This book is exceptionally good. The translation is clear, and easy to understand. I recommend this book to anyone who likes fiction and are interested in these gods and goddesses. This book keeps you entertained and you don't want to put this book down once you start reading until your finished reading it. It keeps your attention and it doesn't leave you with any questions unanswered. I recommend this book to anyone interested.

I admit, when I first sat down to read this book, I didn't know what to expect; I had heard so many different opinions of it.
And I will say one thing: this is not for someone just starting the Vampire Chronicles! It is meant for the readers who have followed Lestat through his life, and feel a close connection with him.
While I personally feel betrayed by this book, I can't think of a better way Rice could have written it.
Now, I don't feel betrayed because I disliked the book, rather, I feel betrayed for the lack of ending she gave us...what happens to Lestat??? I know that others, like myself, are eager for Rice to write more of our favorite Vampire.
I can't remember another book so deeply affecting me that I sat for hours just pondering what she wrote...and this book is by no means for readers who like fast-paced action! It is for those who appreciate the more philosophical aspect to Rice's work, which has always been there, from the first pages of Interview With the Vampire. Memnoch truly does tug at your heart with his sympathetic retelling of Creation and Christian lore. I found myself, although already knowing the ending, wanting to believe in Memnoch, wanting his story to be true...or hoping maybe that he had been misinformed by God, that he had misunderstood...because I didn't want Memnoch to be a bad guy!
Memnoch is a perfect reflection of our own dear Lestat. Lestat admits to being evil, and we can't help but love him all the more for it, because we know that his heart isn't evil!
Personally, while reading this, I was reminded strongly of Lestat's journeys with Akasha during Queen of the Damned. Lestat was being told by someone whom he loved, yet was also inherently evil, that they were good, and that they had a plan for goodness, if only Lestat would help them!
A truly heart felt book, I think. I wonder...did Anne cry when she finished it? I would have...

I have had mixed emotions about the entire Vampire Chronicles. As in the first four books of the series, I found the language almost poetic, the story fascinating, the characters 3-dimensional, and yet, I wasn't satisfied. Most of our old friends make cameo appearances, including David, Louis and Armand. I was pleased to see that the author did not worry about negative press regarding Memnoch's views on Christianity, etc. She definitely pulled no punches. At a minimum, this novel serves as a commentary on the world's religious history and at least should make readers think about the bloody history of organized religion in our world society. I found some parts of the novel a little too poetic in that the language threw me off track. But I suppose it is quite difficult to create believable dialogue when you are using God and the Devil as your characters. Occasionally I was lost and found myself daydreaming. The threads of the story line were so long though, that I didn't seem to have missed much. Still, the book is worth reading, whether for the religious viewpoint or the continuing story of the Vampires.

I must confess that I hated this book the first time I read it but after reading the entire book a few more times, I grew to love it. I thought Anne's concept of the character Memnoch (aka Satan) was believable. Just like all human beings, he is flawed as is the almighty God who was portrayed as ruler who rules heaven with an iron fist. As I have read this book over and over, I have come to a conclusion that God isn't all that Christianity has made him to be and he is just as fallible as the Lucifer but this is just my humble opinion. I find this book exceptionally compelling is that it brings up the subject in subtle tones the relationship of God and Memnoch. I personally didn't find the scene of Lestat taking a drink of God's blood shocking as most people would. I thought it was just part of the storyline of the battle between God and Memnoch. Whether Anne Rice meant it to be shocking or not is difficult for me to say. Only Anne would know. In conclusion, Anne Rice has remained my favorite author to this very day. She has proven with this book her articulate writing abilities and obviously shows the readers the amount of research she put into her stories like "Memnoch the Devil".

First off I must say that like all of Anne's books this is beautifully written. Anne is a wonderful story teller. But, I think that it is time to get back to the Lestat story line. Although I liked this book, it was not as good as some of the previous vampire chronicles. I would recommend this to Anne Rice fan's only because I love the vampire chronicles so much. But this book falls short of being one of Anne's best. I felt that it moved extremely slow. If you read the previous books in the chronicle you already knew a lot of the events that take place.
Over all I would have preferred to have another one of Lestat's adventures, then listen to Marius drone on and on.

Having read each and every book in the chronicles, I cruised along the last several. In fact, nothing since book #3, Queen of the Damned, grabbed me as did this one. Blood and Gold fills in the gaps of old stories, gives you different perspectives on the events that we've read. The tales of the vampires, seen through my favorite vampire, Marius, was compelling and a very exciting read. I've always preferred reading the ancient histories and this book contains all the familiar faces, Maharet and Mekare for a short while, Pandora, Armand, Mael, Santino and of course Those Who Must Be Kept.

A short portion in the middle was all too similar to a recent novel, The Vampire Armand. While she spun her tale from the eyes of Marius, it felt all too familiar, and I spent several chapters saying, 'I KNOW!' However, this was brief, and I was soon thrust back into the story. Other tales are recounted with the familiarity one might have after reading the first half dozen or so novels, but all was done carefully and I found myself recalling so many little things from prior stories. Putting the pieces together, seeing it all as I had never seen it prior. Construcing an even larger, more complete world of these vampires!

Perhaps this is only for those who have kept up with the series, or at least read the first 3 novels of the Vampire Chronicles. You needen't have read the later entries to get into this book. I would recommend the first 3 though, the classic tales! It might be confusing if you haven't read those, but everything since isn't necessary.

If you've gotten through the recent books, Vampire Armand, Pandora, Vittorio and want more, then get this. If you were at all losing interest in these stories as I was, I still recommend Blood and Gold. I won't spoil the ending at all, but I was certainly moved and emotionally affected by the tale. Perhaps I've become too involved in Marius, as I said, he's my favorite vampire to read...but overall I think this is Rice's best work in many many years!

I was suprised to find so many negative comments about this book. I thought it was an amazing tale from beginning to end, and Marius has always been one of my favorite vampires. I think some readers do not give him enough sympathy for the kind of life - and the unbelievable length of life - that he has. You can follow his growth and development throughout the story and it is one of the most interesting of all the vampire chronicles. Yes, part of the book is basically a repeat of the Vampire Armand, but it is from a different point of view so you can compare the two, which I thought was very cool. Overall I loved this book and recommend that if you are debating on getting it, don't give much credit to those who are giving it negative reviews. Decide for yourself. I think if you like the vampire stories at all, you will like this one, if not love it!

Robin is the son of a noble who has always been told what is expected of him as a future knight. But he one day falls ill and loses the use of his legs. As the story begins, he had given up all hope of being worthy of anything. With the plague claiming his servants one by one, Robin is abandoned, until a kindly monk named Brother Luke comes to the manor and takes Robin to the Hospice of St. Mark. There, Robin is fed, cared for, and educated. He learns to swim, whittle, read and write, and attends holy ceremonies. While doing this, he gains strength, self-confidence, and friends.

This book is a good read because the characters and plot are well developed. The story takes place in Medieval Europe and you can tell that the author has researched these times carefully. She provides full detail about the sights and sounds of medieval life. In doing so, she uses difficult vocabulary based on the words that were used then. This makes the book a bit harder to read, and therefore appropriate for the older middle school student and above, especially those who like a detailed setting.

I felt the book lacked any good action. The story is told only through Robin's point of view, which limits your knowledge of what's going on. You can't see what Brother Luke or other characters are thinking. When the battle begins, Robin is in the church belfry and not on the field fighting, so you don't really know what's happening where the action is. There seemed to be no real climax even as the conflict is resolved. However, the story does carry an inspirational message, as Robin learns that he doesn't need the use of his legs to be a hero.

I remember reading this book ages ago, and I hated. I thought it dated and dull, with its archaic language and details about medieval life. Now, after years of studying mythology, including the Prose Edda, I can better appreciate it. It's not a GREAT book, but it is a good one.

Robin is the son of a knight, destined to become a knight one day himself - until he falls ill and loses the use of his legs. The plague is ravaging medieval England, and it claims several of the servants who were caring for him. Robin is rescued by a kindly monk, Brother Luke, who takes the crippled boy to a local monastary and patiently cares for him there. Under Luke's guidance, Robin learns how to swim, read, whittle, and how to become a humbler person rather than the rather snobby noble boy that he once was.

But all is not well in England. Robin must "open a door in the wall" -- the walls that hemmed him in when he lost the use of his legs -- and discover that you don't necessarily have to be a knight to serve your king and country.

This is not a 9-12 book. Oh, not because of any objectionable content or attitudes, but simply because the, majority of 9-12 children will be bored witless by it. It's better suited to young adults who can handle the gradual pacing, softened archaic language (a fair number of twills, thous, amisses, and arts) and virtually actionless plot. As a result, "Door in the Wall" resembles a a slice of real life from the POV of a crippled boy rather than a fictional story. Such gruesome details as the plague and the violence of war are smudged out, by the way.

It seems a lot longer than its 120 pages. Ignore the silly cover art, the characters aren't like that at all; the interior illustrations are soft and realistic. de Angeli's writing lacks detail much of the time, but her dialogue is well-scripted. Robin's responses to the loss of his legs, his plans, and fear of his father's disappointment are perfectly done. He isn't a perfect lead character; he gets irrational, angry, snobby - but overcomes all of them. Brother Luke seems a little too perfect at times, but is also a good character. So, for that matter, is minstrel John-go-in-the-Wynd. (Yes, this book has those delightful Middle-Ages names based on the job, physical characteristics or past experience)

As for complaints about this book: Note that virtually all of them say that it was a schoolwork book; once again, we have disgruntled students seeking "revenge" on a non-fluff book that they had to read. This is not a book that should be assigned, but a book that should be selected individually. Don't read it just because it's a Newbery, read it if you can handle it!

In short, I recommend this book -- but not to everyone...it if you love to read, and if you enjoy a story where characters are emphasized over action.

As an elementary school librarian, I think it's informative to read all the reviews found here. It can be summed up that readers either like or dislike this Newbery Award winning book. There is no middle ground.

However, one should pay attention to the many negative reviews by "bored" students. It's my opinion that these students were probably not sufficiently prepared to read this short--but somewhat challenging--story. If a teacher just passes this book out, or says, "Go read a Newbery book," then I don't blame them for yawning.

I think a student's interest level would increase if they had some sense of the language, as well as an understanding of this fascinating historical period. A quick search on the Internet reveals an interesting array of lesson plans, background materials and quizzes.

There are also some excellent--and easy--books that provide helpful background information, such as David Macaulay's "Castle" and "Cathedral;" Jonathan Hunt's "Illuminations;" Aliki's "A Medieval Feast;" or Joe Lasker's "A Tournament of Knights." There are many more good titles available.

It would be beneficial if teachers would pre-read this book and make a list of the unfamiliar terms and the older forms of speech used throughout. (Better yet, it would be wonderful if the publisher would produce an edition with a glossary!) Knowing the language will open many "doors in the wall" for most students.

I've recently been doing some research on what books are considered classics for elementary age students, and "A Door in the Wall," shows up on just about every list I've seen. It is a true classic in many ways.

On an additional note, I have a personal interest in the history of the Christian faith, and it's quite informative to note here the role the Church plays in the everyday lives of the people in Medieval England. I developed a fondness for the way the friar, Brother Luke, was portrayed here. While this is not a "religious" book, and is certainly appropriate for public schools, I think that it could find a nice niche in religious schools (Catholic, Protestant or Orthodox), where a discussion of this title could open doors (pun intended) to a time when Christendom was the norm.

This is an interesting novel. It has a lot of potential for both the fantastique and the humorous (since its a book about two kind of kennedy families, one a "physical" kennedy family and another a "spiritual" kennedy family, either way they are both disfunctional beyond reasons of insanity). Its a good read...but...

...first the novel jumps all over the place...one chapter you are reading a mystical experience, the next you are reading something that might as well have been written in a tabloid newspaper. Finally after around one to two hundred the novel gets going and it does a good job...

...second problem. Its just another Clive Barker series. In other words. You ain't never going to see the conclusion this side of paradise. Just like the Art series and probably with that new series Abbarat or whatever it is called... there is not ever going to be a conclusion because I think Clive writes to a point then just doesn't know where to put the period.

...third, good novel but...ultimately...its nothing new. Weaveworld was a classic novel, as was Imajica (though yes it was too long), but...its nothing new under the sun in the genre of the fantastique and the macabre. Nothing cutting edge which is a surprise since so many people keep thinking C.B. goes to the cutting edge. Really, its not.

Love conquers all in this fascinating tale of two families at war. I was transfixed from page one, always wondering what would happen next, and trying to figure out the riddle of it all. From the Barbosssa house set back among the hills of North Carolina, a man sits down to write a family history. It turns out to be a tale of love and hatred between clans- one a powerful American family(aka the Kennedys), and the other a phsycic, magical, sometimes evil family that has been around since the dawn of time. The two could not exist without each other, but yet one yearns for the destruction of the other. A lovely girl from Ohio is swept off her feet and finds herself emersed in the battle between a man's heart and his soul. I thought this book was brilliantly written as well as a great story.

This eighteenth volume in the Aubrey-Mathurin saga is relatively action-less. For once, Jack has been assigned to routine post-captain's duty in the Brest blockade squadron, sailing back and forth for weeks on end. I don't believe the great guns are ever once fired in anger in this book. But, however (as they say), there's a lot here for the faithful reader of the series -- mostly domestic, with Jack being caught in an old adultery, as he says, "without a leg to stand on," but getting back with Sophie eventually. It's 1814, and with peace about to break out, Jack is very worried about his lack of a professional future, wholly expecting to be "yellowed" -- being made admiral in time but given no command -- having unfortunately crossed his admiral, whose nephew wants to enclose the common on Jack's manor. (Think agribusiness and economies of scale vs. the family farm). Perhaps he can increase his professional stock by hiring out to develop a new navy for revolutionary Chile. . . . Stephen spends a good deal of time ashore in France tending to intelligence matters, but we get no details. ...

In typical O'Brian fashion, the current state of our heroes is reversed in this book. Here we find Aubrey on the downgrade, while Maturin is repairing the damage done him in the previous episode. Certainly a rivetting story that is a pleasure to read, yet the real "happy ending" is left 'til the next installment (we hope!) For those looking solely for naval action, this book is not the best of series. Most of the plot involves Aubrey's difficulties on land and admiralty politics. Personally, I couldn't put it down and am yearning for the next installment

A reviewer of O'Brian's next book in the series wrote that the Aubrey books are really one 6000 page novel. I agree. This volume advances the story. It also deals more extensively with
domestic issues than previous books have. If you are reading
the Aubrey books, keep going. If not, don't start here, start at
the beginning.

Gregory Hines and Joel Gray present horrible readings of two of Poe's best poems. Gregory Hines sounds like a used car salesman when reading "Annabel Lee," and Joel Gray sounds like a spastic nut when reading "The Bells." Did they ever listen to themselves? Christopher Cazenove represents the best reader and the savior of this otherwise fiasco. Although he left out the last stanza, his reading of "Ulalume-A Ballad" is by far the best reading I've heard of this powerful poem. Michael York's reading of "The Raven" is ok, but he lacks correct interpretation with the "wispered word, 'Lenore?'" The only other reader to read this phrase like a question is Edward Blake. For some reason many of the poems have background music. Did the producers of this collection really think that these poems lacked something? Perhaps this collection going out of print was an act of mercy.

Like the first reviewer, I thought Gregory Hines absolutely ruined "Annabel Lee" for me, which is--or now, was--also one of MY favorite Poe poems. What's next, "Gregory Hines Tapdances 'A Cask of Amontillado'"? Stick to you day-job, Greg! Michael York and David Warner are much beter readers than Hines, though when York reads "I shrieked..." it hardly sounds like a shriek. Their readings are good, but not great. By far the two less-famous (to me, anyway) readers on the tape, Roger Rees and Christopher Cazenove, are giants compatred to the other three. Rees' reading of "The Conqueror Worm" alone is worth the price of this tape. Obviously Rees and Cazenove are experienced Shakespeare-trained actors who love--and know how to utilize to startling results--the English language. I would pay almost anything for a new version of this tape read by Rees and Cazenove alone, or possibly by them and other accomplished Shakepearean actors (Patrick Stewart? Ralph Fiennes? Simon Russell Beale?). It's just not enough, to effectively read aloud poems or prose written by a master, to be famous (Hines) or even British and famous (York and Warner); you have to be GOOD! Anyway, overall this tape's worth buying.

If "Annabel Lee" is your favorite Poe poem, be warned that it is read by Gregory Hines, and the AudioFile review is being generous when it says that his readings lack drama and force. Though it is one of my favorite poems, or, more precisely, because it is one of my favorite poems, I fast forward through it everytime I listen to the tape, lest his reading impare my ability to enjoy the poem in the future.

This is somewhat compensated for by Michael York's exellent rendering of "The Raven" and David Warner's various readings which wonderfully capture Poe's mood and spirit.

Overall, still worth the price. I don't regret having purchased it and I'm still enjoying it a month later. If only "Annabel Lee" had been assigned to Mr. York or Mr. Warner!

After Patterson's last disaster, When The Wind Blows,he has redeemed himself with his newest book, Pop Goes The Weasel. This story is very exciting but light in terms of character develoment, narrative style and basically most other literary elements which make for a well-written novel. However, these are not elements I, and I think many other readers', seek in a James Patterson book.With this said, I think you will enjoy Pop Goes The Weasel very much and find it a very, very fast read. The one minor flaw that I've found in this and other Alex Cross books is the totally unrealistic maturity level and dialogue voiced by Cross's seven year old daughter, Jannie. I'd suggest that in doing research for future books, Patterson should spend a little time finding out what real seven year olds are like.

Another Alex Cross adventure comes with another super villain and non stop thrills. This time Cross is investigating a series of "Jane Doe" murders in the impoverished sections of Washington D.C. The problem is that he is doing so unofficially and he is one of the few that sees the crimes as being related.

The killer is a well respected foreign dignitary who also has a passion for role playing games. He, along with three others throughout the world are members of an exclusive game called the four horsemen. How Cross comes to his identity and possible capture is a series of non stop chills. The ending may not be as topsy turvy and dramatic as other Patterson books, but some surprises do change the complexion of future Cross novels.

Patterson sticks to his format here. The positive aspect is that his fans know the characters and enjoy their continuing saga. Sampson has developed into the type of figure that would be extraordinary in his own book. The negative aspect is that some of Cross's statements and the details of his family life are a bit worn on the faithful Patterson fan. As a result, the Alex Cross novels could use an injection of freshness. Therefore the novel was a bit shy of the better Cross chapters.

Overall the book has a quick flow and only sputters in some of the chapters that surround Alex's relationship with Christine. The villain is devious but also falls short of a Gary Soneji or Jack and Jill. The plot is better than average and I am still left wanting more Alex Cross. A no brainer four star piece of fiction.

James Patterson has created Alex Cross so well, that he can be hard to distinguish from reality. He is a wonderful father, an upstanding citizen, an excelent cop, and a brilliant psychologist.

Pop Goes The Weasle, the latest installment of Alex Cross, gives his fans almost everything they could ask for and some they don't want!.

Just when Alex is the happiest he has ever been, the events surrounding the latest psychokiller threaten to make this the worst time of his life (even worse than when his wife was killed).

Will Alex pop the question to Christine? Will Alex prove to be a "bad cop", or worse yet a murderer? Will Alex lose what he holds dearest to his heart?

Read this book, and these questions and more will reel you in and keep you hooked until the very last page.

One caution! Don't read this book if you want a long read. I read this book in about 12 hours with no trouble!

I have been a fan of the Richard Jury series since its beginning, but this, the latest installment, was incredibly disappointing. First, and most importantly, the "mystery" is secondary to Grimes' primary goal, which is to lambaste a real pharmaceutical company. She is an avid animal rights activist, (for which I do not fault her), but this format should not be a platform for her political agenda, at least without notifying her reader of her intentions. Her attacks dominate the book. (Biting the Moon, her unabashed effort to this end, is absolutely awful.) Beyond this, the editing was erratic, with numerous misplaced quotation marks and grammatical errors. Lastly, we can only conclude that Grimes views her American audience as blissfully ignorant and uncaring of UK geography. Check the proximity of Hadrian's Wall to Cambridge. All together a dismal disappointment, especially as the denouement to Jury bleeding out in the last novel.

I find myself agreeing with the first few reviewers about "The Grave Maurice" -- it was not a very engrossing or compelling a read. The first few chapters were very well done. Martha Grimes sets up the premise for the mystery-plot beautifully: Richard Jury is in hospital (The London Royal Hospital) recovering from having been seriously shot in "The Blue Last." Bored and restless, his interest is somewhat piqued when his friend, Melrose Plant, tells him of a conversation he overheard at the Grave Maurice (a pub near the hospital). Apparently Jury's surgeon, Roger Ryder, suffered a tremendous loss a couple of years ago when his fifteen year old daughter, Nell, went missing. Coincidentally, Ryder decides to confide in Jury as well, and to ask for his help in resolving the issue of his missing daughter. It turns out that Ryder's father owns a very prestigious stud farm in Cambridgeshire, and Nell, who was completely horse mad as well as possessing a rather magical empathy with horses, was living with her grandfather when she was abducted. The strange thing was that there was no demand for a ransom. And in spite of the fact that it's been almost two years, none of the Ryders have ever given up hope that Nell will return to them one day. And what Roger Ryder wants from Jury to take a fresh look at Nell's case and to see if there are any new avenues that the investigation could take. And with some alacrity Jury agrees. But the discovery of the body of a mysterious murdered woman on the Ryder Stud Farm soon throws a spanner in the works. Who was she? Why was she at the farm? And could her murder have anything to do with Nell's kidnapping? These are the questions Jury has to find answers to if he is unlock the secrets that the Ryder farm holds.

As I noted earlier, the novel opens well, but after the first few chapters, the book suddenly seems to loose focus. There is plenty of atmosphere. Though I'm still not sure about the bits where we read what the horses actually think/feel -- it didn't really advance the mystery plot and just seemed to get in the way of plot development even though it did (I suppose) lend itself to the feel and mood of the plot. And there is a lot of character development. And again I wondered about this -- some of the characters just didn't need to be fully developed as secondary characters at all as they were not at all essential to the plot. Grimes, however, spared nothing in fleshing them out properly. And again I felt as if this did get in the way of the smooth flow of the mystery plot. I did a lot of FLIPPING and SKIMMING while reading this novel.

And again we have the usual characters (Vivianne, Aunt Agatha, Trueblood, Carole-anne, etc) that put in an appearance even though they have very little to do with the main plot, as well as episodes that had nothing at all to do with the mystery proper -- like the bits that dealt with fox hunting. How exactly it contributed to the storyline at hand still puzzles me. I found all these extra bits to be distracting and really irritating. And while I did appreciate Martha Grimes's salute to Josephine Tey, this novel did not at all compare well to "The Daughter of Time" in that that book was a totally engrossing read that really sucked you into the mystery at hand. Sad to say, "The Grave Maurice" was not a very satisfying Richard Jury/Melrose Plant murder mystery. There have been better Richard Jury/Melrose Plant mystery novels, and might I suggest that time would be better spent rereading any one of them?

This novel reminded me of one of those Russian nesting dolls, where you keep finding another doll inside of the one you are holding, when you take the doll apart. There's enough plot and character development here for 6 novels.

I graded the book down mostly because no one should read this novel without having read quite a few of the earlier ones in the series. Most of the best references and ironies won't mean much otherwise. And many of them are rather long sections. Even in a series, authors need to make novels as stand-alone as they can.

I also graded the book down because one plot element just didn't make sense to me (the location of the missing heroine for two years).

On the other hand, I thought that the development of the theme of honoring animal rights was well done. I don't remember a novel that does it any better.

Along the way, I had a lot of fun. Regular Richard Jury and Martha Grimes fans should definitely read this one! The Grave Maurice is one of Melrose Plant's best and most humorous outings. You see new sides of Richard Jury, and they will make him more appealing to you.

I also appreciated the reference to Josephine Tey's wonderful book about Richard III. The Grave Maurice is also as steeped in English horse racing as the typical Dick Francis effort, which made the book all the more appealing to me.

After you finish this story, think about the moral priorities for you in protecting life and liberty! What comes first?

Of course, if you are not familiar with Phantom of the Opera (the musical), you shouldn't go anywhere near this book, because it won't make any sense whatsoever.

If you are a Phantom fan, however, this is what I have to say:
First of all, the only redeeming quality of this novel is that it isn't a novel! The introduction reveals beyond the shadow of a doubt that this is, in fact, a synopsis of what could have become a sequel to ALW's musical. This is also evident throughout the book, which is conveniently divided into scenes. At some points you can guess exactly what kind of musical number would have accompanied that particular scene (e.g. Darius' dream would be a spectacular scene, Pierre's Latin lesson would be the teacher's first song: a tune about Ireland!, Erik would have a hit solo when he finds out he has a son - that chapter even ends with a rhyme which may well be taken from that song, the party after the première would provide the opportunity for a large chorus and so on). With sufficiently good music, costumes, sets and cast it might have become a decent musical. It wouldn't have had much of a plot but many stage musicals don't. Nevertheless, I am thankful that the idea of a Phantom sequel didn't go any further since it would have ruined the original musical, which is complete in itself and has an effective "open ending". Besides, a sequel where Erik ends up winning would have made a mockery of the original tragic message of the story.

As for The Phantom of Manhattan, the story is uninteresting (bad guy chases innocent child and look, here's Christine and the Phantom and Raoul and Meg and Madame Giry again, o joy!) and the characters two-dimensional. It reads as a play and consequently we never know what anybody is thinking. This wouldn't have been such a flaw if their actions and words had shown it, but that characterization is sketchy at best. The background story is altered at will to suit Forsyth's intentions. This is not unusual in a piece of fan fiction, but quite frankly it's upsetting when the writer tries to justify his choices by saying that the author of the original novel was "wrong"! I realize that he's saying this for the sake of continuity, to eliminate the inconsistencies, but just saying that "this novel is based on the musical version of POTO, not Leroux's novel" would be a much more honest approach, as well as a more sympathetic one. As it is, one gets an impression of incredible arrogance which is impossible to shake off during the rest of the book. As if this wasn't enough, Forsyth says some unnecessary and downright mean things about Leroux's writing. I am not opposed to literary criticism, but the foreword of a pastiche is not the proper place for it. Besides, most of Forsyth's opinions seem more like childish nitpicking than anything else ("The weight of the chandelier was SEVEN tons, ha!" is not what I'd call an astute remark).

In short, the writer is no novelist (and, apparently, neither is ALW who helped Forsyth come up with the plot), this book is no novel (it's a commercial ad for a musical that, mercifully, never saw the light of day), there is no plot but that is no reason not to read Phantom of Manhattan for a few laughs and to boost your self-confidence by saying to yourself "I could do better than that!" (and you'd be right, you probably could!). But whatever you do, borrow, don't buy!

Forsyth, supposedly with Andrew Lloyd-Webber's collaboration, imagines what would have happened if the Phantom of the Opera escaped to New York in the late 1800s becomming rich and powerful. A deathbed letter from Antoinette Giry, the woman who sprung a sixteen-year-old Erik Mullheim from a freak show and sheltered him in the Paris Opera House, reveals that he sired a son in his one night with Christine Daae, now one of two top divas in Europe.

Christine comes to New York in 1906 to open the new Manhattan Opera House secretly bankrolled by Erik. Fast forward to 1940 when a reporter who became part of the story in 1906 is now telling a Columbia Journalism School class what happened and how it ended setting up a corny but well delivered finale.

Note the sharp contrast between the handful of Amazon reviews of the audio version vs. the close to 100 reviews that panned the book. The use of a dozen professional narrators, many once well known actors, adds considerable energy to the different segments of the story and made the audiobook work. When I saw it on a [stores] discount table, I had no idea what I was buying. It definitely was worth the shot.

Frederick Forsyth has written a continuation of the Andrew Lloyd Webber production of "Phantom of the Opera." This is the story of what happened after Erik fled the opera house.

If you get this book and wish to understand it better, read the preface. Many of the people who gave their reviews obviously did not because he states that he continues where Webber left off.

This book is based on a variety of narratives, including Erik's. It makes it very different in following the story. Indeed, I like what Forsyth did. The viewpoints allow us to see it unfolding in many different ways yet the story continues to march forward. I found that it did not drag at all.

I do give it (and the Webber production) a big "Hurrah!" for letting Erik be something more than a deformed "monster." Far too long (and even continuing today) people who don't add up to society's idea of beautiful have been shunned and considered to be stupid. Erik has proven them all wrong. The nice part of Webber's production and this book is that it left all of the original book's ideas that he was a monster because he was different behind. Both Forsyth's book and Webber's production show him as more of a tragic figure, cut off of everything that he truly has a right to simply by virtue of being a human being.

If you love the Webber production and feel that being different shouldn't label someone a monster, then this book I think you'll like.