The Phantom of the Opera

Description

Strange things are going on at the Paris Opera House; a mysterious phantom - a skeleton in dinner dress - is wreaking havoc amongst the singers and backstage staff. But when new managers take over and dismiss the rumours of the Opera Ghost, the terror really begins. Who is the curious figure stalking the stage at night? How can he be in so many places at once, entering and leaving locked rooms at will? And what is his connection to the beautiful and talented young soloist, Christine? The Phantom of the Opera is perhaps best known for its many stage and screen adaptations, but Gaston Leroux's original text surpasses them all for its gothic tension and haunting horror. With an afterword by Peter Harness. Designed to appeal to the booklover, Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautifully bound hardback gift editions of much loved classic titles. Bound in real cloth, printed on high quality paper, and featuring ribbon markers and gilt edges, Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.

Gaston Leroux was born in Paris in 1868. He grew up on the Normandy coast, where he developed a passion for fishing and sailing. He qualified as a lawyer but, upon his father's death, he received a large inheritance and left the law to become a writer. He first found fame as an investigative reporter on L'Echo de Paris and travelled the world in a variety of disguises, reporting on a wide range of topics from volcanic eruptions to palace revolutions. In 1907, he changed career once again and started work as a novelist, finding critical and commercial success with works such as The Mystery of the Yellow Room (1907) and The Phantom of the Opera (1911). Leroux continued to be a prolific writer until his death in 1927.