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A review by gracenextdoor
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
3.0
At the age of 19, Edmond Dantes is imprisoned for crimes unknown to him, crimes he did not commit. He spends the next 14 years alone in the darkness, suffering and suicidal. Then, fate brings an opportunity for him to escape, and he vows to use his freedom to avenge those responsible for ruining his life.
Full disclosure: I watched the 2002 film when it came out, obviously long before reading the book. I loved the film, but was told many times over that the book is much better. If you are in the same boat as me, I want to impress that the book and the film are very different. Much of Alexandre Dumas's complicated plot and subplots are changed to make for a more concise running time, but I believe that a lot of the simplifying and changes make the story better (such as the relationship between Mondego and Dantes, and the role of Abbe Faria).
This the second book I've read by Dumas (after [b: The Three Musketeers|7190|The Three Musketeers (The D'Artagnan Romances, #1)|Alexandre Dumas|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320436982s/7190.jpg|1263212]). Like the other, this book was slow to start, but when it picks up, it's good. However, there was a point in the middle that dragged on, and at times I felt like it was work to get through it. Monte Cristo disappears from the story for a length of time while Dumas sets up vengeance for one of Monte Cristo's perpetrators...only to have nothing of real significance happen. I felt somewhat disappointed by the ending, but again, perhaps it's because I was expecting something closer to the story I know so well from the film.
Full disclosure: I watched the 2002 film when it came out, obviously long before reading the book. I loved the film, but was told many times over that the book is much better. If you are in the same boat as me, I want to impress that the book and the film are very different. Much of Alexandre Dumas's complicated plot and subplots are changed to make for a more concise running time, but I believe that a lot of the simplifying and changes make the story better (such as the relationship between Mondego and Dantes, and the role of Abbe Faria).
This the second book I've read by Dumas (after [b: The Three Musketeers|7190|The Three Musketeers (The D'Artagnan Romances, #1)|Alexandre Dumas|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320436982s/7190.jpg|1263212]). Like the other, this book was slow to start, but when it picks up, it's good. However, there was a point in the middle that dragged on, and at times I felt like it was work to get through it. Monte Cristo disappears from the story for a length of time while Dumas sets up vengeance for one of Monte Cristo's perpetrators...only to have nothing of real significance happen. I felt somewhat disappointed by the ending, but again, perhaps it's because I was expecting something closer to the story I know so well from the film.