About
Shakespeare created the myth of the Macbeths as indefensible murderous conspirators. But now internationally
bestselling author Val McDermid drags the truth out of the shadows, exposing the patriarchal prejudices of
history
Britain's reigning "Queen of Crime" (The Scotsman), Val McDermid has ensnared audiences worldwide for over
thirty years with her thrilling and masterfully plotted crime oeuvre. A radical, rip-roaring counternarrative drawing
on the historical record, Queen Macbeth delivers an illuminating portrait of Shakespeare's most famous villain,
and the treacherous pursuit of ambition that made her legendary.
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, what unfurls is 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.
Immersive and utterly riveting, Queen Macbeth is an electric reimagining of one of Shakespeare's most
celebrated tragedies and reaffirms McDermid as one of the preeminent writers of our day.
