I want to start this review by saying, I love Ava Reid as an author. Her writing so beautiful, crisp and precise and the writing in the novel is just as good as her previous novels, but this book just did not connect with me. The characterization of our heroine in no way reflects a young version of one of my favorite Shakespeare characters. I also don’t think the book should even be considered as a prequel in anyway shape or form. The characters were really just stereotypes which disappointed me so much since her characters in her previous books are so dynamic. The two stars are purely for the writing and that’s it.

I was really intimidated to read this book because I haven’t read Macbeth since I was in high school, and I was worried that I wouldn’t understand this book because of that, but I was wrong. This book is an incredible read, whether you’ve read the play or not. Roscille feels so real and I was so compelled by her story. Once I started the book it was difficult to put down. What a seriously beautiful story. I will be thinking about this book for a long time.

I DNFed at 20%. It might be a better audiobook but I just didn’t like the take on the characters and the writing was bordering on pretentious. I also dislike the new cover on Goodreads and I really hope the original one is what is published because it’s so stunning and was what made me actually want to read this book.

Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid was so atmospheric - gothic, dark, magical, full of female rage. Therefore, I absolutely devoured it. Reid's prose paints such a picture and it's not always a pleasant one, but always enjoyable to read. This retelling of Shakespeare's Macbeth from the perspective of Lady Macbeth, or Roscille as she's known here, is truly captivating. This is my first novel I've read by Ava Reid, and I will be reading more. I loved learning about the witches in this book and their backstory. Lisander and his enigmatic ways, Macbeth's savage cruelty, Roscille's scathing thoughts on the way the world works for women - all of it kept me reading and wanting more. I now want to go back and read the source text and then read this book again. I also appreciated the present-tense writing and how sometimes the dialog was at times presented after a characters name and a colon; it felt like an homage to how scripts like Shakespeare's are written. Absolutely brilliant!

Getting approved for this ARC was the highlight of my January, so thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this amazing ARC, and thank you Ava Reid for this masterpiece.

Wow! I didn’t want this book to end. In this retelling, Lady Macbeth is giving a voice and I loved every second of it. I can’t wait for the release date to get a physical copy of this stunning novel and stunning cover. Reid’s writing is so beautiful and powerful. She offers a fresh feminist take on an old classic and does a great job of bringing this period and Lady Macbeth to life. The details and descriptions are so vivid, you feel like you are right there. I loved every single interaction Lady Macbeth had with the characters. They were very complex and made the story more interesting. I highly recommend adding this book to your August TBR list, if you are a fan of historical fiction, strong female protagonists, and of course Shakespeare.

Ava Reid’s writing is stunning; however, I wanted more from this book. I’m not sure if my expectations were just too high but Roscille was a disappointment. Hopefully, I can reread this book another time and find it more enjoyable.

This is my first Ava Reid book and I will say that I loved the writing, gothic atmosphere and fantasy elements in this book.

I loved the power they that gave Roscille however, we did not get to see her use it much. I wanted more from her.

I did love the three witches story. Their story and how they came to be was a great twist to the story.

This book was also described as a monster retelling of Lady Macbeth, without giving spoilers I feel like this missed the mark with the romance portion.

Overall, I felt left wanting more. Wanting to dive deeper into Roscille’s power and deeper into her romance with the monster. However, I still did enjoy reading the book

Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for this eARC.

A witch does not need a reason, only an opportunity...
Most men do not need a reason, either. Only an opportunity.

ava reid's macbeth retelling is dark, gothic, haunting, and even more brutal than its source material. while the scottish play examines lady macbeth in tandem with her husband, taking on (what was then seen as) masculine traits so they may succeed, this lady macbeth leans in to her strategy, her careful tactician in hopes of staying ahead of her husband.

"And now you are the dagger in my hand."

this marriage does not resemble shakespeare's couple who are typically revered as the most loving couple of all his work. lady roscille is sent to a wed a violent warrior as a peace offering for allegiance.

To cause lustful madness is one thing - any beautiful woman has that power, if she wishes to exercise it, even if she doesn't, even if such a thing can be called power. To mold a man to her will is another.

Madness, of all things, is the most unforgivable in a woman.

ava reid examines a woman's role in these harsh times; their duties, their roles as pawns, their powerlessness, their sufferings. this was an excellent addition to the evolution of witches in storytelling from cautionary tales & embodiments of sexism to icons of feminism and women's reclamation of strength.

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

i appreciated her choice in the juggling of languages; she chose to be more true to the time period, where language was more fluid and constantly changing in domination. her vivid imagery and details truly set me right there in that damp, cold castle with piercing, briny winds. She calls in the symbolism of the iconic bloody hands as well as her own new ones: the unicorn, the eels, the necklace, the snake.

"I prefer a monster that shows itself openly."

(fyi, you don't *need* to read macbeth before this, but i reread it recently in prep for this arc and it was cool to have a clearer understanding of the delineations reid made and the similarities ! if you prefer to go in a bit more blind plot-wise though, you could easily skip it!)

★ ★ ★ ★ • 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!

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 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.