Reviews

Mademoiselle Revolution by Zoe Sivak

shinaabikwe's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative medium-paced

3.5

alana_jg's review

5.0

This was absolutely harrowing and very educational for me. It had me on a deep Wikipedia dive into the Haitian and French Revolutions which were events I admit I didn't have enough knowledge of before. I always find it interesting when reading historical fiction about real historical figures. I found myself invested in Sylvie's story and anxious for things to go well for her, conflicting entirely with my knowledge of everything that would happen and how Robespierre's story would go. This meant that, while the events weren't unexpected, they still had a big effect on me and left me feeling shocked at the brutality.

The sapphic element of this was nicely done. I rarely read stories where the sapphic romance is a side plot, rather than the focus of the book and it was refreshing to see it in this. It was also lovely that there was no homophobia from the characters which I would have expected from something set in this time. While this was, in no way, a light read, I'm grateful for how much this book taught me and think it was morbidly interesting and dealt with the subject matter well.

liketheday's review against another edition

2.0

This was not a book for me; I would not have read past page 58 if I weren't reading this for book club. Good news, the plot picks up on page 59! Bad news, I still had a tough time getting through it. I think if I had been a more careful reader, paying more attention to the timeline of the book, and if I had any knowledge of the French Revolution, other than that it certainly happened, I would have appreciated this a lot more.

lindseysparks's review

1.0

The first half of this book was great! I loved the time in Saint Domingue and Sylvie's stuggle between being a plantation owner's daughter raised in a lavish lifestyle and being the daughter of a slave. When she fled to Paris and met Robespierre and liked him, I thought, what a clever idea! Meet him early on when he seems reasonable and portray his descent into extremism. But then the second half of the book seemed like it was written by an entirely different person. The plot became sloppy and disjointed. Then all of a sudden Sylvie becomes the one to kill Marat?!?!?!?!?! The story could still have been interesting just having her be the cause of his arrest. At that point the writing and plot became so bad I started skimming. I assumed the author's note would explain the parts of the story she made up, which is common in historical fiction, but she didn't say a word. It was just really strange and the storyline with Robespierre didn't really explore things like I hoped and fell horribly flat. I think I was so disappointed with the end because the first part of the book was so good!

aharrison_33's review

5.0

A must-read for anyone looking for historically rooted insights into current political turmoil in the US. Moreover, the protagonist was captivating and deeply flawed (but not the a point which drove me to hate her). She felt real.

The novel felt long in places, but the emotional payoffs were worth it.

smilesgiggle's review

4.0

I wanted so much more about Haiti. I eagerly consumed the first quarter of this book - such amazing detail regarding Sylvie's life as a mulatto in Haiti. Her social standing based upon her father's was not something I was aware occurred. This gave her some freedoms - yet Sylvie struggled to be accepted by either race.
The slave revolt forces Sylvie and her family to flee to the southern states of America. Refusing to stay with her family, Sylvie joins her brother - seeking residence with their father's sister. Her life expands - a need for attention allows her to ingest the revolution's literature. Equal rights, human rights, the need to ease poverty. And of course her relationship with Robespierre and his lover, Cornélie.
Harsh in its depiction of war, realism of seeking solace from close friends while struggling with the exhaustion of revolution.

mhoffrob's review against another edition

3.0

There was just too much disbelief for me to suspend. I did not feel invested in the character(s) or the events, and though much more became clear in the author's note at the end, I wouldn't recommend.

leandrea's review against another edition

emotional reflective tense 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

5.0

julissadantes's review

adventurous medium-paced

3.75

3.8 stars because finally, an original story

I really liked the pace and progression of the book. But sometimes I felt that if a revolution was happening... Im reading too much teenage-like love chapters, I just wanted the action, and the romance to be an add-on and not like a forced thing, even when I find the lovers lovely I really didnt care that much about any of the relationships.

alicertb's review

adventurous challenging dark 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? No

3.5