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The Phantom of the Opera

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
By: (1868-1927)

A masterly mix of romance, drama, mystery, suspense, love and jealousy, The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux will haunt you long after you've turned the last page.

Today the world knows it by Andrew Lloyd-Webber's long running musical on stage and its 2004 film adaptation, and earlier from Lon Chaney's screen portrayal of the dark intruder who roams the Paris Opera House. However, Gaston Leroux's novel was first released as a serial in the French magazine, La Gaulois over four months in 1909-10.

Gaston Leroux, himself led an extremely colorful life. Born into an immensely wealthy family, he had to abandon his early dreams of becoming a writer and began studying law. As a student, he inherited millions of francs on the death of his father and embarked on a debauched life which culminated in bankruptcy. Leroux then went to work as a journalist. He covered crime and theater and traveled extensively. He was almost forty when he took up writing as a full time profession. Detective fiction, plays, novels and tales of mystery were his forte.

The Phantom of the Opera was translated from the original French by Alexander de Mattos. A tale of fatal obsession, it owes its inspiration to classic fairytales like The Beauty and The Beast, where physical ugliness leads a person to seek anonymity. Erik is a young man, tormented by his physical deformity. He runs away from home as a child and hides his hideous visage in the vast cellars of the Paris Opera House. As he grows, so does his knowledge of music. He falls in love with a young singer, Christine Daae, whom he lures into his lair with his angelic singing. This fatal attraction takes a tragic turn as Christine and her fiancé Raoul are caught in a web of horror and deceit.

As a classic Gothic novel, The Phantom of the Opera is matchless in the atmosphere of mystery and evil that it evokes. However, it is also a story of human tragedy and the cruelty we practice on those who look different. The novel is structured in a very interesting way—it's in the form of bits of information available from journal entries, police reports, interviews alternating with first person accounts.

A great read for music lovers, mystery fans and Gothic romance enthusiasts!


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Reviews (Rated: 5 Stars - 12 reviews)

Reviewer: - February 19, 2019
Subject: An absolute hit
A well loved book well worth taking the time to explore a great story interesting and quaint
Reviewer: - November 17, 2017
Subject: Thank you so much.
Thank you so much for this amazing narration,i am working on the phantom of the opera as one of my college projects,as i am not a native speaker you really saved me with your pronunciation.great thanks
Reviewer: - August 19, 2017
I'm sorry, but this is one of the most stupid books I have ever listened part-way thru! I almost quit after chapter 3 and thought I would trudge on a little longer and see if it improved. Well, on chapter 11 I decided I couldn't stand anymore. The hero, Raoul, is an insipid, emotional little twerp that just needs to grow up and forget about "love". The reader is very persevering but a bit boring. Sorry, I disagree with all the other reviews.
Reviewer: - August 11, 2017
Subject: The Phantom of the Opera
A wonderful book.
Reviewer: - April 1, 2017
Subject: The Phantom of the Opera
Excelente classic story
Reviewer: - March 27, 2017
Subject: The phantom of the opera
Romance, drama, suspense. I love it
Reviewer: - July 3, 2015
Subject: Many thanks
As a spanish student trying to master the english language, i find these readings to be a blessing both because of the usually excellent quality of the oral narration and the fact that, when translated from a foreign language, the resulting english is not so 'english' -so difficult i mean- as the 'home english', beeing in this way a precious bridge to higher levels. Thanks a lot to Loyal Books, to LibriVox and, particularly, to Ralpf Snelson, a great, great reader.
Reviewer: - June 10, 2015
Such an awesome reading...sad and wonderful story.
Reviewer: - November 7, 2013
Great reading of a wonderful book. Mystery, suspense, and horror leave you wanting to unmask OG (Opera Ghost). In fact, I think I'll start leaving notes around the house for my wife signed in a red "OG". Maybe I'll leave my boss a note that I deserve a raise. Then again, I don't think either have read the book and both would give me a kick out of the door.
Reviewer: - May 24, 2013
Very good Narration.
Reviewer: - May 16, 2013
Great !! If you like the musical then you will love the actual book it was based on.
Reviewer: - March 31, 2013
Subject: Review
EXCELLENT!!!!! Great narration. He kept me glued to this book with his incredible voice. Thank you sir. :0)


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