Phantom
by Susan Kay
Our Price: $83.56
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Susan KayEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1993-01-01
ISBN: 0440211697
Number of pages: 544
Publisher: Island Books
Book Reviews of Phantom
Book Review: Are you a phan? If not, don't bother.
Summary: 2 Stars
A friend told me to read Phantom by Susan Kay, and luckily I picked it up second hand for 25 cents. After reading it, I'd say your enjoyment of the book will depend very heavily on whether you are a phan or a fan. If you are a fan of the story of Phantom of the Opera, don't bother. It will be a disappointment. If you are a fan of the Phantom (aka: a phan), I'm sure you'll love it. (If you obsess over how terrible, possessive, and selfish Raoul is, how perfect the Phantom is, and all of the reasons Christine should have chosen the Phantom, or was really in love with the Phantom all along . . then you fall into the latter category and this is the story for you.) And since 9 people out of 10 I talk to are phans (though that's probably a dismally low estimate), I suppose that explains the rave reviews this book gets from its readers.
My take would be this: if Kay had stopped where The Phantom of the Opera book and musical started, she would have had a pretty decent book on her hands. I was bothered at times by the romanticization of the Phantom, but very mildly. She did give him an interesting and detailed history, and I admire all of the research she did to write the book. I give her full points for the first part of the book. In fact, if you stop reading the book before Christine come in, I'd imagine it's pretty enjoyable. However, I kept reading.
Once Christine and Raoul entered the story, I moved from wariness, to shock, to disbelief, to tears. It was cringe worthy. This Christine's relationship with the Phantom wasn't the same as the other Christine's I've read/seen, I soon realized. Her relationship with Raoul was also vastly different. Suddenly, Christine only runs to Raoul when she's angry at the Phantom because she's jealous of his cat, or because the Phantom has scared her and therefore . . well, she's angry with him. Raoul becomes little more than a tool for a tempermental little girl to punish her would-be lover. Raoul isn't much better. When he can't have his way, he stalks off to sulk until his next encounter with her, something other Raoul's have loyally avoided. Also, Christine has suddenly lost much of her fear of the Phantom. In Kay's book, instead of Christine running to Raoul for protection, Raoul has become a prodding figure who tries to cut her ties with the Phantom -- and all the while it's not what Christine REALLY wants, but she goes along with Raoul all the same because she's confused.
It occurred to me that this was the sort of story I would expect to read in a fan fiction, where the story didn't turn out the way the author wanted it to, so they twist and distort the situations and the characters to fit their own means.
Plus, the Phantom seems to suddenly become the enlightened figure in the book. In the play and the original book, the Phantom has the shadow of his disfigurement hanging over him and it distorts his soul. It's Christine who shows him love and pity, and helps him find the good in himself. In Phantom, it's the Phantom who seems to enlighten Christine. She started to be a deeper thinker as he educates her. She is ashamed of herself for not having the courage to touch him because she thinks that he has loved her as no man has loved a woman before. And yet, I'm not convinced. Because he lies to her? Kills for her? Yells at her? Wants to possess her even if it is not what is best for her or not what she wants? Is only content to let her go (and yet still doesn't) when he realizes that he's the one she wants?
Don't get me wrong. I adore the Phantom. I think he's a phenomenal character. But this, to me, is not a great love story. It is the story that ignores the flaws of the Phantom, and therefore makes his redemption . . . well, meaningless. In the other stories, when Christine shows him love, she helps him let go of the obsession that made him want to possess her at any cost. Instead, he becomes a noble figure as he realizes that she loves Raoul and lets them both go, even though to do so pains him. It's a bittersweet ending, no doubt, but . . . it has an integrity. In Phantom, I felt like that was lost. After all, he loses his moment where he shows his love for her. That moment, when he lets her leave with Raoul, is where he shows his love by selflessly letting her go. In Phantom, we never get that moment. Instead, the only side we see of the Phantom and his love for Christine is the, "I want her because I love her and I'll do whatever I have to do to make her stay with me to make me happy," side of him. In the end of Phantom, I wanted to cry because I felt that all three of the characters, Christine, Erik, and Raoul, were cheated in order to make a "happy ending." But the happy ending, when it is the wrong ending, is not the best ending.
Summary of Phantom
A child is born... His mother's only gift is a mask. Precocious and gifted, he will live friendless and alone. taunted and abused, he will flee, only to find himself caged again-as a freak in a Gypsy carnival. A brilliant outcast... the world is his home. Filled with bitter rage, he will kill to escape, becoming a stonemason's apprentice in Rome... a dark magician at the treacherous Persian court... and finally, the genius behind the construction of the Paris Opera House and the labyrinthine world below. Lacking one thing only: A woman's love. Cloaked in secrets, his power complete, he will see the exquisite Christine and for the first time know what it means to love. Obsessed, he will bring her into his eerie subterranean world, driven to posses her heart and soul. Phantom--A haunting story of power and darkness, of magic and murder, of sensuality and betrayal, and ultimately, the unforgettable story of a man and a woman and the eternal quality of love.Literature & Fiction Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Literature & Fiction Books
Little Womenby Louisa May Alcott
Scribner; Published: 1986-06-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.49
Price in other shops:
The Killing Groundby JACK HIGGINS
HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS LTD; Published: 2007; Hardcover; Book
Saving Fish from Drowningby Amy Tan
4th Estate; Published: 2005; Paperback; Book
Life Expectancyby Dean Koontz
Harpercollins Pb; Published: 2005-08-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.00
Constant Princessby Philippa Gregory
Touchstone/Simon & Schuster; Published: 2005; Hardcover; Book
Wolf of the Plains (Conqueror, Book 1)by Conn Iggulden
Harper; Published: 2007; Paperback; Book
Saharaby Clive Cussler
Harper Collins Pb; Published: 2005-03-21; Paperback; Book
Perelandra (Cosmic Trilogy)by C. S. Lewis
Voyager; Published: 2005-11; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.80
Price in other shops:
The Lord Of The Rings: Part 2 The Two Towersby J. R. R. Tolkien
Harper Collins Publishers; Published: 2001; Paperback; Book
Red Marsby Kim Stanley Robinson
Trafalgar Square; Published: 2001-06; Paperback; Book
Similar Books and other products
The Phantom of the Opera: The Original Novelby Gaston Leroux
Harper Perennial; Published: 1987-12-30; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.23
Price in other shops:
Chanson de l'Ange, Book 1: The Bleeding Rose- An Epic Retelling of Phantom of the Operaby Paisley Swan Stewart
Xlibris, Corp.; Published: 2010-06-24; Paperback; Book
Best price: $19.31
Price in other shops:
Phantom of the Opera - Tv Mini Series (Import, All Regions)Published: 1990; DVD
Best price: $16.95
Andrew Lloyd Webber's Love Never DiesRelease date: 2012-05-29; DVD
Best price: $14.99
Price in other shops:
Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall: In Celebration of 25 YearsRelease date: 2012-02-07; Music CD
Best price: $11.48
Price in other shops:
Letters to Erik: The Ghost's Love Storyby An Wallace
Outskirts Press; Published: 2008-01-23; Paperback; Book
Best price: $19.94
Price in other shops:
Legacy: The Acclaimed Novel of Elizabeth, England's Most Passionate Queen -- and the Three Men Who Loved Herby Susan Kay
Sourcebooks Landmark; Published: 2010-07-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.35
Price in other shops:
The Phantom of the Operaby Gaston Leroux
SoHo Books; Published: 2011-09-09; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.35
Price in other shops:
Unmasqued: An Erotic Novel of The Phantom of The Operaby Colette Gale
NAL Trade; Published: 2007-08-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.95
Price in other shops:
![The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall [Blu-ray] Image](/images/The-Phantom-of-the-Opera-at-the-Royal-Albert-Hall-Blu-ray-B005SFS4ZU-X.jpg)
The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall [Blu-ray]NBC Universal; Release date: 2012-02-07; Blu-ray
Best price: $20.29
Price in other shops: