Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC!

Lady Macbeth’s main plot focuses on Roscille, a beautiful girl presumed bastard and also cursed with her presumed witchy powers. The story opens with her being sent to Glammis where to Macbeth’s castle in a carriage to attend on her own wedding ceremony with him. For years she became a woman what her father defined her to be: a girl cursed by witch who can be used by his own politic maneuvers like he’s Dr. Frankenstein who just created his own monster but as soon as she steps in Glammis, she starts her own path destined for her by demanding her place in a world conquered and reigned by powerful men. Could she find her way among them, manipulating her own husband not to consummate their marriage by misdirecting him with other missions he may lead even though Macbeth thinks he is in the control by using his own wife as secret weapon for enacting his schemes.

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.

Lady Macbeth, a gothic reimagining of Shakespeare’s famous villainess, was my most anticipated read of the year and it did not disappoint! The story follows our main character Roscilla, a presumed witch, as she is sent to Scotland by her father to marry the brute Macbeth in order to secure an alliance. This reimagining deviates from the source material by adding in more fantastical elements, and changing the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth from one of a loving couple to a connection rooted in fear and a power imbalance. Reid succeeds in creating a haunting atmosphere within an brutal setting, as she expertly conveys the fears of Roscilla as a young woman alone in a hostile court, surrounded by men who see her as unnatural and a threat. The strong point of this novel is the examination of the role of women during perilous times in both their duties and their suffering. The transactional nature of women’s lives is highlighted, seen most with how Roscilla is used as a pawn by both her father and Macbeth, and the powerlessness she feels as a result. As the story continues we see strongly the growth in Roscilla as she slowly reclaims her strength and ownership of both her body and her mind. An interesting feature I appreciated was how Reid stayed true to the fluidity of language of the time and its everchanging nature, adding to the atmosphere and helping the book remain fast-paced. I only wish this story was twice as long as I will happily read anything Ava Reid writes.

Ava Reid the icon you are !! Stunning gorgeous amazing I loveddddd it. I want to delete it from my brain just to be able to read it for the first time again.

I'll be the first to admit it's been over a decade since I read Macbeth, so my memory of the play is perhaps not the most reliable. However for myself I'm not too fussed about it, at this rate Ava could just write out a list of random words and it would still be one of the best things I've ever read.
Lady Macbeth traditionally narrated alongside the story of her husband, takes a new direction under Reid's pen. Showing her leaning in to a more 'feminine' way of plotting and separating her narrative from Macbeths. Using her cunning and her sheer will to survive Roscille navigates the treacherous Scots in any way she can. Haunting, gothic and darker than the source material, this retelling did not disappoint. Although Lady Macbeth departs from the source material, especially in Macbeth's case- I think Reid observes the time period well and illuminates the unfortunate reality of many women in the period.

I read an eARC of this book so thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley.

This was an absolutely fascinating retelling of Macbeth. The author has taken a very different tack to other female led Macbeth retellings I’ve seen recently, giving this a fresh perspective.

We follow Roscille, who is sent to Alba to marry Macbeth by her father. She realises she has no choice and is doing her best to survive in a world where men have vast amounts of control over her life. She is frequently called a witch and has to where a veil because she’s so beautiful that men consider her gaze bewitching. Even though this comes from men’s own desire, it’s seen as entirely her fault and she’s treated with suspicion. Male fear of women is explored in depth throughout this novel and there’s some uncomfortable content around men trying to control women, often with violence.

Macbeth is more of a villain in this than in other retellings. He’s not his wife’s great love and instead someone she must endure. He’s appears far more brutish in this and it’s his pride and narcissism driving his actions rather than the insidious murmurings of his wife. He is obsessed with his own legacy and convinced of his greatness. Roscille is trying to survive him using flattery and obedience but her actions are driven by a desire to survive, not a desire for power.

This really leans more into the witch elements of Macbeth than other retellings. Roscille herself has power of persuasion and can bewitch (some not all) men. We encounter other witches too, in line with the three who prophecy Macbeth’s fate. We also have curses and supernatural creatures. All adding a really unique and fascinating layer to this book.

This was another excellent book by Ava Reid and well worth a read. Fascinating, dark and a unique perspective. A lovely blend of historical and fantasy.

Well, this was a disappointment. Imagine having the most iconic, evil Scottish power couple at your disposal but instead writing about a xenophobic French teenager and a half-English twink. The character of Lady Macbeth was almost unrecognisable with little regard for the source material. Scotland was described like it's the ninth circle of hell and the MC's xenophobia was so overt it would have been funny had the author not doubled down on all of the character's prejudices. All Scottish men are evil brutes in this, apart from the half-English love interest (lmao), and there are only two women apart from the MC, who are unimportant overall. Just a lot of weird choices made, overall. 1/5 stars.

Unfortunately, I have had issues with my netgalley which has meant that two books, including this one could not be downloaded on to my shelf. I have contacted customer support and will update this review if I can read this book.

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!

[ARC provided by NetGalley and Del Rey. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review Lady Macbeth.]

Rating: 4/5

First of all, if you’re planning to pick this up because Macbeth is one of your favourite Shakespeare plays then it is important to keep in mind that this is a reimagining, and that many elements of the plot are altered to fit into a new narrative led by the Lady herself. A lot of the major plot points remain but characters are driven by different emotions here and although I thoroughly enjoyed this story fuelled by feminine rage and the downside of unchecked ambition, there’s some alterations that I couldn’t completely get behind.

Also just want to make a side note that there’s a lot of sensitive content in this book and I’d urge you to check out the trigger warnings before going into it. There’s nothing particularly graphic but we all have different limits so better to be safe before jumping in.

Going into this, my memory of Macbeth was patchy at best, but if you’re not familiar with the play and are still keen to check this out then I’m confident that you don’t need any prior Shakespeare knowledge to enjoy the story. I could go into more detail about how this differs from the source material, but I won’t focus too much on that here because I think you will enjoy this a lot more if you view it as its own story – all I’ll say in that regard is that it was interesting to find out more about the infamous villainess. Lady Macbeth is such a fascinating character and I enjoyed seeing a new side to the cunning and calculating wife of Macbeth.

One issue I had, and I may be focussing on this more as I’m Scottish, was that the brutish behaviour exhibited by the Scots was never challenged. It made the people of Scotland lack depth and come across as almost cartoonish, and it’s a frustrating stereotype to read about, even in feminist retellings. I also hoped that the Lady would be a little more unhinged and that she might hold her own against Macbeth better, but considering she’s a young, sheltered woman in this story then I can understand why that wasn’t the case here. We still see a strategic side to her character, but I would have loved to see more. If you’re expecting her to have more agency in this story, I’m not sure it fully delivers.

I still enjoyed this retelling but I’m not a die hard Macbeth fan so maybe I’d feel differently if I loved the play more. However, regardless of how you think Lady Macbeth should be portrayed, I think this story provides an interesting new insight to her character.

Drawing inspiration from the play "Macbeth," this dark historical fantasy recounts the tale of a young girl betrothed to a violent, ambitious lord in 11th-century Scotland. While Shakespearean purists may not favor this retelling, this version of Lady Macbeth seems more like a fresh character. It encapsulates the original play's superstition, darkness, and savagery, with parts of the writing being strikingly beautiful.
This was my initial encounter with Ava Reid's literature, and I believe it won't be the last.

My gratitude goes to NetGalley and the publisher for providing the ARC.

I did not know what to expect from this book and genuinely I was sceptical about reading this one and honesty was procrastinating a bit haha. Once I started reading, I was hooked. Was it the writing? Was is the vibes? Was it Roscilla? Well yes it was everything. Great book, and even if you are not interested in Macbeth this book was gold.

Thank you NetGalley & Cornerstone Publishing for approving my ARC request.

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

Lady Roscille, wears her viel as she must be a witch because any man who looks at her beautiful face and into her hypnotic eyes ends up enchanted to her bidding which is how her father has used her even up to the point where he sends her to Scotland to be marred to Macbeth.

Scared and alone this story tells us how Roscille became Lady Macnrth by using the way men underestimate woman, and often dont believe they can be much more than just a wife/mother. Is she a victim or a villian, is she surviving or dangerous.

I loved this book, my first Ava Reid and won't be my last. She writes so beautifully and haunting, I felt this story in my bones.

I decided to sit with this for a few days just to make sure that my emotions weren't clouding my judgement but I have to be honest, I really didn't enjoy 'Lady Macbeth'.

To begin with, anyone who reads this needs to be warned that it does include quite a bit of SA. It's not graphic but it really took me off guard and I'm not usually someone who reacts strongly to SA in books. I'd really suggest that a trigger warning be included in the beginning of the book.

The prose was just as beautiful in 'Lady Macbeth' as Ava Reid's other works. My unpleasant experience with this one won't put me off from reading her future works. Ava Reid is so unbelievably talented as a writer and her writing style is just so lyrical. There are so many lines that just seemed to cut right through to the heart.

Unfortunately, this was one of the most unpleasant reading experiences of my life. At every turn our MC was degraded, raped, insulted, beaten, whipped and more. She had her sight taken away at one point and was essentially told that she didn't need to see because what would a stupid witch need to see for? Being inside her head was sad in a way I can't even fully express in a review like this. Watching her second guess herself, think less of herself, contemplate suicide, and shrivel up on the inside was one of the most depressing things I've ever read. She was like an ant under a boot being stomped on over and over and over again.

Lady Macbeth in the original play was a character with agency. She was cunning and manipulative and the Lady Macbeth in this story maintains those qualities in the beginning but they are almost completely decimated by the end. It was sad to see such an amazing character completely stripped and degraded. It felt less like a retelling and more like a bastardisation of the original play.

Other than just my personal enjoyment, there didn't seem to be a strong enough connection between plot points throughout the book. We'd jump from point A to point B and I'd just always feel like I was missing.... something? Despite being completely focused, I oftentimes couldn't understand how we'd gotten to where we were. Additionally, the romance was really lacking. It was undeveloped and made almost no sense for the story. I think the overall plot would've been stronger without it. Not to mention, it was in poor taste to have a rape scene and a sex scene within 20 pages of each other.

On paper this book should've been my favourite book of the year but it just didn't deliver and only succeeded in making me uncomfortable.

Lady Macbeth is a unique retelling focusing on the story of Roscille as she is sent to Scotland to be the bride of Macbeth. I initially found the story a little bit difficult to get into and found it was slow in places but overall enjoyed reading it. It does a good job of setting the dark and dreary scene of 11th century Scotland and original Macbeth. It is a long time since I read Macbeth so the story is not too fresh in my mind but I do not think you need a full knowledge to enjoy this book although I am sure I may have missed some references that others may appreciate more than I did. To me this character felt more like an original character with a loose inspiration from Shakespeare's Macbeth. Overall an enjoyable and unique read!

Roscille is a bride gift to the Lord Macbeth to secure an alliance, her unearthly beauty called death-touched. Poisoneyed. Witchkissed.
Roscille knows that there are the two fundamental aspects of wifehood: Open your legs to your lord husband and bear a child.
Yet, she is determined to survive as a foreign bride in a place where she is hated as a suspected witch.

Can the canny mind of a weasel exist within a bird's fragile, feathered body?

This is unlike anything Ava Reid has written before. It encapsulates feminine rage and power and wiles, and what men will do for power to feel strong and in control. Whilst the story is more akin to Juniper and Thorn in terms of themes, the prose was more similar to a Study in Drowning. I think this will make it appeal to all her audiences.

Roscille is extremely clever, wry, and coldly strategic. However, as she becomes her husband’s weapon, she is stuck between disgust at her own guilt and her desire for survival.

Roscille isn’t physically strong, yet her manipulative wiles and the way she uses her mind makes this a riveting, psychological, haunting and dark read.

This is the greatest of men's aspirations, to — whether through love or through violence —draw screams from women's mouths.


I do think however, I wanted more. It felt too short. I could see the percentage ticking up and I couldn’t see how Ava could wrap this altogether in the time she had left. It didn’t end in the middle of the plot or anything, but it did feel rushed and incomplete. Maybe this is me saying I really wanted MORE.

Thank you to Del Rey for providing an arc in exchange for a review!

This was dark and calculated throughout. It had game of thrones vibes and I mean that in the best way.

Lady Macbeth was quite the character, she got what she deserved and she gave everyone else along the way exactly what they deserved also. It had me hooked, I was mesmerised by her cunning and misunderstood ways. Lady Macbeth was a foreigner married off to a husband she didnt want, and she battles her way through new customs and an archaic misogynistic minefield of politics and power plays.

Inspired by the play Macbeth, this is a dark historical fantasy telling the story of a young girl sent to marry a violent, ambitious Lord in 11th Century Scotland. Shakespearean purists would probably not appreciate this particular retelling, this Lady Macbeth feels more like an original character, evoking Bluebeard's Castle as much as Macbeth. But it captures the superstition, darkness, and brutality of the original play and the writing was beautiful in parts.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'Lady Macbeth' by Ava Reid.

So first, Ava Reid insults the Welsh by making 'A Study of Drowning' and now she insults the Scottish by making 'Lady Macbeth'
'Lady Macbeth' is not great if you have read the play by Shakespeare. This felt like a "retelling" from someone who read the cliff notes of the play and wanted to spice it up a bit. As someone who loves 'Macbeth' I just felt heavily conned. This is probably my third Ava Reid that I've thought was a bit poor so maybe I should stop giving her a chance.

Writers will be re-writing Shakespeare for ooh, the next five billion years. This novel is positioned as a ‘bravura reimagining’ of Shakespeare’s play. And yes, like any work of fiction it’s perfectly acceptable to reposition, retool, retell. Sadly, this falls between two ‘big’ genres

The big twist (as hinted by the cover) is Lady Macbeth is actually a witch called Roscille, plotting to rule Britain. Macbeth has been under supernatural control for quite some time, with the witches locked in his castle cellar like Norman Bates’ mum. This leap - Dunisane as Bates Motel works, but it begins to lack credibility as the plotting thickens.

And yes, Macbeth itself is loosely based on historical events, the author reinterprets them and characters in such a confusing fashion, it causes the reader cognitive dissonance. Midway through, there is the big leathery wingbeat of fantasy, which is where the novel really jumps the life to come. An act of sexual violence is followed by a sex scene and it’s the kind of sexposition that George RR Martin deals in and even other writer in that genre deems necessary. Really, just stop.

Not quite a historical novel, not quite a fantasy novel and not quite enough for both. It’s published by Penguin on 13th August and I thank them for a preview copy.

Macbeth has always been a favourite of mine so I was so excited to delve into Lady Macbeth being reimagined, amazing read.