Cry to Heaven

Rating:
Summary: Historically thrilling!!
Review: I must admit, I have never found vampires to be a topic of particular interest for me, and so my interest in the books of Anne Rice has been very recent. But through reading about this book, it snagged my musical and historical interests, and so I encourage critical and accurate reviews!

Cry To Heaven is the story of a young nobleman named Tonio who discovers a dark family secret and is then dispelled and castrated before he comes of age to hurl him away from the House of Treshi into the world of the castrati singers. Tonio, while being perhaps the most marvelous singer in all of Naples and possibly of all time, seeks patiently his own quest also, that of revenge. The story also follows Guido, a composer/teacher once singer of the castrati with talent like Tonio's who lost his voice, and so his passion for opera ends up being Tonio's voice. Passion and love, however, grow between these two who struggle towards their musical goal, from the dimly lit studio at the conservatorio to the operas in Naples, to the Contessa's ball to the stage in Rome. As for Tonio's revenge... read the book.

Just having read the book "Cry To Heaven", I have several comments on controversial or not so controversial points in many reviews. Firstly, the book is very lavish in description in places, while being quite skeletal in others (that is to say, mostly action narrative), but one never notices the latter because even then, there is a great wealth of detail described between the lines if you let your imagination flourish. I myself am a great fan of a historical fictional novel and this is an unusual, and not often dealt-with topic to choose. However, as a singer who is currently soprano and a student of music, I find this book to be delightful in that way. I found myself quite swept away to the spectacles of Italian opera, and rich clothing, to the drearier moments, in sight and sound.

There are bits and pieces of this book that can be disturbing and a reader should be forewarned of. One is the incest in the house of Treschi, from which Tonio, the main protagonist, is from. Another are the strong themes of sexuality here and there in the book, due to the disabled yet sexually functional genderless castrati. I am not one to endorse homosexuality or bisexuality, or any sexuality, but in this book, it seems well-twined with the other problems as these singers grow up and therefore I do not condemn it either. Not much is peculiarly graphic so don't bother getting the smelling salts. Religion, also, is brought in, highly Catholic, and adds an extra bit of intrigue to the story, though used a little inappropriately at one point. The combination of these potentially disturbing topics quite knocks the 5th star off the the rating.

But historically, from names of composers to opera setbuilders to great singers and teachers in italy, to even the training methods of music, there is great accuracy in this book which to me makes it a gem, though I think it begins a bit slow. *BUT* for the reader in the world of music, history, or who merely likes a realistic intrigue story with a little romance in it, it is a recommended read.

Rating:
Summary: SOME OF RICE'S BEST WORK
Review: This is wonderfully written book, touching a period and aspect of history seldom mentioned or noted. Rice's touching portrayal of the Castrati is done in an honest and understanding manner. She has done a wonderul job with her research. There is much to learn from this work. There were events and actions in our history that my make us uncomfortable, but they were real, and we should know of them, if for no other reason, to prevent them from happening again. As a side note, I absolutely broke down and laughed at some of the reviewers who were, if not homophobic, then close to it, rave on and on about Rice's vampire epics, then write lines of disgust in reference to the "unnatural sexual act" discussed in this book. Like sucking blood out of a persons neck is "natural. Folks, give it a break. This is a story based on historical fact..give is a rest.
I do hope we get more stuff from Rice of this quality. Thank you Ms Rice.

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Beautiful
Review: I do consider myself a Rice afficiando and of course, I had been wanting to read this for some time. This novel was utterly beautiful. Words can not even describe the beauty that I had found in this novel. Tonio is one of the most intriguing characters that I have ever read about. The confusion of being a eunuch is captured in every paragraph of this novel. A wonderful read full of breathtaking descriptions. One of Rice's best.

Rating:
Summary: LUSCIOUS!!!
Review: This is a great book. Probably the best thing Ann Rice has ever written. I used to collect her books-- the vampire chronicles, and all the books of the Mayfair witches, even her pornographic rendition of Sleeping Beauty (the whole series--yuck!) I liked her use of language and imagery. I still do, but I grew up. I picked up this book to read on a long road trip and once I started, I couldn't stop. This book moved me. It is beautifully written. Just absolutely stunning. You won't find any witches or blood suckers in here, just a very, very, good story.

Rating:
Summary: A (not) very helpful review... :P
Review: I finished this book very quickly, as I could not seem to put it down. I have nothing much else to add as others have already said it. A book worth reading, but not if you can't handle reading about men loving men. There are those out there who would trash this book simply because of that and I find that sad.