Customer Reviews

Into the Light: A Phantom of the Opera Story

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

If you're looking for an exciting "Phantom" Book, this is not the book for you.

First: The book is written in the First person. Erik is telling the story. How many men would use the terms "Misty Eyed" and "My heart swelled" when referring themselves. Let alone the infamous "Phantom". Those phrases are sprinkled throughout this book, and they just don't work.

Secondly: In this book, the reader does not see the arrogant genius, with exraordinary skills ... nor does the reader see his volatile emotions, which made for great suspense and a wonderful Character.

Third: The synopsis on the back of the book is deceiving. There's no confrontation with Raol and no confrontation with the Russians. There's not much action in this story, and it seems to drag on.

In this book, the former Phantom/Opera Ghost is picking up orphans and a stray cat. He resloves his inner struggles far too quickly, which is completely out of character for him. He lacked the spark and unpredictablity that one would expect of such an exceptional character.

It didn't have the feel of a "Phantom" novel, and the reader could pretty much guess the ending from early on.

If you're looking for true page-turners, Susan Kay's "PHANTOM" is the one to get.
Second recommendation - "PROGENY" by Becky L. Meadows

The story-line is OK, even though some unlikely coincidences occur. BUT, the writing is very amateurish and full of grammatical, punctuation, and syntax errors (among others). It was like slogging through quicksand to read it. The book must have been self-published because no editor would have let it go out with all the errors.

A very good editor could make this an OK book, though not nearly the quality of Susan Kay's.

Don't buy it unless you are a Phantom of the Opera collector and just must have everything published.

When I first got this book, I didn't realize it was a Phantom of the Opera story. If I had known, I probably would not have read it. That's how strongly I feel about messin' with The Phantom! But long about the second paragraph, it hit me - I kept reading anyway. I'm glad I did!

This book is so well written - the proclivity to detail is amazing. I felt I was wandering around the ruins of the Opera Populaire and winding through the tunnels below the streets of Paris! You could see the characters as they were being described to us, you could hear their voices! You could almost smell the rancid odors of the alleyways and the denizens who frequented them!

The Phantom, at long last, meets his equal (in more ways that one) in a very precocious new character. In fact, we are introduced to several new characters who give the story depth, humor, emotion -- heart! We also get to revisit a few of the "old" characters -- I won't tell you which ones!

I had my fingers crossed for The Phantom all the way through this story! There's a bit of suspense thrown in just to make me upset with his actions -- and there's only ONE way I wanted it to end. My crossed-fingers must've worked, but I had to wait until the last two paragraphs of the book to finally exhale!

Do yourself a favor, PhantomPhan or not - get this book and let yourself be lost in Paris for a couple'a days - you won't regret it!!!

As this is the author's debut novel, I am able to overlook some of the issues that I noted (e.g., French characters with English names, such as Marcus Hawke). Some additional research would have been useful in that regard, but it was not egregious. There were also a couple of copy editing errors that caught my eye, but I have most assuredly seen worse.

What I would have *liked* to have seen was some additional development of a rather important plot point regarding the White Russians in Paris during the time period. They are referred to, and are crucial to the story, but they are simply people who are there and nothing much is said of them. This is a very interesting period in French history, and expanding on it might have made this book more entertaining (and earned it a higher rating).

This is probably the best sequel I have ever read to Phantom of the Opera. It has a nice ending that is really different that I sort of saw coming but wasn't sure until the end. It is really nicely written even if it has a few problems. I think the author must be a fan of the movie with Gerry Butler, but I have seen the play lots of times with different leads and so I don't need all of those references to that actor. Still, it wasn't distracting to the point it took away from the story. We talked about this book at our monthly meeting and just about everybody liked it.

A truly disappointing tale. Instead of Erik seeking a new life, the author has him plunging into the world he needs to leave---murder, thievery and deception! I believe a great disservice to phans and Erik has been done here. The author has failed to do primary research on Paris, let alone on beloved characters. The reference to Gaston Laroux was badly executed, the writing style left me totaly cold and unsympathetic to everyone, and if this is a follow-up to the movie, I did not see a glimpse anywhere of the wonderful actors who portrayed their roles with such brilliance. Perhaps Ms. Whitehead needs to see the film a few more times, as well as the play. While I fully accept that we all have our own version of Erik and various events, this particular story need not be counted into the millieu.

I bought this item because it seemed more interesting than descriptions of other published Phantom fanfic. However, it's so poorly written that I couldn't bring myself to finish it, an unusual occurrence for me. Make sure that you can preview a questionable novel in a bookstore prior to buying it online, or be prepared to eat the cost of expensive trade paperbacks.

I am BLOWN AWAY!! I've read a number of post-opera disaster Phantom of the Opera stories, but none like this. The plot was SO REFRESHING!! Where others make their Phantom out to be either possessed by seeking revenge, despondent, or needy and whimpering, Debra Whitehead has given us a character that stands tall against adversity. A man who never sacrifices his integrity, who takes charge of the situation, and turns his life around without compromising himself. A human being with deep rooted feelings who is sensitive, strong, and principled, who makes remarkable decisions and forges a new path to attain what is most important in life, and finds love and happiness in a place he never suspected.

I wanted the story to go on. I really care for these people! I had to put the book down late one night at a critical juncture of the story. I then spent that night endlessly dreaming about what had happened!

I better stop before I give something away. There are some books I love so much, I read them over and over. Into the Light has found a place on that list for me!

A fascinating take on the Phantom of the Opera, after the Fire.
Already a larger than life personality, Ms. Whitehead gives greater dimension,texture and depth to the persona that is The Phantom.
She takes us along as he discovers a wealth of feelings he was not aware he possessed. Not only through emotional, physical
and moral challenges, but the realization that he has genuine support,in the form of friendship, respect, concern and true affection from those who have touched and been touched by his life. A satisfying and rewarding read. I highly recommend.
Here's hoping Ms. Whitehead will grace us with more of her inspired writing.

"My fury still burned, but began to cool as I realized the depth of his despair. For it must surely be despair that drove him to search for me alone, knowing the risks he took with his life by doing so... He knew that it was not over. He knew that as long as I lived, Christine would never fully belong to him.... At that moment I wanted nothing so much as the pleasure of filling his every waking and sleeping awareness with the prospect of my imminent return." Pg. 56

But he doesn't.

"....Nothing could change the facts. Christine was married. If she had not been lost to me before, she certainly was now. That I loved her was certain. That I was not what she needed in her life was equally as sure. I gathered myself up from the seat determined to put this pain behind me yet again. I had lost count of the times I had reached this same conclusion over the previous months. One day, I would succeed in banishing the agony for good." Pg. 194

And succeed, he does.

As you may have guessed, this is NOT an E/C phic - far from it. In fact, outside of a very brief account of Erik's memory of his making love to Christine the night he'd taken her to his lair, Christine is only mentioned two or three times throughout the rest of the book. Raoul is depicted only briefly and in a very unflattering light. When I realized this, I honestly didn't want to finish the book.

But finish it, I did despite my huge disappointment and the obvious fact that in this book, Erik never sees Christine again.

Banished from his home underneath the Opera House, now a hunted man and plagued by recurring dreams of his lost love, Christine, Erik lives underneath the city in one of the many tunnels that traverse the Parisian sub-terrain.

One night as he clandestinely roams the streets in search for food, he comes across what he initially perceives as a fight in one of the alleyways. He gets a glimpse of the perpetrator as he flees the scene. For some reason, Erik decides "to see what was left of the loser of this battle." When he comes across the unfortunate victim, he is shocked to discover that the loser is a youth. Filled with pity (and remorse that he had not interfered in the fight when he had the chance), he wraps the boy in his cloak and takes him to his home in the tunnels.

When he tends to the child's injuries in the safety of his den, he's sickened to discover the extent of those injuries. And when he changes the boy's filthy clothes, he's shocked when he detects that the child is not a boy after all, but is a girl, and that the man who had attacked her had not only beaten her, but starved and raped her as well. Determined to take care of her, Erik secures one of the youths of the street to contact his old friend, Mme Giry, in hopes that she will help him procure the supplies that he will need so that he can, hopefully, nurse her back to health.

Two days later, after the girl has awakened, Erik meets his match in a charming, yet precocious 8-year old who ultimately changes his life forever. For after their encounter when she accidentally drops and breaks his precious music box, he realizes that this child has touched his heart. And he makes one of several vows that alter his destiny: "She would never again know the pain of an angry hand on her body. She would never again suffer abuse in any form from any man. She would be happy, cared for, loved. I would see to it. And I, for the first time in my life would have a sense of purpose beyond myself; and perhaps, just perhaps, I would be happy as well."

The remainder of the book entails the formulation and execution of the plans that Erik uses to secure for himself and his new family a home and the prospect for a happy future. And in so doing, he also secures new friendships and relationships that he acquires in the process.

Despite my disappointment that this was not an E/C fic, I do have to credit the author with a very unique and imaginative sequel for the Phantom. It is well written and the author must have done an extensive amount of research to write this book. I certainly applaud her efforts on a job well done. It is fast-paced and holds your interest.

Erik is the Erik we would want him to be - strong and compassionate, brave and protective, cunning and loving. The little girl is also a charmer with a sad story to tell, yet she is amazingly perceptive and strong for one so young. She is also a musical prodigy in a different way than what Christine had been.

I don't want to say anymore because I don't want to give away the whole plot of the book for those who are interested in reading it. Erik's plans and his vow to revenge the man who nearly killed the little girl are what save him from himself, but how he does it and the cast of characters that ultimately become involved are what make this book so intriguing.

There are, however, several things that bothered me (outside of the E/C thing) - There are quite a few misspellings and typos throughout the book, and many quotation marks that were either missing or inserted where they didn't belong. I found that rather surprising in a published book. Don't ALL published books get edited? The Opera House was referred to as the "Opera Populaire", and the characters, Andre and Firmin, were mentioned (but only once) near the beginning of the book. Don't these refer to the Webber stage play/movie? I thought these were not supposed to be used in published works?

And lastly: The title of the novel, "Into the Light", implies that Erik has a complete change of heart. One would expect that along with his change of heart would come a change in behavior, too. In fact, the changes in him (considering his past and his notorious, seemingly uncaring proclivity to commit crimes to achieve what he wants) are nothing short of amazing. Yet the steps he takes in order to secure that new life include murder and the theft of stolen goods. Didn't anyone else notice the irony in this?