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3.15 AVERAGE
3.15 AVERAGE
POTO-like story set in the 1960s-1980s. Which makes the 32 year old man sneaking off to have sex with the 16/17 year old really really creepy. And then they get married when she's 18 and then...nothing happens for the rest of the book. What??
I first read this book back in 1990, back when I first got into the story of the Phantom of the Opera. It's a modern retelling of the story that features Erik D'Anton a brilliant architect and musician who was disfigured in a horrible car accident at the age of 7 and Marisa, the young woman who falls in love with him. Both have to fight their own demons throughout the book in order to make everything work out between them. It's a well-written book with some interesting twists and turns. I definitely recommend it!
I've had this book for over 10 years. I read it once a year. I love it for the nostalgia of it, but it does have some troublesome topics and the vernacular used makes it a little creepy. This book speaks to a very dark deep part of me that revels in taboo topics. It's not the best, and it doesn't age well because of the topics at hand, but it's a book I read because I love the characters and the overall story.
I don't remember what made me think of this book again, but I used to love it in middle school. Looking back on it as an adult, I realize that (a.) it's awful, (b.) it's creepy, and (c.) it encourages some terrible, terrible behavior vis-a-vis romantic relationships. Between this, V.C. Andrews, and Robert Heinlein, it's no wonder I had some seriously suspect ideas about relationship norms. Let's just that say I didn't see any freaking rainbows when I lost my virginity, but maybe it's because I wasn't with a man twice my age.
What a disappointment! The book I had been looking forward to since last summer turned out to be a horrible joke of a novel. At first, I was astounded as to why it was so hard to find a copy of this book. I now know why, it is awful.
Night Magic reads like a poorly constructed fanfiction of The Phantom of the Opera. I do enjoy a good piece of fanfiction now and again, however, I do not believe that fanfiction should be on the same wavelength as a published novel. Night Magic was also supposed to include elements of Beauty and the Beast. After finishing the book, the only thing that remotely resembles Beauty and the Beast in this novel is Erik’s deformity.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t stand the main characters. Erik is a whiny insecure man, who is so overcome with loathing for his own face that he refuses to believe that anyone loves him or cares about him. Meanwhile, Marisa is a selfish womanchild who refuses to grow up. Most of the book is dedicated to her tantrums. If there is one thing that I dislike when reading a novel it is unlikeable characters. Throughout the book, Erik and Marisa neither evolve nor come to some sort of understanding about themselves or the world. Really, it was a waste of time. Night Magic sucks all the magic out of the story which it is loosely based on.
Erik and Marisa’s relationship throughout the book was, in a word, creepy. Marisa, at the start of the novel is sixteen years old. Meanwhile, Erik is thirty-two. Their relationship quickly progresses from friendship to a romantic relationship. The age difference was just too strange to be taken seriously. I ended up skimming over most of the romantic scenes between Erik and Marisa which are in abundance at the beginning of the book.
After Marisa and Erik begin to develop their relationship, it feels as if the author ran out of steam. It was as if she were bored with the characters she developed. She then turns to the secondary characters in the novel and explores their romantic tension. The subsequent time lapses also made the book feel very rushed and haphazardly sewn together. Even the conclusion felt as if it lacked lustre. I couldn’t wait for this book to end.
I wish I could be more positive about this book, but I was thoroughly disappointed with it. My only positive criticism about this novel is Charlotte Vale Allen’s writing. She is a decent writer in spite of her subject matter. Perhaps I would have abandoned this book completely if it weren’t for her writing skills.
Night Magic reads like a poorly constructed fanfiction of The Phantom of the Opera. I do enjoy a good piece of fanfiction now and again, however, I do not believe that fanfiction should be on the same wavelength as a published novel. Night Magic was also supposed to include elements of Beauty and the Beast. After finishing the book, the only thing that remotely resembles Beauty and the Beast in this novel is Erik’s deformity.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t stand the main characters. Erik is a whiny insecure man, who is so overcome with loathing for his own face that he refuses to believe that anyone loves him or cares about him. Meanwhile, Marisa is a selfish womanchild who refuses to grow up. Most of the book is dedicated to her tantrums. If there is one thing that I dislike when reading a novel it is unlikeable characters. Throughout the book, Erik and Marisa neither evolve nor come to some sort of understanding about themselves or the world. Really, it was a waste of time. Night Magic sucks all the magic out of the story which it is loosely based on.
Erik and Marisa’s relationship throughout the book was, in a word, creepy. Marisa, at the start of the novel is sixteen years old. Meanwhile, Erik is thirty-two. Their relationship quickly progresses from friendship to a romantic relationship. The age difference was just too strange to be taken seriously. I ended up skimming over most of the romantic scenes between Erik and Marisa which are in abundance at the beginning of the book.
After Marisa and Erik begin to develop their relationship, it feels as if the author ran out of steam. It was as if she were bored with the characters she developed. She then turns to the secondary characters in the novel and explores their romantic tension. The subsequent time lapses also made the book feel very rushed and haphazardly sewn together. Even the conclusion felt as if it lacked lustre. I couldn’t wait for this book to end.
I wish I could be more positive about this book, but I was thoroughly disappointed with it. My only positive criticism about this novel is Charlotte Vale Allen’s writing. She is a decent writer in spite of her subject matter. Perhaps I would have abandoned this book completely if it weren’t for her writing skills.
I stumbled upon this in teh plugs on my GoodReads page, and remembered I'd read this book years ago. It's a phantom of the Opera tribute, and while the story isn't life-changing here, I still remember it with affection.