The Count of Monte Cristo

This has been on my “to read” list for years and now that I have read it was it worth the time? In a word, yes.

You have probably seen one or more of the many film adaptations of this novel but none of them match the breadth and depth of the book. A classic tale of a wronged man wreaking revenge upon his tormentors, the Count of Monte Cristo boasts a huge page count, a vast cast of characters and a meticulously worked plot. Dumas may not have been the world's greatest novelist, but he knew how to tell a tale and this new Penguin translation serves his story well.

It is interesting to note that his original intention was to simply have the Count show up in Rome and then Paris and exact revenge. It was his collaborator, Maquet, who suggested filling in The Count's back story - the betrayal, arrest and false imprisonment of Edmond Dantes, who would later escape and transform himself into the avenging angel of Monte Cristo. This is crucial in grounding the Count's actions. We always remember that behind the aristocrat there is the simple young sailor, Dantes.

Indeed the first part of the book is one of its most gripping sections as Edmond is caught in a web of lies and deceit and everything is taken away from him on the eve of his greatest happiness. That and his imprisonment and escape are superbly told chapters and give purpose to Dantes' later actions as the Count.

That's not to say the book is perfect. After his escape Dantes vanishes for nine years before reappearing in Italy as The Count of Monte Cristo. At first it's unclear what this part, where he entertains two young noblemen has to do with anything. That only becomes clear later. But it's an interesting part of the story. Where the story starts to sag a bit is when we finally get to Paris and find out what became of Dantes' betrayers. Dumas takes a very long time to weave the Count's web of revenge and then tighten the strands. Dumas was paid by the line and it starts to show here.

But once the noose starts to tighten around the people who wronged him the story picks up again and his revenge is exacted, sometimes at a terrible cost.

The Count of Monte Cristo is one of the great popular novels and helped to shape the form of the novel into the 20th century. It's themes of revenge, redemption and salvation have been echoed in innumerable books. It is one of the foundation stones of modern storytelling and well worth your time.