Inspirations

Wondering what inspired the RoseBlood story?


Just like all things Alice, I've always been a huge PotO fan. From the time I first discovered Gaston Leroux’s The Phantom of the Opera in high school, I was captivated by the tragic, dangerous, and often sardonically humorous anti-hero, Erik. I can't get enough of Leroux's novel, the movies, and the musical. And since my AiW spinoff was so well received, it gave me the confidence to tackle the Phantom's spinoff possibilities, something I had been toying with in my imagination even before I wrote Splintered. 

I've seen other adaptations of The Phantom—a lot of them actually—and one prequel that I adore (Phantom by Susan Kay) but not many spinoffs or continuations. I wanted to make mine contemporary yet somehow bind it to the original, like I'd done with Splintered and AiW. So I decided to set my Phantom tale in Paris at an opera house that was tied in some way to the opera house in the book—have it renovated into a music conservatory for juniors and seniors. After mentally twisting and twining the original backstory into the here and now—I fell in love with Erik's maniacal brilliance and wit, broken soul, and talent all over again. I wanted him to actually play a role in the book ... to give him a modern stage on which to perform, where he could unleash new horrors upon one unfortunate student who's sent to the opera-themed boarding school in hopes to cure the illness that affects her each time she sings. 

In order to do this, I had to re-imagine Erik's death at the end of Leroux's original book. Maybe he didn't die after all. Maybe he faked his death and somehow lived underground, isolated and undetected for over a century. But how could he have survived so long? Also, I had to decide what would be powerful enough to lure the Phantom to resurface in modern day Paris. There were only two things I could think of: (1) To rescue someone being mistreated as he once was. And (2) Christine. But how to explain her role after over 100 years? 

When you read RoseBlood, you'll see how I addressed these speculations and answered these questions, weaving them into a new dark, romantic, and atmospheric tale that pays tribute and builds on the original masterpiece. 

Want to know more? 

Here's a list of tour reveal posts that delve deeper into the characters, setting, scene, and even the cover art:

Stories & Sweeties - Meet the characters behind the masks (INTL prizes at this stop!)

Two Chicks on Books - Checkout the musical inspirations for specific scenes at this RoseBlood playlist reveal

Seeing Double In Neverland - Explore the maniacal history of the Phantom: Little known facts about the original novel

Dark Faerie Tales - Cover evolution and final book jacket reveal 

Bookemoji - Read the entire first chapter, starting here

A.G. Howard's blog - Morpheus drops by to spotlight what he likes and/or dislikes about RoseBlood's aesthetics.

And for visuals that inspired RoseBlood, visit the official pinterest board.