Reviews - The Count of Monte Cristo

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8.93k reviews for:

The Count of Monte Cristo

Alexandre Dumas

4.32 AVERAGE

kimlee1789's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous emotional medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

christinaoperez's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

5aru's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

lompock's review against another edition

4.75

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: N/A

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

1906ds's review against another edition

5.0

dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

‘I want to be Providence, because the thing that I know which is finest, greatest and most sublime in the world is to reward and to punish.’

One of the best books I’ve ever read, full stop. This book is capable of magic: it keeps us turning the pages quickly, as it is full of clever plot twists and cliff hangers, and at the same time, Dumas knows when to pump the breaks and bask in these characters and let them meditate on so many important themes, such as free will/fate, knowledge/reason, and revenge/justice. This book reminds me of the highest of highs in shows like Breaking Bad or early Game of Thrones, where all the plot points come together at a certain point and just sing in sublime clockwork, as we are beholden to the Old Testament god-like revenge Edmond is capable of.

Treat yourself right and skip any abridged version; Robin Buss’s translation is quick, snappy, and easy to read, with great endnotes to give some background information on France in the early 19th century. I can’t imagine cutting a single page anywhere from this book, as it just feels like every moment is important and indispensable.