Book Review: Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid

Mogsy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Stand Alone

Publisher: Del Rey (August 13, 2024)

Length: 320 pages

Author Information: Website

Ironically, few things excite me more than Shakespearean inspired fantasy, even if years of boring high school lit classes have killed pretty much any enthusiasm I have for the works of the great Bard. These days I’m unlikely to pick up Shakespeare for pleasure, but pitch me a reimagining of Macbeth as told from the perspective of one of literature’s most famous villainesses and throw in dragons, curses, and sorcery for good measure, and I’m like, where do I sign up?

Enter Ava Reid’s Lady Macbeth, and now that I’ve read it, I certainly have opinions, both complimentary and critical. To provide some context though, I think it’s important to acknowledge the elements that stand out, even those aspects which are likely to frustrate readers. The book is a dark and rather loose retelling of Shakespeare’s classic play with a quasi-historical fiction bent, centering around seventeen-year-old Roscille who has been thrust into a world dominated by men and violence upon her marriage to the fearsome Scottish warrior Macbeth. But Roscille, alone and frightened as she is, has some secrets of her own. Said to possess witch powers, she makes furtive attempts at manipulation and charming others with her beauty in order to survive, but her youth and inexperience often lead her floundering in the dangerous power dynamics of her new life.

Brutal as he is, however, her husband appears to trust her, even if it does stem from his regard of her as his own property. He reveals to her his hidden dealings with the world of the occult and his beliefs in magic and prophecy, perhaps giving insight into his uncanny bravado and charisma. Despite her efforts to maintain control over her life, Roscille finds herself surrounded by adversaries in Macbeth’s court, growing increasingly isolated. But just when she hits rock bottom and feels the most desperate, an unexpected alliance and romance may emerge from the least likely of places.

Look around and you might see a lot of reluctance to call Lady Macbeth a retelling, and for good reason. Aside from the plot’s lack of faithfulness to the source material, you’re also looking at significant changes made to the key characters. But this, to me, was a positive. One of the book’s best features is the author’s ability to bring Roscille to life, even if she is a far cry from the strong, ambitious, and morally sketchy woman whom she was based on. Reid’s Lady Macbeth is her own creation, and she has written a protagonist whose trauma and subsequent resilience to those challenges have shaped her personality and motivations, which feel authentic and earned. The story also introduces new elements like magic and mythical creatures that have little to do with the original play, but as this is a fantasy novel, I’m quite happy for these changes placing it solidly into this category.

Still, there were other deviations that were less welcome. For one, we have the huge shift in focus from the main theme of the original Macbeth, which I felt was key to the play and should have been kept somewhat intact or at least present. Instead, opportunities to explore the darker side of human nature—unchecked ambition, the corrupting force of power, soul-rending guilt, etc.—were largely ignored in Lady Macbeth, and that was a little disappointing. Then there was the way the novel handled the relationship between Roscille and Macbeth. In this story, the latter holds all the power, and Reid doesn’t shy away from the harsher realities of their marriage. In her portrayal, though, Roscille is robbed of much of her agency, and the dynamics that exist between the couple in Shakespeare’s Macbeth are either diluted or flipped.

In terms of its technical aspects, the writing was rich and evocative, which enhanced the gothic vibes of the atmosphere. But unstable pacing made the first half a slow read, and in many ways, the fantasy elements were instrumental in helping things pick back up, even if they took the original plot off its rails. Such is nature of retellings or reimaginings—you have to take both the strengths and flaws that come with the author’s creative choices.

In the case of Lady Macbeth, those choices offered a fresh perspective. However, as much as I enjoyed some of Reid’s new interpretations, not all of them resonated with me the same way. In the end, I think readers will largely fall into one of two camps—those who appreciate the bolder changes, or those who would have preferred to see more of the familiar and important themes in Shakespeare’s play preserved.