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gudrqa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
The beginning was great and I couldn’t stop comparing it to les mis but later after the prison escape it became very long and boring. I kept on listening since the book had good reviews and I had to listen to something when doing my needlework but when it got better it was only for brief moments.
I think it would work better as a series or books (like a revenge a book) rather than this big mess.
If you like more justice oriented books then les mis would be a better option and if you like personal politics then Jane Austen is much better.
I personally don’t like when a character is all powerful and the whole second part of the book is just that. I really hoped it would explore the repercussions and psychology of vengence.
I think it would work better as a series or books (like a revenge a book) rather than this big mess.
If you like more justice oriented books then les mis would be a better option and if you like personal politics then Jane Austen is much better.
I personally don’t like when a character is all powerful and the whole second part of the book is just that. I really hoped it would explore the repercussions and psychology of vengence.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Racial slurs, Terminal illness, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Drug use, Sexism, Slavery, Suicide attempt, and Colonisation
kerrence30's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Remains to be one of my favourite books. You will not find another epic like this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Grief, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Child death, Misogyny, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, and Classism
Minor: Racial slurs
jayisreading's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
4.0
It took me a little under a year to finish reading The Count of Monte Cristo, which I think is somewhat understandable, given that it’s a pretty damn long novel. It was fascinating to see Dumas’s mind at work as he spun together a complex plot that had themes ranging from vengeance to forgiveness. I know there were a fair number of details that flew over my head, and this is absolutely one of those novels which, if you’re familiar with the historical events of when this novel took place, the reading experience will be significantly richer. Unfortunately for me, this was just outside of the period I’m more familiar with, so I greatly appreciated the footnotes that were in my translated edition.
The Count of Monte Cristo was a challenging novel for me to read, in part because it was long, but mostly because there were so many moving parts, so much that I seriously considered taking notes to remind myself who certain characters were, their motives, etc. The pacing did slow a fair bit towards the middle, with Dumas taking up hundreds of pages to lay the intricate groundwork for Edmond Dantès to exact his revenge on the three men who ruined his life. I admit that there were numerous occasions when I wondered why I needed to know a particular detail—and to be frank, I think there were a lot of details that weren’t necessary but were included anyway because Dumas was likely paid by the word—but patience paid off when I reached the ending and saw how everything unfolded.
I can see why some people may not enjoy how consumed Dantès was in seeking vengeance (especially when he was introduced as a just and good-natured man), but I quite liked how Dumas contemplated the nuances of revenge through his protagonist’s merits and flaws (but I also like a good Byronic hero, so there’s that).
Would I ever revisit this novel? Honestly, I don’t know if I would, mainly because it’s so long, but I’m glad to have finally gotten around to reading a sprawling and highly regarded classic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence
Moderate: Racism, Slavery, Suicide, and Murder
julianh's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, and Toxic friendship
brodi727's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book Oh my God many times I forgot I was in the real world I was so invested and I didn't even realize I had read 200 pages in one sitting
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Drug use, Misogyny, Sexism, Slavery, Kidnapping, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Incest, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Pregnancy
random19379's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Child death, Confinement, Death, Incest, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, War, and Classism
countdraculahimself's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
truly loved this book and took my time reading it. i will never not recommend this beautifully tragic novel
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
gattolinos_nerdy_nook's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I am pleasantly surprised by this book. I know classics are a classic for a reason but I tend to struggle with the writing style in a lot of classics, and the ones where they are following a life of someone tend to feel like they focus on the mundane stuff or events that don't feel important to the story.
Now The Count of Monte Cristo does do this as well. If it were written now I can guarantee that it would be much shorter. Everything in this book is given in a meandering way. If you are someone that can't handle the book jumping POVs, timelines and stories that eventually help build a bigger picture and pay off towards the end of the book, this may not be the read for you. There were many times that I was listening to a chapter having zero clue how we ended up here or why we needed to know this until a few or several hours later.
In saying that I thought the story was really good and it does feel nice to have those 'Ah-ha!' moments when listening. Seeing all the people and events come together almost feels like a mystery that is being unfolded in front of you. You feel like you are involved with the story.
I think those you read and enjoyed Six of Crows would really enjoy this. I felt like the books where paced and gave information to the reader in very similar ways.
Now The Count of Monte Cristo does do this as well. If it were written now I can guarantee that it would be much shorter. Everything in this book is given in a meandering way. If you are someone that can't handle the book jumping POVs, timelines and stories that eventually help build a bigger picture and pay off towards the end of the book, this may not be the read for you. There were many times that I was listening to a chapter having zero clue how we ended up here or why we needed to know this until a few or several hours later.
In saying that I thought the story was really good and it does feel nice to have those 'Ah-ha!' moments when listening. Seeing all the people and events come together almost feels like a mystery that is being unfolded in front of you. You feel like you are involved with the story.
I think those you read and enjoyed Six of Crows would really enjoy this. I felt like the books where paced and gave information to the reader in very similar ways.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Death of parent
Moderate: Child abuse and Slavery
figsofpeach's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Child death, Slavery, Suicide, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Murder
justagirlwithbooks's review against another edition
4.25
"All human wisdom is contained in these two words - Wait and Hope."
I can't believe I finished this book! It was a true journey, one that took me two whole months to complete. What's even more unbelievable is that this is one of my first classics. And it was 1300 pages! I'm so happy I read this book, and finished it. The first 25% and the last 25% had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. It got a bit slow in the middle, but it picked up again. I adore Edmond Dantes. I love Morrel, and Mercedes. There's something about revenge stories that I always seem to enjoy. They're always so satisfying! And this one was no exception. Dantes was smart, cold, calculating, and yet still he retained some humanity through the friends he made along his path to enact revenge. He reminded me of Kaz Brekker. This book was dynamic, it was dramatic, and it was so much fun! This book had me gasping; my jaw was on the floor at some parts. On some days, the 2 chapters (sometimes 3!) that I read per day were some of the best parts of my day. I'm going to miss this book so much! This story had revenge, murder, poison, jailbreaks, love and redemption. What more could you want?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Suicide attempt