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alannahsh's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
fantasticmrethan's review against another edition
2.0
I loved it. Then I hated it. The closer you get to the events of the original novel the more the quality slowly deteriorates and once it gets to the retelling of ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ the characters just become tiresome and the whole thing becomes intensely unlikeable and slow. The early chapters have a Hannibal Lector/Sherlock Holmes vibe and even some of the Persia segments were good fun but the last third was just awful and left a sad taste in my mouth. Even though there is a great book somewhere in here.
carmelitasita's review
1.0
Entirely overwrought and up to it's neck in drama. The characters in this book make Hamlet seem like a reasonable guy.
arenkachina's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
chylu's review
5.0
This was a firm favourite in my teens, but I hadn't read it since I was about 20, and as I recently saw ALW's Phantom in London again, I thought I'd have a stroll down memory lane.
I was surprised to find the prose in the "Madeleine" section weak, but then as the POV moved on to Erik, Nadir, and so forth, it picked up, so my guess is it's simply that Madeleine's voice is rather more simple and childish than the others. Which makes sense, given her character's selfishness. I found the writing overall not as spectacular as I remembered from my previous readings, but I think this is because Erik as a character has always been so fascinating and tragic to me, and Kay has done a wonderful job of giving him a concrete past and reasons behind everything he did in his later years. Her research is excellent without being overwhelming with the historical details as I find historical fiction is often guilty of (getting bogged down in details where half a page is spent describing the stitching on a piece of fabric, for example).
As other reviewers have said, the book is unputdownable though Christine's section raises eyebrows. Obviously that's the part of the story most know, or know something of, and Kay has put her own intriguing spin on it... and I agree with previous reviewers who've said that Christine is a whinging, spineless wishy-washy character who seems hugely unworthy of Erik's intense love. I kept this in mind while rereading, but it occurred to me that Erik knew this as well... not that she's unworthy, but that she *is* an inane little girl lacking backbone and confidence. But -- she looks just like his mother. That's the key... he probably isn't seeing her as the most magnificent woman ever to be born, but she represents *all* women to him, really, and most importantly, his mother whose love he so badly wanted but never received. I think looking at it from that angle makes the Christine section, and Erik's behavior in it, easier to swallow.
The end still chokes me up, so I'm glad to have reread it, and am sure I'll read it again. This is a perfect example of the sort of fiction that blows my mind with how deeply it makes me feel for a character who sprang from imagination. It'd be easy to see this as indulgent fan-fiction, had Kay not put such extensive work into filling in the gaps with imagination and details that stay with you long afterwards. But this is easily one of the saddest stories I've ever read.
I was surprised to find the prose in the "Madeleine" section weak, but then as the POV moved on to Erik, Nadir, and so forth, it picked up, so my guess is it's simply that Madeleine's voice is rather more simple and childish than the others. Which makes sense, given her character's selfishness. I found the writing overall not as spectacular as I remembered from my previous readings, but I think this is because Erik as a character has always been so fascinating and tragic to me, and Kay has done a wonderful job of giving him a concrete past and reasons behind everything he did in his later years. Her research is excellent without being overwhelming with the historical details as I find historical fiction is often guilty of (getting bogged down in details where half a page is spent describing the stitching on a piece of fabric, for example).
As other reviewers have said, the book is unputdownable though Christine's section raises eyebrows. Obviously that's the part of the story most know, or know something of, and Kay has put her own intriguing spin on it... and I agree with previous reviewers who've said that Christine is a whinging, spineless wishy-washy character who seems hugely unworthy of Erik's intense love. I kept this in mind while rereading, but it occurred to me that Erik knew this as well... not that she's unworthy, but that she *is* an inane little girl lacking backbone and confidence. But -- she looks just like his mother. That's the key... he probably isn't seeing her as the most magnificent woman ever to be born, but she represents *all* women to him, really, and most importantly, his mother whose love he so badly wanted but never received. I think looking at it from that angle makes the Christine section, and Erik's behavior in it, easier to swallow.
The end still chokes me up, so I'm glad to have reread it, and am sure I'll read it again. This is a perfect example of the sort of fiction that blows my mind with how deeply it makes me feel for a character who sprang from imagination. It'd be easy to see this as indulgent fan-fiction, had Kay not put such extensive work into filling in the gaps with imagination and details that stay with you long afterwards. But this is easily one of the saddest stories I've ever read.
kote_'s review
4.0
I certainly enjoyed the in depth backstory of Erik, and while it was very interesting, intriguing, and exciting to read, I agree with others who have written reviews that once it becomes one with the book and musical, it looses those factors. This is about 75% into the book where this happens which makes it fall from the high five stars.
(Spoiler alert if you haven’t read the book or seen the musical?)
Switching between characters frequently made it confusing, but also the combination of viewpoints of characters (silent film, Leroux’s book, the musical) all meshed together and it was hard to really wonder if they represented truly each character (specifically for me, Christine). Seeing as I’ve had the multiple viewpoints, it just felt like a muddled mess to me, and I suppose I’m still trying to figure out how I feel about the last portion of the book.
Up until that point, it was a very fascinating read as someone who really enjoyed Leroux and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical. It’s a fabulous read if you’re in the same boat- maybe others don’t feel the same way about the ending or last 25% of the book as I do, but at least read the beginning and middle of it for a good adventure into the mind and soul of the Phantom of the Opera.
(Spoiler alert if you haven’t read the book or seen the musical?)
Switching between characters frequently made it confusing, but also the combination of viewpoints of characters (silent film, Leroux’s book, the musical) all meshed together and it was hard to really wonder if they represented truly each character (specifically for me, Christine). Seeing as I’ve had the multiple viewpoints, it just felt like a muddled mess to me, and I suppose I’m still trying to figure out how I feel about the last portion of the book.
Up until that point, it was a very fascinating read as someone who really enjoyed Leroux and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical. It’s a fabulous read if you’re in the same boat- maybe others don’t feel the same way about the ending or last 25% of the book as I do, but at least read the beginning and middle of it for a good adventure into the mind and soul of the Phantom of the Opera.
viktoriya's review
3.0
The book is told from multiple perspectives: Erik's mom, Erik himself, Giovanni (a mason in Rome), Nadir (Erik's Persian friend), and even Raoul. I thought that Susan Kay did a fantastic job at giving each one of them a very unique voice. There was never any confusion as to who the narrator is.
I absolutely loved the story. "Phantom of the Opera" told us only about 6 months of Erik's life (and he was over 50 by then). Susan Kay decided to imagine how Erik became the Ghost, what his childhood must have been like, how he ended up in Paris Opera house. It was very interesting to read. However, part of me wishes she'd stopped right where "Phantom" started. At the same time, I did get a little more of the relationship between Christina, Raoul, and Erik.
I absolutely loved the story. "Phantom of the Opera" told us only about 6 months of Erik's life (and he was over 50 by then). Susan Kay decided to imagine how Erik became the Ghost, what his childhood must have been like, how he ended up in Paris Opera house. It was very interesting to read. However, part of me wishes she'd stopped right where "Phantom" started. At the same time, I did get a little more of the relationship between Christina, Raoul, and Erik.
jo_withabook's review
dark
emotional
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
While the beginning is brilliant, Erik’s life being perfectly described through multiple POVs, the ending is so far fetched and untrue to the actual story that I couldn’t bear to read it anymore.
klarikhal's review
5.0
Totally loved it. I first saw the musical The Phantom of the opera about a year ago and I loved it since. First, I watched the movie over and over again, then I read the book by Leroux, but I wanted more. My friend recommended me two books- The Phantom of Manhattan and Phantom.
Since the moment I started to read this book, I was unable to tell, how this is going to end, I must admit, that it was better before Christine and Raoul came in, but even after that, it was really interesting to know, how was Phantom thinking, what was his past, before he came to Opera Garnier and if he hated all people.
So, said in a word- Wow!
Since the moment I started to read this book, I was unable to tell, how this is going to end, I must admit, that it was better before Christine and Raoul came in, but even after that, it was really interesting to know, how was Phantom thinking, what was his past, before he came to Opera Garnier and if he hated all people.
So, said in a word- Wow!