Reviews tagging 'Sexual harassment'

Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid

25 reviews

sophiaxscherm's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

I just loved this book. So much. The writing was so good and addicting. The beginning sets the dark and mysterious mood and scenery so perfectly. I loved the complexity of the characters, I feel like none of them were dull, there was always more to them in some way. 
Don't have much more to say, this was great.

The only thing that was a bit off for me was the dragon stuff. Like I just didn't get why that was necessary. When Roscille realized Lisander is no normal human being, I was so excited to find out what is going on. But this was a letdown and just a bit weird.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Sexual harassment

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

---

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

graveyard_guenther's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, and War

jztran's review against another edition

dark

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment

jordandotcom's review against another edition

challenging

• Loveable characters? No

0.5

the composition of this book was as follows:

50%: weird pseudo-feminism and bemoaning the role of women (a line that inflicted psychic violence on me was “It is essential there be wives… even whores for using though such things must be done with discretion… where do the men of Glammis find their pleasure, feed their appetites? She is so shaken by this…”) 

40%: extreme xenophobia against the scottish (there is never a description of macbeth without mentioning his ~savage, brutish largeness~ at one point saying his strength and brutality isn’t even human; he so so big and massive and uncivilized compared to her demure and mannered smollness) 

8%: try-hard metaphors 

2%: vaguely interesting (the witches were cool, did also like trepanation showing up) 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Xenophobia, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Xenophobia

Minor: Xenophobia

madlysoph's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark 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? It's complicated

4.0

 I was lucky enough to read this as a digital arc from Edelweiss, an important thing to note as there is a note at the beginning that says some things may change in the book by the publication date, so take my commentary with a grain of salt. 

As always, Ava Reid's writing is beautiful. I wouldn't say I liked this as much as I thought I would, I did like this book, but it wasn't life-changing for me. I will honestly say that I haven't read Macbeth which might have impacted my appreciation of this story and some of the themes and references.  

For me, it felt like there was a lot of buildup throughout the book without a proportional payoff. The romance felt underdeveloped and there are moments where the story feels both fast-paced and slow-paced. The overall themes were executed well and were present throughout the whole story. The setting was interesting and new from Ava, the weaving of history, Shakespeare, and fantasy was done fairly well and the world was believable. 

Roscilles character is very much a 17-year-old girl, she's smart and cunning, yet fearful and unsure of herself. I loved reading about her character and watching her grow throughout the book. This is a good book worth reading, I fully intend to reread it once it's released as a physical copy, and I will likely like it more once I reread it.  

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny and Violence

Moderate: Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Abortion, Sexual harassment, and War

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

---

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

decodethebooks's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death and Gore

Minor: Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Vomit, and Pregnancy

spellbindingtomes's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

𝘐𝘧 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘧𝘦𝘵𝘺, 𝘪𝘧 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴. 𝙑𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚.

Reviews for this book seem to be decidedly split, with readers either loving or strongly disliking Ava's approach - and I'm firmly in the 'love it' camp. Ava's enthralling writing pulled me out of my recent audiobook slump, transforming Shakespeare's classic Macbeth with a dark, witchy feminist lens that completely reimagines one of its central character. 

As someone who's always been a fan of Shakespeare, I was captivated by how Ava added magical elements and depth to Lady Macbeth, creating a narrative that diverges dramatically from the original play. 

The atmospheric prose and witchcraft elements make this an ideal fall read. It's a fresh perspective that turns a familiar story into something entirely new and unexpected. If you enjoy retellings that challenge your understanding of classic characters, this book delivers a provocative and immersive experience that lingers long after the final page. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and War

swagmaster3000's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.75

God just an incredible read. So much sexier than expected, and the power given to lady Macbeth is so so glorious. Def recommend, also ..,..,:,,.. lisander. That’s it. I’m mostly just sad that it’s over

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Abortion, Suicide attempt, and Classism