Posted in Book Review

The Phantom of the Opera: The Graphic Novel by Tomi Varga

RATING: ๐ŸŒ•๐ŸŒ•๐ŸŒ•๐ŸŒ•๐ŸŒ‘

Published: October 20, 2020

Publisher: A Wave Blue World

Format: e-ARC

Pages: 128


Synopsis:

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, the iconic gothic romance, is retold with all the spectacle its legend demands in this devoted graphic novel adaptation that marries stunning artwork with Gaston Lerouxโ€™s haunting prose.

Everyone has heard the whispered tales of the phantom who lives beneath the opera house, the mysterious trickster behind all the little mishaps and lost things. But no one has ever seen the monster . . . until now. When the promise of blossoming love lures him out from his intricately constructed hideaways in the labyrinthine buildingโ€™s walls and cellars, a hideously disfigured artist trains the lovely Christine to be the operaโ€™s next star for a steep price. Does she choose her newfound success or her beloved Count Raoul? This doomed love triangle threatens to combust when a tragic death, a series of betrayals, and increasingly dangerous accidents cast the players of The Palais Garnier into a heart-wrenching horror story that will echo through the ages.

Continue reading “The Phantom of the Opera: The Graphic Novel by Tomi Varga”
Posted in Book Review

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux

480204

RATING: ๐ŸŒ•๐ŸŒ•๐ŸŒ•๐ŸŒ•๐ŸŒ•

Published: September 23, 1909

Publisher: Harper Perennial

Format: audiobook & e-Book

Pages: 360

 

 


“He had a heart that could have held the empire of the world; and, in the end, he had to content himself with a cellar.”

SYNOPSIS:

First published in French as a serial in 1909, The Phantom of the Opera is a riveting story that revolves around the young, Swedish Christine Daaรฉ. Her father, a famous musician, dies, and she is raised in the Paris Opera House with his dying promise of a protective angel of music to guide her. After a time at the opera house, she begins hearing a voice, who eventually teaches her how to sing beautifully. All goes well until Christine’s childhood friend Raoul comes to visit his parents, who are patrons of the opera, and he sees Christine when she begins successfully singing on the stage. The voice, who is the deformed, murderous ‘ghost’ of the opera house named Erik, however, grows violent in his terrible jealousy, until Christine suddenly disappears. The phantom is in love, but it can only spell disaster.

Leroux’s work, with characters ranging from the spoiled prima donna Carlotta to the mysterious Persian from Erik’s past, has been immortalized by memorable adaptations. Despite this, it remains a remarkable piece of Gothic horror literature in and of itself, deeper and darker than any version that follows.

 

 

Continue reading “The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux”