Mademoiselle Revolution by Zoe Sivak
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
I stumbled upon Mademoiselle Revolution during a spontaneous trip to the bookstore, and it was a blessing. Zoe Sivak wrote an enthralling and unforgettable book about a young biracial woman experiencing two bloody revolutions, the Haitian Revolution and the French Revolution, and trying to survive the carnage.
Sylvie de Rosiers is the daughter of a coffee plantation owner in Saint Domingue and an enslaved person who died during childbirth. All her life, she was ignorant of the horrific reality of slavery in Haiti. Yes, Sylvie experienced prejudice from society and even family members. Still, she never saw the true atrocity of slavery until it was forced right in her face. Mademoiselle Revolution starts just as the Haitian Revolution is coming to fruition.
In the beginning, Sylvie is a young ignorant girl who focuses more on her beauty than on discussing the political tensions rising in Haiti and France. Even though she seemed vain and self-centered at first glance, she had a saddening vulnerability and innocence that was moving. It was disheartening to read how Sylvie tried everything to keep her skin tone as light as possible. She knew she was beautiful, but that insecurity in the color of her skin as a biracial woman in a colony powered by slavery kept her chained to fear and self-doubt. Sylvie’s relationship with her father and eldest brother only tightened those chains as she realized the true crimes against the people her family made a fortune on. Thankfully, she at least had her other brother Gaspard. I loved him. Their relationship was endearing and pure compared to the obvious hatred her eldest brother had for her. After realizing her father could never accept all of her, Sylvie’s realization and complete breakdown were emotional to the core. The night Gaspard and Sylvie escaped during the slave rebellion came a little too soon for me. I would have loved to explore her life more in Saint Domingue and the slave uprising before Sivak took me to the Parisian city.
Sylvie and Gaspard may have escaped one revolution but entered a new one that would shape their lives…and possibly end it. The complete transformation of Sylvie from an ignorant child to an informed, passionate, and resilient woman was striking. Her connections to Cornélie Duplay and Maximilien Robespierre drove Mademoiselle Revolution once Sylvie came to Paris. Her infatuation with the attractive power of Robespierre’s presence and the safety he could provide Sylvie led her to Cornélie. Sylvie may have lusted for Robespierre, but the real romance blossomed between these two women, who both admired Robespierre, is what tugged at my heartstrings. Here are two women that were swept up in the charisma of a powerful man who would become a bloodthirsty tyrant in the name of “saving France.”
I loved how the romance in Mademoiselle Revolution was not black and white. It was not simple. It did not happen suddenly. The passion and love shared between Sylvie and Cornélie was warm yet…complicated. How could it not be when Sylvie strove to be at Robespierre’s side while falling in love with his mistress? I wanted their love protected at all costs, even more so when they fought, which could quickly get ugly. But they always found each other again. Their romance was behind closed doors and hidden in the shadows, but it was the most genuine relationship in the book.
I really wish Sylvie could have told Gaspard about her secret romance. I think he would have supported her no matter what. And that leads me to the sibling bond that never shattered even under extreme peril in France. Sylvie and Gaspard were there for each other. They were the other’s savior so many times, and their bond warmed my heart. After coming to Paris hoping for a new start, it hurt me to see the siblings be torn and beaten by the terror of the revolution. Yet somehow, her experiences did not break Sylvie.
One of my favorite moments from Mademoiselle Revolution was when Sylvie spoke to France’s National Convention to support the abolition of slavery in the French colonies. That moment solidified how much Sylvie changed and grew as a character from her days in Saint Domingue. I was so proud of who she became.
I adore Mademoiselle Revolution and highly recommend it to anyone who loves historical fiction. It is a jewel that needs to be shared.
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