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smithreads's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, and Suicide attempt
sarasreading's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
3.5
This was an enjoyable reread! I haven't read it since I was in high school, and I thoroughly enjoyed it then as well. I remember it was the first book that gave me a jump, but I couldn't tell you what that point was this time around.
There was some meandering about, and a few chapters at the end that were too bloated in my opinion. But it was an easy and engaging classic for the spooky season!
p.s. there was a part where one of the managers was backing into his office, extremely butt first, and all I picture was him twerking his way back lol
There was some meandering about, and a few chapters at the end that were too bloated in my opinion. But it was an easy and engaging classic for the spooky season!
p.s. there was a part where one of the managers was backing into his office, extremely butt first, and all I picture was him twerking his way back lol
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping, Stalking, and Murder
fernaissante's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Watched the 2004 movie and the 25th anniversary version before reading the book. Needless to say, this book really intrigued me with its antique and mysterious vibes that were always there during Leroux's narratives.
Positive things:
Positive things:
- Christine was less shy and immature than the stage/movie version, which I liked by the way;
- Raoul was less irritating to read about, but more possessive in the book;
- More focused on actions than the romance (my preference);
Negative things:
- Erik was seen more as a monster than a man who has many traumas from the past by Christine (even though her main charm was being a compassionate person);
- It's very slow paced, so you've got to take your time to read this book;
- The order of events
(masquerade -> chandelier crashing -> disappearing) is also different, but i enjoyed the musical order even more (it makes more sense to me, i don't know)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, and Murder
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.
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.
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
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
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.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Confinement, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Death, Torture, and Murder
Minor: Death of parent
rachelwierick's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Torture, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Murder
pauli_alarcon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Stalking
meowchemicalromance's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Sexual harassment
wolfiegrrrl's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I had heard that the original Phantom of the Opera novel is far more horror-based and intense than the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical I am familiar with, so I was curious to see for myself just how different the two stories are from each other.
Mostly, I wanted to see what Erik's deal was because he has so much more going on than what the adaptations of the character that I'm familiar with touch on. Now that I have listened to the entire book and its epilogue, I'd say that the best way to describe Leroux's Phantom is "the character whose OP backstory was created after the main story was written in order to explain how the mystery worked and prove that it was just a man the entire time!" but it honestly leaves me with more questions than answers. I also really wasn't fond of the sentiment about birth deformities being a sign of inherent inner evil to be pitied by the "beautiful" people of the world, so I don't really know what to make of that regarding Erik's character development at the end.
That being said, the novel was rather boring in how it mostly consisted of uneventful exposition dumps until the story picks up about halfway through when the Phantom and the Persian take more prominent roles. Their part of the story is still mostly large exposition dumps, but at least those dumps were entertaining in how absolutely buck wild they are. My main complaint is that having to follow a whiny, self-entitled Raoul around through the eyes of the narrator was so draining because he is a prime example of the Nice Guy trope and I can't really say I was rooting for him like we're so clearly supposed to.
It was fun to spot all of the story/character notes that the musical plucked out when reworking the plot into more of a dark romance. Having experienced Leroux's original work, I now have a greater appreciation for adaptations that play around with the fun and interesting concepts that are laid out in the novel.
Mostly, I wanted to see what Erik's deal was because he has so much more going on than what the adaptations of the character that I'm familiar with touch on. Now that I have listened to the entire book and its epilogue, I'd say that the best way to describe Leroux's Phantom is "the character whose OP backstory was created after the main story was written in order to explain how the mystery worked and prove that it was just a man the entire time!" but it honestly leaves me with more questions than answers. I also really wasn't fond of the sentiment about birth deformities being a sign of inherent inner evil to be pitied by the "beautiful" people of the world, so I don't really know what to make of that regarding Erik's character development at the end.
That being said, the novel was rather boring in how it mostly consisted of uneventful exposition dumps until the story picks up about halfway through when the Phantom and the Persian take more prominent roles. Their part of the story is still mostly large exposition dumps, but at least those dumps were entertaining in how absolutely buck wild they are. My main complaint is that having to follow a whiny, self-entitled Raoul around through the eyes of the narrator was so draining because he is a prime example of the Nice Guy trope and I can't really say I was rooting for him like we're so clearly supposed to.
It was fun to spot all of the story/character notes that the musical plucked out when reworking the plot into more of a dark romance. Having experienced Leroux's original work, I now have a greater appreciation for adaptations that play around with the fun and interesting concepts that are laid out in the novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Stalking, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Moderate: Confinement, Death, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Racial slurs, Suicide, and Death of parent