which is the original phantom of the opera book

tore his terrible dead flesh with my nails') and his 'death's' head appearance at the party. The plot is mostly a slow, satiny procession toward the inevitable blowup, but Leroux does tinge it with scenes of romantic drama, a feeling of dread, one shocking action scene, and even some quirky humour at times.Īnd Leroux's writing is simply astounding as he describes the corpselike appearance of Erik ('. But Leroux's talent shines through - he drapes the book in a haunted atmosphere, full of snowy graveyards, dark opera backstages and underground labyrinths, all with Erik's presence hovering over it. And, of course, a frighteningly sympathetic 'villain.'Īdmittedly the style is very 'penny dreadful': melodramatic and overloaded on prose. The young lovers plan to run away together, but the 'Angel of Music' isn't about to allow his beloved Christine to leave him.Īpparently there actually were some odd events - including rumours of an opera ghost - happening when Gaston Leroux began writing 'The Phantom of the Opera.' And it's a credit to his imgination that he was able to spin a some odd facts into a harrowing, heartbreaking love triangle that's based on music, obsession, adoration, and a bit of pity. She credits her new vocal abilities to the Angel of Music, but of course, that self-same Angel is the opera ghost.Īs the Phantom becomes even more attached to Christine, Raoul soon finds that the ghost is actually a half-mad, horribly deformed musical genius named Erik - and that after Christine saw his true face, he made her become engaged to him. And when her childhood friend Viscount Raoul de Chagny pays her a visit, he hears a passionate exchange between her and a man - but there's no man there. Meanwhile, budding diva Christine Daae is taking Paris by storm, although nobody quite knows who taught her how to sing. Despite the sightings and fears of ballerinas and stagehands, the new managers are determined to stamp out this ridiculous story - despite threatening letters and increasing accidents that happen around them. The Paris opera house is said to be haunted by a ghost with a 'death's head,' who demands a small salary and a reserved box.

But its crown jewel is Erik: a magnificently tortured anti-hero who inspires more horror, pity and sympathy than the rather flat hero and heroine.

'The Phantom of the Opera' is so well known that its story needs no explanation.īut Gaston Leroux's novel is still a spellbinding experience, full of atmospheric horror, a sense of gothic mystery, and lushly evocative language. The mask, the music, the dark mysteries, and the tortured, deformed genius who just wants love.

Which is the original phantom of the opera book