I recently finished reading Belle Révolte by Linsey Miller. Thank you so much Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing me with an advanced reader copy! This book released February 4th. I feel a little bad that I’m behind on my ARCs, but I suppose that happens sometimes.
Emilie de Marais is a noble whose mother wants her to be a lady, learning how to divine and use the “midnight arts.” It’s an acceptable vocation for someone of her status and gender. She has other dreams, wanting to do the “noonday arts” and heal people, which can be a little gruesome and is considered to be unladylike. She sees her chance to change her fate when she runs across a peasant girl that looks a little like her.
The peasant girl, Annette, really wants to learn to be a diviner. Emilie asks if she’d like to swap. Annette takes her place at the fancy school Emilie is supposed to attend, while Emilie takes her chance at going to the university down the street. The arrangement makes both of them happy.
Society, however, is on the verge of revolution. The king is not a good man and is trying to quash the unrest. In their world, magic takes a toll on a person’s body. Using too much magic leads to an early death. Many nobles employ “hacks” to take the physical punishment for them. When Emilie discovers one of the physicians leaving one of their hacks on the verge of death, she decides to take action.
What I Liked
Belle Révolte had compelling characters and an interesting storyline. I felt empathy for Emilie. Although I’ve never been prevented from doing something I wanted to because of my gender, I did major in computer science and spend some time in the military. Also, who doesn’t love a good story where heroines take on a corrupt society to make the world a little more equal for everyone?
I didn’t have trouble picturing the setting.
What I Liked Less
The story seemed to be slightly lacking in it’s execution. There were points in the story where I had difficulty picturing what was going on. There were a few places that I thought needed a little more editing. Because the premise behind the book was good and I liked the characters, I was able to overlook this, but I definitely felt the story could have used some improvement in this area.
Overall
Overall, I enjoyed Belle Révolte and was glad I read it. The book has ace representation which can be rare. The characters and overall story were great. It’s not award-winning fiction, and if fantasy isn’t your genre or you don’t find the premise appealing, I won’t try to convince you to read it on the beautiful prose alone, but if you enjoy fantasy stories where the girls aren’t afraid to defy gender stereotypes and end up taking on a corrupt kingdom, I recommend it.