You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
The foreword warned of this (to some extent) but this started off soooooooooo slow and imo when it finally picked up it became extra confusing (I still have no idea how the opera house was actually mapped out to make the plot work). This wasn't a paranormal book but 100% it needed magic to make things work as described, because it wasn't logical at all and I just couldn't suspend my belief
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is my second read through of the book. I read it the first time in the summer of 2005 after the musical was turned into a movie. I got a lot more humor out of it the first time. I still really enjoyed it though. It will always be in my top 5 favorite books.
I've been meaning to read Phantom for a while. I think that this novel very much embodied gothic literature from the supernatural to dark romance and a setting befitting of both. I can very much see why Phantom is a classic. It's one of those books that you feel smart after reading lol.
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Not sure what I was expecting, perhaps a gothic romance that looks deeply at the human condition and how blurred the line between love and obsession can become. Perhaps that’s what the cultural zeitgeist of the Phantom has become thanks to adaptations, retellings and inspired works. What I got instead was a detective mystery surrounding at an opera house revolving around to self-absorbed, petulant men and a poor girl haunted, quite literally, by the loss of her father.
While I did enjoy certain aspects of this novel (some sequences where humorous, some of the language and imagery succinct and rich, the setting fascinating and macabre, and the belated effort to humanize Erik in the end) much of it was me simply turning the page to resolve a mystery that only vaguely scratched the surface of my curiosity.
I find myself preferring Frankenstein to this novel since we get more time with the “monster” exploring their inner landscape and perspective on life from the outside looking in. I am however pleased to have read another novel that has inspired so many to come and greatly transcended its origins and taken a life of its own in our cultural narrative.
Also, I definitely want to visit the Opera House now.
While I did enjoy certain aspects of this novel (some sequences where humorous, some of the language and imagery succinct and rich, the setting fascinating and macabre, and the belated effort to humanize Erik in the end) much of it was me simply turning the page to resolve a mystery that only vaguely scratched the surface of my curiosity.
I find myself preferring Frankenstein to this novel since we get more time with the “monster” exploring their inner landscape and perspective on life from the outside looking in. I am however pleased to have read another novel that has inspired so many to come and greatly transcended its origins and taken a life of its own in our cultural narrative.
Also, I definitely want to visit the Opera House now.
So, full disclosure: I read the translated version in English and I read it after seeing the movie and the musical. Because of that, I felt like this book was kind of choppy. I felt like some parts were overly descriptive, while others lacked detail that would have been helpful. I also wasn't a fan of the point of view of the story. Rather than experiencing the interactions between Christine and the Phantom, you mostly heard about it after the fact in a re-told version from someone else. I don't know, I just wasn't a huge fan. I also was hoping the book would elaborate more on the Phantom's past and it did, slightly, but I guess I was hoping for a better story for his disfigured appearance.
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Oughhh I'm glad I finally finished this after loving the musical for so long. The second half of the book totally flies by, and it's difficult to put down at that point.