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I recently finished The Count of Monte Cristo and my goodness do I have some thoughts on it. It took me about five months to finish it but every second kept me engrossed. It started when I read a post here probably close to a year ago singing its praises, and immediately put it on my ever-growing 'to read' list. After getting it for my birthday last year, I finally sat down and started reading it in early September of 2022.
Coming from reading basically only non-fiction works, I was surprised by how this book immediately got me hooked. I fell in love with Edmond Dantes character, and his betrayal, loss and heartbreak genuinely affected me. I found myself so frustrated at his turmoil, and wanted nothing more than his revenge to be brutal and all encompassing. Seeing the fall from grace of this young, idealistic and just genuinely good hearted kid, into a cynical, mean-spirited and extravagant man was just something that made me feel emotions from words on a page I had never experienced previously.
Really the entire cast of characters Dumas created I found to be extremely compelling and interesting to read about. Off the top of my head there's Noirteir, the entire Danglars family, Andrea Cavalcanti, and Haydèe to name a few. And of course the titular Count was the star of the show every time he appeared on page. I found myself as in awe of him as were the people around him. His long drawn out plan of revenge was as fun to behold as it was impossible to predict. I do wish we could've heard about the aftermath of all the characters. I was particularly interested in what happened afterwards to more minor characters such as Andrea and Franz specifically. I felt as though their characters had quite a lot of build-up but were essentially forgotten about once they'd fulfilled their purpose to the Count.
Other than that, the bit of a slog in the middle, and a few minor gripes (Didn't get the translation by Buss so apparently there were quite a few changes and removals made in my translation) I think this is quite possible my favorite book I've read. Certainly my longest read!
I'd love to hear everyone else's thoughts!
Edit: Also for all those wondering, I read the Barnes and Nobles bound leatherback edition. The translator is uncredited, but it is the unabridged version.
