The Count of Monte Cristo is the first book I've read in my reading quest (which I explained in A Quest Begins). First written as a serialized story in the Journal des Débats between 1844 and 1846, it was later compiled into a novel and is considered a literary classic that remains in print even today. I read the unabridged English translation of the original French (titled Le Comte de Monte Cristo), trying not to blitz through the 1100-odd pages in the small but fat edition I'd borrowed.
I'll try to avoid too many spoilers.
The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas, follows the story of a young sailor, Edmond Dantes. At nineteen, Dantes is happy with his life. He has a caring father, he is engaged to the woman he loves, and he is about to be made captain of his benefactor's ship, the Pharaon.
But two men are jealous of him- Danglars, his shipmate who wants Dantes' imminent position on the Pharaon, and Fernand Mondego, his fiancée Mercédès' cousin, who is in love with her.
Together they plot to get Dantes out of the way. They do this by framing Dantes as a Bonapartist. The late captain of the Pharaon (a known Bonapartist) charged the innocent Dantes to do two things: one, to deliver a packet to a general on Elba with the exiled Napoleon; and two, to hand over a letter to an unknown man in Paris. Dantes has no idea of the political importance of the packet and letter, and only does it to honour the last wishes of his superior- but Danglars and Fernand imply in an anonymous letter that he is fully aware of the contents of his deliveries, and is a fervent, violent Bonapartist.
Dantes is arrested an hour before his wedding.
The deputy procureur de roi at Marseilles, M. de Villefort, realises that Dantes is innocent and plans to acquit him. Then he finds out who the letter is addressed to- M. de Noirtier, a known Bonapartist, and Villefort's father.
Villefort, a royalist, has worked hard to reach his position and still dreams of becoming the procureur de roi of France. In order to safeguard his own career, he pretends that Dantes is, in fact, a Bonapartist, takes the information that there is a Bonapartist uprising stirring to the king, and throws Dantes in the Chateau d'If, a notorious prison, without a trial.
Mere days after Dantes' incarceration, Napoleon Bonaparte returns to France and the Hundred Days begin. M. Morrel, Dantes' patron, tries to petition for his release. Villefort stalls until Napoleon is finally exiled to St. Helena and the petition never goes through. Dantes is given up for dead.
Dantes, languishing in jail, meets the Abbé Faria, a supposedly mad Italian priest who is actually a genius. Together the two plot to escape the Chateau d'If. Faria tells him the secret of a great treasure, but dies before they can escape.
Dantes makes a daring escape after Faria's death. He has been in prison for fourteen years.
He claims the treasure Faria told him about, and proceeds to reinvent himself, as the mysterious Count of Monte Cristo, and search for his enemies.
Danglars is now a respected banker, who has been granted the title of a baron. Fernand is married to Mercédès, and having risen through the ranks of the army, is now called le Comte de Morcerf. Villefort has achieved his ambition and is the procureur de roi.
With his nearly unlimited new wealth and the knowledge Faria had imparted to him, Dantes proceeds to take his revenge on the men responsible for throwing him in prison.
Edmond Dantes' transformation from a cheerful, carefree young merchant sailor, to an enigmatic, bitter man who considers himself an instrument of divine justice is impressive to read. He is a master manipulator, pulling and slicing strings no one can see until a puppet falls and one realises what it was all about. His plans are so convoluted, even Albus Dumbledore (who, let's face it, is a majorly manipulative leader whose plans are far from straightforward) would be impressed.
I'd recommend this to anyone interested in a period thriller, who doesn't mind thick books, or wading through occasionally flowery language. If you want just the story (which is pretty awesome) and would prefer to skip the hundreds of pages and the elaborate prose, I would recommend an abridged version. Either way, it's worth it!
I'll try to avoid too many spoilers.
The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas, follows the story of a young sailor, Edmond Dantes. At nineteen, Dantes is happy with his life. He has a caring father, he is engaged to the woman he loves, and he is about to be made captain of his benefactor's ship, the Pharaon.
But two men are jealous of him- Danglars, his shipmate who wants Dantes' imminent position on the Pharaon, and Fernand Mondego, his fiancée Mercédès' cousin, who is in love with her.
Together they plot to get Dantes out of the way. They do this by framing Dantes as a Bonapartist. The late captain of the Pharaon (a known Bonapartist) charged the innocent Dantes to do two things: one, to deliver a packet to a general on Elba with the exiled Napoleon; and two, to hand over a letter to an unknown man in Paris. Dantes has no idea of the political importance of the packet and letter, and only does it to honour the last wishes of his superior- but Danglars and Fernand imply in an anonymous letter that he is fully aware of the contents of his deliveries, and is a fervent, violent Bonapartist.
Dantes is arrested an hour before his wedding.
The deputy procureur de roi at Marseilles, M. de Villefort, realises that Dantes is innocent and plans to acquit him. Then he finds out who the letter is addressed to- M. de Noirtier, a known Bonapartist, and Villefort's father.
Villefort, a royalist, has worked hard to reach his position and still dreams of becoming the procureur de roi of France. In order to safeguard his own career, he pretends that Dantes is, in fact, a Bonapartist, takes the information that there is a Bonapartist uprising stirring to the king, and throws Dantes in the Chateau d'If, a notorious prison, without a trial.
Mere days after Dantes' incarceration, Napoleon Bonaparte returns to France and the Hundred Days begin. M. Morrel, Dantes' patron, tries to petition for his release. Villefort stalls until Napoleon is finally exiled to St. Helena and the petition never goes through. Dantes is given up for dead.
Dantes, languishing in jail, meets the Abbé Faria, a supposedly mad Italian priest who is actually a genius. Together the two plot to escape the Chateau d'If. Faria tells him the secret of a great treasure, but dies before they can escape.
Dantes makes a daring escape after Faria's death. He has been in prison for fourteen years.
He claims the treasure Faria told him about, and proceeds to reinvent himself, as the mysterious Count of Monte Cristo, and search for his enemies.
Danglars is now a respected banker, who has been granted the title of a baron. Fernand is married to Mercédès, and having risen through the ranks of the army, is now called le Comte de Morcerf. Villefort has achieved his ambition and is the procureur de roi.
With his nearly unlimited new wealth and the knowledge Faria had imparted to him, Dantes proceeds to take his revenge on the men responsible for throwing him in prison.
Edmond Dantes' transformation from a cheerful, carefree young merchant sailor, to an enigmatic, bitter man who considers himself an instrument of divine justice is impressive to read. He is a master manipulator, pulling and slicing strings no one can see until a puppet falls and one realises what it was all about. His plans are so convoluted, even Albus Dumbledore (who, let's face it, is a majorly manipulative leader whose plans are far from straightforward) would be impressed.
I'd recommend this to anyone interested in a period thriller, who doesn't mind thick books, or wading through occasionally flowery language. If you want just the story (which is pretty awesome) and would prefer to skip the hundreds of pages and the elaborate prose, I would recommend an abridged version. Either way, it's worth it!
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