Alexandre Dumas Books

Like many young men before me, I discovered Alexandre Dumas in my youth and his "Count of Monte Christo" and "Three Musketeers" remain some of my favorite books. From the "Count of Monte Christo" we learn that revenge is a dish best served cold and from the "Three Musketeers" we come to value the pleasures of friendship and the importance of personal loyalty. While some critics may look upon these books as 19th century pulp fiction, they have stood the test of time for the quality of the stories have kept the books in print and made them the basis for swashbuckling movies from the earliest days of film to the present day. Most of Dumas books were densely plotted novels set in historical France. His characters are memorable and the novels are intricately plotted stories of intrigue and treachery. Those who complain about the state of politics today should pick up a Dumas novel, for the French ministers played for very high stakes indeed. Because of the sophistication of their plots - and the depths of intrigue present in the French aristocracy - these books require intense concentration on the part of the reader for there are legions of characters to keep track of, each with his or her own agenda. The "Three Musketeers" dealt with the adventures of d'Artagnan, a real life Musketeer from Gascony who lived during the rein of Louis XIII and Louis XIV. His comrades Athos, Porthos and Aramis, who were also based on real men and the novel, set in 1628, followed these characters as they intrigued on the side of the Queen, Anne of Austria, who was married to Louis XIII. They were pitted against one of the great villains of literary history, the imperious and imposing Cardinal Richelieu. This book "Twenty Years After" is a sequel to the first tale of the Musketeers and it is set during the dramatic days of the Fronde, of Civil War in France, two decades after the conclusion of the first story, when the Musketeers have been separated by time and events. The queen mother, Anne of Austria rules France as regent for the young Louis XIV and the power behind the throne is Cardinal Marazin, who is Anne's secret lover. Dumas has the Musketeers come out of retirement and re-discover the value of their friendship so that they can match wits with the devious French Minister, Marazin and the character of the Son of Milady, the unforgettable female villain of the "Three Musketeers." Despite the heavy plot, Dumas' pace never flags and dedicated readers will not only be thoroughly entertained but they will probably learn more about the intricacies of French history and politics than they ever thought possible. Jeffrey Morseburg

i thought this was a great book because i've never read the origanal but it was about 700 pages shorter DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK!

This review is for this version, not the book itself, which is amazing. If you are unfamiliar with the REAL version of Monte Cristo and didn't know that the actual novel is 1300+ pages, don't bother with this version unless it is required for a class. Nowhere on or in the book does it say that it is abridged, so unwitting readers could be duped into thinking this was the full version. False advertising. Don't waste your time with this one, read the full version, you won't be disappointed.

The single star refers to this version, not the book itself. Do not read this version if you want the complete version of the Count of Monte Cristo. Other reviewers have noted that this is an abridged version, but it is much worse than that, this is a Bowdlerized version. Still worse is the fact that the publisher does not disclose this fact, which I consider to be quite deceptive. Significant subplots have been eliminated so as not to have to contend with what the Bowdlerizer considered unpleasant story elements such as: murder (two of them are eliminated in this version), an affair between two main characters leading to the illegitimate birth of a third character, the attempted infanticide of that third character and a lesbian relationship. Important characters become merely ciphers, and main characters just fade away because the chapters describing their fate have been eliminated. While important chapters are eliminated, the flowery 19th century prose (or at least the English translation of this language) is retained. Thus, this version is over 600 pages long. In contrast, the Lowell Bair translation and abridgement (published by Bantam) is about 200 pages shorter. However, the Bair version is more complete in terms of story elements and is a version that I recommend.

This book contains some enrichment in term of additions of some historical background, information about the life and work of Dumas, chapter notes and interpretive notes. In my opinion, however, these enrichments in no way compensate for the trashing of Dumas' story. Also, beware if you read this version for school, you will suffer the double handicap of not getting the complete story while still having to wade through over 600 pages of 19th century prose. Read the whole thing, or at least an abridgement that uses a more modern prose style, while still retaining the whole story. Beware, however, the complete book is about twice as long as this version and many times the size of the Bair abridgement.

I am reviewing the Pocket Books Enriched Classics version of the novel The Count of Monte Cristo. At about chapter 30, I was hooked on the story and reading reviews and doing research on it. At that point I discovered the Pocket Books version is an ABRIDGED version with about 70 chapters. The real version has around 117 chapters. This frustrated me immensely because nowhere on the Pocket Books version does it say it is abridged. That is my biggest complaint.

I then found a complete version of the book and read it. If I was going to read the book, I wanted to read the whole thing. However, if you want a more tightly written book, I guess I could recommend the abridged version. It won't take near as long to read and will probably tell the same story. Just a quick comment about the 2002 movie starring Jim Cavizel and Guy Pierce. The 1st half of the move covers Dantes' imprisonment and escape, while in the book, it is maybe 25% of the story. While the movie is good, it in no way does justice to Dantes' life as the Count of Monte Cristo. I don't see how it would be possible to make a movie that follows the book closely, the book is just too long.

Dantes is madly in love with Mercedes. On the eve of their wedding, Dantes is betrayed by 3 supposed friends. Dantes spends 14 years in prison and there he meets a priest he teaches him many things an tells him where to find a massive treasure. Dantes escapes, finds the treasure and sets out to get revenge on those who betrayed him. The revenge plots are long, detailed and sometimes farfetched. It seems Dantes can do anything he wants and is always able to buy what he needs or be in the right place at the right time. Still it is fun to get to know the characters and to see how Dantes exquisitely exacts his revenge. Many characters view suicide as a honorable way to deal with grief, which is ridiculous today but was accepted back then. In spite of leaving out 1/3rd of the novel, the pocket books version does include an large reference section that includes plot summary, character lists and other commentaries.

If only Alexander Dumas were alive today. The Count of Monte Cristo is an amazing novel with an intricate plot, numerous characters and plenty of twists and turns. Unfortunately, it is written the style of the times, and is as not as exciting as it could have been. The dialogue all has a poetic feel to it. I wish this story could be told by an author today. This book oozes sexuality (affairs, lusts, lesbians) just beneath the surface. There is so much sexual tension that could be exploited without crossing the line to obscene. Also, so much of the behavior of the characters is wrapped up in French social customs that are hard to understand at first but the reader will quickly pick up on them.

I recommend this book to anyone interested in books of this era or of a good adventure. Just decide if you want the abridged version or full version before you buy this book.

Nowhere in the description of this item or in the book itself does it mention that this is an abridged book with a number of plot resolving sections omitted. Amazon - you must state in the listing for these "Enriched Classics" books that they are abridged and therefore are useless as school books, etc. Very misleading by the publisher!

Readers familiar with The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo will recognize the swashbuckling style in this story of the Knight of Maison-Rouge. However, with this book Dumas would not have become a household name. It is a very different type of story and left me dissatisfied. Its value lies in its unflinching portrayal of the Terror that followed the French Revolution. Undoubtedly unpopular in times and places where the French Revolution was esteemed as a model for the overthrow of tyrannies, it is now available in a new edition. The story revolves around various, obviously unsuccessful, attempts to rescue Marie Antoinette after the execution of Louis XVI. The book is extensively annotated. The notes are distracting, but also very useful to anyone without an extensive knowledge of the French Revolution. I certainly learnt a lot of history. The book is recommended to anyone interested in the French Revolution. It is instructive in the workings of totalitarian regimes in general so that its lessons are relevant to our own times.

Definately not my favorite Dumas novel. I had a real problem with the translation--it felt like I was reading a dumbed down version. "Heck!" "For crying out loud." "You'd be one of her hottest followers..." You get the idea. It felt like the "terror" of 18th century France was being played out in suburbia 21st century America. What a shame.

The story itself was fairly entertaining although it lacked the intrigue and intricacy of other Dumas novels.

I was very excited to read a "lost" Dumas novel, since The Count of Monte Cristo is one of my absolute favorite books. However, I found it extremely difficult to force myself to finish this one. It's either a dull translation or simply not one of Dumas' best works. I suppose you would have to read the original French to know for sure. The heroic characters are one-dimensional, sappy cliches of the Romantic era. The "adventurous" scenes are over in seconds and not gripping at all. There is nothing in this story that was not better portrayed in A Tale of Two Cities. Basically, there's a reason why I was able to purchase this book used for $1...

I've read most of Dumas' work before I undertook the reading of this translation. In my opinion, it is hideous. If you love the "period" feeling of the language of Dumas, do not read this version of his work. I was utterly disappointed, and felt I was not reading Dumas' work. The translater butchered the very essence of Dumas' style of writing. In all of the other works of Dumas, I could not put the book down. It took all my wits to finish this labored translation!

I love Dumas. There, I admit it. I've been bred on Dumas. (And those who think this book is atypical Dumas, simply haven't read much Dumas :) ). Sadly, much of Dumas' works get burried under poor and inaccessible translations where the translator apparently thought "This takes place 300 years ago - let's make it sound that way!" Luckily, this new translation is true to the Dumas style - it feels contemporay and speeds you through the action with ease and fun (as much fun as you can have reading about the bloodbath that was the French Revolution).

This is classic Dumas - the adventure, the intrigue, the history, the fascinating characterizations, and in this new edition it feels vibrant and fresh!

I oredered this book but I thought I was order a DVD my mistake, but its always a pleasue doing business bie Amazon.
Ron

This one's a real curate's egg. Buy this if you love a good historical yarn, constant plot development, intrigue and speculation on one of the great periods and what-ifs of any period in any country's history. It's a page-turner and lovely if it catches you in the right mood.

Do not buy this if you're more the sort that doesn't care so much what happens as how it's described. Character development is limited and nobody really comes to life in true 3-D, which would have been the making of this novel. On the other hand some of the intrigue we see is quite nicely developed.

I am the sort who likes to have a few books on the go at once and to deliberate over things and savour the status quo at any point, always expecting never to re-read (I'm sure you're thrilled at this insight). I must say that menas I've tended to hurry to another book from this one and it's not holding my attention. It reads like a play and would have been better in that format, but by trying to have a main plot and subplot it all reads too cleanly.

If you really love the genre of historical novels nothing quite beats 'The Leopard' by Lampedusa, but it's more after my likes. I wish this book were really about something, be it "How far it is possible in politics to achieve what you want with a bi of talent and status" but other books do much better and this doesn't have such lofty ambitions.

Ultimately, some good effects but really unmemorable.

I saw and loved the movie so I just had to get the book to compare, books are usually better. The problem is that it doesn't compare, the stories are totally different. That being the case the book was interesting, exciting at some points and a little difficult to understand because of the era in which it was written. It has little to do with the "man" in the iron mask and it is more an extension of the Three Musketeers.

Having just finished The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers, I ventured to find more books from the wonderful author Alexandre Dumas, and stumbled upon this book, which is one in the Three Musketeers series. It takes place while the three (well, really FOUR) musketeers are no longer in their prime, and are becoming a bit aged, though not lacking whatsoever in wit or a thirst for adventure. OH, and a warning before I continue: if you are reading this book simply because you saw the movie, enjoyed it, and would like to see if the book is similar, do NOT expect them to be similar in very many ways at all. In fact, the movie would only be a portion of the book, and quite altered in many parts. However, if you are simply reading this book for the sake of enjoying it, read it! The title of the book may be a bit misleading, for it only refers to the first half of the actual book, but that doesn't matter--the book itself is wonderful. Summaries are easy to obtain, and so I shall not bore anyone with a summary, but I shall say this: the ending(s?!?) made me cry more than I had cried in a long time. Perhaps I was only feeling sensitive that day; but the book, it was truly sad at the end...this book is the end of the Three Musketeers, and a memorable one it is indeed.

From the back of the book:

Alexandre Dumas, an ardent admirer of stories of the supernatural, published many of his own occult tales during his illustrious literary career. One of these was The Vampire, a play first performed in 1851. Dumas penned The Vampire with Auguste Maquet, who had also collaborated with him on many of his most successful romances, including The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo.

The vampire in Dumas's play is named Lord Ruthven after the most famous vampire in literature during the first half of the nineteenth century. In 1819, Dr. John William Polidori wrote the first vampire tale in English literature and named its title character, Lord Ruthven. After the success of the story, Lord Ruthven's popularity spread throughout Europe and he became the subject of many plays and stories. Eventually, his notoriety diminished, and Count Dracula, another aristocratic vampire, took his place.

Presented here is a novelization of Dumas's classic version of the Ruthven legend, which has never been published in English, now available for a new generation of readers to discover.

From the back of the book:

Alexandre Dumas, an ardent admirer of stories of the supernatural, published many of his own occult tales during his illustrious literary career. One of these was The Vampire, a play first performed in 1851. Dumas penned The Vampire with Auguste Maquet, who had also collaborated with him on many of his most successful romances, including The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo.

The vampire in Dumas's play is named Lord Ruthven after the most famous vampire in literature during the first half of the nineteenth century. In 1819, Dr. John William Polidori wrote the first vampire tale in English literature and named its title character, Lord Ruthven. After the success of the story, Lord Ruthven's popularity spread throughout Europe and he became the subject of many plays and stories. Eventually, his notoriety diminished, and Count Dracula, another aristocratic vampire, took his place.

Presented here is a novelization of Dumas's classic version of the Ruthven legend, which has never been published in English, now available for a new generation of readers to discover.

Let me first mention that Alexandre Dumas did NOT write this book as the title implies. In fact, if Dumas were to read it, I think he'd turn in his grave!

Even though I was disappointed to find out that the book wasn't written by Dumas, I was still hopeful, thinking that the the story could still be enjoyable. After reading the first chapter I put the book down in disgust! This book reads as if it was written by a high school student with no narration skills! I was insulted! This is positively the worst writing I have ever seen!

The book has 2 reviews prior to mine, both giving it 5 stars, both with the same content. My guess it, it was posted by the author, his friends, or his family members. No one who loves and appreciates the writing of Alexandre Dumas could possibly stand reading this!

So while I attempt to find the actual play, this book is going straight back to Amazon.

Not a bad translation, but AVOID AT ALL COSTS

This is an abridged version, and as such a waste and a slap in the face to the author's original vision.

I'm doubly upset because I didnt notice this was abridged till I already bought it, and was already 200 pages into it.

Unlike the previous reviewer, I am a fan of this version. I've read other translations, abridgements and the full version of the novel, but this is my favorite. When I get to teach the story, this is the version I choose. It has the main plot elements and major characters, but leaves out much of the cluttering, distracting detail.

Though it's been a few years since I read this book I have to say that I truly enjoyed it. Perhaps it's not the rollicking spirited style of The Three Musketeers but it's the sweet and yet sad fate of the duke's page that stayed in my head years after. It was a very surprising read - who would have guessed that the page would end up being a woman impersonating a man in order to stay close to her beloved Duke? I like it because it is so different than many of the other books that he wrote and I feel it is done very, very nicely. Mind you, there are a lot of war descriptions but if you enjoy reading Dumas and enjoy a unique little romance then I advise you to definitely check this out. This woman enjoyed it immensely.

This novel is much more obscure and difficult to find than are the more celebrated Dumas novels such as The Count of Monte Cristo and the Musketeer novels. While it is certainly the work of Dumas, with his inimitable style and engrossing characters, it is much more a history than a Romantic novel. He frequently spends chapters upon chapters describing which army did what to whom and for how long, not that it mattered because God was protecting France. It is not a bad read, but it is a bit dry if you are not as interested in serious history as in the tales the author habitually spins.

If you consult a book by a fellow named Munro on the complete works of Alexandre Dumas, you will find that this book and several others like it were written after Dumas' death in hopes of cashing in on his good name. Most of these phony titles are very, very poorly written and are not worth your time and money even as curiosities.

The book was not written by Dumas but for Jules Lermina. The main personage is the count. I think that this work is a good continuation of the book de DUMAS but inferior to another continuation written for the Portuguese writer ALFREDO HOGAN "A MÃO DO FINADO" (Hand of the Deceased one) (1864)

I cannot believe that a site such as Amazon.com would have made such a big mistake. Mr. Alexander Dumas never wrote a book by the name of "The sons of MonteCristo". This book was actually written by "Jules Hippolyte Lermina" who also wrote another sequel before this one called "Montecristo and the Countess" Both books are great stories, but nothing compared to the original.

Alexandre Dumas n'a pas ecrit le livre" the son of porthos" mais PAUL MAHALIN(ecrivan français) Ce livre est une suite du livre"Viconte de Bragelone" de Dumas et le livre raconte la vie du fils de porthos et de Aramis(le dernier mousquetaire vivant) Pour les lecteurs qui ont aimé le viconte de bragelone je doit conseiller le livre

The only reason this novel had Dumas as its author was because it was signed so. Nowadays, very little (if any) evidence suggests that he was actually the author. At any rate this novel, which deals with a dumb but honest and strong hero while portraying Aramis (who was obviously the only one of the musketeers alive at the time) as the Evil Personified, is among the worst novels I have ever read untill the end.

Alexandre Dumas n'a pas ecrit le livre" the son of porthos" mais PAUL MAHALIN(ecrivan français) Ce livre est une suite du livre"Viconte de Bragelone" de Dumas et le livre raconte la vie du fils de porthos et de Aramis(le dernier mousquetaire vivant) Pour les lecteurs qui ont aimé le viconte de bragelone je doit conseiller le livre

Classics are my favorite books. Their wordy, sometimes roundabout, but nevertheless substance-filled sentences make for satisfying, but not necessarily quick reading. This book, however, was as close to a "quick read" as any classic I have ever read. But the story could have been told in an even shorter novel. The narrator recounted his love again and again and made several actions numerous times. The novel felt empty and impersonal, the actions of the main characters and the "love" they felt for each other, based on superficial whims. If written in modern-day prose, this novel would not have been nearly as notable. Nevertheless, because I have a soft spot for classic literature, I enjoyed this book.

Camille is that rarest of all literary creations: a readable, enjoyable classic. This novel tells a good story about the sometimes tragic and scandalous and sometimes joyous life and fortunes of one Marguerite Gautier, a Parisian courtesan, and her lover Armand. The pace in this book doesn't drag, isn't too long, and rises well to the exact conclusion a reader anticipates. This is a frank, even sexually bold sort of novel for its period, and demonstrates again that the nineteenth-century French were willing to delve into subject areas their English counterparts were not. The avenues the romantic entanglements in Camille take combine with other elements to give this tale a more modern feel than most novels of two centuries ago. It's not great literature (in fact it's barely above a well-written romance novel) but it's definitely not bad reading material, either. Three and a half stars is what I'd plant on this work.