Rating: Summary: By far, the best Ann Rice has written to date. Review: I am an avid Ann Rice fan. I have read virtually EVERYTHING this author has written, even the work under the pen name, Ann Rampling. Although there are few of her books that I have not read in one sitting; spell-binding as they were, I have not enjoyed any of them as much as I enjoyed Cry to Heaven. This book is vastly different from her Mayfair Witches or Vampire Chronicles work. The story gives a historical perspective of the Italian castrati; a group of young boys who showed musical promise. At around age eight or so, they would be castrated, against their wills, and taken to monastaries; living their lives in the development of their musical careers which started out as being singers for the Pope and which hopefully led them to the Italian opera houses. The story weaves its way sensually into the life of one such young boy and follows him into adulthood where he achieves the highest level of honour for a castrati, singing in the most prestigeous opera houses of the day. He is the toast of the Italian opera world but his soul is tortured. This book is one of only a very few which I have read and re-read any number of times. It is a delight for the reader who enjoys sensuality with a taste of history. Of note is the fact that there are actual recordings of the main character available to further enhance one's understanding of the world of the Italian castrati and their contribution to the musical world. This book is a must-read for Rice fans and is too often passed over because it does not belong to any of the "series" types. What a mistake to ignore it!
Rating: Summary: Absolutely beautiful, captivating, emotional Review: I had never read any of Anne Rice's books before. When I picked this book up, I didn't know what to expect. I became so engrossed in this novel and it became and will always be one of my all-time favorite books. I didn't want it to end! Anne Rice did some wonderful research for the story. The character development is fabulous and her description of everything brings the reader into the book and feels what the characters feel, sees what the characters see. I love this book. I think people that call this a "homosexual" book are wrong. It is not about gay people, it is about humans and real emotions, real sexuality, and the need to be loved. The book is very realistic for the era and it is very historically accurate. The book made me want to learn more about the castrati.
Rating: Summary: Anne Rice's stand-alone masterpiece! Review: Let me add my enthusiastic "bravo!" to the list. Read this book! This novel is a wonderful tale of music and the passion of lives fully lived...and the pain to which that fullness is wed. What thrilling, erotic read. This is the story of an 18th century castrato who is torn between getting revenge against those who mutilated him...or rising above that-- with his angelic voice and impossible good looks-- to become Italy's next opera star. Rice steeped her novel in betrayal, obsession, the drive for revenge, the lust for power, and the need of a astarved soul to find love. But beyond all these "bodice-ripper" adjectives, Cry to Heaven is at its heart an unflinching character study of a man who has his manhood stolen from him, and of how his mind has to twist in on itself to cope with this loss. Ms. Rice's protagonist, Tonio Treschi is wonderfully nuanced, and we get to see into his tortured soul at every step of his journey-- from the confused and unfocused pain of being castrated, to the cold, focused revenge on the one responsible. Masterful! Add to this the lush backdrop of the intrigue of the opera scene in Naples, Venice, Milan and Rome...well, this is truly a feast. And I ate every morsel. After reading this novel, you'll felt like you've earned a PhD in musicology, opera seria, and Italian political history-- it's that detailed. But the details NEVER bog down the story, just make it richer and richer. Again, bravo, bravo Anne Rice!
Rating: Summary: Did not want it to end! Review: An amazing book! You will not want it to end. I keep looking to pick it up again to read. You will fall in love with the main character, Tonio. Anne Rice describes 18th century Italy and the castrato in a way that will bring you back to that time. You can feel what her characters are feeling, you can picture Italy as it was back then. Please do not think you have to be an Anne Rice fan to enjoy this book. It is nothing like her vampire chronicles. There are some pretty graphic sex scenes in it, but I think they actual help to make you understand who the characters are and what they feel. It would be a shame for any avid reader to miss this book. It is definitely one to add to your collection.
Rating: Summary: The best writing Anne Rice ever did! Review: I read just about everything Anne Rice has written up to the past 3 years, and this novel is my absolute favorite. It is totally unique and fresh. She takes the voice of a male protagonist, and makes the character so real, so vital, that this poignant story will never leave you. Whether you, the reader, are male or female, you MUST identify with this character. Incredibly sensuous description, and stirringly erotic scenes do not make this a seamy book, but give depth and reality to it. I am amazed and moved by the depth of the author's imaginative empathy portraying this life in another time and essentially another world.
Rating: Summary: The One to Read Review: I have read all of Anne's books and rate this number one. While I love the vampire and witches series, a Cry to Heaven is a superior writing style and a story that will keep you hooked.
Rating: Summary: an addictive little thing Review: This is the written equivilant of "The Jerry Springer Show". Every ten pages (or every ten lines if it's during a homoromantic love triangle -- it doesn't matter that they're eunuchs; this is Anne Rice), you ask yourself, "Why am I reading this sheist?" But you keep on reading anyway. Though some may find the author's treatment of gender (psychological vs. biological, mainly) amusing, my favorite aspect of this book is Tonio's surreal life after being, ahem, snipped. How does the mind adapt to such a change in the body, and what of the man survives that trauma? The author's answers to these questions take a few hundred pages, but they're fascinating answers. Though Freud would have probably considered the sword to be a phallic symbol, it's remarkable just how far the author carries this symbolism. The way the protagonist balances a life of castrati opera and swordfighting isn't, in sum, androgynous; it's something far more complex than that. Overall, the history is well researched; Rice stretches it by making a fifteen year-old into a eunuch (most singers would be castrated well before puberty), but that's not technically impossible, just improbable. Her writing and plot at times mimic the melodrama of an Italian opera, but it's no cheesier than those goth vampires in her other books, and the fact that it's based in reality is refreshing.
Rating: Summary: Fascinating Story about Castrati Review: As a former music student, I have always been fascinated by Castrati and their historical importance. I loved the movie Farinelli, and when I heard about this book I thought I would give it a read. I found Anne Rice's 'Vampire Chronicles' a bit hard to get into, but did not have the same problem with this book. It is erotic, historical, dramatic, and just plain interesting. Totally worth a read--even if you haven't enjoyed other Anne Rice works.
Rating: Summary: Guess what? No vampires Review: Anne Rice's historically accurate novel, Cry to Heaven, is set in Rome during an era when a papal ban prohibited women from performing on stage. The inevitable substitute, men who were capable of singing soprano roles in opera, were the castrati, castrated boys whose voices would never change to that of men. In Rice's novel, we are privy to the life, study, and hard work of the castrato student: vocal exercises, music lessons, technical exercises, and the proper wearing of the black tunic with the red sash and the black ribbon at the neck which identified them as castrati - and finally, the stage performance. Ann Rice is a complex, complicated, multi-talented writer with a wide range of talents and interests. This one, I believe, is unique.
Rating: Summary: Excellent Review: The characters and emotions are so real. I loved this book. I feel it is Anne Rice's best. You become completely immersed in the world she describes. The story is exciting, moving, arousing, and dark. I highly reccommend this book. Tonio, the main character, has become my favorite character of any book I have ever read. I love Tonio! And you will enjoy reading and following along on his journey.
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