Title: Echoes of a Song (Legacy of the Mask Tales)
Author: A. L. Butcher
Genre: Fantasy, Dark Fantasy, Short Story
Book Blurb:
A dozen tumultuous years after the dramatic events at the Paris Opera House Raoul, Comte de Chagny is still haunted by the mysterious Opera Ghost – the creature of legend who held staff at the Opera House under his thrall, kidnapped Raoul’s lover and murdered his brother. In Raoul’s troubled imagination the ghosts of the past are everywhere, and a strange and powerful music still calls in his dreams.
Madness, obsession and the legacy of the past weave their spell in this short, tragic tale based on the Phantom of the Opera.
Approx 8000 words
My Review:
Everyone knows what took place ten years ago in the famed Paris Opera House but Raoul, Comte de Chagny, might not have escaped with Christine in the middle of the night if he knew the consequences. His beloved Christine is dead and the Phantom of the Opera still haunts his every move. Grief-stricken, he faces the truth: she never really loved him. Can he drown the ghost taunting his every thought or will he relinquish final victory to the Phantom of the Opera?
Wow! I’m a huge fan of The Phantom of the Opera and in this short story, A. L. Butcher embodies Gaston Leroux’s voice. Haunting, is the first word that comes to mind after reading. The emotions Raoul projects as he realizes the truth of the curse is so painful, I cried as I read the last page.
If you love this classic novel and the musical brought to live by Andrew Lloyd Webber, this short story is a must-read. Highly recommend!
My Rating: 5+ stars
Buy it Now:
Universal Link https://books2read.com/Echoesofasong
Author Biography:
British-born Alexandra Butcher (a/k/a A. L. Butcher) is an avid reader and creator of worlds, a poet, and a dreamer, a lover of science, natural history, history, and monkeys. Her prose has been described as ‘dark and gritty’ and her poetry as evocative. She writes with a sure and sometimes erotic sensibility of things that might have been, never were, but could be.
Alex is the author of the Light Beyond the Storm Chronicles and the Tales of Erana lyrical fantasy series. She also has several short stories in the fantasy, fantasy romance genres with occasional forays into gothic style horror and historical fiction. With a background in politics, classical studies, ancient history and myth, her affinities bring an eclectic and unique flavour in her work, mixing reality and dream in alchemical proportions that bring her characters and worlds to life.
Her short novella Outside the Walls, co-written with Diana L. Wicker received a Chill with a Book Reader’s Award in 2017.
Social Media Links:
Facebook Author Page https://www.facebook.com/LightBeyondtheStorm/
Goodreads http://bit.ly/GR2iqokvK
Library of Erana Blog http://bit.ly/Blog2iAWL3o
Pinterest https://www.pinterest.co.uk/abmonkey/
Reviewed by: Mrs. N