I picked up The Phantom of the Opera as a free B&N eBook download and I definitely don't regret it. Particularly since I enjoy the musical, I enjoyed seeing the differences between the two. There were a great many, which I will not specifically delve into. The book operates on the same premise and follows the same general storyline, but some of the plot events occur in a different order. There is more complexity in the story, and it becomes evident that many characters were omitted or melded for the purposes of the musical. Where the musical is a love-story, the book is much more a mystery novel.

All in all, it was quite enjoyable to read and I recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the musical or has the fancy to read it. It's not a waste of reading time by any means.