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The Angel's Shadow
"You consider yourself to be a creature of light... but you long for the darkness. It's where you belong. It's who you are... Do you not think I recognise the parts of a soul that mirror my own?"
Meg Giry grew up with tales of the Opera Ghost, a spectral being said to haunt the Paris Opera House. But when he rescues her from rape in the streets of Paris, Meg learns that the stories are true, that the Ghost —also known as the Phantom of the Opera— is a real man, with his sights set on her best friend, Christine Daaé. Despite being warned to stay away, Meg is drawn deeper into a world that has remained secret for years, her life becoming inextricably linked with the dark and mysterious Erik, and is forced to confront the darkness that lurks within her own past, finding herself always in the shadow of an Angel of Music...
Meg Giry grew up with tales of the Opera Ghost, a spectral being said to haunt the Paris Opera House. But when he rescues her from rape in the streets of Paris, Meg learns that the stories are true, that the Ghost —also known as the Phantom of the Opera— is a real man, with his sights set on her best friend, Christine Daaé. Despite being warned to stay away, Meg is drawn deeper into a world that has remained secret for years, her life becoming inextricably linked with the dark and mysterious Erik, and is forced to confront the darkness that lurks within her own past, finding herself always in the shadow of an Angel of Music...
- GenresRetellings
326 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 21, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 8, 2015
From the Militant Recommender Book Review Blog
http://militantrecommender.blogspot.com/
Me and My Shadow: "The Angel's Shadow" by Louise Anne Bateman
In Louise Anne Bateman's The Angel's Shadow Meg comes out of the fiction shadows to take her place as the star of this very intriguing retelling of the Phantom's story. This Meg is a girl of contradictions. On the one hand, she is caught up in the world of ballet and the opera, a loyal friend and confidant to Christine Daae' and a loving daughter to her single Mom, ballet mistress and concierge of the Paris Opera House, Madame Antoinette Giry. But on the other, she is fighting off a darkness she doesn't quite understand, and is also a girl who acts on her impulses.
One impulse was to sneak out of the safety of the Opera House one night to meet a man she doesn't really know. When this man attempts to have his way with her... someone steps out of the shadows and rescues her. Part of this rescue is the dark figure taking care of business by murdering the potential rapist. She is grateful, but a bit concerned at the loss of life. Who is this man who was willing to kill for her? As she begins to realize that the rumors and gossip about the Opera Ghost who haunts the hidden recesses of the Opera House is, in fact, a reality, and that both Christine and her mother have connections to this Phantom, her curiosity gets the better of her, and we follow Meg as she uncovers these secrets... and so much more! For the Erik who has saved her, might also hurt her in ways she can't imagine, and yet, she finds herself continuously drawn to this dark and damaged man. And you, dear reader, will be, too! Let me just say that I am looking forward to book 2! Which I hope will be very, very soon!
http://militantrecommender.blogspot.com/
Me and My Shadow: "The Angel's Shadow" by Louise Anne Bateman
In Louise Anne Bateman's The Angel's Shadow Meg comes out of the fiction shadows to take her place as the star of this very intriguing retelling of the Phantom's story. This Meg is a girl of contradictions. On the one hand, she is caught up in the world of ballet and the opera, a loyal friend and confidant to Christine Daae' and a loving daughter to her single Mom, ballet mistress and concierge of the Paris Opera House, Madame Antoinette Giry. But on the other, she is fighting off a darkness she doesn't quite understand, and is also a girl who acts on her impulses.
One impulse was to sneak out of the safety of the Opera House one night to meet a man she doesn't really know. When this man attempts to have his way with her... someone steps out of the shadows and rescues her. Part of this rescue is the dark figure taking care of business by murdering the potential rapist. She is grateful, but a bit concerned at the loss of life. Who is this man who was willing to kill for her? As she begins to realize that the rumors and gossip about the Opera Ghost who haunts the hidden recesses of the Opera House is, in fact, a reality, and that both Christine and her mother have connections to this Phantom, her curiosity gets the better of her, and we follow Meg as she uncovers these secrets... and so much more! For the Erik who has saved her, might also hurt her in ways she can't imagine, and yet, she finds herself continuously drawn to this dark and damaged man. And you, dear reader, will be, too! Let me just say that I am looking forward to book 2! Which I hope will be very, very soon!
June 7, 2019
A aggressive Erik, Yes please!
This is my first book by this author. I’ve been meaning to read this one for a while now and never got to it. But, I’m happy that I did because I could barely put this one down because it was so truly interesting seeing the story take place in Meg’s point of view.
The writing was very good. So descriptive and crisp and keeping it so interesting and easy to read. This was an excellent change in point of you because usually people love writing about Christine and it is rare that Megan actually gets her own book. The book simply tells a retelling that can be placed in the musical. But I love how this after truly craft together some pieces of the original book that started it all into her story! As I said I really had fun reading this one and it was a fun change of pace compared to all of the other books on here especially with the aggressiveness of the phantom which a lot of authors cut a lot of it out but no not this author. She writes his character just perfect and aggressive which is totally cannon. Because, it is true, Erik is not a sappy romantic hero like everyone thinks he is. It runs down deep about how aggressive he is and how many people he’s willing to step on in order to get what he wants. But I found his character to be charming for what it was and he was just wonderfully aggressive and it was just amazing that an author was just not afraid to go there with him!
And of course the main character, Meg, she is quite traumatized from a horrible past that she had but she is still a strong character willing to take up for her self and yet, she breaks down whenever reminded of those times. And, it was quite awesome seeing her relationship with the phantom even though some of it was good and some of it was bad. But it was always wonderful how she started to care for a man that was highly aggressive and threatens both her and her mother. She knows of the dangers and it also talks about her relationship with Christine her mother and Erik!
Christine, my gosh, she’s not my favorite character but This author made me appreciate her character. Sure she was a bit oblivious to the fact that her Angel was indeed a man. But she started to grow a backbone as the story went on even know if the story was not about her but, it brought a new view to her with Meg’s point of view!
Erik, ah yes, The person that we mainly read for. Well, in this story he’s not a sappy lonely romantic soul. But instead, he is a very mind boggling man that will not be afraid to strike people down if they ever get in his way. Man or woman, don’t get in his way! But he has a certain charm to him once Meg starts warming up to him and they both share like a father daughter bond I think. But if you definitely want to read a romantic ‘Kissy Kissy’ Erik then you might want to pass this book up! As I said before I give props to the author for making him into the madman we know and love and we pity.
But this was a great change of pace and, I will definitely be buying the next book in the series. This book was so great! It was one of those books that I did not want it to end because I wanted to see how everything was going to end up. This is not a romance by any means but, it is enjoyable on its own just by being a point of you by Meg having her feelings and input! But I wonder where the relationship is going to be in the next book, I was wondering what’s going to happen to the characters by the end and, I’m definitely going to have to buy the second book of this. I highly recommend this to other fans!
This is my first book by this author. I’ve been meaning to read this one for a while now and never got to it. But, I’m happy that I did because I could barely put this one down because it was so truly interesting seeing the story take place in Meg’s point of view.
The writing was very good. So descriptive and crisp and keeping it so interesting and easy to read. This was an excellent change in point of you because usually people love writing about Christine and it is rare that Megan actually gets her own book. The book simply tells a retelling that can be placed in the musical. But I love how this after truly craft together some pieces of the original book that started it all into her story! As I said I really had fun reading this one and it was a fun change of pace compared to all of the other books on here especially with the aggressiveness of the phantom which a lot of authors cut a lot of it out but no not this author. She writes his character just perfect and aggressive which is totally cannon. Because, it is true, Erik is not a sappy romantic hero like everyone thinks he is. It runs down deep about how aggressive he is and how many people he’s willing to step on in order to get what he wants. But I found his character to be charming for what it was and he was just wonderfully aggressive and it was just amazing that an author was just not afraid to go there with him!
And of course the main character, Meg, she is quite traumatized from a horrible past that she had but she is still a strong character willing to take up for her self and yet, she breaks down whenever reminded of those times. And, it was quite awesome seeing her relationship with the phantom even though some of it was good and some of it was bad. But it was always wonderful how she started to care for a man that was highly aggressive and threatens both her and her mother. She knows of the dangers and it also talks about her relationship with Christine her mother and Erik!
Christine, my gosh, she’s not my favorite character but This author made me appreciate her character. Sure she was a bit oblivious to the fact that her Angel was indeed a man. But she started to grow a backbone as the story went on even know if the story was not about her but, it brought a new view to her with Meg’s point of view!
Erik, ah yes, The person that we mainly read for. Well, in this story he’s not a sappy lonely romantic soul. But instead, he is a very mind boggling man that will not be afraid to strike people down if they ever get in his way. Man or woman, don’t get in his way! But he has a certain charm to him once Meg starts warming up to him and they both share like a father daughter bond I think. But if you definitely want to read a romantic ‘Kissy Kissy’ Erik then you might want to pass this book up! As I said before I give props to the author for making him into the madman we know and love and we pity.
But this was a great change of pace and, I will definitely be buying the next book in the series. This book was so great! It was one of those books that I did not want it to end because I wanted to see how everything was going to end up. This is not a romance by any means but, it is enjoyable on its own just by being a point of you by Meg having her feelings and input! But I wonder where the relationship is going to be in the next book, I was wondering what’s going to happen to the characters by the end and, I’m definitely going to have to buy the second book of this. I highly recommend this to other fans!
September 15, 2017
Deformed genius preys on girls with daddy issues
We Phans know the Phantom. Consistently in every book, play, or movie version, he's a murdering, kidnapping, manipulative, obsessed genius with anger management issues and yet... So appealing that we swoon. (There's just something about a bad boy that makes our hearts race; Raoul doesn't inspire the same reaction.)
Yet, even by the above rather harsh description, this Phantom is colder, crueler, and angrier. Understandable? Perhaps, given his secluded life & background. One brief scene of animal abuse and consistently commanding obedience from Meg & Christine by grabbing & threatening them seems extreme and excessively harsh.
The story is told from Meg's viewpoint, a nice touch. She & Christine are best friends due to a love of song & dance, as well as both of their deep-seated daddy issues. The Phantom - Erik, if we may be on a first name basis - uses this weakness in both of them to his advantage. He alternately helps Meg and snarls his contempt, and she keeps coming back for more. (Seriously, daddy issues down to Erik wearing the same cologne.)
A too-heavy reliance on the musical's lyrics grew thin, given my tendency to mentally sing them when I read them. Other sections were slightly altered, but still close enough to have me singing the musical version. I would have preferred the author's own take on it with a slight nod here or there, as seemed present in nods to Leroux's version.
Overall a very well-crafted tale; I speedily read through to the conclusion and am hoping for the promised sequel.
We Phans know the Phantom. Consistently in every book, play, or movie version, he's a murdering, kidnapping, manipulative, obsessed genius with anger management issues and yet... So appealing that we swoon. (There's just something about a bad boy that makes our hearts race; Raoul doesn't inspire the same reaction.)
Yet, even by the above rather harsh description, this Phantom is colder, crueler, and angrier. Understandable? Perhaps, given his secluded life & background. One brief scene of animal abuse and consistently commanding obedience from Meg & Christine by grabbing & threatening them seems extreme and excessively harsh.
The story is told from Meg's viewpoint, a nice touch. She & Christine are best friends due to a love of song & dance, as well as both of their deep-seated daddy issues. The Phantom - Erik, if we may be on a first name basis - uses this weakness in both of them to his advantage. He alternately helps Meg and snarls his contempt, and she keeps coming back for more. (Seriously, daddy issues down to Erik wearing the same cologne.)
A too-heavy reliance on the musical's lyrics grew thin, given my tendency to mentally sing them when I read them. Other sections were slightly altered, but still close enough to have me singing the musical version. I would have preferred the author's own take on it with a slight nod here or there, as seemed present in nods to Leroux's version.
Overall a very well-crafted tale; I speedily read through to the conclusion and am hoping for the promised sequel.
October 11, 2019
Well, this was different. Told from Megs POV I found it difficult, fascinating, vicious, dangerous.
Meg, getting herself into trouble, is saved by the Phantom. She is both terrified and grateful. But now she knows he’s there she can’t let it be.
Erik is dark, he’s also Erik... beautiful, hideous, angry, contemptuous and desperate for love.
Meg is also desperate for love, she sees Erik as maybe a father. In fact at one point she wonders if he is her father. But no.
It’s interesting to see Megs POV. She is horribly innocent yet worldly. She is treated with contempt, has very little love given to her. Until Christine comes. In Christine she has a sister. But Erik has seen Christine too...
Four stars only because I prefer more focus on Christine. The writing is top notch.
Meg, getting herself into trouble, is saved by the Phantom. She is both terrified and grateful. But now she knows he’s there she can’t let it be.
Erik is dark, he’s also Erik... beautiful, hideous, angry, contemptuous and desperate for love.
Meg is also desperate for love, she sees Erik as maybe a father. In fact at one point she wonders if he is her father. But no.
It’s interesting to see Megs POV. She is horribly innocent yet worldly. She is treated with contempt, has very little love given to her. Until Christine comes. In Christine she has a sister. But Erik has seen Christine too...
Four stars only because I prefer more focus on Christine. The writing is top notch.
June 8, 2021
SPOILER ALERT!!!
When an author kills an animal, that author has lost me. I was about 14% into this book & frankly, wasn't all that impressed, when the Phantom butchers the Opera House's cat. That did it for me. I was done. So while this book is marked "read" I didn't actually finish it.
When an author kills an animal, that author has lost me. I was about 14% into this book & frankly, wasn't all that impressed, when the Phantom butchers the Opera House's cat. That did it for me. I was done. So while this book is marked "read" I didn't actually finish it.
December 28, 2024
Not a romance, more of a mystery/thriller vibe.
This is an interesting “twist” on the Phantom of Opera musical/book/movie. The story is told from the perspective of Meg Giry and she takes you through events that happen before the start of musical to during to after the story is done.
This is an interesting “twist” on the Phantom of Opera musical/book/movie. The story is told from the perspective of Meg Giry and she takes you through events that happen before the start of musical to during to after the story is done.
September 26, 2020
Loved reading this in megs perspective
Can’t wait to read the 2nd book !! I loved the characters and how Erik is portrayed in this book.
Can’t wait to read the 2nd book !! I loved the characters and how Erik is portrayed in this book.
June 6, 2015
I enjoyed this book very much. An all new re-telling of a familiar tale, Meg truly comes into her own as a character who is both wary of the Phantom, yet inexorably drawn to him. Despite many warnings from the ghost himself--who, for some reason, seems to have a genuine interest in her welfare--she cannot seem to conquer her curiosity enough to stay away.
In addition to developing Meg's character, Ms Bateman writes Erik in a hauntingly intriguing, and very much "in character" way, and she gives us an fresh glimpse into the relationship between Erik and Madame Giry.
The Angel's Shadow is a very satisfying read, which will leave you clamoring for the next book in the series.
In addition to developing Meg's character, Ms Bateman writes Erik in a hauntingly intriguing, and very much "in character" way, and she gives us an fresh glimpse into the relationship between Erik and Madame Giry.
The Angel's Shadow is a very satisfying read, which will leave you clamoring for the next book in the series.
November 28, 2015
Fills in the gaps from the opera
Great Story, good insights and a better understanding of Erik. Can't wait to read the squeal. This is one of the ones I keep in my library.
Great Story, good insights and a better understanding of Erik. Can't wait to read the squeal. This is one of the ones I keep in my library.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews