Book review of :

The count of Monte cristo

-Alexander Dumas
“It’s necessary to have wished for death in order to know how
good it is to live.”

-Alexander Dumas
 The count of Monte Cristo, a book review

The Count of Monte Cristo is a novel by Alexandre Dumas about love, betrayal, jealousy and revenge.
After all, what's a love story without jealousy, betrayal, and revenge. A young man, falsely imprisoned
by his jealous "friend", escapes and uses a hidden treasure to exact his revenge.

This particular novel tells the story of Edmond Dantes, a well-adept sailor aboard the ship Pharaon.
During the voyage, the captain of the Pharaon dies, and Dantes takes over, impressing the ship's owner.
Dantes is promised a captainship when he returns to port in Marseilles. Also set to marry his fiancé
Mercedes, things are looking up for Dantes. This wouldn't be much of a revenge story without a villain
or betrayal. Unfortunately, Dantes' success has incurred jealousy, which has created more than one
enemy for him.
 Setting and characters
Setting : The Count of Monte Cristo is set within the nineteenth century of France in large and populous cities. This was a time of great
disruption. There was confusion all over the land in regards to who led France, King Louis, or Napoleon. The citizens of France became
divided by the two ruling parties.Royalists and the Bonapartists cut at each other’s throats in order to declare that their ruler was supreme.
This situation has a profound effect on the events of the story. Dantes’ enemies used the rivalry between the two parties in order to convince
the Royalists that Edmond is a Bonapartist, therefore it is the basis for his arrest and inevitable captivity in the Chateau D’If.

Major characters :

Edmond Dantes Abbe Faria

Monsieur De Villefort Sinbad the sailor

Abbé Busoni

Lord Wilmore
 Summary
Ferdinand Mondego wished to wed Mercedes, who was affianced to Edmond. Danglars and Ferdinand wrote a letter
accusing Edmond of carrying a letter from Elba to the Bonapartist committee in Paris. On his wedding day, Edmond was
arrested and taken before a deputy named Villefort, a political apostate, who, to protect himself, had Edmond secretly
imprisoned in the deepest dungeons of the Chateau D’If. During this exercise, he met an elderly inmate named Abbe Faria
whose attempt to dig his way to his salvation had led him only to Edmond’s cell. The two meet daily and an incredible
relationship flourished. The old man taught Edmond history, mathematics, and languages. In Edmond’s fourteenth year,
Faria became ill.

The wise elder told Edmond where to find a buried fortune. When Faria finally died, his body was placed in a burial sack.
Edmond got the opportunity of escaping and replaced Faria’s corpse with himself. Jailers threw the sack into the sea which
allowed Dantes to escape. He is rescued by a passing ship which gives him a position on the boat. After paying homage for
the noble act, Dantes recovered the buried treasure and became extremely wealthy. He returned as the mysterious Count of
Monte Cristo and dazzled all of Paris with his extreme wealth . Therefore, he was slowly plotting the ruin of the four men
who had caused him to be sent to the Chateau D’If. Ferdinand had married Mercedes and was now the Count de Morcef.
Monte Cristo released information to the press that proved that Morcef is a traitor, and Morcef is ruined socially.
 Personal view
This is a fabulous book. One of the best I have ever read. I have never been much fan of a old novels which included
characters and plot from the 18th century. I expected it to be some sort of a political history fiction and was bored when I
was first about to read it. However, this book had been recommended by reddit a lot of times. A lot of people said it was
one of the best book about a bittersweet experience of the main character with revenge.

In my opinion, often thought of as a book about revenge, I think it is actually a book about justice. We humans suffer at the
hands of others, sometimes in awful ways. Seldom are we able to right these wrongs. Meditate on the Count and you will
find answers. Also, I must say sir Alexander has written this book in the best way possible. Dumas is a great story teller.
This is one of the most famous books. I would recommend it to a lot of people, read it, and you will surely be fascinated.
No writing gimmicks employed by modern day authors can compete with his natural narrating style. Also one of the main
reasons why I loved this book very very much is because it resembles with my all time favorites movie, “The Shaw shank
redemption.” I would rate this book a solid 8 out of 10. I am sure that I will be re reading this book.
 “There is neither happiness nor unhappiness in this world;
there is only the comparison of one state with another. Only a
man who has felt ultimate despair is capable of feeling ultimate
bliss. It is necessary to have wished for death in order to know
how good it is to live.....the sum of all human wisdom will be
contained in these two words: Wait and Hope.”

― Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo