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4.32 AVERAGE
4.32 AVERAGE
“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.”
Wow! By the end of this story, you have came a long way from a ship arriving to harbor under the command of a young and naïve sailor. But don’t be intimidated by the nearly 1200 pages in length. It really didn’t feel like that long of a read thanks to being so well-layered. There is no scene or dialogue that doesn’t ultimately contribute to the wild justice of the finale.
A great deal of subplots are involved in the character transformation of Edmond Dantès, who spends the first half of his imprisonment unsuspecting and entirely unable to comprehend how anyone would ever conspire against him; the second half spent coming to terms and blurring the lines of his own humanity as he tries to make himself young with the happiness of revenge. Still, there are a lot of mental gymnastics involved in keeping up with this storyline (compare it to a suspenseful Netflix show that your friend recommends but tells you, “Don’t be on your phone while watching it. You’ll be lost if you miss anything.”)
It’s rare for revenge to be patient but, after spending fourteen years wrongfully imprisoned in the dungeons of Chateau d’If, this revenge is personal and needs time to ripen. Dantès’ conspirators were simply playing checkers when they had him locked away and he gets his vengeance playing chess, constantly enacting another one of the moving pieces in a plan to publicly shame his enemies and ruin their lives.
I really can’t express how incredible this book was. I realized pretty early on that it was going to be in my top 5 favorites of all time. It was surprising to see so many reviews complaining about a bad or unhappy ending. I think it was about the best outcome allowable considering the overall plot and theme. Personally, it was an easy 5-star rating.
*Also, I was fortunate to have not seen the movie before reading this. I watched a few short clips on YouTube after finishing and could hardly believe the differences. It wasn’t even remotely the same storyline. Please, don’t make your decision to read/not read this book based on the movie.
Wow! By the end of this story, you have came a long way from a ship arriving to harbor under the command of a young and naïve sailor. But don’t be intimidated by the nearly 1200 pages in length. It really didn’t feel like that long of a read thanks to being so well-layered. There is no scene or dialogue that doesn’t ultimately contribute to the wild justice of the finale.
A great deal of subplots are involved in the character transformation of Edmond Dantès, who spends the first half of his imprisonment unsuspecting and entirely unable to comprehend how anyone would ever conspire against him; the second half spent coming to terms and blurring the lines of his own humanity as he tries to make himself young with the happiness of revenge. Still, there are a lot of mental gymnastics involved in keeping up with this storyline (compare it to a suspenseful Netflix show that your friend recommends but tells you, “Don’t be on your phone while watching it. You’ll be lost if you miss anything.”)
It’s rare for revenge to be patient but, after spending fourteen years wrongfully imprisoned in the dungeons of Chateau d’If, this revenge is personal and needs time to ripen. Dantès’ conspirators were simply playing checkers when they had him locked away and he gets his vengeance playing chess, constantly enacting another one of the moving pieces in a plan to publicly shame his enemies and ruin their lives.
I really can’t express how incredible this book was. I realized pretty early on that it was going to be in my top 5 favorites of all time. It was surprising to see so many reviews complaining about a bad or unhappy ending. I think it was about the best outcome allowable considering the overall plot and theme. Personally, it was an easy 5-star rating.
*Also, I was fortunate to have not seen the movie before reading this. I watched a few short clips on YouTube after finishing and could hardly believe the differences. It wasn’t even remotely the same storyline. Please, don’t make your decision to read/not read this book based on the movie.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
47 hours of a masterful, epic story. I'm a little sad it's over. I will have to re-read this, there is way too much here to get it all the first time.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
See, this is where numeric ratings become tricky.
For the first 300 ish pages, I freaking loved this book. I laughed, I cried, I felt all the emotions and was so invested in where the story was going. But as it progressed, I started feeling less and less… I appreciated the craftmanship of the intricate web of relationships, grudges and secrets, but it started feeling like I was watching a soap opera that dragged out for too long. I found it easy to read, but not easy to pick up.
I was so sure this was going to be an absolute win for me, since everyone I’ve ever discussed it with have absolutely adored it. It was then strange to witness an overwhelming amount of 5/5 stars being thrown out in excitement by other members of the book club, while I could feel my own excitement flattening page after page. Was I really reading the same story as everyone else? Was there something wrong with me for not raving over this story? Maybe I was just not in the right head space? There was nothing I wanted more than finding a new favorite in this book, but sadly… I just couldn’t. For now I’m hoping for the latter and that there will come a day when I will reread this book and let it have its redemption.
For the first 300 ish pages, I freaking loved this book. I laughed, I cried, I felt all the emotions and was so invested in where the story was going. But as it progressed, I started feeling less and less… I appreciated the craftmanship of the intricate web of relationships, grudges and secrets, but it started feeling like I was watching a soap opera that dragged out for too long. I found it easy to read, but not easy to pick up.
I was so sure this was going to be an absolute win for me, since everyone I’ve ever discussed it with have absolutely adored it. It was then strange to witness an overwhelming amount of 5/5 stars being thrown out in excitement by other members of the book club, while I could feel my own excitement flattening page after page. Was I really reading the same story as everyone else? Was there something wrong with me for not raving over this story? Maybe I was just not in the right head space? There was nothing I wanted more than finding a new favorite in this book, but sadly… I just couldn’t. For now I’m hoping for the latter and that there will come a day when I will reread this book and let it have its redemption.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
One of my absolute favourite books ever
The Count of Monte Cristo was excellent - a serious page-turner! It's a classic for a reason...READ IT! =)