NetGalley Review - The Ballroom
The Ballroom is set in 1911 and tells the emotional story of a few characters and their lives inside an asylum at the edge of the Yorkshire moors. The men and woman are kept apart, except for one night a week (if they’re lucky), when they all get together in the ballroom for a dance.
I found this to be a sometimes dark, but overall touching story of love and human struggle. Most of the characters were very likeable, and I did find myself becoming emotionally involved with this story. Having only a few characters to focus on, made the story easy to follow, and allowed me to truly bond with those characters.
It was very atmospheric and the whole time I was reading this book, I was very much within the walls of the asylum, experiencing the thoughts and emotions of the characters. This book left me with mixed feelings of sadness and hope.
The epilogue is also interesting, and the Author’s Note is very touching too.
I highly recommend this to those who enjoy historical fiction with believable characters, and I look forward to reading more by this author in future.
I would like to thank the publisher, Doubleday (Random House UK, Transworld Publishers) for allowing me a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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