I absolutely love that this is a fresh and new perspective from one of Shakespeare most beloved characters. This unconventional retelling is thrilling, enjoyable, and thought provoking. Who is the lady behind the curtain?
I fully enjoyed this modern retelling and will be thinking about it for a while.
On top of that, the artwork is stunning!
Thank you for the ARC on this book! I am delighted!!!

I very much enjoy feminist retellings of classic stories from the perspective of misunderstood and much maligned women from myth, folklore, and history (as in Madeline Miller's Circe or Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel). I have also read and enjoyed A Study in Drowning and the Wolf and the. Woodsman by Ava Reid, so I had very. high expectations or this book. In the end I was greatly disappointed. The source material (Shakespeare's Macbeth) uses the themes of "subverting the natural order" and you would think that would tee up this author to give us a story that shows the power of Lady Macbeth, her cunning, her ambition, the machinations she uses to propel her husband to regicide and into paranoid tyranny. One might expect that the author could compel us to see Lady Macbeth in a sympathetic light. She plans alongside her husband (or is she smart enough to have set these schemes in motion all on her own) and in the end does feel tremendous guilt over what the plans they have devised and carried out, in fact she holds onto her sanity longer than her husband which could be construed as her having. greater fortitude, and a way for. the author to say "Wait just a moment, women can be just as intelligent, crafty and politically skilled as men." But this Lady Macbeth is portrayed as a weak foreign child-bride who attempts a few wily maneuvers but is mainly intimidated and completely controlled by her husband. She is so far-removed from the plot that she doesn't feel any guilt, beyond being a little sad that she killed the father of her love interest (weird if you are still trying to anchor the reader in framework of Macbeth) In fact, Reid's adaptation jettisons the source material entirely, changing the names of main characters (confusingly using character's names from different Shakespeare plays) and even adding in dragons?

In the end I was so disappointed and confused. I feel this reimagining could have done more and been so much better. I will add one star to my review because Reid's craft is undeniable. She was able to incorporate famous turns of phrase from the source material in a beautiful way but in the end that is where it stopped being her guide, which was incredibly frustrating to me as a reader.

I really appreciate NetGalley for allowing me access to an ARC and the opportunity to share my review.

4 stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and Del Rey for approving me for an arc in exchange for an honest review!

I have been anticipating this book since I'd read Juniper and Thorn last year. I haven't yet read Shakespeare's Macbeth, so I was truly coming into this story with no clue of what would take place. I was immediately protective of our protagonist, Roscille and rooting for her success. She is so sharp, perceptive, and cunning. Watching how she thinks and strategizes in order to survive Glammis was so interesting and compelling. I absolutely hated Macbeth with my entire heart. I managed to despise him more and more as the book went on. That being said, seeing Roscille's interactions with him, especially in the first half of the book, was very interesting. They are both more than what they make themselves out to be and it was fascinating seeing them slowly realize that about the other. It felt like watching two people play chess or cards, trying not to show their next move. In addition, Ava Reid does a beautiful job painting the landscape of this cold, dark, and eerie kingdom. It constantly felt ominious and vacant, despite the fact that there are constantly people present, even if Roscille can't see them. Unsurprisingly, Reid's prose continues to be very lush and gorgeous.

In this story, where there are very few women (purposely so), I found the moments of connection between them so captivating and moving. Roscille's relationship with her handmaiden, Hawise, greatly informs her relationship with a character introduced later in the book. I also found the witches so interesting and wish that we got even more moments of them. It was interesting the way these women saw each other, compared to them men around them. While there weren't many scenes between Roscille and the other women of the story, every scene felt impactful and important. I also enjoyed seeing the ways that they would try and protect each other as well.

Something that I noticed reading this, as well as J&T, is how Reid depicts agency and how their characters choose to claim it, even in small ways. Despite Roscille being unable to change much about her circumstances, she finds moments of freedom through her relationship with her love interest. While I wasn't expecting any romance, I actually really appreciated the reprieve that their scenes provided, given that there are so few moments of peace and safety that Roscille experiences. I will say I wish there was a little more development for both the love interest and the romance, but I still thoroughly enjoyed their scenes.

I continue to become a bigger fan of Ava Reid with each book of theirs that I read. I think that they are such a strong writer, with a talent for folklore and a deep compassion towards complex characters. Reading this made me even more excited to get to ASID and see what they write in the future.

I really loved the premise for this. Cover is gorgeous too! But the writing is so dense it's a bit hard to escape into.

Thanks to Del Rey for the copy of this book!

“All your life you have been muzzled. So as not to disturb the architecture of the world. But a muzzled dog thinks only of its misery and its shackles. They may rob your body of its power, but they cannot take your mind.”

Welp, this was a dark one - and basically horror for the last 25% of the book. As far as a MACBETH retelling goes, this one veered from the path in an attempt at being on the more feminist side. While I understood what Ava was trying to do, it ended up being a lot of Roscille (Lady Macbeth) being in horrible positions and trying to understand her power as a witch and gain her own autonomy. So, I did like that her position was reversed a little in this retelling, but I can't say I like the way that other characters were changed in order to accomplish the ultimate mission here. It waned in and out of holding my attention, so was more of an okay read for me.

Continuing my Auto-Buy Author Series with Ava Reid

I guess I should probably say Auto-Read because I really only own one of her books and the rest I borrowed from the library

I was so excited to receive an ARC for her next book from @netgalley though. Lady MacBeth is just a good read! It doesn’t come out for a couple of months but I’m so excited for you all to be able to get your hands on it. I highly recommend! I love a “good for her” story and this 100000% delivers. Also.. let me just say… the MMC… 👀🐉

I will literally read anything Miss Ava Reid puts out, she could write a manual on how to properly install drywall and I would consume it. I’m also absolutely desperate for a sequel to A Study in Drowning in Preston’s POV after reading his bonus chapter (@avasreid I hope you see this and see how much the people NEED it)

#astudyindrowning #astudyindrowningbyavareid #avareid #autobuyauthor #ladymacbethavareid

ava reid eats and leaves no crumbs. this was so good, i couldn't fathom putting it down. cannot wait for the official publishing of this book so i can snag a copy for my bookshelf and make all my friends read it with me.

does not require you to read the original work by shakespeare - honestly, i feel like it would be so much more fun if you go in without any prior knowledge and just sit back for the ride.

I have read all of Ava Reid's books and this one was such a disappointment for me. I think they had such fantastic source material, and Reid has done such a great job in the past writing about pain and anger, that I had such high expectations. I am thinking I would have enjoyed this more had I not had such expectations, but it's hard to say that when the source material is one so well known.

Reid is a fantastic writer. I am not one to save quotes from books, but this one had me taking screen shots repeatedly. However, I got somewhat bored. Both the source material and the UK cover had me thinking this book was going to feature a huge amount of women's rage and it... really didn't. The book was slow in its character growth, and the main character's early weakness got repetitive and boring. Further, the little I did remember from Macbeth (which I read about 15 years ago at this point) was not there, which was frustrating. There was a single reference to the blood on her hands, if I recall correctly, but that was about it. I was really confused about why Reid chose to make this book based on Shakespeare's work rather than just create an entirely new story in a similar world.

I'm sad about this one, to say the least. At least I have Juniper and Thorn to go back to.

Thank you to Del Rey and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

So this was a bit disappointing... Anyone who knows me knows how much I love the author's books. Suffice it to say, I had high expectations going into Lady Macbeth.

Lady Macbeth was a pretty short, quick read. (But it sure took me quite a while to finish it.) I didn't like any of the characters and I found the book overall to be forgettable.

I might write a more thorough review in the future but right now I'm just relieved I can finally cross this one off my currently reading list.

4.25
Ava Reid is one of my favorite authors, so this was one of my most anticipated releases of 2024. That being said, I think this is my least favorite of their books, although that could change with time as I think about it more or if I decide to reread it. Definitely not a bad book though, I just have complicated feelings about it that I will try to articulate.

From the very beginning, Ava Reid's prose had me in a chokehold. There is something about her prose, both lyrical and concise, that captivates me and I truly think they are one of the best writers currently publishing novels. While sometimes the metaphors in this book got a bit overused (particularly with the ermine), I loved the writing style and was constantly underlining things in my eARC. That said, I struggled to read this for long periods of time because this book deals with some very heavy topics.

When Roscille is forced by her father to marry MacBeth, she is both terrified of getting trapped in the cycle of breeding and birthing that is the burden of married ladies and determined to do whatever it takes to escape that fate. She has found that her gaze can entrance me and she uses this to bend them to her will. Roscille is a fascinating heroine because she is both tragic and terrifying. Some readers will probably find her incredibly unlikable in her ruthlessness, and yet, I could not help but root for her in the end. Ava Reid has really turned this classic tale on its head and I cannot wait to devour whatever they write next!

I was so excited to get this ARC having loved other books by Ava Reid.
Unfortunately, this one was not for me.
It’s written wonderfully but I just couldn’t connect with the story.
I think this will appeal to many, so I would still recommend it.

Highly disappointed in this one. I was expecting Juniper and Thorn level of writing which would have complemented a retelling if Macbeth so well! The writing didn't flow well as there were many cringe bits of dialogue and moments that could have been edited out. I'm only disappointed because either had high expectations after loving Juniper and ASID by Reid. This unfortunately might not be a reread as opposed to the prior mentioned books I loved from Reid.

I did have some difficulty at first in retaining interest. I did however decide to push through and did end up enjoying the novel.

I fell in love with Ava Reid's writing after picking up A Study in Drowning. I love that there are layers to her stories. While I have not read the actual Macbeth, I know the gist of the story. With that being said, I enjoyed Lady Macbeth. I was worried the writing WOULD be Shakespearean and potentially out of my depth, but the format was easy to understand and was hooked from the beginning. The setting of Scotland is a dark and isolated place, and the description of the ocean, accompanying the sounds of the waves that our protagonist Lady Macbeth is not used to, you truly feel like you're there with her. The overall story is fantastically told and I highly recommend reading. Special thanks to Netgalley, Random House Publishing Group, and Del Rey Books for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This reimagining of Lady Macbeth is a story of sacrifices women must make for the means of survival. I am not familiar with the original play, however I love that this was done from the perspective of the villain who is forced to become resilient and cunning, and is a victim of the men in her life.

“I am nothing but the dagger in my husband’s hand.”

Ava Reid is a master of writing the realities of what it means to be a woman. She weaves gut wrenching lines into her books so seamlessly that you don’t even realize until it hits you. Until the simplest line catches up with all the words that came before it, and you realize how important every page is. This was one of my favorite parts of A Study in Drowning, the blatant misogyny ingrained in society and how that affects women in everyday life. Lady Macbeth is about a 17 year old girl being married off to a Lord over double her age and has to come up with a plan to not only thwart her new husband at every turn, but also survive.

“All because she could not bear to submit herself to him like all the world’s women have before.”

Many times, Roscille downplays the brutal circumstances she’s in, like the way she does in the quote above. It’s the harsh reality of women who are stuck in toxic, abusive situations with no way out but to accept it.

Lady Macbeth deals with suicidal ideations in a believable and thoughtful way, as someone who has had them in the past. These instant, sudden thoughts, that when you’re in a tough spot it could be solved if you weren’t here.

This wouldn’t be an Ava Reid book without a love interest that has you on your knees, begging for someone like him. I love Lisander so much, he truly just wanted to protect her from the moment he met her.

I truly loved this gothic, dark fantasy set in Scotland. Witches, curses, powers, romance, and dragons. What more could I ask for in a fantasy book?

I recommend checking trigger warnings before reading.

I love a good Shakespeare retelling. This is an awesome adaptation of lady Macbeth. Would definitely recommend

2.5⭐️’s I loved Juniper and Thorn and A Study in Drowning, so I was so excited to receive an ARC of this. It pains me to say this, but this was a pretty disappointing read.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read Macbeth, so I can’t really say much on the retelling, but this was painfully boring.

Full disclosure, I know nothing of the original Shakespearean play Macbeth. So my views have NOTHING to do with comparing the two.

Ava Reid wrote a dark feminist retelling of the villainous Lady Macbeth. And though a lot of it was difficult to read, I was enthralled with what would happen next. Reid’s writing is stellar and imaginative and I overall liked it!! And there’s a dragon - which I wasn’t expecting. 😂

What a strange, beautifully written, unnecessary retelling of Lady Macbeth's story this is. As a fan of the play, I was thrilled to see Reid write a woman who wasn't a passive waif like many of her typical heroines - and don't misunderstand me, for I've adored several of those passive waifs. Unfortunately, Lady Macbeth (or Roscille, as she is known in this book) is eerily beautiful, very intelligent, and... also quite passive. Alas. This story might have had legs had it been marketed as literally any other thing but a Macbeth retelling; there is nothing of "screw your courage to the sticking place" here. It's an interesting experiment, for sure - Reid is capable of writing a beautiful story - but the disappointment rendered the whole thing the opposite of compelling to me.

I have loved everything that Ava has written so far and I was stoked to see her next book was a retelling of Lady Macbeth, one of my favorite characters from Shakespeare. However, I didn't read the book because I expected a perfect retelling. I wanted the dark flair that Ava's previous books demonstrate.... but this book was not that. There was so much gender essentialism that was repeated endlessly, like someone just diving into the world of gender studies. Because they are men, they act this way.... and because we are women, this is what happens to us. Obviously, a lot of misogyny and sexism were present in this world but it felt like she needed to remind us every couple of paragraphs. Lady Macbeth just seems like a naive teenager and doesn't seem to have a ton of growth by the end of this book. She is not the woman who would pluck her nipple off the boneless gums of her babe and then dashed their brains out. That's the Lady Macbeth I thought I was going to read about. The one that reminds me of so many characters in Ava's past books that I fell in love with. The Lady Macbeth in this books feels hollow and one-dimensional.

Macbeth's character lacked so much depth and it's hard to imagine him as the same person in Shakespeare's story. I hated the insta-love situation with Lady Macbeth and her lover.... It did not make any sense to me!!! I also was confused throughout the entire book of whether or not she's a witch??? This Lady Macbeth is not the heroine I'm used to in Ava's stories at all. I just felt a whole lot of nothing toward the main characters and confused the entire way about the motivations behind their actions. The best parts of this books is when Ava steps away from the confines of the source material and just writes like herself. I wonder what this book could've been if it weren't a Lady Macbeth retelling but the story of a woman trying to make a better situation for herself than the one she was placed in. I miss Ava's writing so much and hope to see the writing I fell in love with in Juniper and the Wolfsman come back. The writing in this one is just all over the place and it still felt like a lot more improvements could've been made on the structure. Everything about the plot was confusing and anti-climactic. If another author had written this I wouldn't have finished the book.

Oh the cover art is pretty sick so I added a star for that!