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A review by scarletranger
Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Ava Reid has crafted a beautiful voice for Lady Macbeth. Every word is cleanly chosen, every sentence amazingly crafted. This is, through writing style alone, a beautiful alternate universe of Lady Macbeth.
However, where the text struggles is in the title character. Lady Macbeth is one of, if not the most well-known of Shakespeare's villains. She is cold, ruthless, and calculating. And while this Lady Macbeth does have some cleverness about her - at least in political intrigue - she is unable to match the original's, despite the narrative trying to push that way. She's fails at nearly every turn to out smart Macbeth (she has been turned into a victim in this retelling), and is cowardly until the very end, when she pairs up with this story's true love interest. For a feminist retelling, it falls a bit flat on the feminist angle.
The writing really does save this work. It is gorgeously written, and I enjoyed reading this tale for the writing alone. While Lady Macbeth and the original story have gone through massive changes, this is worth a read for the writing alone.
However, where the text struggles is in the title character. Lady Macbeth is one of, if not the most well-known of Shakespeare's villains. She is cold, ruthless, and calculating. And while this Lady Macbeth does have some cleverness about her - at least in political intrigue - she is unable to match the original's, despite the narrative trying to push that way. She's fails at nearly every turn to out smart Macbeth (she has been turned into a victim in this retelling), and is cowardly until the very end, when she pairs up with this story's true love interest. For a feminist retelling, it falls a bit flat on the feminist angle.
The writing really does save this work. It is gorgeously written, and I enjoyed reading this tale for the writing alone. While Lady Macbeth and the original story have gone through massive changes, this is worth a read for the writing alone.