The Mad Women’s Ball ~ Victoria Mas

The Mad Women’s Ball focuses on The Salpêtrière Asylum in the late 1800s and though who were both admitted and worked there. Doctor Charcot’s new works of hypnotism to treat Hysteria is all the rage with those coming far and wide to see his demonstrations. Every year a grand ball is held at the hospital for all of Paris’ elite to attend and is seen as the highlight of the social season. We follow the stories of Geneviève, a senior nurse, and Eugénie, a 19-year-old, daughter of a bourgeois family who has recently been admitted. Their paths soon cross and fates collide on the night of The Mad Women’s Ball.

This part of history is something that has always interested me. The horrible plight of women who were institutionalised in previous centuries has often baffled me and is probably why I am so drawn to books on this subject. Many of these women have been eradicated by the men in their lives for an endless amount of reasons that they need ‘help’ for. However, many are left forgotten and subjected to bizarre and often detrimental treatment. You can see whilst reading that Mas has put a lot of research into this topic as she is not afraid to delve into the lives of these women. The character development is so well done that some topics and ‘treatments’ are hard to read with some heartbreaking events along the way. I felt for a book that is definitely on the shorter side Mas managed to pack every page and really highlighted just how awful these‘ asylums’ were and what many women suffered. 

I gave The Mad Women’s Ball by Victoria Mas a 5 ⭐️ rating. I was completely enthralled by the characters and their stories from start to finish. It is a must-read for anyone interested in the time period but fair warning it does cover so hard to read subjects.

M🌸