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A review by shebolebolee
Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid
3.0
Let me start by saying I have very mixed feelings about this one.
Let's start with what I liked: this book is well-written with beautiful descriptions. It's atmospheric. It's dark. It's a little bit magical. Every bit of Roscille's emotions trasnlate from the page and I felt every bit of it along with her. The ending, without giving spoilers, is also really well done and definitely an improvement upon that of the original play.
Which leads me to what I didn't like (which may include minor spoilers). This book should not have had anything to do with Macbeth. It shouldn't have used the names, it shouldn't be marketed as a retelling--it should have been its own entity, plain and simple. Calling it a Macbeth retelling and expecting everyone who is familiar with the play to know it is inspired by Macbeth was it's greatest downfall. The plot is muddled, the characters are assassinated, and only the barest hint of the plot comes through on the page. I can see where the author wanted to go with this, but I'll repeat what I just said: this shouldn't have had anything to do with Macbeth. She could have used the same plot and changed the character names, and I think only a few lines would have ever hinted at the play.
Another issue I had, which is where the spoilers come in, is that Lady Macbeth is, well, ruined. The badass, kind of crazy woman from the play is stripped here of all agency, all backbone, and made instead to be a clever yet cowardly young girl forced into a marriage she doesn't want. She is supposed to be a badass character pulling the strings, but really all her strings are pulled by the men in her life, up until the very end. The woman who orchestrated so much in the play orchestrates next to nothing in this book, and we're to believe that the play's version inspired this version? It's a loose inspiration at best--and a very, very disappointing one.
Taking away all affiliation with the Macbeth play, this book became much more enjoyable. It was a novel concept, and Roscille was easy to root for, especially by the end of the book. The writing is beautiful and the plot picks up a lot by about halfway through, with lots of action and even a surprising bit of romance.
I can't really tell you whether or not you'll like this book, but I can say one thing for certain: as long as you expect very little from the Macbeth side of things, it becomes a lot better.
Let's start with what I liked: this book is well-written with beautiful descriptions. It's atmospheric. It's dark. It's a little bit magical. Every bit of Roscille's emotions trasnlate from the page and I felt every bit of it along with her. The ending, without giving spoilers, is also really well done and definitely an improvement upon that of the original play.
Which leads me to what I didn't like (which may include minor spoilers). This book should not have had anything to do with Macbeth. It shouldn't have used the names, it shouldn't be marketed as a retelling--it should have been its own entity, plain and simple. Calling it a Macbeth retelling and expecting everyone who is familiar with the play to know it is inspired by Macbeth was it's greatest downfall. The plot is muddled, the characters are assassinated, and only the barest hint of the plot comes through on the page. I can see where the author wanted to go with this, but I'll repeat what I just said: this shouldn't have had anything to do with Macbeth. She could have used the same plot and changed the character names, and I think only a few lines would have ever hinted at the play.
Another issue I had, which is where the spoilers come in, is that Lady Macbeth is, well, ruined. The badass, kind of crazy woman from the play is stripped here of all agency, all backbone, and made instead to be a clever yet cowardly young girl forced into a marriage she doesn't want. She is supposed to be a badass character pulling the strings, but really all her strings are pulled by the men in her life, up until the very end. The woman who orchestrated so much in the play orchestrates next to nothing in this book, and we're to believe that the play's version inspired this version? It's a loose inspiration at best--and a very, very disappointing one.
Taking away all affiliation with the Macbeth play, this book became much more enjoyable. It was a novel concept, and Roscille was easy to root for, especially by the end of the book. The writing is beautiful and the plot picks up a lot by about halfway through, with lots of action and even a surprising bit of romance.
I can't really tell you whether or not you'll like this book, but I can say one thing for certain: as long as you expect very little from the Macbeth side of things, it becomes a lot better.