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siglerbooknook's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Phantom by Susan Kay is a must read for anyone obsessed with the story of the opera ghost.
I adored this book start to finish. It is gut wrenching and sad, hopeful and beautiful. Every scene is painted so vividly I felt like I was watching a movie.
I loved the glimpse into Erik's past and what made him the mad genius we know from the original novel by Gaston Leroux. Kay does a beautiful job weaving the little facts we learned originally into her tale in a convincing way that makes me feel like I only knew half the story before finding this book.
There are a few points of violence which became rather uncomfortable for me and several typos later in the book that made me read a sentence two or three times before I understood it and pulled me out of the story for a moment which is the only reason this isn't a perfect 5 star novel in my opinion.
I adored this book start to finish. It is gut wrenching and sad, hopeful and beautiful. Every scene is painted so vividly I felt like I was watching a movie.
I loved the glimpse into Erik's past and what made him the mad genius we know from the original novel by Gaston Leroux. Kay does a beautiful job weaving the little facts we learned originally into her tale in a convincing way that makes me feel like I only knew half the story before finding this book.
There are a few points of violence which became rather uncomfortable for me and several typos later in the book that made me read a sentence two or three times before I understood it and pulled me out of the story for a moment which is the only reason this isn't a perfect 5 star novel in my opinion.
Graphic: Child abuse, Drug use, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Grief, Murder, Abandonment, Body horror, and Body shaming
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Child death, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Rape, and Confinement
Minor: Animal death, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Torture, Terminal illness, Pedophilia, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Animal cruelty
kianiz's review
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I recently went to NYC to catch the show before it closes and it sent me down my PotO obsession once again. I read this book years ago and loved it and I have to say it still holds up for me.
Book is fantastically written. There’s so much insight into Erik and Kay does a great job of making him both human and monstrous. He can be very disturbing at times, but that’s kind of the point of his character, right?
I do still hate the ending. As sad as it might be, I’m still a big fan of the Phantom being left behind and disappearing. I feel like that’s what makes it so heart wrenching. That there’s no true happy ending. That is whyChristine coming back to have sex with Erik before her wedding then marrying Raoul and being okay with bringing a child into their marriage that wasn’t his was outrageously ridiculous. And the fact that Raoul KNOWS it’s not his kid and still stays with Christine and raises the child like the most loving father with no anger or sense of betrayal or anything close to that is just plain unbelievable, not to mention weird as fuck.
Then again, everyone has their own interpretation and headcanon, so I just pretend Raoul’s POV doesn’t exist. That being said, I still think it’s a fantastic book and the writing is almost poetic.
Book is fantastically written. There’s so much insight into Erik and Kay does a great job of making him both human and monstrous. He can be very disturbing at times, but that’s kind of the point of his character, right?
I do still hate the ending. As sad as it might be, I’m still a big fan of the Phantom being left behind and disappearing. I feel like that’s what makes it so heart wrenching. That there’s no true happy ending. That is why
Then again, everyone has their own interpretation and headcanon, so I just pretend Raoul’s POV doesn’t exist. That being said, I still think it’s a fantastic book and the writing is almost poetic.
Graphic: Animal death, Violence, Emotional abuse, Child death, and Murder
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, and Drug use
Minor: Death of parent, Rape, and Sexual assault
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