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isadorakdp's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
tandewrites's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
yanasbooks21's review against another edition
3.0
Dnf 50%
I will begin by saying i love ava reid and delray so dnfing this is shocking for me,
For me the story felt flat from the beginning, i was also confused with what Lady Macbeth did for her husband and didn’t understand her witchy powers very well.
Every chapter essentially repeated how she felt about the Scotts as well as about her father and for me as a reader who remembers everything i don’t need to constantly be reminded,
I kept trying over and over to pick it up and gain interest but it is just to slow for me and the magic is not explained well.
Thank you netgalley and delray! For my earc
I will begin by saying i love ava reid and delray so dnfing this is shocking for me,
For me the story felt flat from the beginning, i was also confused with what Lady Macbeth did for her husband and didn’t understand her witchy powers very well.
Every chapter essentially repeated how she felt about the Scotts as well as about her father and for me as a reader who remembers everything i don’t need to constantly be reminded,
I kept trying over and over to pick it up and gain interest but it is just to slow for me and the magic is not explained well.
Thank you netgalley and delray! For my earc
kaulhilo's review against another edition
2.0
oou so many books to review.
ava reid is a very hesitant author for me, because she tends to veer towards horror in her fiction and i am a very cowardly person. i requested this because the cover was insane(!!) (the us cover, anyway) and the premise was too intriguing for me to ignore. the book itself starts a little confusing, in that the writing style took some getting used to. but once you get into it, i don't think this is a story that'll let you leave quite as easily. it's definitely an interesting book, with a very strong, and perhaps solitary, focus on women trying to survive in what's essentially a men's playing field; and while nothing about this book is quite so extraordinary, it does deliver on an engaging main character trying to anticipate and control the puppet strings of a play that's preemptively designed against her. it's sad, to see the struggle and damage that women have to go through just to be able to stand, the powerlessness and the scapegoating, the bitter truth and the sore acceptance - especially in times such as the one explored, with ripples that last to this day. the writing and the worldbuilding add to this, building up an atmosphere of nerve-wracking dread, a backdrop to the story the fmc discovers at newer, more insidious levels in every passing page. it is pretty solid storytelling in that sense alone, but it's not a perfect book, much less a loyal retelling. i wasn't a fan of how almost every other character seemed incredibly two-dimensional with no real depth to any of them besides what the fmc pre-perceived. another issue, and this one slightly more irksome, was how this book could've been so, so much more, especially for a reiteration that had just so much to absorb and deliver from its source material. i understand the author's vision, and how the fmc here couldn't be an exact reflection of lady macbeth (the original) because of her age and general naivety, but i just felt like there could've been so much more done, in terms of plot at least - if not characters.
*and there's also some weird maybe(?) scottish xenophobia going on here, so um. fair warning.
thank you to del rey for the arc. 2.5/5
ava reid is a very hesitant author for me, because she tends to veer towards horror in her fiction and i am a very cowardly person. i requested this because the cover was insane(!!) (the us cover, anyway) and the premise was too intriguing for me to ignore. the book itself starts a little confusing, in that the writing style took some getting used to. but once you get into it, i don't think this is a story that'll let you leave quite as easily. it's definitely an interesting book, with a very strong, and perhaps solitary, focus on women trying to survive in what's essentially a men's playing field; and while nothing about this book is quite so extraordinary, it does deliver on an engaging main character trying to anticipate and control the puppet strings of a play that's preemptively designed against her. it's sad, to see the struggle and damage that women have to go through just to be able to stand, the powerlessness and the scapegoating, the bitter truth and the sore acceptance - especially in times such as the one explored, with ripples that last to this day. the writing and the worldbuilding add to this, building up an atmosphere of nerve-wracking dread, a backdrop to the story the fmc discovers at newer, more insidious levels in every passing page. it is pretty solid storytelling in that sense alone, but it's not a perfect book, much less a loyal retelling. i wasn't a fan of how almost every other character seemed incredibly two-dimensional with no real depth to any of them besides what the fmc pre-perceived. another issue, and this one slightly more irksome, was how this book could've been so, so much more, especially for a reiteration that had just so much to absorb and deliver from its source material. i understand the author's vision, and how the fmc here couldn't be an exact reflection of lady macbeth (the original) because of her age and general naivety, but i just felt like there could've been so much more done, in terms of plot at least - if not characters.
*and there's also some weird maybe(?) scottish xenophobia going on here, so um. fair warning.
thank you to del rey for the arc. 2.5/5
juliannareads's review against another edition
5.0
Ava Reid has done it again! Lady Macbeth is the Shakespearean reimaging I did not know I needed.
This is a study of the character of the infamous Lady Macbeth. A villainess of the highest order in Shakespeare’s tragedy. But what if she was a powerless 17-year-old woman named Roscille, growing up in a patriarchal society, making her way toward survival with her wits and her wiles? Roscille is afraid and she’s also ruthless, she’s vulnerable and impenetrable – she’s the perfect morally grey heroine. The feminine rage in this book is palpable.
This book is gritty and violent, and Reid immerses us so thoroughly in the world of Medieval Scotland that I can almost hear the ocean crashing on the shore. I feel the bite of the collar around my neck and the cold on my skin, almost as if I’m Roscille, Lady Macbeth herself.
This is a short book, just under 300 pages. Reid sets a slow pace, but with a feeling of foreboding, building slowly to the point of crisis and an incredible conclusion to the story. I sobbed at the point where everything comes together and Roscille makes a momentous decision. It was so powerful and moving.
There are fantasy elements of this book – think witches and dragons – but it reads like a historical or literary fiction, and I think this book will appeal to more than just fantasy fans. I definitely recommend picking this book up when it comes out in August. Huge thanks to @delrey for the free ARC.
#ladymacbeth #avareid #bookrecommendation #mustread #fivestarreads
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, War, and Gore
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
kabrahams's review against another edition
4.25
(I received a free eARC from NetGalley for review purposes.)
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!
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!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Blood, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, and Murder
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Rape
Minor: Animal death, Torture, War, and Sexual content
bookish_arcadia's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
sarahgeereads's review against another edition
4.0
i really enjoyed this. i read macbeth in high school, so i was looking forward to this one. just like study of drowning, the narration was so transformative and lyrical. def recommend.
auteaandtales's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I’ve never read anything by Ava Reid before but I love Lady Macbeth as a character so I thought this would be a good place to start.
TLDR; I didn’t really like it, it’s not my cup of tea and I didn’t like the direction it went in but I will still read more from this author before I decide whether or not this author is for me.
Firstly, I knew I was taking a chance with this, as retellings are very hit and miss for me (and usually miss). The main thing is that the stories are something you’re very familiar with, so you know exactly where it’s going. Even if you don’t, you can easily guess where it’s going. It’s not impossible to write a story that’s interesting when you know exactly what will happen, but, unfortunately, I wasn’t interested here (although I do appreciate that Reid didn’t over explain events that were occurring, she trusted us to already know, which I did like).
The second thing about retellings is that we already have some sort of connection with the characters, and those characters can mean a lot to a lot of people, so it can be hard to navigate that and create your own interpretation while still appreciating the original texts. I don’t think this did that, in my opinion, but just because this particular version of Lady Macbeth wasn’t for me, I don’t think she’d be universally disliked. I can see why some people would really like this. I love that Lady Macbeth is so cunning, manipulative and intelligent but this version of Lady Macbeth is the complete opposite. We are told she’s intelligent but I didn’t see evidence of this. She was only defined by the men in her life, and that’s it.
I did really like the ending though. roughly the last 10% of the book, but I wish we had that for the rest of the book as well.
I also don’t like how feminism was dealt with here. It did a very shallow interpretation of it, in my opinion. Feminism is much more than “women are always good and men are always bad”. There was so much that could have been done there, such as showing Lady Macbeth as both the manipulated and the manipulator.
Saying all that, I didn’t hate it. I don’t think this is a bad book. It just wasn’t for me, a lot of it didn’t work for me, but that doesn’t mean it won’t work for other people. I can see why this would be loved, I especially think the dark exploration of a “behind the scenes” to Macbeth will be especially interesting to a lot of people.
Thank you to Netgalley & publishers for the review copy!
TLDR; I didn’t really like it, it’s not my cup of tea and I didn’t like the direction it went in but I will still read more from this author before I decide whether or not this author is for me.
Firstly, I knew I was taking a chance with this, as retellings are very hit and miss for me (and usually miss). The main thing is that the stories are something you’re very familiar with, so you know exactly where it’s going. Even if you don’t, you can easily guess where it’s going. It’s not impossible to write a story that’s interesting when you know exactly what will happen, but, unfortunately, I wasn’t interested here (although I do appreciate that Reid didn’t over explain events that were occurring, she trusted us to already know, which I did like).
The second thing about retellings is that we already have some sort of connection with the characters, and those characters can mean a lot to a lot of people, so it can be hard to navigate that and create your own interpretation while still appreciating the original texts. I don’t think this did that, in my opinion, but just because this particular version of Lady Macbeth wasn’t for me, I don’t think she’d be universally disliked. I can see why some people would really like this. I love that Lady Macbeth is so cunning, manipulative and intelligent but this version of Lady Macbeth is the complete opposite. We are told she’s intelligent but I didn’t see evidence of this. She was only defined by the men in her life, and that’s it.
I did really like the ending though. roughly the last 10% of the book, but I wish we had that for the rest of the book as well.
I also don’t like how feminism was dealt with here. It did a very shallow interpretation of it, in my opinion. Feminism is much more than “women are always good and men are always bad”. There was so much that could have been done there, such as showing Lady Macbeth as both the manipulated and the manipulator.
Saying all that, I didn’t hate it. I don’t think this is a bad book. It just wasn’t for me, a lot of it didn’t work for me, but that doesn’t mean it won’t work for other people. I can see why this would be loved, I especially think the dark exploration of a “behind the scenes” to Macbeth will be especially interesting to a lot of people.
Thank you to Netgalley & publishers for the review copy!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Rape, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Misogyny