Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

El baile de las locas by Victoria Mas

33 reviews

raichou's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-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? Yes

4.5

Right at the beginning I have to say: 
This book might not be for everyone and contains things that might be triggering! 
Please read the content warnings! 

Personally I really liked this book. It depicts the way mental illness and women who wanted to speak for themselves were treated back in the day. 

I'm so glad it is different now, but it was very interesting to read about it. 

I think fans of American Horror Story: Asylum might like this book as well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, and Sexism

Moderate: Self harm and Mental illness

amy_park's review against another edition

dark informative mysterious medium-paced

2.5

Overall I felt this book was OK, hence the middle rating. I didn't like the writing in general but the subject matter was important and had an intriguing premise. I felt the ending was good resolution, but I feel the plot will fade from my memory soon. Would read a future book from the author.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism and Sexual assault

rhia_a's review against another edition

dark emotional sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexism, Ableism, Chronic illness, Misogyny, Forced institutionalization, and Abandonment

ellasecretarchive's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, and Torture

words_and_dreams's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

4.0

'Within these walls, as they wait to be seen by a doctor, time is the worst of enemies. It gives free reign to supressed thoughts, rouses memories, induces fear, stirs up regrets- and not knowing whether this time will ever come to an end, they fear it more than they fear their ailments.'

Eugenie, who sees the dead is sent to the asylum by her Father after being betrayed by her Grandmother. Genevieve, the matron/senior nurse at the asylum believes in science, order and Dr Charcot. She is stern and disciplined and cares for her patients without sentimentality. 

We see how the mentally ill women are treated, misunderstood and put on display like exhibits. Men abusing their power and postition whether that is a dr or a father.

The cold figure of Genevieve ends up being the savior whilst the 'loving' maternal Grandmother is the betrayer. I like how it explored discovering yourself and your beliefs despite thinking everything is already set in stone through Genevieve. She represents growth.  Theophile, Eugenies brother represents the next generation of men who could do better, hope for the future. 

We also get to meet some of the other inmates who are equally heartbreaking, especially Louise and Therese. 

It was a little on the nose at times but I really enjoyed it and found it both emotional, heartbreaking and gripping.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexism, Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, and Chronic illness

Minor: Abandonment

niamhvro's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

A really intriguing look at the perception and treatment of women, particularly in medicine. I found the consideration of father and daughter very well done and the idea of a fathers demands and dismissal of his daughter to be a cornerstone of the novel in a way that explained much of the behaviour and lives of the women. 
Unfortunately, it took about 50 pages before I was drawn in. The start is very slow and it took me some time to become invested. I also think there were some missed opportunities, as the characters that were focused on were not always the ones that seemed to have the most interesting story. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Incest, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, and Sexism

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

Moderate: Suicide attempt and Self harm

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

marbelousreads's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

This book was engaging and also a heartbreaking look at the realities of women who didn’t fit the mold being institutionalized in the late 19th century. I appreciated the nuance of the author about why some women preferred to be institutionalized and to show that the institutions like the Sal. were not universally good or bad but complicated. They did some bad things but they also did provide a refuge for some women who had been hurt by the world.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexism, Mental illness, and Confinement

charlereads's review against another edition

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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Body horror, Chronic illness, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual violence, and Torture