Reviews with content warning for Misogyny - Le Bal des folles

A great piece of dark historical fiction about the ways in which men suppress, abuse and minimise women, using an insane asylum in 19th Century Paris as the setting, while also reflecting on themes of misogyn in modern culture. A content note for rape/sexual abuse, but it felt incredibly relevant to the story to include these issues. It honestly reminded me a little of Orange is the New Black, in terms of the incarceration of women, all of whom are victims of circumstance and/or the men around them.
In terms of the writing style, I found the jumping between past and present tense quite jarring in places, but it was obviously a stylistic choice, rather than sloppy writing.

Bonus drinking game: take a drink every time the author mentions the word 'chignon'. You'll be very drunk by the end of the book.

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loxeletters's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

3.5

I really enjoyed learning about 19th century Paris and the culture's misogyny, as far as one can enjoy this. It was very interesting.

I also liked the magical realism/supernatural aspects, though they were much less prevalent in the second half of the book.

This book actually challenged me on some of my core beliefs as a writer - the author does a lot of "head-hopping", which is usually frowned upon in modern fiction, though it used to be quite common in classic literature. It forced me to confront whether I actually don't like this technique or whether that was just ingrained in me from countless online repetition. My final conclusion is that I don't know. It did feel quite jarring a lot of the time and often broke the immersion. But maybe that was intentional?

In any case, I think that the translation was a bit subpar, featuring dangling modifiers and comma splices a lot. Again, maybe that's just the author's style, but I'd be willing to bet it's the translation.

Overall I have mixed feelings on this book. It was easy to read and engaging, plus I learnt a lot, but the prose just felt disconnected at times in a way that I can't really explain. Still, a very solid book.

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haalborg's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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bookedbymadeline's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

🎵“But no one likes a mad woman

What a shame she went mad

You made her like that”🎵 ~Taylor Swift, Mad Woman

Yes I thought of the above quoted song as I read this book 😂 I was pulled in right away and didn’t want to put it down! Loved the writing style- it’s written in third person and focuses on 3 women’s experiences/inner thoughts.

Due to the length of the novel, it was a short and quick read! The characters are well developed and have their own unique voice. Given the setting, the story is dark and heart wrenching but has a small glimmer of hope by the end.

Overall it was an interesting exploration of feminism and spiritualism in 1800s Paris! My only “complaint” was I wish the book was longer.

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