Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid

14 reviews

bookwormcat's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Child death, Alcohol, and Classism

shandeezee525's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A dark, mysterious fantasy that kept me captivated from start to end. I typically don’t read fantasies but I really enjoyed this story from cover to cover.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, and Blood

lilmadmadz's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, and War

sakisreads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

I was looking forward to this book’s release, as I had enjoyed reading Macbeth at school 🤣 (Okay nerd!)

Even with Ava Reid’s disclosure at the beginning, it did take me some time to adjust to the way the English was written. Gosh, the writing was so weird back in the day eh 😳

The drama was dramatic (🤣) and I definitely didn’t want to stop until I had finished!

3.5 out of 5 stars for me, thank you! ✨ Content warnings included below.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, Grief, and War

cayliehausman's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

A tale of madness begetting madness, that leads to freedom or ruin. The added touches of forbidden romance and feminist ideology creates a modern take on a classic play. 

I would recommend reading a summary of Macbeth but it’s not necessary to have read the play beforehand. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Rape

britt_zey's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Gore, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Sexual harassment, and War

clovetra's review against another edition

emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

now my expectations were already astronomically high because i adore macbeth. it’s probably my favourite shakespeare work because i studied it so intensely in high school to the point my teacher literally made me read lady macbeth. i was on crack when we read macbeth, having the time of my life. 

i think i went in with my expectations so insanely high this book was never going to be able to live up to what i was expecting. i do think this book did have some wins.

for one, hello roscille!!!! she’s such an interesting character. i loved how cunning she was, even for something as small as wishing for the coat to the end. i will say her motivations didn’t feel authentic to me reading this, so at times where i should’ve been rooting for her, i was instead trying to work out why she was doing something.

i don’t really like what was done to macbeth in this either. idk i liked how in the original they were very clearly madly in love until the story begins, whereas this story paints him to be like every other man. yes yes i know this is a “feminist” retelling so therefore macbeth kind of needs to be a bit more brutish, but i wasn’t a fan. lady macbeth going along with macbeth’s plot in the original felt realistic, as they were a power couple and went beyond the classic representation of shakesperian relationships. roscille and macbeth here just felt like a cliche, and it was honestly a bit boring and predictable at times.

the overall plot was decent… until fantasy elements enter which are so immersion breaking it actually annoyed me a bit. the witches’ were adapted well to this story and i like the depth that was added to them, but their ending felt stupid and rushed. and don’t get me started on lisander. this book did not need that addition to his character and completely changed the tone of the story.

the ending was also incredibly lacklustre. we have built up to this big battle for so long and it just….. fizzles out. like seriously when we spend most of the book with roscille pissfarting around and then the ending happens in the span of like 5 pages. what are we doing here.

as with any retelling, there were changes to this adaptation. some of them were great! i loved the element of roscille and her veil, although i don’t really think it added much to the plot, but hey it seemed cool. some deaths were changed, and some new characters were added, like senga. senga has my heart baby grill u can ride with me. but the changes to the story felt a bit surface level for me, and honestly ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’. i will say however that my little autistic brain did a little dance whenever trepanation was mentioned. my ass loves old timey medicine!!!!!!!!

finally, ava reid the woman you are. god her prose was so addicting. the style she writes in is so unique yet so fascinating. i loved it. 

i really think feminist retellings are overdone. the market is incredibly oversaturated, and at times it feels cliched and boring. the new plot elements added to this book certainly help set it apart from the rest, but i really don’t think this lives up to its original inspiration. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body horror, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Blood, and War

Minor: Rape and Pregnancy

dreareads_'s review against another edition

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

Okay....

I will link my video review because I do not have the time to type out all of my thoughts at the moment, BUT I do want to warn everyone that this book is <b> full of anti Scottish xenophobia </b> that is  not confronted nor unpacked in the story.

Forget the boring depiction of Lady Macbeth, or the horrific

rape scene that is immediately followed by a sex scene with a love interest that is simply considered good because he didn't rape her even though he wanted to

, or the dragon shapeshifter. The real downfall of this book is the constant description of Scottish people as uncivilized, blood thirsty, patriarchal, brutes while the English were given enough grace to seem sexist but civilized. 

I cannot in good conscience recommend this book, and if I am honest I do not think I will be reading another Ava Reid book any time soon. 

Video Review: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DA6KAZCAbl1/?igsh=aXFuNXppbmN6NHJy

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Gaslighting

lindsinmco's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape and Torture

Moderate: Body horror, Sexual violence, and Blood

Minor: Confinement

chloeburton's review against another edition

dark

2.5

This was a big let down for me. I wish it was just separated from Macbeth entirely or just…a different story. It just doesn’t have any true semblance of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. There’s a lot of issues I have with this but I don’t want to write an essay. There’s a lot here I really like though, too. I really love Ava Reid’s prose. The way she writes about the impact of trauma on the mind is truly remarkable. I really enjoy her writing style. I plan on trying one of the other books.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Mental illness, Sexual content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, and War

Minor: Body horror, Confinement, Miscarriage, and Xenophobia