Reviews tagging 'Death'

O conde de Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, José Angeli

78 reviews

sherbertwells's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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

2.0

“‘Do you, then, believe in God” said Caderousse.
‘Had I been so unhappy as not to believe in him until now,’ said the abbé, ‘I must believe on seeing you’” (811)

Hot Take: this book is an inversion of Les Miserables.

Both Hugo’s classic and The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, published in 1862 and 1844 respectively, follow unjustly-imprisoned men who, with the assistance of kindly clergymen, reinvent themselves, adopt abused young women and strive to do good according to their specific moral codes in the cutthroat society of post-Napoleonic France. But while Jean Valjean’s escape from hell transforms him into a benevolent angel, Edmond Dantès is not always so merciful.

And the main character is just the beginning. The Count of Monte Cristo’s tone mirrors the mindset of its protagonist: initially cheerful and adventurous before descending into the cynical world of upper-class intrigue and revenge. Unlike Hugo, Dumas’ narrative voice is cool and objective, and lets its characters speak for themselves.

But the characters are my problem with the story. With the exception of Dantès/Monte Cristo himself, the novel’s cast of young lovers, foolish patriarchs and noble adulterers seems more suited to a pantomime than a revenge tragedy. They just aren’t that deep! They aren’t good people, but more importantly, they aren’t even that interesting. They don’t demonstrate the breadth of the human soul; they just gossip! The whole plot of The Count of Monte Cristo is founded on these characters’ gossip: they gossip about marriage, compare finances and the mysterious aristocrat making waves in their nouveau riche milieu.

“Out of the 5,000,000 or 6,000,000 francs which form your real capital, you have just lost nearly 2,000,000 francs, which must, of course, in the same degree, diminish your credit and fictitious fortune; to follow out my simile, your skin has been opened by bleeding, which, repeated three or for times, will cause death—so pay attention to it, M. Danglars. Do you want money? Do you wish me to lend you some?” (636)

In fact, the society of post-Napoleonic France is much more interesting than the characters that inhabit it. Dantès’ enemies owe their fortunes at least in part to the fruits of slavery. For Alexandre Dumas, whose grandmother was enslaved in Saint-Domingue, they are despicable as individuals as well as participants in an exploitative system. But despite his monstrous wealth—or perhaps because of it—Dantès cannot destroy that system. Perhaps it’s hard for me to take an interest in the book because, despite having 1000-odd pages to fill, Dumas is interested only in its most anxious and despicable agents.

In short: reading The Count of Monte Cristo has made me realize how much I appreciate Les Miserables.

Of course there are people who will prefer the personal drama with all its poisons and inheritances. Through trial and error, I have learned that I do not particularly care for this lens, but the centuries of popularity Dumas has enjoyed indicates that I am an outlier in that regard. The Count of Monte Cristo is perfect for people who like their classics long and stabby. And for me, it’s an unexpectedly useful diagnostic for discovering my taste in literature.

You live, you learn.

“God may seem sometimes to forget for a time, while His justice reposes, but there always comes a moment when He remembers” (222) 
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maurits's review against another edition

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dark tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

It's a bit slow for me, but the last 150 pages were a blast! 
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ferretgazette's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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heini's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Yli tuhatsivuinen teos, mutta erittäin nopealukuinen: lyhyet luvut ja mielenkiintoinen juoni tekivät tästä täydellisen kesälukemisen! 

Tarina kertoo Monte Criston kreivistä, joka kostaakseen kohtalonsa pitää itseään Jumalan lähettämänä sallimuksena juoniessaan vihollistensa tuhon. 
1800-luvun alkupuolen Ranska ja Italia seurapiireineen on viihdyttävää lukemista. 

Aikansa tuotos, niin hyvässä kuin pahassa. 

Ah, teatraalinen, goottilainen, suosikkini! Ihmisyyden pahuus - ja hyvän pilkahdukset. 
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mallorn's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional reflective 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

5.0

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ohlhauc's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
This was so much fun to read!

I thought that it might be a bit long-winded considering how many pages it is, but it was a rather fast read. The prose felt light but substantial and flowed really well. Originally this was serialized so each chapter tends to have a mini-climax or some action in it to hook you, so the pace and energy remains high throughout the book - there really isn't a lot of exposition, although there are some moments where the narrator repeats what has happened before (but that's usually done when there's been a lot of pages in between so it's actually useful because some things you will forget since it is long).

You can read this just as a spellbinding adventure story and have a great time. But you can also go at a slower pace and really dive into the philosophical ideas and social commentary. There are a lot of layers to this novel and it's no surprise that it's a well-revered classic. This is definitely a book I can see myself re-reading in the future.

Don't let it intimidate you. If it it's on your TBR, you'll want to pick it up sooner rather than later. Don't delay on this masterpiece.
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caidyn's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Wow, wow, wow. I can't believe I put this book off for so long. I'm a big classics fan but I had never thought I'd like Alexandre Dumas. Was I wrong! It took me about 100 pages to get into the story, but once I was there I was sold. It's absolutely fantastic and was an enjoyable read. I was supposed to read only 30 pages a day so I could finish it by the end of February. Most days, I ended up reading way over that because I was so entranced with what was going on. Overall, great classic and I'll revisit it again one day!
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katmanica's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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