Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux

78 reviews

taelights's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

While I do prefer the stage version and the movie a lot more, I did really enjoy getting to read the original book which inspired Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical. I definitely have to give a lot of respect to this book for being the inspiration for my favorite musical ever.

The Phantom was truly creepy in this version and not sexy at all. While I do enjoy the more sexy twisted version in the book version was very interesting to learn about.

All the characters do pale a bit in comparison to the musical. But it was also interesting to get some extra context on inspirations for the musical. 

The writing, especially the dialogue was a bit bad at times but I'm not sure if that's just how it is or how the translation is seeing as the original novel was in French. Or perhaps a bit of both. 

I wouldn't recommend this book unless you are a fan of the musical or movie because honestly if I had read this without being a big fan of the musical I'd probably have dnf it but I only enjoyed it a bit due to the musical. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

stjernetjern's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death and Kidnapping

stardustdreamer's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Kidnapping

Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, and Murder

Minor: Toxic relationship and Suicide attempt

annoyedhumanoid's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Toxic relationship, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Gun violence, Suicide, Violence, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Murder

Minor: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Classism

louthereader's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense 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

4.0

Well, it wasn't quite what I expected but it was certainly an interesting read. Although it was published in 1909 the writing style was on the whole easy to read. I felt like I didn't like the Phantom, Christine or Raoul though...which surprised me. Their character development wasn't very fleshed out and the main focus was on the negative aspects of themselves. But I've given it 4/5 stars. As a side note, I'm really confused how the whole romantic version of the musical came about, because I didn't feel comfortable with how the Phantom treated Christine and other people. So I think it's best reading this book if you haven't seen the film or musical to be honest.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse

Moderate: Kidnapping

lachicaderojo's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

🌟 4'25/5 🌟

Qué puedo decir que no se haya dicho ya. Simplemente que ME HA ENCANTADO. Si bien es cierto que al principio me costó un poco sumergirme en la lectura por la forma en la que estaba escrito, enseguida logras meterte de lleno en la narración y en la historia. La crítica social que hay dentro de este libro es maravillosa, de hecho, una de las reflexiones principales con las que me he quedado bien podía verse reflejado en nuestra sociedad actual, porque sigue (y seguirá) pasando.

El Fantasma de la Ópera es el carisma que me gustaría ver en cada libro, en cada personaje. Siendo el protagonista indiscutible cuando ni siquiera está narrado ningún capítulo por él. El arco de crecimiento del personaje es increíble. ¡Qué evolución! 

Christine Daaé es un personaje fuerte, madura y valiente, a pesar de su corta edad. Me ha sorprendido gratamente, ya que pensaba que su actuación iba a ser de otra manera.

SUPER RECOMENDADO. Disfrutad de lo que ofrece, aunque no sea "narrativamente perfecto" porque no le hace falta.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Kidnapping and Murder

isabella_boytsan's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt and Murder

Moderate: Death and Torture

Minor: Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, and Stalking

nyssa_jo's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

this book is crazy, but most of it is told in exposition, making it quite boring.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Confinement, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Death, Torture, and Murder

Minor: Death of parent

silversparkles50's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and Murder

Moderate: Torture and Violence

Minor: Suicide attempt

chrisljm's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

i went through three versions of this and my favorite was the oxford world’s classics edition translated by david coward

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Torture, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Death, Suicide attempt, and Murder