*I want to preface my review by stating that I have very little knowledge of the source material, which likely affects my interpretation of the text.*

Roscille is a 17 year old girl who is married off to a large, brutish man. She wears a veil, for the men fear she is a witch, and her gaze can ‘ensorcel’ them. (A word which is used almost as much as ‘ermine’). The men in the novel see her as nothing more than an object, a burden, though her conniving ways manipulate some of her circumstances. This is a witchy, fantasy retelling, which is an aspect I enjoyed, but I struggled to get into the story.

To start off, the text is in present tense third person. I do feel if any story can execute this really off-putting combination, it is this one, but it still gave the story a lot of choppiness that could have been eliminated with past tense. This is the second book I’ve read this year (it’s only March) with present/third and I hope it doesn’t become a thing because I Do Not Like It.

As a writer, I have to acknowledge the artistry of the language Reid uses in this novel. It reads very much like a classic (not that I read much of those 🤷🏻‍♀️), but i did find that the complexity of it prevented it from being a page-turner.

Additionally, I feel that the book was very plot-driven and not in a great way. Whilst I know very little about this character in Shakespeare, I expected Lady M herself to truly push the story along. Instead, stuff just happened to her and not really because of her. She felt kind of flat to me, and I had a hard time connecting with her, other than the fact that she is a woman, which seemed to be her whole identity throughout the story.

Let’s talk about content warnings. I have only read one other book by Reid, but it seems to be a common thing amongst other readers to get blindsided by some of the darker aspects of Reid’s books. It has come to the point where I now expect it, and I definitely appreciate darker novels when it comes to compelling character development or even strong metaphor, but I feel like this really missed the mark.

***Kinda Spoilery CWs Ahead***
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CW: Misogyny, mentions of rape, threats of rape, sort of vague but on page rape, pedophilia/child bride, and violence against women.

(It also has your classic standard violence and mild gore, but I feel that is standard in a lot of fantasy these days.)

Let me continue:
As this takes place in ancient times, I would expect some level of misogyny and mentions of sexual assault, but I really feel what Reid included it served no purpose to the overall story or character development. I feel it was more of a poorly executed plot tool (icky) and was far too drawn out in the descriptions of the aftermath. I understand this might reflect reality, but the flat way the characters respond to it was not at all empowering for those of us who have had our agency robbed, and I think it was just wholly unnecessary.

Resolution? There was none. The end was very abrupt and showed me little of who Roscille became after the fact.

On a more positive note, I did really enjoy the fantasy aspects of this story. I thought a witchy, dragony interpretation of a classic was a fun idea, I just wish there was way more of it, since it is why I picked it up in the first place.

Overall, I think Reid has crafted something unique, and the poetic cadence of her words fits well with the story she tells, but it is not likely something I will reread.

This is a hard one for me to rate, but unfortunately Lady Macbeth just didn't do it for me. It's been described as "an A24 movie of Macbeth that a prolific ao3 author helped write", and for me, that just isn't my cup of tea, though I'll agree 100% that's how it feels to me. Let me quickly say I do still love Ava's writing style and character work and romantic dynamics, and I did enjoy reading LM and am glad I was given the chance to, so thank you NetGalley for my first Ava Reid arc. I just have Thoughts that have marinated, and I think this will be the most polarizing of their works so far, maybe ever. It feels the weakest of their bibliography, underdeveloped as to what it could be.

Lady Macbeth does feel like a fanfiction, and not in a positive way. It's beautifully written, grim and atmospheric and horribly bleak, but it is focused on a character study solely of Roscille (which is okay, she is the titular character after all). I liked the many usages of her name, as well as the fantasy/fairytale rule of threes that was brought back in force (Reid last used it in abundance in Juniper & Thorn). But the story felt like it did not have enough to it, like there was not enough substance to carry it along. A very pretty skeleton, but no meat on the bones.

I did like Roscille and Lysander's instant attraction to each other, which others may complain about, but I have no problem with. They are two young attractive introverted people who are attracted to each other, and if I was in their shoes, I'd want to get it on too. I just wish there was more cohesion by the end. So he's a dragon? That's cool, but what purpose does it serve? So Macbeth keeps his wives chained up in the water-logged basement dungeon, and they literally do his laundry and eat the blind fish in there, for ages? So Roscille does in fact have the power to bewitch men, but in the end, that's not how she undoes Macbeth? The ending felt very abrupt and unresolved.

I feel as though if I were to read the play, I'd have many more conflicting thoughts about this reimagined Lady Macbeth, but might see more of the homages Reid was intending. As it stands though, it will be a moment before I'm able to do that, and on its own, Lady Macbeth underperforms.

Ava never fails to amaze me with her beautiful writing and her amazingly deep main characters. This is another 5 star for me

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing team for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

One of my most anticipated reads of the year… I was so excited when I received the email telling me I got the arc… As you can probably tell, it didn’t live up to the hype… at all. This is my first DNF of the year, I just couldn’t torture myself any longer.

𝐈𝐟 𝐧𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮, 𝐈 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐨 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲.

When I start a book the first thing that tells me if I’m going to like the novel or not is the writing, and this was the most painful third person POV I’ve ever read. The sentences are extremely choppy, and you would think that because the author made used 3rd person, you probably wouldn’t have to read pages and pages of the character’s “inner monologue”. The author overuses free indirect speech, and the scenes end up being longer and more boring than anything else.

Should we talk about the xenophobia in this book? The way Scottish people, specifically men, are portrayed in Lady Macbeth is honestly infuriating and disgusting. I haven’t read A Study in Drowning yet, but it’s a little “funny” that Ava Reid’s last published work is said to be filled with this particular thing, and the next one to be published suffers from that very same issue. I can’t speak on ASID’s xenophobia because as I said, I haven’t read it yet, but I still wanted to mention it because it’s a very popular critique of the book.

Every single character in this book is one dimensional and uninteresting.

All of this, and I haven’t mentioned how the author wrote a Lady Macbeth retelling while completely butchering her character. I want to keep this review spoiler free, but I’m sure someone will talk about this in detail at some point.

I struggled with this. There is so much potential in a gothic Lady Macbeth retelling steeped in feminine rage but this fell short in a lot of ways for me. I'm just really disappointed in some of the choices that were made here.

➡️ Roscille, aka Lady Macbeth: Where is the complex, cunning mastermind we were promised? We are constantly told how intelligent and masterfully manipulative Lady Macbeth is but are given almost zero evidence of this. We're told that she is excellent at remembering names and faces, but by the end of the book she still only knows four or five people in the entire castle. We're told that she is brilliant at scheming and machinations, but she is extremely un-subtle and a terrible liar–she is caught at every single turn and even blows her own cover in a hasty attempt to deflect blame. Every single plan is short-sighted and completely unconnected to a larger goal or motivation.

Every thought or feeling or action we see from her is defined entirely by the men around her–I understand that this might have been commentary from Reid about the role and realistic struggles of women in this time period, but we're never given anything MORE from her. She prickles at living under the thumb of Macbeth and her father, but WHY? What does she want for herself instead? Who does she want to be? What does she dream of? How would she live her life differently if her circumstances were different? And how are her small rebellions tied to this? I'm not a purist when it comes to retellings, but it truly feels like everything that made Lady Macbeth who she was was stripped away from this character without anything of substance to replace it. She feels like a watered down and shallow version of herself.

➡️ Macbeth: Macbeth's slow spiral into madness is one of the most memorable and nuanced parts of the original play, but where on earth was his story arc? Where was his complexity? He can barely string more than a few words together and is portrayed as a brutish caricature defined entirely by his comical largeness and thirst for conquest. There is no arc to be found here–he does not experience a single complex thought and the only change in his character throughout this book is that he becomes slightly more crazed by the end.

➡️ Every character felt extremely two-dimensional, and the third-person narration really exacerbated this. We get next to zero insight into anyone's thoughts, feelings, or motivations which makes it very challenging to read any complexity or nuance into their characterization.

➡️ Why were the Scots written in this way? Every single Scotsman is a boorish violent brute threatening to r*pe and beat the women around them. Their language is described as ugly and barbaric at every opportunity. Every single one is written as stupid and blood thirsty without exception. They are painted with a very broad and xenophobic brush without any nuance and that way of thinking is never corrected.

➡️ The romance was... something. I think they had two interactions before that very uncomfortable and weirdly timed finger blasting scene. The pacing was WAY off to the point where it felt extremely unbelievable for me. I felt nothing for these characters' relationship. The potential was there... there was great tension and intrigue at the beginning, but they never got the chance to build on it before pledging their devotion to each other. Even a few additional scenes with them interacting or getting to know each other would have helped the pacing substantially.

➡️ I normally love a vague ending, but I don't think it works here. It felt like there were strings left untied and because Roscille's character was so underdeveloped I can honestly say that I have NO idea what she would be doing after (view spoiler) without being explicitly told.

There *were* things that I actually did enjoy about this book (the witches were the most interesting part of the whole story for me and it was very atmospheric), but the problems I had with the story and character development were distracting enough that I really had to push myself through to the end. I'm a big fan of Ava Reid, so I was really hoping to love this one and am surprised that I had as many problems with it as I did. 💔

Thank you NetGalley for an eARC of Lady Macbeth in exchange of my honest review.

First and foremost, I love Ava Reid writing. She has a way to be so immersive in her descriptions that you can feel exactly what the character is feeling and "seeing" the eerie setting she paints.

In this book Ava "uses" Lady Macbeth. I don't think it's a proper retelling but picking a character and re-imagining her story. (please not that it's different than to just change all the characters as well like a true retelling). However, this do not stop this story to be full of tension, intrigue and some sort of creepiness.
I believe Ava Reid did it masterfully in Juniper and Thorn and then in A Study in Drowning, bringing characters that look "weak" but in fact are extremely resilient when pushed to their limits. It's a story of someone that was always told what to do and what to BE turning the table and being the master manipulator. All this involved in great gothic and eerie vibes.

Ava Reid became an auto-buy author for me!

I’m starting to think Ava Reid’s writing isn’t for me. There was nothing inherently wrong with the book or the story. This is just the 3rd book I’ve read by her that was good but wasn’t great for me. Her writing is very consistent so if you loved her other books then you’ll love this

Thank you to Netgalley & Del Ray Books for the eARC!

Lady Macbeth is not at all what I had expected, and I can't decide if that was a good thing or bad thing. It's a retelling of Macbeth from Lady Macbeth's point of view with heavy fantasy elements woven in. For starters, it's not exactly a retelling. It borrows many (but not all) of the characters, some plot points, and the setting, but it really is an independent work. Some characters are renamed, and places altered. If you really like Macbeth and are looking for it to read more like the original, you might not enjoy this. One thing that is very similar is the language. Ava Reid uses Shakespearean style English, with very flowery, rich language that at times requires a reread or turn back to understand what exactly happened. I found myself looking up words more often than I typically do, and it took a while to get used to the language.

The story itself focuses on channeling your strength, power, and instinct - no matter your situation. It turns Lady Macbeth into a very sympathetic lead, making her morally gray and "villanness" ways seem logical. I really liked the characterization of her and the way we watched her grow and develop throughout. A content warning, there is a lot of violence against Lady Macbeth as she progresses through the story - as is "historically accurate" - and it can be quite graphic.

Where I really struggled with this book was the pacing, I almost DNF'ed it a third of the way in. The first third of the book is a lot of scene setting and introductions, which really slowed down the story and was a lot to take in at first. The action and plot didn't start right away, and once it did, it moved pretty quickly. But that first part is really tough to get through. On the other side, the ending is rushed and packs in so much that it can be easy to miss key pieces. Also, this book promises a lot of fantasy like elements, and those take a long time to start showing up. I think they could have been stronger if they were introduced earlier, and they'd be easier to follow.

i really loved this. the narration was so lyrical and magical. i definitely recommend this one! i read macbeth in high school, so i was looking forward to this one. such an amazing retelling.

“A witch needs no invitation, only a way of slipping through the lock.”

I wish I could give this hauntingly beautiful story by Ava Reid six stars. Note: this is a re-imagining of Macbeth, not a re-telling. Come in with an open mind of where this story will take you – if you do, you will thrilled, enraptured, haunted, disturbed, and on the edge of your seat.

Reid is the most intentional author I have ever read. She writes nothing, no scene, no detail, no word, without a reason. Every single word is chosen to convey a message. Many people call her prose lush and beautiful, but I would rather call it deep, meaningful, and haunting. Lush makes it sound like purple prose, which is attempting to be poetic just for poetic sake. Reid’s work is not flowery, it is raw, gut-wrenching, and emotion-provoking. I once saw her share that she does not try to make her prose lush, she more just tries to accurately describe emotion and experience to the best of her ability, and this is shown through her writing.

This is not just a story of a woman embodying the violence of men, it is a story of a woman learning how to learn a new language of what power truly is when taken back by women. It reverses the historical story of women being burned at the stake and makes a tale of women embracing the collective power in womanhood when we stop participating in patriarchy’s evil games.

“Perhaps her greatest mistake was trying to ape the power of mortal men.”

This book is absolutely RICH with stunning and haunting (that is truly the word I would use to describe this book) motifs. Just like in her previous book, Juniper and Thorn, she uses the theme of trauma turning us into monsters who want vengeance. However, in this story, she explores how being a monster can be something beautiful, saying things such as: “a chrysalis holds the monster lovingly within it,” and “[the curse] did not change me, [it] only revealed me.”

Another theme this book explores is the becoming of animal-like creatures, saying “she must become an animal in order to survive it,” “there is nothing more dangerous than a creature who pretends to be one thing and is in truth another,” and many other comparisons to eels, dogs, wolves, bears, serpents, and more.

“All these free, wild creatures, stamped with the virtues of men.”

I have seen other reviewers say that it is not a feminist re-imagining, because of the main female character, Roscille’s, young age and the violence she endures from her husband and other men compared to the original. However, while the original Lady Macbeth does have initial strength and courageousness, she ends up going mad in the end, whereas in this one, the violence women experience from men is not only a more accurate portrayal, which makes it feminist, she finds her strength along the story. She does not go mad, but rather drives the men who have oppressed women mad. I found the divergence of the “bad bitch” strong FMC trope we have seen in fantasy recently so refreshing. I don’t want a “strong” female main character who is the best assassin or hunter in all her land despite it not quite making sense for her background. Roscille is a real woman given an unfortunate hand in her life who does her best to survive – a struggle that most women can understand, to some degree.

“What is power, Lady? It is a word that grows more distant from its meaning each time it is spoken.”

In the original Macbeth, I wouldn’t argue that Lady Macbeth is the strongest character, I would argue it was a man’s imagining of a strong woman, but in reality one who is blamed for her husband’s actions and decisions, then dies to benefit his story and growth. In this re-imagining, Lady Macbeth is truly strong, as shown through her resiliency despite what she has experienced.

This book explores questions like, what is true power, what is love, what is desire, what is the purpose of pain, who are we versus who are we perceived as, and community.

“Her life cleaved into two simple halves: the time when there is pain, and the time when there is not.”

Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid is a decent read. Written well just a little too disjointed for me. Thank you for giving me a chance with this book and I do think others will enjoy it.

First and foremost this is a Lady Macbeth INSPIRED story and most definitely not a retelling. Though there is some overlap, the characters are pretty different than in our original version.

This book was so atmospheric! The plot and the character development is pretty surface level. This is a book about VIBES.

Lady Macbeth follows, you guessed it, Lady Macbeth as she travels to a new land to marry a complete stranger. Upon her arrival, she immediately realizes that this place is nothing like her homeland. More importantly, she senses something strange and otherworldly going on.

Lady Macbeth is not the same, strong female lead that we see in the original story. She’s a much quieter and seemingly docile character. Most of the dialogue in this book is her internal monologue.

Overall, I did enjoy this book. I don’t think it will be everyone’s cup of tea but the VIBES were just immaculate for me.

Lady Macbeth is my first book by Ava Reid and it was definitely an intriguing read. The book isn't a complete retelling of Macbeth which I know will lead to some criticism. I had some issues with the book but I found this to be incredibly well written. Ava Reid creates such a tense atmosphere. It did take me some time to get into and adjust to the authors writing style but once I did, I was hooked. The side stories were also equally compelling to me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House for the e-arc!

This is one of the best books I've read this year. Can't imagine the amount of research that had to be done for it, every little detail of myths and history has a meaning. Everything is there for a reason. Roscille is quite a character, very complex. I'll recommend this book to everyone, promise.

Thank you to NetGalley, Del Rey Books, and Ava Reid for giving me the opportunity to read the eArc version of Lady Macbeth!
I have been really excited about this book ever since it was first announced. I right away reread Macbeth when I was approved for the eArc, but that was definitely my first mistake, lol. Lady Macbeth is very loosely inspired by the actual Shakespearean play. It also draws from the historical account of the real Macbeth, but Ava Reid puts a magical and feminist spin on these sources of inspiration making the novel pretty unique on its own.

Lady Macbeth follows Roscilla, the witch-marked new bride from Breizh, as she arrives in Alba on her wedding day. Stories precede her about how looking into her eyes can make a man go crazy, so she always wears a veil. Living in a highly patriarchal society, Roscilla uses the legends about her to pry some influence in Macbeth’s castle.

The only things that I can say truly stayed the same between the play and Lady Macbeth were the prophecies, some names, and the sudden ending. That being said, I personally really enjoyed Ava Reid’s portrayal of the three witches. The way they were described was spooky, and I really liked their role in the story. Ava’s unique twist on the witches was clever, and I think a great statement about the role of women in a patriarchal society for a novel that is focusing on being a feminist retelling. I also love the solidarity between the women in this play which shows the strength of women supporting women.

Other aspects and changes were a bit odd, and didn’t have too much influence on the actual story. Lisander’s secret for example. What influence did it truly have on the story? Besides clumsily explaining his escape, and awkwardly “fulfilling” one of the prophecies, the only other thing it did was highlight the Xenophobia… <spoiler> Instant love with a man who’s half British? Interesting… especially when Roscilla spends half the book describing the Scottish as if they are savages. Roscilla, it sounds like your daddy’s court wasn’t any better. I did not like Macbeth, but at the start of the novel, he does seem to treat Roscilla with respect, giving her a place at his war council, and supporting her ideas and cleverness, but Roscilla does not warm up to him. But when Lisander says her name in Brezhoneg (her mother tongue), and she is basically head over heels for this man… </spoiler>

The ending is also so sudden, which like I said before is true to the original play (@ Shakespeare). <spoiler> I’m confused why Macbeth doubted she actually had powers?? Like she made two men kill the king, and then kill each other. You thought she faked that? Or it was just people getting into their own heads? That’s a big stretch… and on that note besides the scene where King Duncane and Macbeth were killed Lady Macbeth is overpowered EVERY SINGLE TIME, she tries to remove her veil… her power is absolutely useless for 95% of the novel. It feels as though it’s to make it believable that she doubts herself in the final scenes, but this is a feminist novel! It is odd and disappointing to give the FMC an ability that should give her equal footing with the physical strength of the men, and then make it easily overcome in every scene except two. </spoiler>

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for ARC. I received my copy in exchange of an honest review.

Lady Macbeth is a reimagination stand-alone fantasy novel that focuses on Lady Roscille, a 17 years old lady who was sent to Scotland to marry 40 years old Lord Macbeth!
There was so much darkness and ambitious in this book, so many grayish characters and of course conspiring. I really enjoyed reading this dark atmosphered story.
But there was something that I couldn't agree with. And that was how the Author changed original Lady Macbeth personality in this reimagination. We know Lady Macbeth as an original villain woman in English literature with her ambitious and desires for power. A wife who whispered under her husband's ear like a thirsty demon to get more and more power, but in this book the Lady Macbeth is not like that. (Spoiler) However, maybe the original Lady Macbeth was the Macbeth's first wife who we met in the book. If that's the case, there's no problem with Roscille and her personality because she is just a second wife who the author created as a new character, but if Roscille is the reimagination of the original Lady Macbeth, It didn't match with her!
I liked the romance part between Lisander & Roscille, but I think it was too much accelerated without enough description about that. By the way, they were a good couple so I don't pay much attention about the other things! 😂
This was the first book written by Ava Reid that I read and I have to say that I enjoyed her writing style. It's dark and mysterious with Gothic vibes, like walking under the moonlight in an abandoned magical castle! That's the vibe that I got from the Author's writing style and I know that I want more books written by her.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review!

This is the third book by Ava Reid that I’ve read and it turned out to be my least favorite. I did rate it 3 stars, so while I liked it, it was lacking a little in terms of plot and caring for the characters. I thought some of the pacing was a bit off and it wasn’t until about the last half of the book that I started to get into the story.

I did read Macbeth by Shakespeare in preparation for this book, so it was easy to see the delineations that Ava Reid took in telling Lady Macbeth’s story. In regards to Roscille’s character, I didn’t feel like she matched with how I envisioned her being in the original play. However, I did enjoy Ava Reid’s take on the witches and the gothic fantasy vibes.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was over the moon getting accepted for an ARC by Ava Reid, to the point where I read Macbeth for the first time! Lady Macbeth stays true to Reid’s atmospheric writing and thematic interests of menacing folklore and feminine resistance, while offering an alternate portrayal of Lady Macbeth’s character. Because of that, reception will be divisive, as I had to put aside my own character opinions while reading. You’ll experience it better, knowing it will not be loyal to the play, so much so I wonder if it would’ve been better to release this as its own tale?

The story follows a young Lady Macbeth from her marriage to Macbeth to the play’s deadly conclusion. I love retellings and the depth they add to ambiguities of their source material. Case in point: the witches as Lavandières, expanding Fleance, Lady Macbeth’s own peculiar powers. Her writing really works for me on how she stylistically calls on medieval works and crafts vivid imagery, though at times straying into overwritten territory. Easter eggs were also fun, including nods to prominent soliloquies (“sound and fury”) and a minor callback to A Study in Drowning.

In terms of character interpretation, Lady Macbeth is portrayed subservient to Macbeth, which contrasts her demanding prompts for him to murder and prove his virility in the original text; in Shakespeare, she urges Macbeth’s murderous path as a conduit to power she cannot directly access as a woman, becoming “unsexed”. In Reid’s work, she’s played under Macbeth’s patriarchal control, more a tool trying to shirk his dominion than a hand compelling him towards prophesied greatness. This choice let me down a bit, as I think her ambition is one of the most mystifying aspects of her character; but I understand Reid’s angle is to challenge Macbeth's madness as the fault of a woman/the wicked enchantress trope. There’s interesting stuff here, but this and its canon deviation makes it tricky to recommend.

I’ll continue to check out works from Reid’s backlog and recommend those interested in gothic themes, “pathetic” heroines, decadent description, and moral rotting (complementary) do so as well.

First off, I highly recommend reading the Content Warning at the end of this review before deciding whether or not to read this book. This book is a gothic spiral into madness, as you would expect from a book based on Macbeth, but contains so many su*cidal ideations. I would not recommend this book to those currently struggling with such ideations or those dealing with schizophrenia or an overly excitable imagination (like really, be careful and asses your mental state please).

That said, this book was a fantastic gothic retelling of Macbeth, and I loved seeing the story from her perspective!!

This girl has the swirling thoughts that dive close and closer towards insanity, and it's just sheer perfection. Absolutely beautiful descent. Homegirl weaves these stories into her thoughts like the ADHD squirrel follower that so many of us have inside (this story reminds me of this story reminds me of this story. Oh wait, what's going on again? Plans within plans. Got it).

She is clever; she is fierce; she is opportunistic in the best ways. She is feared for her eyes, and certain in her cleverness (or is she? or is that simply another thing the world and circumstances take from her?). She is the blade in another's hand. She is the fire of someone else's torch. Or is she?

When the feminine rage finally catches, it roars in the most beautiful way.

She does have that one scene where she's over there imagining up some dragon sm*t, but she isn't exactly in her right mind. Those hands be bleeding, and her mind is flailing.

Now let's talk about those witches. Those fantastic and disturbing and enchanting witches. They are so perfectly written. Like just a beautiful retelling of their stories and their powers. Just 10/10 standing ovation. I loved them.

The love interest is perfectly suited for her. They got that whole cheating thing going though. But he doesn't hide his inner monster. He tries to become something more, something better by his own merits and not by bloodshed. He is the only man in the book who treats women with respect and honors their freedoms to choose.

Four stars only because, though I definitely loved it, the side stories sometimes felt distracting. They did help further showcase the why behind the madness and the slow warping of her fragile mind though.

If gothic deep dives into madness and Shakespeare retellings are your jam, you will love this book.

TROPES/THEMES:
Macbeth retelling, but her PoV
Veiled FMC
Feminine rage
Arranged forced marriage
THE WITCHES!!
Clever FMC
Slow turn into madness
Magical curses and prophecies
She comes into her own power

Content Warning: arranged marriage at seventeen to older man (which fits the historical setting), chained witch-slaves, several vivid su*cidal ideations, attempted su*cide (thwarted), cheating ideations then action (s*x and oral not with her husband), description of family member's madness including their su*cide attempts and cutting/self mutilating themselves, brutal whipping of woman's thighs, description of r*pe of woman by man who killed her, marital r*pe/forced s*x, animal hides after hunting trips, medieval brain blood letting, murder, magic, death of unicorn (off page), "I should have r*ped you," discussion of infant killing if she has a girl, description of husbands forcing abortions

Thank you to NetGalley and Del Rey for the advanced reader copy of this book. This review is voluntarily written and the thoughts and opinions contained in this review are my own.

"Lady Macbeth" by Ava Reid presents a new angle on the character, but some readers might feel it doesn't quite capture the essence of the original Lady Macbeth. While it's an inventive take, it might leave fans wishing for a closer tie to Shakespeare's classic version.