Take a photo of a barcode or cover
![The Count of Monte Cristo [Abridged] by Alexandre Dumas](https://cdn.thestorygraph.com/1qy27ultqt1q86gtbubgprtxmd89)
4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-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
Cool, fun, didn't read the cover and realize this was the abridged version! Starting the full thing instead.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
- This was a really good book.
- May re-read; will definitely recommend.
I'm glad I read the abridged version because even that was still a bit difficult to follow, but such a great read!
- May re-read; will definitely recommend.
I'm glad I read the abridged version because even that was still a bit difficult to follow, but such a great read!
*groan* I can't believe I read the whole thing!
I expected a daunting read and got one. I'll give the experts their due and agree that this is a "great book" by literary standards of the 19th century. However, I'm not sure this would measure up to that standard when compared to "modern" classics.
Reasons why: This is a very dense book. Lots of telling vs. showing. Endless number of run-on and complex sentences. I counted one sentence that was more than 100 words. Hundreds were easily in the 50-100-word range. I've never seen so many semicolons in my life in one book. Dialogue in paragraphs was often spoken by two people, making it hard to understand who was saying what to whom. Answers to simple questions (yes or no) sometimes filled most of a page, and routinely filled several paragraphs. Author intrusion happened with almost every chapter. And finally, after six or seven hundred pages, I grew quite weary of the upper-crust characters discussing how many millions of francs they possessed and why that seemed to be the sole measure of their happiness in life.
On the plus side, I thought the plot was well-conceived and unique. Dumas wrote some great passages of description or of capturing the human condition in a nutshell. Particularly good were the scenes between the abbe and Dantes in prison. The Count of Monte Cristo was a wonderfully mysterious, powerful, influential man, especially when I understood what he went through to get to that point.
I expected a daunting read and got one. I'll give the experts their due and agree that this is a "great book" by literary standards of the 19th century. However, I'm not sure this would measure up to that standard when compared to "modern" classics.
Reasons why: This is a very dense book. Lots of telling vs. showing. Endless number of run-on and complex sentences. I counted one sentence that was more than 100 words. Hundreds were easily in the 50-100-word range. I've never seen so many semicolons in my life in one book. Dialogue in paragraphs was often spoken by two people, making it hard to understand who was saying what to whom. Answers to simple questions (yes or no) sometimes filled most of a page, and routinely filled several paragraphs. Author intrusion happened with almost every chapter. And finally, after six or seven hundred pages, I grew quite weary of the upper-crust characters discussing how many millions of francs they possessed and why that seemed to be the sole measure of their happiness in life.
On the plus side, I thought the plot was well-conceived and unique. Dumas wrote some great passages of description or of capturing the human condition in a nutshell. Particularly good were the scenes between the abbe and Dantes in prison. The Count of Monte Cristo was a wonderfully mysterious, powerful, influential man, especially when I understood what he went through to get to that point.
dark
emotional
funny
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
relaxing
slow-paced
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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:
Complicated
wow that actually felt like the amount of time it took place over
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Please forgive me for the comparison I feel compelled to make about my experience reading this book: I think this story would be EXCELLENT adapted as a Jojo's-Bizarre-Adventure-type anime.
If you're going to have a main character who Everyone is Jealous Of Because He's So Noble, and you're going to write a revenge story that includes your main character being described in the following ways: "Monte Cristo's eyes glowed fiercely"... man, it just works to make the entire experience extremely over-the-top. This book just owns how chaotic it is. The dialogue is melodramatic, the plot is melodramatic, and yet, because it's tonally consistent and takes time to build up all these melodramatic details, it's so easy to get swept away in this world where all this kind of revenge is possible.
This is a great example of a "timeless classic." Tons of fun even hundreds of years later.
If you're going to have a main character who Everyone is Jealous Of Because He's So Noble, and you're going to write a revenge story that includes your main character being described in the following ways: "Monte Cristo's eyes glowed fiercely"... man, it just works to make the entire experience extremely over-the-top. This book just owns how chaotic it is. The dialogue is melodramatic, the plot is melodramatic, and yet, because it's tonally consistent and takes time to build up all these melodramatic details, it's so easy to get swept away in this world where all this kind of revenge is possible.
This is a great example of a "timeless classic." Tons of fun even hundreds of years later.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
slow-paced