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The Count of Monte Cristo
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The Count of Monte Cristo
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The Count of Monte Cristo
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The Count of Monte Cristo

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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About this ebook

Originally published in 1844, The Count of Monte Cristo is one of the most well-known adventure tales of all time, and its story has formed the basis for dozens of films, television shows and adaptations alone. For nearly a century and a half, Dumas’ book has enjoyed worldwide success and name recognition.

Set in early 19th century France, Edmond Dantès is framed as a Bonapartist traitor, and sentenced to fourteen years in prison. In jail, he befriends a man who tells him of a treasure on the island on Monte Cristo. Following a daring escape, Dantès recovers the treasure and purchases the island as well as the title of Count. Disguised, he uses his new fortune to take revenge on the men who betrayed him.

In this faithful reproduction, The Count of Monte Cristo is published for the first time by Skyhorse Publishing, still proving to be one of the canons of adventure literature. Accompanying the text is a new introduction by New York Times bestselling author Tim Green, whose thriller Exact Revenge is a modern-day retelling of Dumas’s classic. Rediscover the story that Robert Louis Stevenson called “a piece of perfect storytelling.”

Editor's Note

Riches & revenge…

Swashbuckling. Adventure. Injustice. Disguise. Riches. Revenge. Add to all that the chance for love and redemption. What’s not to like? Even at a Rubenesque-size, this classic is a page-turner that merits reading again and again.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateAug 1, 2013
ISBN9781626365063
Author

Alexandre Dumas

Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870) was one of the literary lights of France during the Romantic Revolution, his complete works eventually filling over three hundred volumes. George Bernard Shaw described him as "one of the best storytellers…that ever lived." The Man in the Iron Mask and The Three Musketeers are available from Brilliance Audio.

Read more from Alexandre Dumas

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Reviews for The Count of Monte Cristo

Rating: 4.325291038158795 out of 5 stars
4.5/5

5,844 ratings173 reviews

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  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    when I was younger I recall liking it. I wouldn't say 'loved' it. I did love 'The Three Muskateers'. this story was a little outlandish for me. OMG my roomate's last-night's-stand just woke up in his room. she makes good sex sounds. ive never seen her face. just heard her get off. strange.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I so was not expecting this book to so... fun. It is a near perfect book for what it is - drama, love, action, revenge, kindness, absurdity. You should totally read this book.Don't be afraid of the label of classic! Or that it is about a man in prison who escapes and gets revenge on those who put him there. Its not a dark story at all. It reminds me an Errol Flynn movie - where everybody is exactly what they seem, the good guys win, the bad guys get punished, and everybody lives the life they deserve at the end.But, the book isn't perfect - there is some aspects that are quite a stretch to believe. For example, Dante become an educated man by talking to a priest in the next cell over. Or how a ship was completely recreated, cargo and all. Or how the Count has a seemingly unending supply of money. There are a few ethical issues that will cause modern audiences some trepidation. The Count has a few slaves, even though slavery is illegal in France. Or his treatment of Mercedes - was she really suppose to wait for him for all the years he was gone?
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    A flawed yet still worthwhile masterpiece that shows the prowess of Dumas in creating a character that seems, and feels, real.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Finally finished this, really good read much better than the three musketeers.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The Count of Monte Cristo is a classic story of betrayal and revenge. Edmond Dantes has it all: a father he loves, a pending promotion, and a beautiful fiance. Unfortunately, others envy him his good fortune and conspire to have him sent to prison for a crime he didn’t commit. When a fellow prisoner informs him of a treasure located on the Isle of Monte Cristo, he determines to escape and use that treasure to enact his revenge.

    From the great introduction to this book, I learned that Dumas wrote this to be published in sections in newspapers and was paid by the line. Reading The Count of Monte Cristo with it’s convoluted plot and inclusion of mundane conversations, that incentive is clear. However unnecessarily complicated the count’s revenge may be, it was still a lot of fun to read about. While some sections dragged a little, there was always some part of the plot which made me want to read quickly because I couldn’t wait to find out what happened next. The events could be cliched at times, but I enjoy cliches and to be fair to the author, he may be the originator of some of these now-cliched plot devices.

    One small problem I had with this book was the dislikable nature of our protagonist. As time goes by he gets more and more arrogant, convinced that his revenge is the hand of God! Fortunately for us, a pair of young lovers shows up for us to root for instead, so I never found myself without a character to relate to. Overall, this was far from the best classic I’ve read. It gave little insight into human nature and wasn’t especially well written. Fortunately, these flaws didn’t stop if from being an amusing swashbuckling adventure which was a lot of fun to read. Given it’s success as a light adventure story, I might recommend searching for a well done abridged versions. While the idea of missing parts of a story makes me nervous, I don’t think anyone is going to want to pick up a 1000 page book for light entertainment.

    This review first published on Doing Dewey.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    "This Count de Monte-Cristo is a singular man," said Emmanuel. "Yes," answered Maxmilian; "but I feel sure he has an excellent heart, and that he likes us." The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexndre Dumas is a singular novel. I can think of no higher praise than to say it now ranks as one of my top five favorite books ever. It is the story of a young sailor named Edmund Dantes who returns from voyage intending to marry his love Mercedes. On his return, he is praised by the ship owner (who trusts him and loves him like a son), and in wake of the captain's death, promotes Edmund to Captain. This does not sit well with Danglar, the ship owner's representative on the ship. It does not take Danglar long to conspire with Fernand, a soldier and friend of Mercedes who also loves her. The conspirators accuse Dantes of being a traitor and he sent before the magistrate the night before he is to be married. The Magistrate, Monsieur de Villfort, is ready to release Dantes, when evidence is provided that he must personally protect. For this reason, he ships Dantes to prison where he stays for 14 years. When he emerges from prison, he is a changed man. He is led to a treasure of unimaginable size which he plans to use to avenge himself against his enemies. This review will be unconventional as I have shared my thoughts with you along the way. Please forgive my rambling stream of consciousness praising this magnificent novel. Dumas is a master of character. This is present in Edmund Dantes/The Count himself. We begin with a simple man who is good and loves his simple life. After prison, his education by the Abbe, and his immense fortune, we have a magnanimous man on the surface, but a cold, seething man underneath. The mask of The Count reminds me very much of Batman and how Bruce Wayne is the mask. Dantes is a man who has everything the world says is success: knowledge, power, fame, riches. But in all of this he is driven by revenge. Thankfully, ultimately, he is not consumed by it. In fact, he takes just as many pains to bless those he loves as he does to cause the downfall of the those who wronged him.Dumas is a master of character. There are many characters in this book, major and minor. What amazes me is that Dumas gives every minor character a moment in the spotlight. An example of this is a scene in which Albert de Morcef, Fernand's son, challenges his good friend Beachamp to a duel over an item which appeared in one of his newspapers. This scene could have been short as Beachamp could simply have accepted the challenge. Albert is insistent that his father's honor has been impugned. Beauchamp takes extra care to try and deter his friend as the item got into the paper without his knowledge and that he cannot confirm or deny its truth. Beachamp skillfully, and lovingly, delays the duel long enough to resolve the issue. This scene, and others like it, show the love that permeates the novel. Whether is it romantic love, filial love, the love of a friend, or the love of a mentor, Dumas make this love inescapable. I'll wrap up by saying I loved that every bit of this book is central to the plot. There is little if any fat here. Every tangent that Dumas leads us on rounds back to the central story and bares on The Count's machinations. And, his machinations are great. This is the long con. The Count knows all. The Counts see all. At least, we are lead to believe this into the final pages of the book. I cannot leave without sharing that John Lee performed this book as a master of his craft. He uses multiple accents, of Italian, French, Arabian, and British. They are seamless. He builds dramatic tension so well and expressed anguish in such a way that I cannot help but get a lump in my throat. I would also say that this is my favorite audiobook ever. Lee's performance is so well rounded and so rich that I say it should be held up as a definitive example of the craft.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    When I started this book, all I knew of the plot was from the movie: Edmond Dantes gets wrongfully jailed, Dantes escapes jail, Dantes becomes rich, Dantes exacts revenge on the people who threw him in jail. But given it's nearly a thousand pages long, it comes as no surprise that there's a whole lot more to it than that. First of all, there are three people responsible for the jailing, and by the time Dantes returns for revenge, all his enemies have grown children with their own little dramas. There are loads of characters, but there's enough repetition in the narration that it's not too terribly difficult to keep track of who's who. And I found I enjoyed it a lot more than I'd expected. I mean, I liked both of the Musketeers novels I read, but this was on another level. And while I was disappointed with Mercedes's story arc and I thought Dantes's relationship with Haydee was kind of creepy, overall it was a really great story.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I found this book an absolute slug to get through. At times I couldn't put it down (e.g. his stint in prison) and other times I could find every excuse in the world to not read it. Mostly the latter was my experience with the book and maybe because of the slow read, many stops, only reading it for minutes at a time, all contributed to me finding it a tough read.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Long but enjoyable
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Oh, this is So. Good. The story of Edmund Dantes, his misfortunes, rise to riches and his deliciously intricate revenge is just as fabulous as the details of all of the intertwining characters and stories following along in his wake. A long one, but I was so sad for it to end. Dantes also enters the ranks of fictional fantasy boyfriends (move over, Mr. Holmes, and Gen, and...).
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A rollicking adventure story.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This was one of the most intense, intricate plots I have ever encountered in the literary world. It is nothing less than spectacular and it is well worth the time commitment it takes to read it.*Most people know the basic premise of The Count of Monte Cristo. Edmond Dantes, a sailor who is beloved by his father and fiancé and all the men who work with him, is betrayed by a few jealous men and unjustly sent to prison. What follows is an incredible story of hope, survival and above all, revenge. That’s about all I can say without getting into spoiler territory.“The unhappy young man was no longer called Edmond Dantes – he was now number 34.”**SPOILERS**Edmund’s time in jail is so beautifully written. I felt his despair in every bone of my body. The sheer horror of what happened to him chilled my blood. Dantes was jailed for 6 years, considered mad and completely isolated before he heard the voice of someone other than his jailer. Just for one moment try to understand the absolute torture of that kind of solitude. The hope that he got from the mere thought of someone in the cell near him stopped him from committing suicide. “Seventeen months captivity to a sailor accustomed to the boundless ocean, is a worse punishment than human crime ever merited.”He spends years wasting away and when he finally meets a fellow inmate; their connection is so deep and profound that it truly renews his spirit and gives him a reason to live. He spends years learning from Abbé Faria only to lose him after he becomes his second father. He manages to control his grief and think on his feet and after 14 years in jail Edmund is able to escape. Instead of immediately racing to the island to claim the treasure Abbé Faria told him about, he spends time working on a ship. He gains the respect and love of those he works with and bides his time. When he finally gets his fortune he proves that once again he’s in no hurry. Throughout the whole book Dantes’ patience is mind-boggling. He does his homework, learning all the history that unfolded during his 14 years in prison. He then focuses on rewarding those who were loyal to him. Although his father died of starvation and his fiancée married another man, there are still a few people who he wants to anonymously thank. Dantes old boss Morrel is one of my favorite characters in the book. He is such a good man. He understands the true meaning of loyalty and Dantes remembers him and spends much of his time out of prison repaying that debt. Morrel fought hard to get him released from prison and when all his attempts fail he tries to care for Dantes’ father. He not only paid the funeral expenses when Dantes’ father dies, he did it with the full knowledge that Dantes was considered a Bonapartist and he would be judged harshly for it. In turn Dantes saves Morrel and his entire family in their moment of need. Just when Morrel is in the direst of situations, Dante swoops in and saves them, but he keeps his identity a secret. “Be happy, noble heart, be blessed for all the good thou hast done and wilt do hereafter, and let my gratitude remain in obscurity like your good deeds.” When he began his schemes for revenge things got a bit confusing. It was the one part of the novel that was a bit of a struggle for me. He takes on multiple aliases and secret identities, but at first we don’t know the new character is still Dantes. We’re also introduced to many new characters with little fan fare and it was hard to figure out who was who for awhile, but if you hang in there it all makes sense pretty quickly. I can’t even explain to you how satisfying it is when Dantes starts revealing his true plan and we see his long-awaited revenge finally come to fruition. He slowly inserts himself into the lives of his betrayers, earning their trust as an unknown stranger. The cyclical nature of the book is delightful. For each character there is a fitting end and it’s so satisfying! Both those who are good and evil get their just desserts. I loved how Mercedes and Albert found out the truth about Dantes situation and how the rest of their story concluded. The scene between Mercedes and Edmond just took my breath away. After his time in prison he had become so hard and calloused, yet with only a few words she still had the power to make him melt. Some corner of his heart never stopped loving her and the same was true for her. Their love story was a tragic one, but there was beauty in it too.Dantes calculated the perfect revenge for each of his betrayers. Fernand stole his love and the family he would have hard, so his punishment was the loss of his family. Danglars’ motivation for betrayal was greed and jealousy and so he lost his entire fortune and was forced to learn what hunger truly was like. He was the worst of the villains, goading the others into their acts of treachery, and his fate was equal to his crime. Villefort acted out of a loyalty to his father, but also out of a desire to protect his own reputation and future. You could almost understand it if it was only out of love for his father, but in the end it was really a selfish decision. So it was only fitting that Villefort's doom come from within the household he tried to protect. He lost his family and the respect of his entire community. In the midst of this tale of revenge there are a few beautiful stories of love and redemption as well. Maximilien Morrel’s love of Valentine de Villefort, Valentine’s devotion to her disabled grandfather and Haidée’s love of Dante are all powerful pictures of devotion in their own ways. It’s incredible that in addition to creating such a thrilling adventure story, Dumas also gave the book wonderful characters with depth that will stay with readers forever. **SPOILERS OVER**BOTTOM LINE: Read it! It’s a long haul, but unlike some long novels, the majority of the book flies by and it keeps you interested throughout. Many older classics that take time to get into and adjust to the language, but this one starts off at a run and doesn't let go. Besides one small section in the middle that dragged for me, I couldn't put it down. Curl up with this brick of a book and you won’t be sorry. “In politics, my dear fellow, you know, as well as I do, there are no men, but ideas – no feelings, but interests; in politics we do not kill a man, we only remove an obstacle, that is all.” “There are, indeed, some things which appear so impossible that the mind does not dwell on them for an instant.”“The overflow of my brain would probably, in a state of freedom, have evaporated in a thousand follies; misfortune is needed to bring to light the treasures of the human intellect. Compression is needed to explode gunpowder.” “There is neither happiness nor misery in the world; there is only the comparison of one state with another, nothing more. He who has felt the deepest grief is best able to experience supreme happiness. We must have felt what it is to die, Morrel, that we may appreciate the enjoyments of living.”
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    How can you read 1243 pages and wish there were more? That's the way I felt about this book. I loved it!!! Action-packed clear through - never a boring moment. I will confess that I was picturing James Caviezel through the whole reading - even though the book is so different from the movie. This definitely moves right to my top 5 list. I read a quote a while ago that said, "Don't judge a person by the books they read, judge them by the books they re-read." This one will definitely be re-read!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Just a rip-snorting good read; full of revenge, pathos, love, and adventure.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    By the end of this book, I felt a little as though some of my best friends were going away, never to be seen again. :(The character development and investigation in this book is absolutely incredible. Dumas is an incredible story teller. He delves deeply into description and details, but knows just when to quit (unlike my other favorite French author - Hugo).
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    When I first received my copy of ‘The Count of Monte Cristo’ I was a little over whelmed mainly due to the sheer size of the book (this edition was to my measurements just over 5 and a half centimetres of 1276 frightfully thin pages with small print but there is a delightful ribbon to help you keep your place) but also because I was about to read a tale that is worthy enough to be deemed a classic for well over a century (which is no minor feat) and I was slightly worried that if I didn't see how undeniably amazing it was then I’d be a fool not to recognise great literature even if I dropped it on my foot (don’t laugh, I'm so clumsy I'm almost disabled).It’s seems that in this day and age there is very little time to sit down and properly enjoy a good book, Dumas has the wonderful ability to spin a tale of imprisonment, deception, revenge and love that lets you simply lose yourself (and track of time) in the words, turning pages without even realising it, which isn't particularly helpful as I have oft stayed up later than I anticipated and even once missed the bus (I've honestly no idea why I thought it would be good to read before school). I can often pick up where I left off, twenty minutes here, a half hour there, and the tale still seems seamless but my younger sister is a person you takes a while to get in to a story (whether beginning, middle or end)and so she felt that she couldn't really enjoy it and gave up part way through. I think that perhaps for a lot of people the length of the book is a major obstacle which hinders our ability to enjoy and appreciate the book and so the difficulty lies not in interpreting the language as such (as many English lessons on Shakespeare were spent) but more in the length of time such a task takes.I'm think I enjoyed the book but I feel that it’s the kind of book that needs to be read more than once in order to fully appreciate or perhaps that is maybe my fault for skimming parts in anticipation of what was coming next. I hope though that everyone gives it a chance as it is really rather good.As a 21st century teen I am always looking for the next best thing to read but it seems that I've not realised that the stories we publish are immortal as long as there are those of us who continue to love it (badly quoted from JK Rowling) and thus in our search for a good read we must not just look to the new shiny books that are still in their infancy but look back to the tales who have braved the test of time and persevered, Golden in their old age (old relative to yesterday for example).So don’t hesitate, the classics are calling.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Edmond Dantès is sent to prison for being a traitor, escapes, wins a fortune, and takes his revenge on the three men responsible of falsely accusing him and thus robbing him of his life. It's not surprising this has become a classic that has stood the test of time - it's an engaging tale of love, friendship, drugs, pirates, treasure, intrigue, history, crime, passion, art, politics, and, most of all, revenge (albeit indirect) - all with a perfect Romantic hero at its forefront, complete with flashing eyes and a mysterious past. There is already a huge number of great reviews for this one, so all I'll do is highly recommend this unputdownable page-turner - as Victor Hugo said of its author, "He created a thirst for reading." The original is long, but do not read an abridged version - if you're reading in English, Robert Buss' translation and accompanying notes are highly recommended.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is one of the books that I keep coming back to and re-reading whenever the urge strikes...and it strikes quite often; five times so far. Considering the sheer length of the book that might seem odd, but Dumas keeps things moving with his breakneck pace from the moment that poor Edmond Dantès is wrongly imprisoned by jealous rivals until the final consummation of his intricate plan of revenge.

    Despite the speed at which Dumas keeps the plot moving, we are still treated to an in-depth story that examines the lives of the many characters that make up the main cast and are slowly initiated into the tangled ways in which their lives intertwine.

    I think Dumas too often gets a bad rap for being some kind of early pulp 'penny-dreadful' writer who cranked out tales like sausages on a conveyor belt, but just reading the beautiful words he puts on the pages (admittedly in translation for me), and experiencing the fascinating characters and events to which he treats us, should be enough to dispel this myth. I find that the characters in his stories are often much more real, and multi-layered, than he is often given credit for and while their emotions may run quite high (it is romantic fiction after all) he never deviates from the kernel of truth about human nature that he seemed to know so well.

    This book has it all, from revenge to murder, intrigue, escapes, love, hatred, damnation and salvation all tied to a plot that keeps on giving and urging you to turn the next page to see what strange adventure will happen next.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Over 3,000 people rated this book 1 star?! What... why... how...? To them I repeat what was once so eloquently stated in the timeless classic film Billy Madison: "I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul."



  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Interesting read for young people. It provides entertainment for many hours and lots of historical information.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A few months ago, someone asked me the question, "What book would you bring if you were stranded on a desert island?" Embarassingly, my first inclination was to cheat. I'd bring The Lord of the Rings and of course, throw in The Hobbit, since it is a prequel. Or, the Harry Potter series - all 7 books. But, if I was limited to just one title, I think I've found my answer - The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, and I would definitely bring the Blackstone audiobook version, narrated by John Lee. I just finished listening to this audiobook and I can't praise it enough. The story is wonderful. Although originally written in the mid 1800's, the book does not suffer from the blah blah wordiness of many classics. The plot is gripping and the characters are so wonderfully complex. The main character, Edmond Dantes, is on a mission to seek revenge for a plot that resulted in him spending 14 years in prison. The book has adventure, passion, love, justice and revenge - what a great story! And John Lee reads it perfectly, throwing in lots of accents and passion in his narration. And don't forget to bring a lot of batteries or a solar charger, because at 47 hours, it takes awhile to finish this one. But hey, you're on a desert island - time is not an issue.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The classic revenge story. Edmond Dantes is happy, progressing in his career and to be married to the woman he loves, but he is betrayed and sent to prison. After meeting a fellow prisoner, who claims to have a secret treasure, Dantes escapes and rises as the powerful and enigmatic Count of Monte Christo.I started reading this on my phone, at sporadic points of waiting that occurred over several months, then at about the halfway point, I switched to a brick-heavy paperback -- all of which taught me how the format affects my reading experience. While reading on my phone, I had a hard time keeping up with characters and the book seemed like a struggle to get through. Once I switched to paperback and (I assume) a different translation, the story clicked for me and I loved it.Monte Christo isn't really a like able character. I certainly had sympathy for him in the beginning, when Dantes was struck down and made to suffer, but as the count, the goodness in him dissolved. He became a man so focused on his goal of revenge that it mattered little what effect his plans had on anyone else, even his friends or the innocent. I even felt sorry for the people who wronged him at a certain point. Even as he tries to make reparations for his actions, I'm a little discomfited by how he handled Mercedes and her son, Maximilian, and Hadee. Ultimately, this did turn out to be a fun adventure yarn (once I switched to print). it was cool to see how all his elaborate plans unfurled and cane to fruition. I'm looking forward to trying The Three Musketeers at some point.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A fascinating tale of personal reinvention, culminating in an intricate plot of divinelike vengeance, deliciously served up to the protagonist's enemies in a drawn-out, meticulously planned and sadistic fashion. Edmund Dantes is a man rising up in the world who appears to have what many would crave, a beautiful fiance, a loving father and a promising career. What he lacks is strength of character, and a trusting, naive, and unsuspecting nature places him in mortal danger. He falls victim to the rats and sharks that inhabit his world and overnight all is lost. Unlike Dickens, Dumas does not send four elements of the supernatural to the rescue, but instead presents a seemingly more likely scenario (still highly improbable), by "educating" Dantes in France's most infamous prison, over a span of 20 years, guided by a "madman". What emerges is a ruthless, cunning, and unyielding character bent on carrying out his revenge to the very last. Note that it still takes a mass fortune to carry out his intentions. A memorable character study by a great author!
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    Not very impressed. I read it because Ioved "The Three Musketeers," but I didn't like it as much. After a great beginning, it gets dull and too chatty. Nothing much happens in the whole book and the characters speak so much and are so pompous that they turned me off. The biggest flaw for me though was how impersonal the novel is. After the great beginning when we are in Edmond Dantes's head and as soon as he becomes the Count of Montecristo, we stop hearing his thoughts and feelings and he is treated objectively. So much so that by the end of the book we know everything the victims feel and nothing about how he feels. Also, he is given too supernatural powers--nothing comes in his way; his plans roll in undisturbed. In the end also he is so pompous and facetious about his doubts that totally turned me off. The book is overlong like the Three Muskeeter, due to the fact that Dumas wrote in weekly installments at that time and made more money writing longer works. There are still nice things, but not worth 56 hours of listening. Read the "Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" instead, if you want something monumental, but worth it.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    SPOILER WARNING.....Don't read this review if you don't want to be spoiled...I read this obviously beloved classic for an online reading group. Overall, I thought the first third was promising, the second third was tedious, and the final third was silly. But I seem to be in the minority. I really struggled with several of the later developments in the book:1. When Dantès machinations lead to the death of Édouard de Villefort, the (reasonably innocent) child of one of the people who had done him wrong, causing our protagonist to wonder (briefly) whether he is taking this revenge stuff too far, only to conclude that no in fact he is only doing God's will.2. When he and Mercedes don't get back together again.3. When he lets Maximilien think that Valentine is dead, only to explain that you can't really be happy unless you've been truly miserable first.4. When at the end, his ward Haydee decides she wants to "be" with him.Honestly, this reminded me of nothing so much as the long running soap opera Days of our Lives (that's not a good thing, if you are wondering). The only character in the book that I really liked, Eugénie Danglars, got very little page time. I thought it was hilarious when the fleeing Benedetto finds her in bed with Louise d'Armilly.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Well. Let me state that I only just found out, after I finished the book, that I was reading the abridged version of this story. It explains a lot. This is another book that I signed up to read with a LT group read but never got to in the month LT was hosting the discussion. Truth be told I couldn’t find it on audio book and it took me a while to work up the courage to pull Cristo off the shelves and actually take the time to sit and read it. But I knew I wanted this book in my reading history. It took a while to finish because of a few things. First, I thought the story was a little unbelievable. Second there was much more ‘telling’ than ‘showing’. Thirdly, the count sort of started to grate on my nerves with his arrogance towards the end. But the fact that I was reading an abridged version of the novel may explain all of these problems. This version is probably a washed out version of the real deal. Grr. Now I need to go read the real version! But not so soon. Sometime in the future. Man, and I was wondering what all the raving about the book was for. Now I know that I wasn’t getting the same story as those who really like the book. *grumpy face* This version gets a three star. Someday in the future we’ll see how many stars the book really gets.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I am a massively, huge fan of "The Long Game" and any protagonist, evil or good, who does it at amazingly. Edmond Dantes is the master of the long game and this is the whole point of his story (not his two-a.m. saving grace).

    I read this for someone dear to me and it took me off and on reading it for months, because it was really my at work lunch reading book. I got to keep her entertained with my endless commentary on it. And I stick by the two or three things I meant most that I said:


    1. I love the story, but taking fifty-percent of your novel, in the very middle, to lead up to the exciting parts, does drag. A. Lot.

    2. This novel nearly made me bitter with want to be in a class reading it. I even named my paper I would have written in that hypothetical class. Mice in the Garden: How the Smallest Decisions Makes the Largest Impacts.

    3. The open ending is literally perfect. You don't need to know where it goes. Where it goes isn't the point. The point is in the words, and it beautiful, and its exquisite. And if it were written this way now it would have to be the hint to getting a sequel and I applaud the fact it's just a masterful ending.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Alexandre Dumas' "The Count of Monte Cristo" is in many ways the classic story of revenge and justice. The falsely accused Edmund Dantes is imprisoned in an island jail, separated from the love of his life, the beautiful Mercedes. After wallowing in self-pity and anger, a fellow prisoner encourages Dantes to plan a dramatic escape, tempting him with a story of a fabulous treasure hidden on the foreboding island of Monte Cristo.After his audacious prison break, Dantes makes his way to the isle of Monte Cristo, using his experience as a ship's officer. There he does indeed find a staggering treasure, which he uses to finance his attempt to uncover who had him imprisoned. Dantes creates multiple personae to carry out his investigation and his later attempts at revenge, none more unforgettable than the mysterious and fabulously wealthy Count of Monte Cristo.Dumas offers a sprawling epic against the backdrop of the social upheaval in early 19th Century Paris. Insinuating himself into association with both the upper crust and criminals, Dantes stops at nothing to discover his betrayers and then to work revenge upon them by destroying their careers and social relationships. It is a gripping tale of intrigue and romance, the satisfaction of revenge and yet its hollowness.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I read it in French while I was in high school so it was a super-abridged version. But it was still fun!
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    So I spent 36 hours of my life listening to this book, while driving and walking, and I wish I could say I loved every minute, but much of it bored me. My mind wandered. I guess I'm just not that interested in revenge. I'm fairly interested in poison, so once that started I paid more attention, but that wasn't really enough. The characters were sort of interesting, sort of flat. The setting was okay. The plot was there in a big way, but didn't work for me.