Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Le Bal des folles by Victoria Mas

108 reviews

my_plant_library's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Rape, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Self harm and Suicide attempt

house_of_hannah's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I'm really not sure how to rate this. I honestly think my favorite part was looking up the history of the real Salpêtrière and Professor Charcot. I actually lived just a few minutes walk from the Salpêtrière for several years without realizing it. The history is what fascinates me, but the book itself leaves a bit to be desired.

This story is told in a very matter-of-fact way. There's nothing that's hidden or mysterious about the characters or the setting. Everything is laid out for the reader, and I think it causes the book to lose some heart.

This is a slow, character driven story that is quite light on actual plot. It takes place over the span of two and a half weeks, but it feels so much longer than that due to the pacing. Unfortunately, this story suffers from extremely convenient scenarios to push the plot forward, which makes everything very predictable. 

As the title is The Mad Women's Ball, I expected a lot more of the story to take place during the ball, or to have it be way more relevant than it actually was. In the end it just felt like another plot device with no life to it. 

This book is depressing; there's no way around that. I mainly felt stressed while reading this. I'm not happy with the conclusion, and it left me feeling a little lost ? There is an epilogue, but I honestly could have used one more chapter of the main story to prevent it from feeling so abrupt. This is not a long book, so the ending does feel rushed compared to how the rest of the story unfolded. 

Basically I have quite mixed feelings about this book. On one hand it introduced me to a history of Paris I did not previously know, but on the other I think the book itself could have been fleshed out so much more. In the end I think that leaves me with an average book where the history behind it is more intriguing than the fiction. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical trauma, and Classism

Moderate: Self harm and Suicide attempt

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

daisymayl's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

The first chapter didn't grab me, but the second chapter definitely did and I really really enjoyed this up until the final chapter. If the ending had been better then this would have been a 4 but the ending just felt rushed and fell flat for me. The ball was barely a chapter in the book as well, despite the book being named after it. I think I wanted this to be a bit longer so that it could be more properly fleshed out towards the end.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

lau_leo's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Wowowow. I feel like this book was made for me. This was a pretty quick read for me but it has resonated with me so much. As an agnostic nurse, I could sympathize with the main character immensely. I have often questioned and re-evaluated my beliefs and purpose in life so seeing one of the main characters go through similar things such as detachment, depersonalization, burnout, and survivors guilt had me connecting to this novel on a level I wasn’t expecting. I loved how the main characters question their own sanity and beliefs and stay true to themselves. I will probably recommend this book to anyone who will listen. And I am intrigued to see how I perceive this book when I reread it one day and if I will love it as much as I currently do. 

Before reading this book, I want to point out that looking up content warnings might be advised. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Trafficking

books4em's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

This is a short book and I was somewhat disappointed.  The ending is rushed and I wish more detail/thought had been taken to expand on the ending. The author could've explored the two main characters after the climax of the book (which happens within the last few pages), but didn't. Some of the events in the novel aren't explicitly stated as they are and I think it looses some of the emotional effect they probably have in the book's native language (French). 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Death, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail

notallbooks_mp's review against another edition

challenging dark informative tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

I think the work this one is doing—showing how women are both abused by the mental health systems that were in place at the time, but also somewhat sheltered from some of the more horrible experiences outside the hospital—isn’t entirely new, and I’m wondering if it’s possible that I just don’t like some of how this was translated? I also wonder if the spiritualism plotline somehow undermines some of the other arguments but haven’t really worked through this line of thinking. Interesting and complex but not fully fleshed out for my tastes. I will probably check out the movie though. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

tilly_m_reads's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness

Minor: Rape and Gaslighting

mgordon3118's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail

zoe_werdy's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This was a fascinating read, based on the real history of a French asylum and the annual ball held within its walls for the wealthy of Paris to mingle with the mad women. It was really a story about the ways society controls women, in the home, in their work or if they differ from the norm, or are the victim of traumatic violence, in an asylum. Once there doctors can do as they please in the name of medicine. It's a history I want to read so much more about, it feels like it has so much to say about the past and so many implications for today. This short book was dipping my toe into spellbinding writing laying out this disturbing chapter of Parisian history. I loved it! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

kyahs's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Rated highly because it is unique, lined with history and for having deep messages regarding feminism and mental health care. Written well. Part of the story line seems to not fit so well and maybe shoes the authors interests in other areas. Still great and the addition of this oddity gave the book a darker more mysterious edge.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Rape, and Abandonment