AMBER BUDD – Author

Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid

Pages: 295

Format: Hardback (Special Edition)

The Lady knows the stories: how her eyes induce madness in men.

The Lady knows she will be wed to the Scottish brute, who does not leave his warrior ways behind when he comes to the marriage bed.

The Lady knows his hostile, suspicious court will be a game of strategy, requiring all of her wiles and hidden witchcraft to survive.

But the Lady does not know her husband has occult secrets of his own. She does not know that prophecy girds him like armor. She does not know that her magic is greater and more dangerous, and that it will threaten the order of the world.

She does not know this yet. But she will.

First off, though Lady Macbeth is a feminist retelling of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, you do not need to be overly familiar with the source material at all to enjoy this novel. Having a general idea of the play’s premise is enough to get you through, because Reid changes the story quite drastically. The prose is beautifully crafted, setting up an atmosphere of hazy dread and tension as we read about Roscille’s life under the thumb of one man or another. Even though it’s not true to Shakespeare’s original, I found that Lady Macbeth stood well on its own. If you can get over the unfaithfulness of the narrative, then you will find a very engaging and thought-provoking story that gives a new perspective to the previously nameless Lady Macbeth.

Before looking at some of the broader details of the novel, I want to comment on a short essay/letter that was included in my special edition. In it, Reid discusses how her retelling was influenced by the writings of medieval poet Marie de France—someone we know very little about except for her writings. Reid leaned heavily on the ideas of chivalric romance, which is the literary predecessor to modern “romantasy,” and might even be responsible (to some degree) for “monster romance.” I’ve taken multiple medieval literature courses during my undergraduate years, and, in my opinion, Reid has remained faithful to the medieval romance traditions and created a novel that is distinctly medieval-esque in its themes but still reads like a modern story. It’s an impressive accomplishment, which only made me like and appreciate the book more.

One of the book’s most fascinating elements is the focus on Scottish witchcraft and how it affects the dynamics of the story. Roscille (our dear Lady Macbeth) is steeped in this magic, affecting how the rest of the world views her. The magic is unsettling and labelled as a curse by the men, which further builds on the idea of women’s individuality being demonized in the past. There’s nothing romantic about the magic. It’s a difficult topic for the people in the story, and it drives Roscille to question her role in the world and whether she has any control over her future. The supernatural folklore contrasts with the practicality of warfare and ruling that we see through Macbeth and other Scottish leaders, further drawing a divide between the men and the women in this story. Roscille is a strong female character, but not in the sense that she’s physically strong. Her mind is her strength, along with her determination to break out of the literal and metaphorical veil meant to hide and silence her. This determination makes it easy to root for Roscille and her secret, forbidden romantic journey—because it’s not just about “getting the man,” but about getting the man who loves her enough not to stifle her.

The setting and political intrigue of Lady Macbeth are well developed and necessary for driving the plot forward. But at its heart, Lady Macbeth is a question about feminine power, authority, and identity in a world that refuses to acknowledge women as truly human. This book goes beyond the standard expectations of retellings, completely reinventing the story of Lady Macbeth to give her the autonomy and independence she was never afforded before.