian love for Shakespeare and medievalism? are we supposed to be layering contemporary reading, Victorian thought, early modern Shakespeare, and the historical Middle Ages to try to find a full new perspective?

& then I was like, No Ted, it's a fuckin popular novel, it's not that deep.

Anyways. Do avoid this if you have any background in history or Shakespearean studies, it's a headache. Also, I can't recommend it beyond those groups, because it's doing a ton of misconceptions while trying to dress it up as truth.

I will def be trying the author's next novel.

<i>First, a thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an eARC of this book.</i>

I’m… not really sure how to feel about this one.

To start off, listen. I get flowery prose is not everyone’s cup of tea. Hell, it might even come off as pretentious and make you roll your eyes. But some of us eat that shit up. Bitches love flowery flouncy prose (me, I’m bitches). So that is not the main complaint or issue I had with this book here.

The issues I had were a little more nuanced than that. The first one being, I am not sure I understand the desire and the trend to label everything “feminist”. Like this is a “feminist” re-telling of Macbeth. But is it though? Just because we are focusing on Lady Macbeth as the main character, waffling on if she has agency or not, making her into a victim who breaks free of her abusers (with the help of… a dragon…?). Like to me that doesn’t inherently make it “feminist”. Maybe I am being a pedantic asshole here, but I just don’t see it, okay?

Also, I had this weird hmmmm tingling at the back of my mind, when I first started to read this, and then it became clearer and clearer and came into CRYSTAL clear focus when I read some other reviews; this portrayal of the Scots as savages for …? Plot reasons, I guess, just didn’t really sit well with me. In general, labeling an entire group of people, especially a group of REAL people who ACTUALLY exist as brutal monsters is not something I am really interested in, at this point in my reading career.

I am also at the point in my reading career where it feels like rape has become sort of mundane, and I fucking hate that. Like oh she’s a medieval woman, of course her husband is going to rape her and we have to talk about it! I guess I “get it”, to some extent, but it’s another thing I am just kind of over. Were women raped in the past and it continues to happen? Yes. But sometimes I feel like it’s used as a device because of course, what else are you gonna do, low hanging fruit, and I really don’t like how easily or comfortably it gets reached for sometimes.

And as much as I love me some drippy drippy honey prose, I am loathe to admit for as long as this book is, it kinda feels like nothing happens. It feels like these events took place over like, a hot week and a half, which was bizarre.

Overall, a bit bummed since is my first Reid novel, but alas. On to the next.

Historical fiction is one of my favourite genre and this retelling was actually very well executed. Would read more from the author for sure, I really enjoyed her writing style.

I loved this historical fiction and was enthralled with the writing. Would read more from the author!

I love a retelling and after adoring A Study in Drowning as much as I did, I immediately applied for this ARC and I was not disappointed. I love Shakespeare, but I am always up for a reexamining of his work. Lady Macbeth was a fascinating view at the classic tale through the eyes of the titular Lady. What does a woman do to gain and retain power, how does that differ from the ways in which men do the same. Is a man that admits he's a monster have an advantage over a man who refuses to see himself for what he truly is? These are all the questions that get explored in the new look at the tale of Macbeth. The characters were complex, the writing was tense, and the ending was satisfying. I'll continue to read Ava Reid's books as long as she keeps publishing.

Lady Macbeth is a dark and suspenseful tale of magic, marriage, and secrets. The Lady, a sharp and powerful witch, must navigate a perilous marriage to a Scottish warrior with his own occult powers and hidden prophecy. As tension builds, she’ll discover her magic is more dangerous than she imagined—and it could change everything. Gripping, mysterious, and full of intrigue, this book is perfect for fans of dark fantasy and forbidden magic.

For some, Ava Reid is an acquired taste. I happen to love her work. The reactions to Lady Macbeth seems to be quite indecisive among readers. I learned that the book itself was not based on Shakespeare alone, but also the historical events that Macbeth is originally based on, which is different altogether. This made the book make more sense!
This isn’t an easy read; it’s grim, darkly atmospheric, and a bit brutal. I don’t understand why there is so much hate towards the Scottish people in general; it was overkill and I’m sure offensive to some readers. Keep in mind that this book is NOT set in modern day times and Ava hit that nail on the head perfectly.
Taking on Lady Macbeth is not an easy task and Ava Reid gave us a very different take on the character. Rocille is a strong-willed, intelligent woman (even though she’s just a kid) with supernatural powers.
I highly recommend reading Lady Macbeth and Ava Reid’s other works. I enjoyed this book more than I expected!

Always thank you to Del Ray publishing and NetGalley for the advanced copy for review..

This was my first Ava Reid, and having read JUNIPER & THORN shortly after I think it is right in line with her other work, so if you liked her previous books you'll probably enjoy this one too. I loved the Gothic and tense atmosphere present throughout, and I thought the plot was compelling (although I've never read MACBETH - I know! I know).

Not the biggest fan of how Scotland/the Scottish people were portrayed here, or how our main character was supposed to be super smart and cunning but was actually just kind of dumb. I'd probably be significantly more offended if I'd read MACBETH beforehand.

I don't know whether to recommend this one or not. Honestly I'd probably pass if you've read MACBETH before. But if you read it is its own, standalone, unadapted tale, it was just fine to me.

Good retelling. I read a lot of different retellings, but never read one of Macbeth from the wife’s perspective. Really enjoyed the writing, was nice and atmospheric.

Thanks to NetGalley and Del Rey for the ARC.

Not the most knowledgeable in Shakespeare plays, but even I can tell that this played fast and loose with the original play. And I am all for the 'death of the author' but the choices for the plot and characters made for a dull story and flat characters. Lady Macbeth is a shadow of the powerful woman she was. It's also abnormally prejudiced against the Scottish? How many times do we need to be told that the Scots are giant and brutish compared to the waifish French girl? Its a shame, because despite this it's clear Ava Reid knows how to write good. There is some beautiful prose in here, but it hard to keep that in mind when you don't care about the plot or characters.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6981482822

https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/eb8438df-2288-48e4-a9d6-4a9467ee3aa7

Check out this review of Lady Macbeth on Fable. https://fable.co/review/7008d9fc-979c-4cd6-aa0e-cab01a11b48e/share

As someone who LOVES Shakespeare, and MacBeth is my favorite play, I was really excited for this novel and it didn't disappoint! It's a very well nuanced look at one of the most iconic villains in all of literature; someone who is always additionally villainized for their gender. It was a great ride and I think it's necessary reading alongside the Bard's original.

Thank you tot publisher and to Netgalley for this ARC. I have enjoyed Ava Reids stories in the past and this book is no exception! Although its not my most favorite of hers, I still enjoyed it.