Reviews with content warning for Misogyny - Le Bal des folles

Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

Le Bal des folles by Victoria Mas

52 reviews

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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daisymayl's review against another edition

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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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mgordon3118's review against another edition

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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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yuvkn's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.0

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allisonshewfelt's review against another edition

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dark hopeful sad slow-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

4.25

"In fact, our choice is never between truth and lies, but between the consequences that will follow each one."
"If she must descend into the depths the better to rise again, then she will allow herself to fall."

The mad women's ball is a beautiful yet haunting story of how women were treated back in 19th century Paris. We meet 2 main characters, Geneviève and Eugénie. Geneviève is a stern nurse who worships science and the notorious Dr. Charcot, famous neurologist of the Salpêtrière asylum. Although she's never garnered any affection towards the women, she is the foundation for the hospital. Eugénie is a strong headed and opinionated daughter of a well known family. She gets sent to the Salpêtrière for seeing and hearing the dead. Her father doesn't want the family name associated with that so he commits her there.
"This is a world in which upholding the family name is more important than protecting one's daughters."
Her gift is not one I was afraid of because these spirits weren't there to scare her, they were usually loved one or others loved one.

The Salpêtrière is an asylum for deranged women. However, many of the women are simply unwanted by their fathers, brothers, husbands etc. When a women wants to have an opinion or be more than just a mother, she gets dumped here. Life for women back then was really unfair. Unfortunately, being so penned up inside and treated like experiment animals, many developed panic attacks, palsy and seizures. Every year there is a mad women's ball for the parisian folk. For them, it is a spectacle like going to the zoo and for the women, it is a chance to be noticed for more than just a mad woman.

Although Geneviève was a very closed off character, I really love how she started to doubt her beliefs and realized how these doctors mistreated their patients. She knew that Eugénie was special and didn't belong here and she wanted to help her escape.

I was really sad with how this ended. I wish things had gone well for both characters but you'll have to read it to find out what happens. The writing in this is beautiful as well. This work of art relays themes of what it means to be free, to believe, fearing what you do not understand, and allowing yourself to fall in order to rise again. It shows the true strength of women and what they can accomplish together.

It's sickening to know that this is based off a real asylum of the same name. I can't believe having an opinion back then as a women was enough to be thrown in here. I don't understand how men could treat them like that.

If you like the lost apothecary, you will love this book. They take place around the same time with female main characters and relationships between them and the setting gives off the same gothic ambience.

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charlereads's review against another edition

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dark tense fast-paced

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

3.5

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caseyemorgan's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

“Truth be told, whether free or incarcerated, women were not safe anywhere. Since the dawn of time, they had been the victims of decisions that were taken without their consent.”

I picked this book up on a whim when Barnes and Noble had their sale on hardbacks, and I am so glad that I did. Victoria Mas tells the tragic stories of three women and the Salpêtrière psychiatric hospital in 1880s Paris. She tackles the topics of grief, freedom, trauma, and sanity; all while she develops characters that you truly root for. I really enjoyed reading the stories of all of the “mad” (but not really mad) women who made the hospital their home. Oh, and there’s ghosts in there. Which really adds to any story.

I loved it and will definitely pick up her next book. (4.5⭐️)

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