Phantom
by Susan Kay
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Book Summary Information
Author: Susan KayEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2011-04-25
ISBN: 1933626003
Number of pages: 464
Publisher: Llumina Stars
Book Reviews of Phantom
Book Review: Simply the BEST
Summary: 5 Stars
Phantom is a magnificent book which gives a wonderful new depth and bredth to the POTO story and completely outshines the rather shallow and clunky original book by Leroux. The original Erik is a pathetic "monster" who grovels, wails and kills when he can't get his own way, only to be redeemed at the end of the book by a change of heart which is totally out of character and unconvincing. Kay gives us a real man instead of a "monster", a man whose whole life is shaped by his hideous disfigurement, a man struggling internally between good and bad whose ultimate redemption at the end of the story is both convincing and deserved.
Enough has been said by hundreds of other reviewers about the compelling nature of Kay's back-story for Erik's life for me to add to it at any great length other than to say it is truly riveting stuff. But for me the story reaches its greatest heights when the book merges with the original storyline. Kay's exploration of the ambiguous relationship between Christine and Erik is absolutely stunning. For one thing we have a Christine who actually makes some sense as a realistic character. We understand exactly how the fragility of her own personality led her to fall under the Phantom's influence and how the deeply damaged Erik is devastated by his desire for her vulnerable beauty. This vulnerabilty is the key to their relationship and Christine is weak for one very good reason. It is absurd to imagine a woman with any real spunk believing in the Angel of Music in the first place, let alone allowing herself to be sucked into to such a dangerous mess. The problem with Leroux's Christine is that she is simply not a very convincing character;her behaviour is dictated by the plot at every turn and therefore riddled with howling absurdities.
Kay does not make the same mistake with Christine. Christine's behaviour is motivated by her personality rather than the demands of the plot and she does not deliberately lead Raoul a merry dance in order to preserve the mystery of the story. The minute she has the opportunity she comes clean to Raoul and tells him exactly what is going on. It's then up to Raoul to decide whether to hang around. Kay's Christine may be weak but she is certainly more honest and her attemps to keep Raoul out of danger are far more convincing. Like all truly rounded characters, she has the capacity to grow and be shaped by her experiences. At the start of her relationship with Erik she is in a state of arrested emotional development, the archetypal little girl lost and we watch her slowly and painfully start to grow up as the relationship hits crisis point and she must fight not only to save Raoul's life, but to come to terms with what Erik needs from her.
The Counterpoint section where Christine's thoughts are alternatively related back to back with Erik's makes for totally compelling reading. This section,with its wonderful emotional insight and continuously mounting tension, pulls us inexorably to the final confrontation. Christine returns to Erik time after time not because the plot requires it, but because the relationship itself demands it. Attracted by his powerful personality and yet repulsed by his horrible face, she is sucked ever deeper into a dangerous liason while desperately yearning for the sweet normality of a Raoul who is himself a young man to be reckoned with in this book, rather than the weak, whiny individual he is in Leroux.
Whether I like Christine is not half so important as whether I find her believable as a flesh and blood person and in Phantom she is so darned real you can almost hear her breathing.
Summary of Phantom
"Phantom of the Opera fans no longer need to ponder what was in Erik's past, as Kay has created one for him in this deeply moving, poignant story. . . This sad, but beautiful, novel will be especially popular with [those] who have enjoyed the current musical . . . " ? School Library Journal ?A MUST READ! Haunting and riveting.?? Rave Reviews ?Do we really need another spin-off of Gaston Leroux?s horror tale, The Phantom of the Opera? IF IT?S AS GOOD AS SUSAN KAY?S PHANTOM, YOU BET WE DO! ? The Times Picayune ?A VICTORY! STAYS WITH YOU AFTER THE LAST PAGE IS TURNED . . .? ? Palm Beach Post Phantom From birth, Erik is disfigured, at once blessed and cursed. Inborn genius lifts him to the heights of the mind, but a horrible deformity denies him both his mother?s love and any chance at recognition. He escapes imprisonment to live a life on the run; he kills to be free. Finally, at the Paris Opera House, he encounters beautiful, talented Christine and defies the world and himself in a desperate attempt to love and be loved.Literary Books
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