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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
    Ebook728 pages

    The Count of Monte Cristo

    By Alexandre Dumas

    4.5/5

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    About this ebook

    Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read

    A popular bestseller since its publication in 1844, The Count of Monte Cristo is one of the great page-turning thrillers of all time. Set against the tumultuous years of the post-Napoleonic era, Alexandre Dumas’s grand historical romance recounts the swashbuckling adventures of Edmond Dantès, a dashing young sailor falsely accused of treason. The story of his long imprisonment, dramatic escape, and carefully wrought revenge offers up a vision of France that has become immortal. As Robert Louis Stevenson declared, “I do not believe there is another volume extant where you can breathe the same unmingled atmosphere of romance.”
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRandom House Publishing Group
    Release dateDec 2, 2003
    ISBN9780553898156
    Author

    Alexandre Dumas

    Alexandre Dumas was born in 1802. After a childhood of extreme poverty, he took work as a clerk, and met the renowned actor Talma, and began to write short pieces for the theatre. After twenty years of success as a playwright, Dumas turned his hand to novel-writing, and penned such classics as The Count of Monte Cristo (1844), La Reine Margot (1845) and The Black Tulip (1850). After enduring a short period of bankruptcy, Dumas began to travel extensively, still keeping up a prodigious output of journalism, short fiction and novels. He fathered an illegitimate child, also called Alexandre, who would grow up to write La Dame aux Camélias. He died in Dieppe in 1870.

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    Reviews for The Count of Monte Cristo

    4.5/5

    6,292 ratings125 reviews

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    • 5/5
      This is a true classic. Books are not longer written like this. Reading this book was similar to a religious experience!
    • 3/5
      Literary soap opera, and the best revenge tale ever. A bit simplistic & the plot contrivances stretch even the standard of the era.Read July 2007
    • 4/5
      This story is mostly a very long adventure story with themes of revenge. Dante's is harmed by evil people. He goes to prison where he is without hope but he manages to survive. As the Count of Monte Cristo, he takes his revenge on others by setting them up to destroy themselves. I thought I would really like this story but I often found myself not liking it, not liking the main character and not liking the whole revenge as it also seems wrong. In the end, I needed to remind myself that this is an adventure story. The ending was also displeasing. I did not think it fair to have to mourn for 30 days the death of a loved one. I understand why he did it, it just seems so cruel. What right does the Dante have to act as God? I thought the story was way too long, covered too much territory and I am glad I listened to it instead of read this huge overwritten book. That being said, I would read it again and I think I might enjoy it more with a second reading. Rating 3.83
    • 5/5
      Fastest 1,200 pages ever. Edmund Dantes adventure flies by, in part due to the original serial nature but also because Dumas wrote a gripping page turner of an adventure that pretty much defined the revenge genre for his time. I, similar to another reviewer, wanted to find my old English teacher and ask why this wasn't prescribed for summer reading some year! A downside during my reading was that all characters were extremely black and white - Dantes appeared all-knowing and all-powerful at too many instances, while there were few to no redeeming features of the "bad guys." A minor complaint, and it rarely detracted from the tale.
    • 5/5
      Definitely one of my favorites, I can't wait to read it again. If I could choose anyone to read it to me, it would definitely be Jeremy Irons.
    • 5/5
      Extremely long, yes. But fun and exciting from cover to cover. I picked up Monte Cristo after having thoroughly enjoyed The Three Musketeers, wondering whether I'd be disappointed. I wasn't. In the slightest.My only small gripe would be that I found, stood aside the very complex and intriguing characters of Monte Cristo, Faria and Caderousse, for example, other characters seemed two-dimensional and rather unfinished.
    • 5/5
      This book pulls you in almost form the very begining. You feel the pain of injustice and taste the sweet taste of revenge as the plot unfolds. There was only slight disapointment when the "Count"did not reunite with his one true love, the one he had pined for all those years. Still it was a satisfying read that had me up till the wee hours of the night. Hard to put down...truly deserving of the title "classic".
    • 5/5
      This book is one of my all-time favorites, and a classic story
    • 4/5
      A fantastic story of retribution and revenge. I took the plunge reading the unabridged version and although it took a while to get into, I couldn't stop reading once the Count had been fully unleashed. I kept expecting negative things to happen to the protagonist but instead, pure revenge. It was great to read through and this one-sided dynamic didn't get boring at all.
    • 5/5
      A fine adventure tale that gives enjoyment and demands a little pondering about the meaning of life. Closing note from the Count: "... there is neither happiness nor unhappiness in this world; there is only the comparison of one state with another. Only a man who has felt ultimate despair is capable of feeling ultimate bliss. It is necessary to have wished for death, Maximilien, in order to know how good it is to live."
    • 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.
    • 4/5
      Long but enjoyable
    • 5/5
      Fabulous. Well worth the time investment to read, although parts (for instance, when the Count first arrives in Paris) are a bit slow. An epic work.
    • 4/5
      I love this story, and have read the abridged version. I started the unabridged, which now seems to be a pretty ambitious undertaking. I started reading this on June 20th, 2007.
    • 5/5
      Epic! An unparalleled tale of redemption and revenge. The characters live on with me. Dumas is a an extraordinary storyteller. There are many editions of this book; I recommend this Penguin Classic. Translation is exceptional.
    • 5/5
      This is my favorite of Dumas, père's books.
    • 4/5
      Finally finished this, really good read much better than the three musketeers.
    • 5/5
      This classic tale of revenge was an incredible read, but like revenge itself, left an emptiness. Perhaps that was the author's intention? The man who lost everything came to financial power and ruined those who'd wronged him. Unlike the stupid movie version, he did not recover that which had been lost to him---he simply destroyed it and walked away.
    • 5/5
      In one word: AMAZINGIf you haven't read this, do so now. After Sharon Kay Penman's Welsh series I had believed that I had found my favorite books. But Dumas proved me wrong. I can't wait to read more of his books!
    • 5/5
      A great story about people, life and human nature.

      Revenge may be sweet, or not so sweet.

      The interweaving of many characters showed how life isn't predictable with one person, let alone the responses of those around them. A true 'life' book that shows things don't always turn out 'happily ever after.'

      A true work of literature showing how we want to be like God and reward evil. We find that we are not God and should not try to be Him.

      Our family has taken two years to read this book together. It was helpful to read out loud. When we would forget who this character was, someone else could remind of who he was, especially with all the foreign names and titles.
    • 4/5
      A classic novel that is so easy to read (the abridges version that is). The abridged version makes me want to read the whole thinking because if the abridged is good then the unabridged must be better! It was so easy to understand and is easy to relate to. You would definitely love and hate the characters. That's how good it is. It feels like I've known Dantes, Mercedes, Morell, Fernand, Albert, Danglars, etc. for a long time. I'm not actually reading them but actually breathing the same air as they do. The story is like any Filipino telanovela, predictable but yet it just sucks you in! I just felt robbed of a good ending. I was like, "That was it?!?!". All I can say is MORE! :)
    • 4/5
      Though long, and clearly showing that Dumas was paid by the word, the story of the Count of Monte Cristo is the quintessential revenge plot, with a epic sweep of one's life and his all-consuming quest to avenge the wrongs done to him. Even at over 1,000 pages, the plot does move relatively swiftly and one soon finishes it.
    • 5/5
      I found this book to be a really exciting piece to read. It kept me surprised after every chapter. The movie is nothing compared to this. Every page felt realistic. I could feel Edmond's hatred towards the one's that did him wrong. It really saddened me that he cared more about revenge than his loved ones. He was willing to lose it all just to fill his revenge's appetite. Even when he gets his revenge he has to leave, which really bothered me. He couldn't stay and still love Mercades? Not to mention spend time with the son he never knew until just recently? I would refer this book to anyone who wants to read about adventure, betrayal, and revenge, but do not refer it to anyone who would read it for revenge.
    • 5/5
      I first read this book in high school and have re-read numerous times over the last 35 years. It is my favorite. One book that contains it all...adventure, despair, revenge, justice, romance.
    • 4/5
      I almost let the fact that the book was first published in 1844 stop me from reading it. But they call it a classic for a reason. This book is one of the best I've read for making you really care about what happens to the characters. The story is about a man who is betrayed, forgotten, left for dead and the twenty plus year career of revenge he sets forth on.
    • 4/5
      It's years since I actually read this book but I was enthralled at the time - maybe the wanting to win lottery syndrome.
    • 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...).
    • 2/5
      Turns out to be very long and quite weird in places.
    • 5/5
      Oh, ho, the unabridged version! I've seen the 2002 film, though not the 1934 film. Looking for something interesting to read among the classics, I chose this one recently. In full disclosure, my medication has left me quite unable to sleep like a human being, so I've had a lot of extra time to tackle this book rather quickly (relatively speaking). Unlike other longer books I've read from this period, it's been a breeze to get through, and quite enjoyable. Also, it's another example of a book being superior (and quite different to, in many respects) any film adaptations. My edition isn't exactly this one, as many books I read (when not from the library) are actually on my nook (though I select the closest approximate on this website), and it has a few spelling/grammar/format errors here and there (not prohibitively so). I'm only encouraged to read more works by Alexandre Dumas, who seems to have led quite the interesting life himself!
    • 5/5
      This book fast became one of my favorite books. It's like the book equivalent of the Princess Bride (OK, I know that's a book too, but the movie is classic), having something for everyone.... adventure, romance, etc. While the plot is not the deepest, it's just so much fun. I keep picking it up again and loving it as much as the first time.