Queen Macbeth: Darkland Tales(Darkland Tales)

Shakespeare fed us the myth of the Macbeths as murderous conspirators. But now Val McDermid drags the truth out of the shadows, exposing the patriarchal prejudices of history.

A thousand years ago in an ancient Scottish landscape, a woman is on the run with her three companions a healer, a weaver and a seer. The men hunting her will kill her because she is the only one who stands between them and their violent ambition. She is no lady: she is the first queen of Scotland, married to a king called Macbeth.

As the net closes in, we discover a tale of passion, forced marriage, bloody massacre and the harsh realities of medieval Scotland. At the heart of it is one strong, charismatic woman, who survived loss and jeopardy to outwit the endless plotting of a string of ruthless and power-hungry men. Her struggle won her a country. But now it could cost her life.

Part of Polygon's DARKLAND TALES series.

Val McDermid is a number one bestseller whose novels have been translated into more than forty languages, and have sold over nineteen million copies. She has won many awards, including the CWA Gold Dagger the LA Times Book of the Year Award and the Cartier Diamond Dagger Award for outstanding achievement. She writes full-time and divides her time between Edinburgh and East Neuk of Fife.

'A hugely enjoyable heart-stopping afternoon in the company of Queen Macbeth and her three wise women. I *love* the Darkland tales!'

'a page-turning tale of adversity and adventure, laughter and love, death and defiance'

'Among the most exciting series of books of recent years'

'A wondrous tale of subterfuge, courage, and resolve set among Kings and Queens, war and passion in eleventh century Scotland'

'a historical romance seen from the perspective of a strong and determined woman fighting for life and love,

'Val McDermid paints a more sympathetic and certainly more feminist portrait of the Queen, adding subtlety, romance and drama to her story'

'In the fifth book in the critically acclaimed ‘Darkland Tales’ series from Polygon Val McDermid plunges into medieval Scotland. Overturning Shakespeare’s propaganda, the reader will encounter a new Lady Macbeth amidst a web of vicious intrigue'

'This gripping entry in the Darkland Tales series of fictional retellings of Scottish history finds the mighty Val McDermid interpret the story of Lady Macbeth with searing feminist power'

'A powerful, moving, timely retelling of the story of a legendary queen'

'successfully dismantled my blood-soaked Shakespearean assumptions about Lady Macbeth'

'McDermid’s short, sharp novel does everything it can to upset the narrative we think we know to tell us a magical new story... a pushy, playful rewriting of Shakespeare and Scottish history in the context of the hurly-burly present.

'Chapter after chapter, past and present are warp and weft, alternately interweaving the compelling, violent machinations of pre-Scotland royal bloodlines with an enthralling love story. McDermid offers a no-nonsense, authentic earthiness of language, dialogue and descriptive passages'

'It is Thelma and Louise with crossbows. The three companions are delightfully skilled, fast, furious, and deadly in battle... a terrific novella'

'In Queen Macbeth, McDermid brings [Lady Macbeth's] story to life as only she can, with a vivid and often vicious depiction of medieval Scotland based on Gruoch's life and times'

'It’s a story we think we all know, but this excellent novel will tell you otherwise'

'Val McDermid’s reimagining of the Macbeth story involves as daring a trick as anything Shakespeare provided for the theatre... the alternative Lady Macbeth will please many of [McDermid's] readers.'

'McDermid allows Lady Macbeth to reclaim her real name – Gruoch – and casts her in an altogether more sympathetic light'

'McDermid is best known for her crime books, and there's plenty of blood and guts in this one, but here she has delved into Scotland's past to bring us a version of history from the female perspective'

'Very beautiful'

'This book is one of the finest ones Val has written because it has shown the versatility and the depth and breadth of the literary talent she undoubtedly is'

'McDermid steps into the breach with a novel that offers a very different interpretation of this medieval queen, attempting to redress centuries of misinformation'

'I enjoyed Queen Macbeth so much... I really enjoyed going back to the eleventh century'

'Queen Macbeth fits well into the Darkland Tales series, but it also fits well into the McDermid canon, which has since her very first novel featured determined women battling to have their voices heard'

'Terse, atmospheric, and superbly reimagined, McDermid’s latest perfectly captures the terror of living in a medieval Scotland riven by violence. Scottish history enthusiasts will enjoy'

'Chapter after chapter, past and present are warp and weft, alternately interweaving the compelling, violent machinations of pre-Scotland royal bloodlines with an enthralling love story. McDermid offers a no-nonsense, authentic earthiness of language, dialogue and descriptive passages, which linger beyond the ending'

'Queen Macbeth is a fascinating and thought-provoking addition to this series of dramatic retellings of stories from Scotland’s past that intersect history, myth and legend'

'McDermid’s considerable talent for reconstructing medieval Scotland in all its tribal viciousness, as well as its beauty and joy, is a real treat'

'an engrossing, pageturning counternarrative about one of Shakespeare's great villains, Lady Macbeth'

'Scottish crime-novel legend Val McDermid brings the story to rip-roaring life with a novel that centers this woman who outmaneuvers countless men to claim the throne'

'a visceral and insightful novella which touches on a part of Scotland's history which is still known by too few of us'

'Val McDermid has dragged the truth about the real Queen Macbeth out of the shadows to reveal a woman caught up in the patriarchal prejudices and vicious political intrigues of her time'