Alexandre Dumas Books

Engaging characters. Sword fights, courage, and adventure! Intrigue, trechery, and romance! 17th century religious figures shown as villians!

Dumas was one of the first and best creators of Romantic literature, as opposed to Chronicals and Naturalistic literature. The characters are competent, with purposes and values worth fighting for, and the ability to win through in the end against great odds.

I've loved this book since I was young, and growing older has not diminished my appreciation of this romantic 'history'. The tale is gripping, the protagonist engaging, and the wordiness comic enough to keep most readers entertained.

My only gripe is the lack of attention to detail. It is obvious that the work was completed over time, and Dumas forgot some of the things he'd already written, inserting them again at a later point but completely out of their original context (for example, the promotion in Ch.28). Things of this nature pop up throughout the novel, and unfortunately draw the reader OUT of the world in which they are, until then, successfully immersed.

Gripes aside, however, the novel is a definite classic and will forever remain, I am sure, one of my favourite pieces of work.

I've always loved reading about swordfights and castles, but Alexandre Dumas brought me into the action and was able to take me back in time with the adventure-romance novel The Three Musketeers. The exciting lives and stories of four men named Aramis, Porthos, Athos, and D'Artagnan are filled with a rollercoaster of thrilling adventure.

In a time where no one loves you but your family and sometimes not even them and all anybody wants is more power and authority is the time frame the famous author chose to write about. The Three musketeers is set in France in 1626 when the cardinal Richelieu is trying to get the head position by killing the king ,but while still acting as his wise and trusted adviser.

Young D'Artagan is a fiery tempered, intelligent and shrewd Gascon whose dream is to become a musketeer. He travels to Paris to do just that. On his very first day he manages to pick three duels with the three best musketeers Monsieur Treville has. As they begin the first duel the men of the evil Cardinal Richelieu start attacking them. It is in this first fight when D'Artagan decides to side himself with the king and fight with the musketeers Athos, Porthos and Aramis. He also distinguishes himself by seriously wounding one of the best swordsmen in France. In doing so he gains the respect of his newfound friends, Monsieur Treville and the king. D'Artagan and his friends then slowly find themselves in the middle of an information war between the Cardinal, who holds all the cards, and their Majesties. On top of that a mysterious woman from Athos' past comes back. It is she who kidnaps D'Artagan's mistress, takes two diamond tags from the Duke of Buckingham-who is in love with the queen who gave him her twelve diamond tags- and tries to kill D'Artagan.
This is simply an awesome book! It is full of mystery, intrigue, action and love. Mr. Alexandre Dumas does a magniffiecent job of adding a lot of the many different genres of books into one novel. He did such a superb job that you don't want to put it down and want to read it time and time again. I love this book. It puts you right into the middle of a very trying time for the entire kingdom and you feel all the emotions that the characters are feeling: lust, anger and hatred are only a few of them.

I can hardly think of a worse book than this. It is extremely dated and the pace is turgid. More importantly to my mind, it was written by a man who fancied himself a historian, and in this and his "non-fiction" work he systematically and quite maliciously set about to trash the reputations of Louis XIII and Cardinal Richelieu. Unfortunately the fiction format helped him to reach a wide audience. If you want to read about heroes dealing with life-or-death crises with courage and passion - read Tapie or Moote or Bailly, read the real history of the reign!

This was quite a treasure for one of the lesser known Dumas novels, after reading all the Classics, I started to get disappointed with what was left (Queen Margot, Knight of Maison Rouge) as it seemed subpar to the more well known novels. Chicot was certainly not a disapoointment. excellent stroy and lots of adventure. Highly recommended

Great book if you are a Dumas fan, and especially if you've read "La Reine Margot". But this edition (ISBN 1-60096-103-7) of the book is full of typos. They even misspelled the name on the front cover - if you click on the "Search inside the book", you'll see the name of the book blatantly misspelled as "Chico the Jester". These typos get really annoying in an otherwise great book. I would not buy books from this publisher (Waking Lion Press) any more.

yes its a good book, king henry sits in his castle fagging around, his brother d'anjou wants to be a king, because he's got nothing better to do all day long and has no playstation 2. bussy in love with somebody else's wife and wants to score so is her husband. chicot king's jester is so smart and perceptive that i think the writer of this book used chicot instead of his real name, bussy dies, because he won't give up monsoro's wife and monsoro is so h0rny and because of it very angry. oops i just read you entire book

Dumas' profound knowledge of French history is amazing. When reading his books, one should always look beyond the plot and read between the lines. He describes the era of intrigues and struggle for power in such a fascinating, colorful and dramatic way that one can only wonder at his talent. Dumas' readers become part of his stories. The ease with which he puts history down on paper truly makes him one of the greatest historians of all times!

The story is one of my favorites. But the book itself is terribly abridged. Whole chapters are missing. I know it because I have read the original. But it's still a great read!

I read this book after I saw movie La Dam de Monsoreau when I visited France with my parents, I was 12. I think the actual book is much better than a movie, Dumas made a good statement in this book by drawing the line between something dirty, which is politics and something that could be so clean, beautiful and yet tragic, which is love. Whenever we love something in this life, we afraid it will be taking away, nothing is permanent. Although this book is a complete fiction, the message in it is very real.
Highly recommended.

The Pevear/Volokhonsky team has been responsible for a minor Russian revolution (hoo-ha) in literature. Their brisk, highly accurate, wonderfully readable translations of Crime and Punishment, The Bros. Karamazov, Chekhov, and War and Peace make these tomes seem exciting and new , especially since most have made do with translations from the early 20th or even 19th centuries!

Now, Richard Pevear takes a crack at one of the most sheerly enjoyable books ever written, The Three Musketeers. I'd tried to read a version of this book some years back. It was pretty good, but it seemed to be one of those adventure stories trapped in another time, where what was once considered bold and exciting had slowly become covered in sepia and dust. But this translation makes everything seem bright, bold, and (because this is a French novel) wonderfully risque.

Political backstabbing, sex-as-revenge, noblemen hiding under assumed names, poisoned wine, battlefield lunches...in fact, I was surprised how much romance and history are intertwined in this novel. The main villain, Milady, (Quasi-SPOILER!)


managers to seduce an English Puritan who is guarding her through a combination of pious prayer and that sort of faux-naivete that involves low-cut dresses and heaving bosoms. Porthos is after a woman for her money, and D'artagnan falls in love with his landlord's wife. Hilarity typically ensues, though there is the occasional kidnapping and the old "hide 'em in a convent".

(End Quasi-Spoiler)

I highly recommend this book to anyone who has a bit of a swashbuckler in them, or who likes their thrillers to have some actual literary merit (which this book does in spades).

I only ask that Mr. Pevear PLEASE turn his pen to the sequel to the Three Musketeers, the bluntly titled "Twenty Years Later". Who knows what we are missing?

After seeing numerous film adaptations of Dumas' immortal work, I had to read the book itself. I was not disappointed. While it is certainly lengthy dense (and, thus, not for everyone), The Three Musketeers cannot but enchant.

The story is well-known: In 17th-century France, D'Artagnan, a young Gascon of a minor family, comes to Paris to seek his fortune as a member of the king's Musketeers. In attempting to do so, he meets or runs afoul of Rochefort and Milady DeWinter - creatures of the scheming Cardinal Richilieu - and the unforgettable Musketeers: the brooding Athos, religious Aramis, and jaunty Porthos. They form an easy brotherhood and fall into foiling the Cardinal's plots while they themselves try to impress their various mistresses and scrape by financially. The book is more than just a great adventure - Dumas also adroitly discusses the class structure of the day, parodies the religious wars of the 1600s, and skewers academic scholarship. A wonderful, rich read.

After reading many of the Russian books translated by Pevear (and Volokhonsky), I thought I would give the Musketeers a try. I was not disappointed. I enjoyed this book as much any book I've ever read. Highly recomended by (just) an avid reader

I loved the Pevear-Volokhonsky translation of Anna Karenina. Loved it! And so I was very, very happy to see a Pevear version of The Three Musketeers, especially one with a fun cover like this new Penguin Classics Deluxe edition has. I bought it and was ready to replace my Modern Library Classics edition --until I started reading it.

Now, I admit I don't have a French version on hand, but I am honestly confused by Pevear's choices in this translation. For example, when the keeper of seals searches the queen's papers, he refers to it as a "perquisition." When the landlord is questioned in the Bastille, Pevear's text refers to the "beagles" who run the place and the "commissary" who is in charge. I held the book at arm's length --I work in a prison, am fluent in French, and have read this book before-- why don't the words match up to those people actually use in English? My old translation refers to the "commissioner" in charge of the prison. That makes sense to me; where I work the "commissary" is the service where inmates can order packaged food or hygiene products using their personal funds.

Pevear's version is still readable, but it's readable in a strange way, like a thesaurus when you're used to a dictionary. I found his choices somewhat distracting.

Richard Pevear's translation of the Three Musketeers is without a doubt the best I have ever seen. His translation makes the story flow much easier and makes the language much more intelligible to modern readers. My hope is that he continues to translate Dumas' other works where the Musketeers also make an appearance. I would recommend this book to those who have already read previous translations and those who are new to the works of Alexandre Dumas.

I loved to read the three musketeers books but, could any one tell me which books are 1,2,3,4,5,6. I dont want to start untill i got the right order. thankyou

A reviewer says there are 5 books to the English translation series starting with 'The Three Musketers'. There is, or rather there was a sixth. Titled 'The Son of Porthos'. I have a very old copy of this book, but have never seen it printed in over 50 years I have been looking for it. Why? For adventure and pleasure in reading, you cannot beat Alexander Dumas and his Musketers. (The movies dont hold a candle to the books.)

A fairly good book. However, very little is seen of D'Artagnan and his friends. This particular book focuses more on the court intrigues of Louis XIV. If you are a great fan of the series (six books in all), you should add this book to your collection. If you are a casual reader, you might not be as interested.

For those trying to read The Musketeers Saga: I was thoroughly confused by the placement of Ten Years Later in the series and the reviews listed on this page. In the original French, there are only three (3) books - 1. The Three Musketeers 2. Twenty Years After and 3. Ten Years Later. That's it - no more. But when translated, most English editions split the behemoth Ten Years Later into a Trilogy (and some four - which make it all the more confusing!).

So the reading list should be 1. The Three Musketeers 2. Twenty Years After and 3a. The Vicomte de Bragelonne 3b. Louise de la Valliere and 3c. The Man in the Iron Mask. Five books - that's the total series!

I highly recommend the Oxford University Press': Oxford World's Classics editions - which has the complete unabridged and annotated versions of all of these books...

A lot of the artwork here is reminiscent of your independent black and white style stuff, which, I suppose, is not too surprising in a case like this.

The text is of course what is supposed to feature.

The highlight would be the work on Zane Grey's Tigre.

The cartoon style on the Brigadier Gerard and Captain Blood stories is nifty, as well.

The twelfth volume in the "Adventure Classics" series of graphic novels and short story collections, the reader is treated to some of the finest adventure writing by some of the most talented authors, and adapted to the graphic novel format by illustrators and artists of matching caliber. The stories comprising this issue include: "In the Valley of the Sorceress" by Sax Rohmer, ill. by J. B. Bonivert; "The Masked Ball" by Alexandre Dumas, ill. by Michael Manning; "Two Men Named Collins" by Damon Runyon, ill. by Noel Tuazon; "Tigre" by Zane Grey, ill. by Don Marquez; "Blood Money" by Rafael Sabatini, ill. by Kevin Atkinson; "The Stolen Story" by Johnston McCulley, ill. by Chris Pelletiere; "Gunga Din", by Rudyard Kipling, ill. by Mary Fleener, and more. Thrilling tales of the past century brought to life in a wide variety of bold, black-and-white styles make Adventure Classics Volume 12 as exciting, wild, and spooky to read as its predecessors.

The mysterious desert. The high plains. The stormy seas. The dense jungles. These are the places where actions speak louder than words, where the sharp retort of a six-gun decides who is right and who is dead, and a blind tiger stalks with preternatural senses and determination. These are the settings for Adventure Tales, a genre of literature prominent in the 1900's, in which many of the finest authors of the period plied their trades.

In this, their 12th volume, Graphic Classics has assembled an anthology of some of the greatest adventure stories of the time, full of hot blood and cold nights, mystery and magic. These classic tales have been interpreted by a host of talented illustrators, lending their own unique insight into the authors original stories. This is their second anthology book, like Volume 10 "Horror Classics," combining many workers in the genre rather than focusing on a specific author.

Some of the best authors are on display here. Robert Louis Stevenson, author of "Treasure Island," Sax Rohmer, creator of Yellow Peril villain Fu Manchu, Alexander Dumas, creator of The Three Musketeers, renowned cowboy author Zane Grey, Damon Runyon, author of "The Idylls of Miss Sarah" which was adapted as the musical "Guys and Dolls," Rafael Sabatinin master of Pirate Tales and creator of Captain Blood, Johnston McCully creator of the swashbuckling Zorro, Sherlock Holme's creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Rudyard Kipling, author of "The Jungle Books."

Finally, there is O. Henry, whom if it weren't for Graphics Classics, I might have known nothing more of than the sweet Christmas fable, "The Gift of the Magi," rather than met him as a scribbler of dark cowboy adventures.

This volume contains:

The Wind Blew Shrill and Sharp - A lusty sea poem by Robert Louis Stevenson. Skot Olsen provides an excellent and strong sailor to accompany the compelling verse.

In the Valley of the Sorceress - Egypt was a mysterious and magical place at the time, and Sax Rohmer weaves a web of desire and danger. An archaeologist attempts to open the hidden tomb of Sorceress Queen Hatasu, but finds his efforts daunted, and his soul beguiled by a beautiful Arab maiden. Illustrator JB Bonivert brings a unique and fanciful style to this classic adventure.

The Masked Ball - By Alexander Dumas. A short and dark tale of heartbreak and desire, accompanied by a hedonistic masked ball where people seek to drown their loneliness and hide their faces. Michael Manning provides a dark atmosphere, heavy with black spaces, as an appropriate accompaniment.

Tigre - The jungles of Mexico are the setting for this tale of lust and revenge. By Zane Grey, an old farmer is a master of wild animals, particularly his blind brutish tiger named Tigre. The only thing he can't tame is his young and pretty wife. Who stalks who in the dense jungle? A straight-forward but perfect comic book adaptation by Don Marquez, particularly of the lovely Senora.

The Shooting of Dan McGrew - A popular cowboy poem by Robert W. Service, adapted with humor and pathos by Hunt Emerson. A lonely miner, a dangerous gambler, and the lady that's known as Lou.

Two Men Named Collins - Damon Runyon gives us a sad and silently heroic of two soldiers who share the same name. On is lonely and ugly, one is popular and handsome. But the one holds the secret of the other, and nobility is not always what it seems. Illustrator Noel Tuazon does a spectacular adaptation of this tail, lending even more weight and atmospher to the yarn.

Blood Money - An adventure of Rafael Sabatinin's celebrated rouge Captain Blood. A straight-forward comic book adaptation by Kevin Atkinson, this is a clever celebration of the key to Captain Bloods success. Pure luck.

Gunga Din -Rudyard Kipling gives us a blood-rousing poem of an Indian water bearer and the Thuggee wars. The prose is amazing. "But when it comes to slaughter, you will do your work on water, an' you'll lick the bloomin' boots of 'im that's got it." Great illustrations by Mary Fleener, this was the first time I had read this classic poem.

The Man without a Shadow - An Irish short story author, this is a companion piece to "A Day-Dream" which appears in "Horror Classics." A whimsical adaptation by Milton Knight of a clever tale.

The Mystery of the Semi-Detached - I always knew Edith Nesbit as the author of the children's tales "The Boxcar Children," but little did I know she had this tale of murder and ghosts in her. With excellent Victorianesque illustrations by Antonella Caputo.

The Stolen Story - Johnston McCully is best known for swashbuckling, but this tale of fictional theft is equally gripping. A man's dreams are met, although they turn into a nightmare. With appropriately grotesque illustrations by Chris Pelletiere.

The Crime of the Brigadier - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had many characters, one of them Brigadier Gerard, a teller of tall-tales and adventurer in Napoleon's army. This funny yarn is comically adapted by Nick Miller is a suiting style.

The Roads We Take - Another black tale of cowboys by O. Henry, a story of betrayal, and a man's true character. Outlaw Shark Dodson saw two roads ahead of him, both leading to the same ending. A bleak story, with a perfect adaptation by Pedro Lopez. So good I immediately read it again after finishing it.

Jackson always gives you a different read and this one is so intriguing. Alexander Dumas's life is slightly more interesting that his one-for-all-characters that he creates. With a touch of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Dumas is a bit long-lived! He has spent centuries spinning wonderful tales, loosely based on his own life. Only true love has proved illusive over the years; not since his lady love was killed has he opened his heart. Now Harmony has entered his life and he wants to love again, only his mortal, or as they case may be immortal enemy is back, too. A quirky, complex, original tale, that is so typically like Jackson.

Renowned mid nineteenth century action adventure author Alexander Dumas continues to write swashbuckling fictions long after he should have died. However, Alex is an immortal so much of his novels come from his own life.

His latest tale that he struggles to write is based on the most difficult event he ever faced. The tragedy occurred six decades when Alex was approaching a century and a half of living. His immortal enemy Comte St. Germain ripped out the heart of the woman he loved. Always wanting vengeance, he never had an opportunity until now as St. Germain has reappeared. Alex teams up with psychic Harmony in attempt to end St. Germain's immortal reign of terror.

The third superb Melanie Jackson gloomy Divine thriller (see DIVINE FIRE and DIVINE MADNESS) is an exhilarating tale from the moment the audience meets a still grieving Alex and never slows down as a High noon showdown is imminent. Although this tale can stand alone, reading the other two sagas will help the audience understand the complex world of the divine immortals especially since some interloping sidebars occur. Fans who appreciate a dark action-packed complicated fantasy will want to read DIVINE NIGHT and its predecessors.

Harriet Klausner

He penned adventures that have thrilled the hearts of readers and movie goers for centuries. Yet, perhaps Alexander Dumas' life was one that would rival even a Musketeer's for adventure and excitement. What if he were still alive? That is something Harmony is about to learn after she meets Alex, the immortal man who has continued his career, spinning fictions out of his own life. However, he is a lonely man, especially since losing his one, true love. Now, Harmony offers him the hope that true love can happen more than once, but first, he must deal with another immortal, one he thought he had destroyed decades ago. St. Germaine is supposed to be dead, but he's back, and Alex must stop his evil, or no one will have a happily ever after.

*** Building on the complex, innovative plot begun two books ago, Ms. Jackson continues her version of a saga of immortals battling against evil. If you are unfamiliar with the prior works, it is highly likely that you'll feel a bit asea. Once more, the author's creativity is demonstrated, proving why she is a star among paranormal romance writers. ***

Amanda Killgore

Wow, what a great, exciting book! Love, betrayal, duels, revenge! Sea battles and hurricanes and slave riots! I read the whole book in one sitting. I liked it even more than The Three Musketeers. A must-read!

I enjoyed this book very much! The translation was perfect, not an emotion or imaginary description was lost. This is a perfect lesson on tolerance, an old story with a timely message. A Must READ!!!

I have been a big fan of Alexander Dumas ever since I first read an abridged version of The Count of Monte Cristo back in high school. I followed that up a couple of years ago with an unabridged version of the same novel, which I now consider my favorite novel of all time, and with the first two volumes of the d'Artagnan series, which is also excellent. However, I've been reluctant to start any other works by Dumas recently mainly because most are extremely long and I haven't had much free time, so I immediately one-clicked a copy of Georges once I stumbled upon this little gem. At less than 300 pages, it presented a much less imposing option versus continuing the d'Artagnan series (which I will do at some point), and I'm glad I picked it up.

Georges follows the exploits of the young mulatto Georges Munier and is set on the Ile de France, a small French (and later English) colony located in the Indian Ocean. While the population of Ile de France is racially diverse, it is not exactly tolerant, as the economy is based upon slavery and the large mulatto (and other free non-white) population can never achieve the upper echelon of society (can't marry a white woman, can't attend certain social events, can't march with the white regiments into battle, etc.). Georges, after his father sends him to Europe as a young teenager in order to complete his education, returns to Ile de France as a young man in his twenties in order to undertake the Quixotic task of eradicating prejudice from the island - a task which he is determined to either accomplish or die trying.

I won't get into the plot in any more detail in order to avoid spoiling any of it, but the novel is very enjoyable, although it could have used a bit more swashbuckling action. The characters are well crafted, with the vindictive young Georges very much resembling the somewhat more developed Edmond Dantes (Georges was released one year before The Count, and from reading both I get the impression Dumas experimented with the character in Georges before perfecting and recasting it as Dantes, although for all I know the release dates may not coincide with the timing of when the bulk of each was written, so I could be completely wrong). Georges' character doesn't quite achieve the depth of the excellent Dantes or d'Artagnan, but that's a given due to the much shorter length of this novel. The real antagonist isn't a man but rather an idea (prejudice), and Dumas does a good, though not quite perfect, job of personifying this via the characters it embodies.

The translation, in my opinion, is pretty good. I don't speak French and haven't read any other translations of this work so I can't give a very good review of the translation, other than to say it is easy to read yet for the most part it doesn't lose too much of the "feel" of the 19th century French speaking civilization. The writing itself isn't quite as enthralling as some of the other Dumas works I've read, although I can't say whether this is due to the translation or the original work.

In short - if you haven't yet discovered Dumas, read The Count of Monte Cristo or The Three Musketeers (in unabridged form!). If, on the other hand, you're already familiar with Dumas' writing and are merely wondering whether Georges lives up to the standards of his better known works, or if you don't have the guts to undertake a 1,000+ page tome, then I would whole heartedly recommend picking this up. For the latter group, reading Georges is by far a preferable option to reading an abridged (read: gutted) version of one of his longer works.

In my opinion, Georges isn't *quite* as good as the two works mentioned elsewhere in this review, but it's pretty damn good nonetheless. If half stars were allowed I'd give Georges 4.5 stars, as I consider it excellent though not quite perfect.

I loved this book. I resent being told I have to read anything. But I still found pleasure out of it. In this book Hester commits adultery and is forced to wear an "A" declaring her sin. You will see early on the hypocrisy of the town. Why not make someone where an "L" for liar or an "T" for theif? Hester is a complicated character. She is not trashy like I first expected. Not at all. This book has a lot of symbolism that I found beautiful. There are plenty of twists in this book. Don't watch the Demi Moore movie of The SL. It is completley different from the book. I recommend this book to everyone.

It was a long book for such a short book.

Don't get me wrong, this is a classic book well deserved for that title.

It is a very complicated and intricate story with mystery, love and evil.

You have a woman, Hester Pryne, who is beyond her time. Strong, beautiful, stubborn, honest and a mother without a father.

There is the father, the priest Dimmsdale, a man tormented by his secret. He is weak and is broken down by the secret he feels he cannot tell and tormented each day by it.

The long gone husband, Roger Chillingworth, sinister and revengeful. All he can think about is tormenting the two lovers, to break them down slowly.

There parallels and many themes that are very subtle and unnoticeable. Beautifully written with delicate underlying dialogue that tells it's own story.

This isn't a book for everybody. In order to really understand this book, you need to understand theme, archetypes, motifs, and the relevance of light and shadow. As my American Literature teacher says, bring you own experiences into the story; you will understand it a lot better.

THE MAN IN THE IRON MASK is not what you would expect if you have seen any of the filmed versions, but it is nevertheless a fitting end to the saga of the Three Musketeers. My only problem with it is the translation in the Signet edition, which is clumsy, clunky, and lifeless. There must be a better one available.

At times my favorite Dumas. World weary cynicism, mixed with heroism. A band of aging heroes must right a terrible wrong, and deal with upcoming youth at the same time. They have been betrayed and pensioned off by those they have bled and almost died for, and so set out to see what they can do to rectify the situation and the darkness surrounding the throne of France.

I have always liked to watch the WISHBONE series on tv! When I got alittle older, I enjoyed reading the books. "The Mutt in the Iron Muzzle" wasn't one of my more favorites but it was still fantastic! I love how they put WISHBONE into real books and go off from there. It's like you're reading two books at once! These books make classic novels easy to understand for young readers. Two thumbs up!

Wishbone turns into a guy who is the kings brother but he dosn't know it. a musketteer comes to help him when he is in jail ordered by his evil brother. Then they switch places when the king is sleeping. I recommend his to anyone who likes mystery, excitment or fairy tales. IT WAS A FABULOUS BOOK!!!