★ ★ ★ ★ • 4

When I saw the cover I immediately knew I would be adding this book to my TBR list. The artwork is just stunning and the new take on a classic sounded interesting… And I have to say the writing held-up to and surpassed my expectations. It’s only the beginning of February and this book is more than likely going to be one of my top reads of 2024.

That said, there is some very valid criticism to be had about the book if you’re very loyal to the original Shakespeare vision of Lady Macbeth… Because this is really not that, however it personally didn’t bother me much that Ava Reid took more creative liberty with the story.

I’ve been planning to read some other titles by the same author for awhile, and after reading Lady Macbeth I’m really excited to start those.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

So, it has to be said that Ava Reid has solidified herself as an auto buy author for me. When it comes to prose and atmosphere, she just always hits the mark. Reading this, I felt the way I do when listening to moody piano compositions. Her writing is lush and dreamy, and I'm content to surrender to the experience. I read this in one sitting, and it was my most anticipated release for this year.

I should also preface that while I do consider myself a fan of Shakespeare's works, I'm not an expert and went into this having not read Macbeth in a long long time. If I consider this a separate work and not a retelling though, unfortunately it still kind of missed the mark for me.

I think I found the themes to be too heavy handed in this case. We're starting to see a pattern in her books where there is nothing redeeming about any of the male characters unless they deviate from traditionally masculine roles and characteristics somehow. She is very good at creating flawed protagonists and side characters, so I guess I would just like to see more nuance to the rest of her characters.

Our Lady Macbeth could have been a stronger protagonist as well. I felt like she was too often a victim to her circumstances and reacting to what was happening to her. If going through the trouble of rewriting the story from her perspective with feminism in mind, I was hoping for more from her inner monologue. More intelligence, more agency. Maybe finding her inner strength. She gets brutalized and I didn't feel like it did anything to develop her character. Maybe that was meant to be subversive?

Then, the ending seemed a little abrupt, and left me with more questions than answers.

Overall, I did enjoy it, it just didn't have the same impact on me that A Study in Drowning had. I will still be purchasing this when it comes out and will have no problem handselling it to my customers. Looking forward to seeing what Ava Reid writes next!

A powerful retelling of Shakespeare’s most controversial villainess written by one of fantasies biggest authors today. Lady Macbeth is a powerful novel, changing the stories that men have written for her.
This book was such a powerful book. It was written with such a precise writing style, and I got so many good quotes out of it. This book is definitely one to go blind into, and I’m sure you won’t regret reading it.
Thank you NetGalley and Del Ray for an eARC of this book.

Oh. My. God. The second I saw this cover I knew I had to have this book in my hands. I have never been a fan of Shakespeare, but Lady Macbeth has always stuck in my head since high school.

The scenery in this novel is top tier. I could see the entire castle, I could feel every emotion, I felt like i was becoming a friend of Roscilla myself. The fantasy aspects were a nice surprise, and played perfectly into the setting of Glammis.

I simply could not put this down. I feel honored (oops, I know Macbeth hates that word) to have read this before its release. I will be looking for more of Ava Reid’s books in every bookstore I go to.

Hail! Hail! Hail!

stoped at 43%
I do think I’ll love this book, but not having a physical copy makes it harder to read for me (since I read a lot at school). But I have enjoyed it so far!

This was my first book by Ava Reid and it will not be my last, currently have her entire back catalog in my cart right now.

They say she is a witch. And I say she is the most bad a** leading character I’ve met in a long time. I honestly had no idea what to expect, I’d never read Macbeth and didn’t know the story of Lady Roscille- my new favorite heroine. Feminine rage, magic, and dragons: all of my most prized tropes in one book. Written in such beautiful prose, we first meet Roscille on her way to her new home in moody Scotland, accompanied by her handmaiden. We see the world through the veiled eyes of Lady Roscille, a life of forced meekness and obedience to every man, most of all to her new husband Thane. Her new “kingdom” another prison, where no other women are allowed. She must dress and do for herself, isolated under her veil no man can look at her lest he be bewitched by her dark gaze. She is strong and fierce and cunning. She finally meets her match in the mysterious Lisander (my man, my man!!!) whom I love with a thousand suns. Fate seems set on keeping them apart but tragic love conquers all. I loved every impossible minute of this book and I was heartbroken when it ended! I cannot wait to hold the physical copy when it comes out later this year.

Thank you so much to Random House and Netgalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I knew Ava Reid could pull this off. I knew it, I knew it, I knew it! When I saw this book announced I immediately put it on my list to check out because I thought Reid’s writing style and tone could fit a story like Macbeth so well. I was also interested to see what the interpretation of the titular Lady Macbeth would be. I was not disappointed. Creating a totally encompassing atmosphere is one of Reid’s strengths and the atmosphere in this one is superb. It was the perfect balance of eerie, gothic with a touch of magic and chaos that perfectly encompasses the story of Macbeth.

When I’m going into a retelling or reimagining of a classic story I’m not looking for a play-by-play of the original. If I wanted that I would just read the original. While there are liberties taken to explore certain themes here much of the spirit of Macbeth remains. That’s what’s important to me in a retelling and it worked here.

This imagining of Lady Macbeth was such an interesting take on the character. There was a remarkably complex woman behind that veil that doesn’t easily fit in the box of villain or heroine.

Also how beautiful is that cover? ❤️

This book is so hyped up and the cover is gorgeous so I was so excited to recieve a ARC to review, despite not having read any other work by the writer. Unfortunately this was a complete let down. I think if this was not written as a Lady Macbeth retelling I would have rated it higher, but as it is I don't think I can.

While the original is arguably not a feminist tale, posing LM and the witches as the root of evil that inspire the violence that ensues, they are also the most powerful characters. LM is strong where Macbeth is weak, she pushes him to act to secure her own ambitions. She is a fascinating and flawed character who has agency and power to attempt to seize her fate, even if it leads to her demise.

By comparison, Roscille is a 17 year old victim. She is reduced to a body that receives violence. She follows her husband's orders because she feels she has no choice. She is given magic power in this story, but she's only able to actually use it a couple of times. Her only true aspiration is to be with a different man than the one she's married to, who she also barely knows, and who literally swoops in to save her.

There were some interesting themes explored here, such as violence, oppression, madness, and power, but it mainly just feels like the author is trying to flip the message from 'women = evil' to 'men = evil' in a completely un-nuanced way.

I also took issue with the writing for a similar lack of subtlety. We're frequently told how beautiful Roscille is, and how ugly or plain every other woman mentioned is. Scotland is a barren land with hulking men who are literally described as barbarians. Macbeth is described as a brutish man that Roscille is constantly shrinking away from but for most of the book his worst crime is being large (and a good deal older than her tbf).

There also were some points where there were more than two characters speaking where she doesn't use dialogue tags, opting to have the dialogue written as if from a play, with the character's name, a colon, and their dialogue. This felt really lazy to me, almost like placeholder text? Could be down to my advanced copy but it really took me out of it.

If you are a Macbeth fan, you will possibly want to give this a miss, if you are not familiar with the play, or can temper your expectations, perhaps you would get more out of it. For me the quote that sums it up best; 'Lady Macbeth, tugged along by her husband's will like a dog on its leash'.

This was a 5/5 for me.
The most wonderful thing for me was how beautiful Ava Reid's writing is. Her words are melodic and rich. So many powerful sentences that made up an amazing story. Everyone can read this. I feel like you do not need to be familiar with the source play or Shakespeare works to dive into this book.

Lady Macbeth is a dark and haunting feminist retelling of Shakespeare's Macbeth. Told from the perspective of Roschille (later known to many as Lady Macbeth), a young bride with the power to bewitch men by looking directly into their eyes sent to marry Macbeth, we get an intimate look at Roschille's cleverness required to survive harsh realities of misogyny, violence against, and weaponization of, women.

Attempting to do a modern retelling of any major artwork is no small feat--taking a world that is well known and adapting it own requires risking finding a balance of appreciating the existing (and oftentimes, beloved) storylines while stretching the boundaries to make it an authors' own. In many ways, I think Ava Reid delivers with Lady Macbeth. Her prose is wonderfully descriptive (I found myself highlighting multiple passages) that really kept me engaged with Roschille's inner monologue as she navigated her newlywed life and there ensuing challenges. I enjoyed the artful way she developed this witchy power based off of misogynistic attitudes towards women (women always being at the fault of men, regardless of mens' actions), and the symbolism that lightly yet impactfully reinforces those themes of suppression, violence, and fighting for survival (e.g., the necklace collar of sorts).

All this taken together made me feel like Reid was building up to a feminine rage precipice, yet I felt it never fully delivered on that end. We watch Roschille go through so much turmoil and violence, and all the while I was waiting and hoping for a morally grey revenge era where Roschille would slightly tap into the energy of the original Lady Macbeth and use her powers to give everyone their comeuppance. The novel spends much time demonstrating how dangerous her power can be, yet we mainly only ever see it utilized when this power and Rochille herself is being weaponized by men. While we get a small bit of a revenge arc towards the end I wanted to get to know and explore more of Roschille's agency with her power and rage that were slowing building throughout. I understand this was a stylistic choice by Reid to really drive home the themes of violence and control of women, but I wanted just a little bit more to drive it over the edge. Similarly, I wanted to see a little more development of the witches, as I felt that there was so many opportunities to demonstrate their power and influence, especially in regard to Macbeth's slow descent into madness, which in turn is an interesting and important piece of the feminist retelling (e.g., women are also essential masterminds behind and building of men's power). I did not necessarily rate this novel lower because of these things because I don't think it suffers in this regard.

This was my first Ava Reid novel, and I was impressed. She is a talented storyteller with intoxicating prose and I am looking forward to exploring more of her backlist. If you are a reader that likes gothic, feminist retellings with gorgeous prose, check this book out! Trigger warnings: violence against women, sexual assault.

The book is an absolute FORCE. Roscille’s mind is utterly dark and twisted. Her world is violent and brutal, and she is forced to resort to drastic, Machiavellian measures to survive in it. The pages full of so many juicy little morsels of prose that give the reader something to chew on. I was absolutely riveted from the first word to the last.

I had such high hopes for this book. I have loved everything else by Ava Reid but this one was a miss for me. Maybe I went into it with the wrong expectations but it felt as though the story kept building to something that never happened. Like we were always on the precipice of some twist or character development that never paid off.

That said, the writing is gorgeous. It’s dark and gothic, gritty and languid. Everything is tinged with sea water and grime and I love that Reid was able to so effortlessly take me to Scotland with Roscille.

I would look up any trigger warnings before going into this because the themes are definitely dark.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

4 🌟 because I live for Ava Reid's prose

Lady Macbeth is not a girlboss and that is exactly the point. She's just a girl trying to end her pain.

This reviews points out the things I found poor within this book.

In our attempts to bring classic texts to the forefront of "modernity" it is important to update said texts for them to fit the schema of cultural relevancy. Although I enjoyed the story and have never read Macbeth nor knew what it was about, I do have some problems with the language used. For example, the continual insistance of the "exotic east" strikes as entirely jarring when the comment is not mean satirical nor it feels particularly as if it's coming from Roscille's mind. The same applies to the continual description of the Scots as brutes and violent for no other reason than the Scots blood that runs within them. It was unnecessary and boring and obviously I understand that it is meant to be the perspective of Roscille but it really adds nothing.

I HIGHLY recommend these things be remedied before publication.

Do not look to your fiction books for feminism, because what most people mean is that they want a female character that is tridimensional and that feminism does not make. It is not more or less feminist or anti feminist act to be a home maker, a warrior, a ruler, a killer, a mother, etc etc etc. White feminism truly has us by the fucking throat in our inrepetations of female characters with agency. If we really want to get down to the gritty details of intersectional feminism, most of your FMC do not fit into the philosophy of intersectional feminism for it is inherently oppressive to be a ruler, a killer, etc. But I digress.

Lady Macbeth's capacity for murder does not make her more or less of a bad ass. It is simply a fact for her to be a murderess and a villainess - and in that capacity is where I was disappointed. This book was advertised as an imagining of the famous villainess that is Lady Macbeth, but she is truly not a villain in this book - at least not in the unhinged way I expected. I constantly waited for her to scheme, to slip into the role of true evil, or something like that, but I think it is more about the power of a unified front.

Seeinf as I have no attachment to the preexisting characters nor did I know anything about the original work, I was gripped by the plot and found I honestly couldn't put this book down. I like the idea of Roscille's magic as a metaphor. Does she truly ensorcell? Or have men found a way to displace the blame of their own base desires enabled by patriarchy? Which begs my other critique, some things in this book truly border on bioessentialism. It is not men's "base" desires that makes them rapists, what enables them is the system in place that continually enables men to disenfranchise women as a collective.

But then again, I don't think that this book's ending is meant to be happy. She is with Lisander because that is the least of two evils. He covets her as a dragon covets it's jewels - that much is clear. What //can// she truly do as a woman within the cultural dynamics in place except find a place where she is less harmed?

Kind of a letdown for me. I loved the typical Ava Reid elements, the beutiful prose, the descriptions, but the characters were pretty disappointing and fell flat. Lady Macbeth has almost no personality of her own, and I can't even compare her to her Shakespearian counterpart. The story itself was interesting, but I expected more when I started reading.

I don't recommend this for fans of lady Macbeth; even though it's a retelling, it does a pretty bad job of portraying the original's most important characteristics.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for an early read of Lady Macbeth.
As someone who recently finished "A Study in Drowning" also by Ava Reid I was ready to see what else she could do with her writing. Also, as a lover of re-telling's I was very interested in the direction Reid would take this classic tale and I was not disappointed. Reid weaves a dark and powerful voice to a character that has had a story told by men. The world building and wonderful in-between times really draw the reader in and make them keep reading.
Can't wait to see what else Reid will write about.

Ava Reid has done it again with her beautifully poignant prose. This book, a wonderful reimagining of Shakespeare's Macbeth through the eyes of his wife, Lady Macbeth, aka Roscille, has destroyed me and shattered me from the inside out. It has also built me back up again.

Roscille, labeled a cursed witch by her father, has long been a pawn in his political machinations. However, as she steps into the imposing realm of Glammis, her narrative takes an unexpected turn. Determined to carve her destiny in a world dominated by powerful men, she challenges the prescribed role. Can she navigate the treacherous waters of manipulation, leading Macbeth astray in his schemes, and exert control in a world where power is the ultimate currency?

In this thought-provoking and unconventional retelling, the narrative delves into Roscille's self-exploration amidst bloodshed and political intrigue. The question of who truly holds the reins lingers as shadows conceal puppet masters orchestrating the unfolding drama.

This poignant and lonely journey is not merely a tale of power struggles but a young woman's poignant fight for identity in a misty, uncertain path. Romance intertwines with the supernatural, featuring mythical figures and Scottish folklore seamlessly woven into the fabric of this dark gothic world. Witches, dragons, and curses add a charming fantasy element, enriching the narrative with intrigue.

Prepare to be captivated by the calculated mind games and vicious scheming, accentuated by supernatural elements, all set within a hauntingly atmospheric, gothic landscape. "Lady Macbeth" offers a modern perspective on one of literature's most unforgettable and underrated characters, inviting readers to immerse themselves in a world where shadows conceal as much as they reveal.

"Vengeance is not a wooden cup that empties. It is a jeweled chalice which endlessly spills over."

In Ava Reid's fantasy reimagining of Shakespeare's classic, Lady Macbeth introduces us to Roscille, a 17-year-old with a beauty rumored to drive men to madness. Her gaze is said to bewitch, compelling men to act against their will. This intriguing notion lingers throughout the narrative, leaving readers questioning the extent of Roscille's power. To safeguard men from their own passions, Roscille must forever veil her face, and despite being a bastard daughter, she is presented as a political offering to Lord Macbeth.

Crafted to be pleasing at court by her father and sharpened into a weapon by her husband, Roscille's life is a chessboard controlled by men's hands. Yet, beneath her compliance brews a storm of despair and fury, hinting at a formidable spirit.

Reid's writing masterfully juxtaposes lyrical prose with the stark brutality of its world—a world steeped in mythology and folklore, where a woman's fate hangs by a fragile thread. The novel evokes a maelstrom of emotions: anger, helplessness, isolation. Men are depicted as relentless in their thirst for power, while Roscille, with her intelligence and cunning, seeks to outmaneuver them. But her carefully laid plans often meet unforeseen obstacles.

Can Lady Macbeth carve her own destiny in this ruthless, male-dominated world? Ava Reid's Lady Macbeth is not just a book; it's an experience that haunts and challenges, making it an essential read for those who dare to delve into the depths of a woman's fight against the chains of destiny.

I thank NetGalley and Del Rey for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ava Reid's stories are always so easy to get sucked into and this was no different. I found myself lost in Roscille's story, her pain and the world Ava created. It was beautifully written and as someone unfamiliar with the original story I was still able to enjoy this version. Will recommend to others!

<i>Lady Macbeth</i> has some of Ava Reid's signatures: the beautiful prose, fairytale elements, and an atmosphere that nags at your senses. However, this is her weakest published work so far. I had little love for this characterization of Lady Macbeth. I was expecting more strength, cunning, and agency from the FMC. Her description of the Scottish people was starting to grate on me as well. Basically everyone was described as nameless, animal, brutes. It was making me uncomfy.

Ava Reid is still an auto-buy author for me; this just didn't really work for me.

Thank you to Netgalley & the publisher for sending me an ARC of this book! Below is my honest review:

When I was approved for this arc I was overjoyed and couldn’t wait to get started. Compared to my excitement before reading, unfortunately this was a big disappointment. There were elements of this book that reminded me of why I loved Reid’s work in the past, but there were also many confounding aspects that just didn’t make any sense to me.

Lady Macbeth is a marketed as a feminist retelling of Macbeth - with a dragon! Off the top, one of the biggest disappointments in the book was the dragon. I was hoping for so much more as I love dragons in my fantasy books, but basically you could take the dragon out of the story and it wouldn’t change hardly anything.

I would also argue that calling this a “feminist” retelling is a bit of a stretch. I read the original play in high school, and from what I remember, the Lady Macbeth in that story has wayyyyyy more agency than the Lady Macbeth in this story. I was constantly hoping she would develop some agency apart from the men who have defined her life. I felt for Roscille and the truly tragic life she has led, but I kept wanting more from her than I got.

The romance was also a huge letdown. I don’t want to get into spoiler territory here, but the romance was basically nothing. The couple barely had any scenes together but would pine for each other when they were apart? I just truly did not buy into the romance at all, and that was disappointing.

Despite its many flaws, there are still some elements in this story that reminded me why I love Reid’s writing. I do enjoy her writing style, and I especially enjoyed how she incorporated play-like elements into the novel. The book was compulsively readable to me, and it kept me interested the whole way through. Additionally, as always, Reid’s handling of sexual assault in her stories is done with care. I appreciated how she navigated the traumatic events that transpired in the story.

If you are a fan at all of the original play or are excited about it being a retelling, I don’t think you’d enjoy this very much. If you loved Reid’s writing in the past you may like the aspects I described in the above paragraph, but in my opinion it does not live up to her two previous works. Overall, this was a mixed bag, but I am looking forward to whatever the author writes next!