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Pages and dust cover are intact and do not contain any highlighting. May contain small amount of writing in first cover pages. The spine and cover are undamaged. Pages and dust cover are intact and do not contain any highlighting. May contain small amount of writing in first cover pages. The spine and cover are undamaged. See less
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The Phantom of the Opera: The Original Novel Mass Market Paperback – December 30, 1987

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 7,817 ratings

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"The wildest and most fantastic of tales." - New York Times Book Review.

The novel from the early 20th century that inspired the Lon Chaney film and the hit musical. In the 1880s, in Paris, the Palais Garnier Opera House is believed haunted. One night, a young woman, Christine, is asked to sing in place of the Opera's leading soprano, who is ill; Christine's performance is a success, and she is recognized by the Vicomte Raoul, a childhood playmate and love. Raoul and the Phantom then battle for Christine's heart, as the Phantom demands more and more from her.

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Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

The novel that inspired the Lon Chaney film and the hit musical. "The wildest and most fantastic of tales."--New York Times Book Review.

From the Back Cover

The novel that inspired the Lon Chaney film and the hit musical. "The wildest and most fantastic of tales."--New York Times Book Review.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harper Perennial; Revised ed. edition (December 30, 1987)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Mass Market Paperback ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0060809248
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0060809249
  • Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 910L
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 6.4 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.14 x 4.38 x 0.85 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 7,817 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
7,817 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book easy to read and engaging. They praise the fantastic story with a satisfying conclusion. Readers love the characters, especially the deep-felt ones. The music adds another layer to the story and is appreciated by many. The artwork is described as stunning and charming. Overall, customers describe the book as an interesting and stimulating read that makes them think.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

635 customers mention "Readability"550 positive85 negative

Customers enjoy the book's readability. They find it an interesting and powerful read with a rich, human story. The author is skilled at setting and description, making the book an unforgettable tour de force that doesn't disappoint. Readers recommend it as a great Halloween read or a late night story.

"...With an ingenious story, tied together with beautiful descriptions, often witty dialogue, and sympathetic characters...." Read more

"...Les Misérables_ (please see my review in the appropriate place) is deep, stirring, and unforgettable, but it requires amounts of time and patience..." Read more

"...The style is of an expose newpaper writer, sharing the scandalous tale while citing references and trying to remain detached. Romance?..." Read more

"...But the book did not disappoint." Read more

336 customers mention "Story quality"308 positive28 negative

Customers enjoy the story's quality. They find it engaging with dramatic characters and a satisfying conclusion. The plot is well-developed, with drama and suspense. Readers are emotionally invested in the novel, which they describe as a must-read for drama and romance fans.

"...All in all, Leroux's novel is, I would say, a masterpiece. With an ingenious story, tied together with beautiful descriptions, often witty dialogue,..." Read more

"...The Phantom of the Opera_ is an incredibly simple story that focuses on a love triangle...." Read more

"...'s not agreeable to his plan to wed. And yet... There's still a touch of sweetness, of desperate pleas to just be like other men, to just be happy..." Read more

"...The epilogue brings a satisfying conclusion to the story, as it is here that many loose ends are tied up and things about Erik are explained: where..." Read more

63 customers mention "Character development"56 positive7 negative

Customers enjoy the well-developed characters and detailed setting of the Paris Opera. They appreciate the inclusion of characters not included in the musical that add depth to the story. The interviews provide insight into the art of radio acting and shed light on the real statue at the top of the opera house.

"...with beautiful descriptions, often witty dialogue, and sympathetic characters...." Read more

"...These interviews not only provide insight into the art of radio acting, but they also shed light on the actors thoughts about the characters they..." Read more

"...The statue L’Harmonie on top of the opera house is a real statue. The opera house itself is real. It’s the Palais Garnier in Paris...." Read more

"...It also really fleshes out the main characters so that you can simultaneously pity and hate every single character...." Read more

63 customers mention "Musical quality"56 positive7 negative

Customers enjoy the musical quality of the book. They find it enhances the story and is different from the well-known musical. Readers appreciate Andrew Lloyd Webber's music and the novel's use of music as symbolism.

"...my favorite thing about the novel, however, is Leroux's use of music as symbolism...." Read more

"...The musical is just as good as the book (a rare occurrence in this world), but the book is more... descriptive. In a violent way...." Read more

"This is the classic novel on which the famous musical was based...." Read more

"...The final thing I will say is that the music incorporated into the story is breathtaking...." Read more

50 customers mention "Visual quality"45 positive5 negative

Customers enjoy the book's visual quality. They appreciate the stunning artwork that brings the story to life. The characters, story, and charming allure are praised for their depth. The fresh imagery and colorful tone capture a very vivid picture of the story.

"..."mystery" of it all, and more in his beautiful language and imagery...." Read more

"...Despite this, the style hints of the past, which it takes place in (1875ish)...." Read more

"...If you like this artist, though, it is worth having for the pictures alone." Read more

"...the most complete of the French editions and manages to capture a very colorful, readable tone in his work...." Read more

44 customers mention "Enthrallment"40 positive4 negative

Customers enjoy the book's engaging story. They find it stimulating and easy to immerse themselves in. The book captures human nature and how people perceive the world. It keeps readers wanting more, with a wonderful combination of first-hand observation and imagination.

"...concepts such as beauty, individuality, shame, and the need for human connection. Bottom line: give it a try...." Read more

"...It transports you to a different time, explaining Erik and Christine with far more depth than Broadway could ever do...." Read more

"...really plays up the “this is real” aspect of the story, using multiple points of view and “sources” to tell the story, which I love...." Read more

"...The language is beautiful, and there is so much that can be analyzed and discussed. I look forward to teaching it every year!..." Read more

49 customers mention "Pacing"16 positive33 negative

Customers have different views on the pacing of the book. Some find it fast-paced and descriptive, with descriptive chapters that quickly get you where you want to go. Others say it's slow at the start but picks up speed towards the end. The writing moves slowly and is described as French.

"...There were times it seemed slightly slow. However a lot of the confusion was addressed by the authors the story proceeded...." Read more

"...The show/movie is solidly based off the book, but does NOT follow it...." Read more

"This is a good story. It took me a while to read...." Read more

"I enjoyed reading it, but after a while the spine of the book began to rip and the paper over the edge cardboard cover started to thin out." Read more

43 customers mention "Emotion level"27 positive16 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the book's emotional content. Some find it heartwarming and beautiful, bringing characters and feelings to life. Others feel compassion for the Phantom and find the story more heartbreaking than the play or movie. The book is described as sad and violent, with melodrama at times.

""The Phantom of the Opera" is an unforgettable tour de force: an emotional story that probes the mind of a disturbed individual who, nevertheless,..." Read more

"...Movie/show (as bad as it gets): People die in violent manners (two hangings), a gun, The Phantom with his disfigured face, mild sexual content, not-..." Read more

"...typical penny-dreadful sort of tale at first glance, but there are subtle themes that are not apparent on the first read...." Read more

"...Gaston Leroux did the unimaginable, he created the first loveable psychopath...." Read more

My Love for Eric
4 out of 5 stars
My Love for Eric
Gaston made Eric out to be a non-productive monster and he blamed Eric for Christine Daae's double mindedness. It was Christine that had to choose in the end,NOT Eric. I agree with Mr. Webber that Eric(the phantom) was a very powerful, creative passionate tragic Lover. Who loved Christine despite her betraying him. He loved her so much that he knelt down asking if she really loved him. Eric will always be my best friend & confidant because of him operating in the Supernatural power of his God given giftings. Despite the infection on the side of his face. Gaston kept using horribly ugly - he is wrongbecause to me & my friends horribly ugly is the Orks & goblins in Lord of the Rings Not Eric!😡
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2017
    This was far from being my first experience with Leroux's story, but it WAS my first time reading an unabridged English translation. For anyone unaware, the standard English translation (which is usually published without a translator's name) is abridged, but not labeled as such. That translation was what I was previously familiar with, but having been a fan of PotO for nearing a decade, I thought it was high time I read a different translation...

    And honestly, I'm not sure how good this one is. Given that Ribière is French herself, I assumed that her translation would be most faithful, but there were several points in the text where I found glaring errors (most notably in the epilogue, where a translation mishap sent the Samarkand merchant to fetch Erik from the fair, instead of the Daroga). But, as I'm not perfectly fluent in French (and don't have a copy of the French text handy to compare them, anyway), I can't speak adequately on the accuracy of this translation.

    I may be in the minority, but I have always vastly preferred Leroux to Lloyd-Webber's musical. The novel's atmosphere can't be matched, in my opinion. Written as detective fiction, Leroux's speaker is investigating (years after the events of the novel) the legend of the "Phantom of the Opera," a mysterious specter that wreaked havoc at the Palais Garnier in years past. During his investigation, he begins to suspect that there are ties between the Phantom, the murder of Count Philippe de Chagny, and the disappearances of his younger brother, Raoul, and an opera singer called Christine Daaé.

    Thus, Leroux takes the reader on a journey into the past, often referencing interviews with, and written documents by, several prominent figures at the opera at the time of the "de Chagny affair." Most of the fantastic tale is seen from the perspective of Raoul de Chagny, whose love for his childhood friend, Christine, seems to be thwarted by an unseen rival - a disembodied voice which has convinced the pious Christine that it belongs to the Angel of Music. Raoul and Christine soon find themselves trapped in a nightmare, as the love-sick "Angel" has no intentions of letting his beloved wed another.

    The narrative often shifts to the perspective of the opera's directors, who are at their wits' end with the Phantom's outrageous demands. Most of the latter section of the novel is told from the point-of-view of the Persian, a figure from the Phantom's past who is often left out of film and stage adaptations.

    In this day and age, most readers already know the plot to the story, so the strength in Leroux's writing lies less in the "mystery" of it all, and more in his beautiful language and imagery. It is all too easy to imagine the graveyard at Perros-Guirec, laden with snow and blood-red roses, littered with skulls, eerily silent under the full moon. The reader can understand Raoul's terror when he comes face-to-face with the "Death's head" in such a setting. Leroux's detailed descriptions of the opera house, too, lend a sense of realism to the story that leaves the reader wondering if the fantastic tale might not be, as Leroux claimed until his death, grounded in fact.

    Perhaps my favorite thing about the novel, however, is Leroux's use of music as symbolism. Every piece of music mentioned by name in the novel is symbolic of something in the plot. Gounod's Faust, which underscores the entire story, tells the tale of a man who sells his soul to the devil for the love of a beautiful woman - certainly a parallel to the doomed love the Phantom holds for Christine Daaé. Other musical selections act as foreshadow. For example, "Danse Macabre (Dance of Death)," played at the gala in the second chapter, seems to herald the arrival of the Red Death at the masquerade ball.

    All in all, Leroux's novel is, I would say, a masterpiece. With an ingenious story, tied together with beautiful descriptions, often witty dialogue, and sympathetic characters. It is perhaps one of the only "classic" novels I know which contains a morally grey antagonist whose victims pity, rather than despise, him. While "Le fantôme de l'opéra" didn't sell well upon publication and was, in fact, out of print for several years, the popularity of the story speaks to the brilliance of Leroux's vision. I would advise everyone, particularly fans of the musical, to give this novel a try.
    34 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2014
    For those who don't know, the famous musical "The Phantom of the Opera" is based off of this book. I can tell you first-hand that that musical is a lifetime experience. The performance has been made into a movie, even.
    It does not matter in what order you read this book, see the show live or watch the movie. You don't have to do them all, but each gives a different perspective.

    The book "The Phantom of the Opera" is a classic love story, but far more complex than just that. The writing style is slightly awkward in this day and age, and the translations from the original (in French, I believe) are above average. Despite this, the style hints of the past, which it takes place in (1875ish). Also, there are no obvious spelling errors or any peculiar phrases that you can find in books of this day and age today.

    In an Opera Populaire, there are rumors and fears of a ghost, Opera Ghost, or O.G. He is said to be everywhere but found nowhere. This ghost causes no disturbance as long as his demands are met--a salary, Box 5 left empty, and Christine Daae to sing onstage every now and then.
    But of course, the owners won't have any of it. They don't believe in the supernatural..
    And neither does Christine's lover ("boyfriend"), Raoul. Until, of course, Christine herself tells him.
    But what she actually tells him is what the story's about.

    The Phantom, as he's known in the movie, loves Christine. He has been the one teaching her to sing after her gifted violinist father died. Christine, however, has never seen the Opera Ghost until he kidnaps her, wanting to be with her forever. He wears a mask to cover his disfigured face, and because of his malformations his own mother feared him. The Phantom has never known compassion, and doesn't know how to express himself to Christine. He has only ever known violence, and this is evident as he meanwhile threatens and murders, and brings down a chandelier during a performance.

    Christine's heart, however, is to Raoul instead. Raoul seeks killing the Phantom, who would do anything for Christine.

    Now, let me draw the line here between the show and movie, and the book. The show/movie is solidly based off the book, but does NOT follow it. The musical is just as good as the book (a rare occurrence in this world), but the book is more... descriptive. In a violent way. Both are definitely without a doubt PG 13+, but the more gruesome screens and dark moods lie in the book instead.

    Book (as violent as it gets): People die, bodies are found (no solid description of them), there's a Torture Chamber which drives a few people to insanity, a gun, gruesome descriptions of The Phantom, a few people almost drown, kidnapping, supernatural power-y stuff. There is no sexual content beyond a PG 13 level. A very creepy tone, not recommended for ages below 15.

    Movie/show (as bad as it gets): People die in violent manners (two hangings), a gun, The Phantom with his disfigured face, mild sexual content, not-so-much-kidnapping-but-still-there, supernatural power-y stuff, and that's really about it. More of a life lesson story, has a lighter and more inspiring tone to it. To be honest here, there's no specific age level I'd recommend, instead I'd simply say the show/movie is for the mature only. A few lyrics are opera too, and hard to understand, so factor that as well.

    Movie is about 2 hours, plus another 40 minutes if you watch Andrew Lloyd Webber give a speech and all the original cast sing. The book is just under 200 pages. The show: plan on 4 total there. If not more.

    I am greatly obsessed with The Phantom of the Opera and immensely enjoyed the book and movie. Today, it's THE best musical you can see, better than Wicked, Camelot, etc.

    Now, whenever something happens in my house,
    "He's there, the Phantom of the Operaaaaaaaaa!"
    43 people found this helpful
    Report

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English
  • JB
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very nice product
    Reviewed in Canada on September 1, 2024
    Front of book was slightly damaged but otherwise good purchase.
  • Cliente
    5.0 out of 5 stars Buena calidad del libro
    Reviewed in Mexico on July 6, 2024
    Llegó en buen estado y es muy linda la portada. Lo compré como regalo pero le dí una hojeada y se ve de buena calidad la edición.
  • Esmée Bolderman
    4.0 out of 5 stars Blijft een geweldig verhaal
    Reviewed in the Netherlands on December 21, 2024
    Het blijft een mooi en meeslepend verhaal
  • Poushali Bhowmik
    5.0 out of 5 stars Good Thriller
    Reviewed in India on October 31, 2024
    Loved the writing and the world building in Opera. Erik's character is dark and tragic.
  • Daniel Tadeu de Carvalho Ribeiro
    5.0 out of 5 stars Um Clássico Imperdível
    Reviewed in Brazil on August 11, 2021
    Obra clássica, ambientada em Paris e sucesso na Broadway. Recomendado para quem gosta de histórias que misturam ficção com locações reais.