## The Count of Monte Cristo 🔹*author* [[Alexandre Dumas]], [[Robin Buss]] 🔸 *related* [[The Arabian Nights]] > [!abstract]+ Synopsis > > *This is an alternate cover edition for ISBN [9780140449266](https://www.goodreads.com/search/search?q=9780140449266 "9780140449266")* > > **The epic tale of wrongful imprisonment, adventure and revenge, in its definitive translation** > > Thrown in prison for a crime he has not committed, Edmond Dantès is confined to the grim fortress of If. There he learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to use the treasure to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. Dumas’ epic tale of suffering and retribution, inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, was a huge popular success when it was first serialized in the 1840s. > > Translated with an Introduction by Robin Buss > > **[Goodreads](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7126.The_Count_of_Monte_Cristo)**  ### Notes > [!success]+ My Review > **The incredible adventure of an avenging angel** > > I've wanted to read this ever since I first saw the 2001 film, still one of my favorite movies. It's safe to say there is much, much more to this story that I didn't expect, and it's very different from the film, but richer, darker, and more thought-provoking. > > The story deals with a great betrayal, and the protagonist's long adventure back into society, followed by many years plotting and executing an elaborate eye-for-an-eye revenge as an instrument of God -- an "avenging angel". > > The novel deals at length with an elaboration of French society in the mid-19th century. Carnivals, operas, large estates, salons, intricate marriage customs, with families vying for power and parading their wealth and social status. This aspect was largely cut from the abridged film along with many of the characters. It is a heavy part of the book that Dumas delves deeply into, in order to critique the excessive frivolity of the upper class in Paris, secured through theft and murder. He also shows many glimpses into the criminal undercurrent of this society to demonstrate how little separates these two groups. > > While the reader doesn't often know exactly what the count intends to do, the book leans heavily into dramatic irony to make the audience feel as if he's a puppet master leading his victims into an elaborate, carefully-planned trap. You can see it coming but don't truly understand until all until it unravels itself. The character of the count is so multifaceted that he's able to use an array of aliases to believably confuse everyone around him, at times even back-to-back in a single scene. This is where the novel really shines, as it shows how far his drive to vengeance has pushed him to transform himself into something altogether different from the character in the first part of the novel. > > This book was much longer and difficult than I'd expected, and midway through I almost gave up on it, but I'm really glad I finished. The unabridged version added an enormous amount to the story and characters than what's shown in the film. There's so much subtext to unravel about society, God, vengeance, and justice. > > Without a doubt, one of the most amazing pieces of literature I've ever read. Incredibly worth it! Dumas is absolutely among the greats. ![[Readwise/Books/The Count of Monte Cristo#Highlights|= The Count of Monte Cristo]] ### References [^1]: Alexandre Dumas (Year). *The Count of Monte Cristo* [Goodreads](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7126.The_Count_of_Monte_Cristo)