Drama. Romance. Mistaken identity. Called “Le Bazar de la Charité” in French, this series focuses on the fates of three women after a devastating fire in 1897 Paris – an actual event that happened at a charity bazaar, killing 126 people (mostly aristocratic women) and injuring many others.

Fans of the movie “Les Intouchables” will recognize Audrey Fleurot, who plays high-society lady Adrienne de Lenverpré who uses the fire as an excuse to fake her death and escape her powerful, abusive husband. Camille Lou plays Alice de Jeansin, who sees her fiancé push her friend and maidservant Rose Rivière (played by Julie de Bona) into the fire to save himself.

Without giving too much away, there are a lot of plot twists and intersections of the character’s lives. Fair warning to those who expect historical accuracy – this is only based on the real fire, and the script writers have taken plenty of liberties. But enjoy it anyway – the costumes are beautiful, and the characters are interesting, though viewers might find the first couple of episodes a little slow. Admittedly, I’m not all the way through the series yet but I’m excited to continue watching it. Despite the fact that I know this is entirely fiction, I love stories set in turn of the century Paris, particularly if they give me any sort of insight to how society operated in that time (it’s the anthropologist in me).

Have you watched Bonfire of Destiny yet? What did you think? Tell me in the comments below!