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meshuganush's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This book was a very fun read! The beginning took me by surprise as it was fun and jovial and very easily poked fun at itself. The second half of the book was much more serious, which took me a little bit to acclimate to. I really appreciated how the characters are not all good or all evil they are complex beings, and while by the end I struggled to fully support our heroes I appreciated that nuance.
I don't know if this counts entirely as a spoiler but I felt that the cardinal while a political opponent wasn't really the villain. Honestly he seemed a significantly better ruler than the king, and while the musketeers were royalists none of them seemed to fond of the king. For me I think the true villain was milady. She was so gloriously crafted, with cunning and intelligence. I loved that we got a window into her thoughts and while I concur that she was guilty of 98% of the crimes laid at her feet (and probably many more) I dont think she quite deserved what she got.
The writing and/or the translation is beautifully done. Dumas has such a beautiful knack for description. It often felt like poetry.
The writing and/or the translation is beautifully done. Dumas has such a beautiful knack for description. It often felt like poetry.
dkatreads's review against another edition
4.0
Wild ending. Wasn’t sure if the payout was going to be worth it bc it really dragged for a while. But all the threads came together.
Still, won’t excuse the blatant misogyny of the purely evil, mastermind seductress character in Milady. Interesting to note parallels between her and Kate of East of Eden. Kinda telling that these classics are stories that allow men to live out their revenge fantasies against women they feel emasculated by. I give East of Eden a pass because that one held a lot more gray and that wasn’t quite as centered here. On the other hand, the 3M didn’t have a single morally ambiguous female character—either pure virtue, pure evil, or pure imbecility. How harmful. And frankly, how boring.
Despite this, I do find myself returning to Dumas because his writing indeed is spectacular and his stories both fun and thrilling. I’d definitely put this second to the CMC, but in the end I did enjoy it.
Still, won’t excuse the blatant misogyny of the purely evil, mastermind seductress character in Milady. Interesting to note parallels between her and Kate of East of Eden. Kinda telling that these classics are stories that allow men to live out their revenge fantasies against women they feel emasculated by. I give East of Eden a pass because that one held a lot more gray and that wasn’t quite as centered here. On the other hand, the 3M didn’t have a single morally ambiguous female character—either pure virtue, pure evil, or pure imbecility. How harmful. And frankly, how boring.
Despite this, I do find myself returning to Dumas because his writing indeed is spectacular and his stories both fun and thrilling. I’d definitely put this second to the CMC, but in the end I did enjoy it.
megancortez's review against another edition
5.0
Easily one of the most entertaining and enjoyable novels I have ever read! Clever and witty. Brilliantly adventurous. The perfect balance of action and emotion. This is a classic with a well earned status.
kpbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-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
4.5
devonforest's review against another edition
4.0
Another good classic book. There were several points where it seemed to drag on a bit, and it did take me a while to get through it (but that was also probably because of the length). D'Artagnan bothered me a little bit at certain points with all his love interests. Overall, another enjoyable classic to read. Plus I did enjoy that the main villain was a woman, nice change of pace.
hakkun1's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
pnwskeptic's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75