Bienvenue à Marseille | 2025 The Count of Monte Christo, read-a-long

I don’t get the time jump either! So now it’s 24 years after his arrest! That would make them all early 40s. I don’t remember that extra decade in any of the film versions, I think they simplify a lot. My DH read the book last summer, he says stick with it, it’ll all come clear.
(I am sad though partly because if there was any chance of reuniting with Mercedes, he’s now left her to Fernand for another 10 years??? Does he still love her or has he written her off with the others?)

Yes that was a really odd chapter! Thanks cassandre for the tip about Albert being Mercedes and Fernando’s son, I’d have missed that. And I wouldn’t have clocked the time lapse either - revenge really is going to be served cold. looks like there are some really loooong chapters coming up.

I know Eine. Does that mean the vengeances have happened and we'll hear about them as past events?

I don't understand why we've had another time jump??

Good theory about Edmond fibbing to impress his visitor. I hope that's the case as I want him to remain the good guy!

That was a weird one, I definitely did not have "Edmond gets off his tits in a cave palace with a random French dude" on my Cristo bingo card. I too thought 'Sinbad' was fibbing about waiting until the tongue was cut out, maybe to increase his reputation and mystique.

Same Eine, I'm ashamed to admit I skim read parts of it 🙈

I have to admit I struggled with that chapter, very glad of summary!

That's an interesting point @TonTonMacoute Maybe!

I didn't like the casual cruelty implied in the story of how Edmond wanted a mute servant, so he waited for Ali to have his tongue cut out, and then intervened to save him. Hmm.

Hoping that's a wind up, to make Franz more afraid of this ruthless pirate.

Well that was a step into some drug fuelled, at times Disneyesque, fantasty, I didn't see any of that coming!

I agree @cassandre about feeling uncomfortable about the situation with Ali though.

Anyway, Franz is definitely a new character, but his friend Albert is the son of Mercedes and Fernand.

I totally missed that! Good catch.

Well! That took a bit of a strange turn!
I had to read it in instalments. It was long! I even read the second half of it in English to speed things up a bit. I may go back to it later.

Laughing at the comment about Dumas writing it while he was high himself. Yes!
Not finding the casual cruelty relating to the mute servant funny either. Dodgy.
Ah! Albert is Mercédès's son...yes. That makes sense. He's cultivating Franz's friendship to get close to him.

😂at Dumas writing while high!

I googled Franz because I was confused about who he was (yes, I'm addicted to googling everything), but I regret having done so because I encountered a few plot spoilers.

Anyway, Franz is definitely a new character, but his friend Albert is the son of Mercedes and Fernand.

I think Dumas wrote the entire chapter under the influence of some very strong hashish! 😆

ETA: no idea who Franz is, except I caught he’s a friend of Albert, who I feel has already been mentioned by… someone? 🤷‍♀️ I think Edmond may use Franz as a way of getting contacts in Paris.

Agreed, it's a weird chapter! I didn't like the casual cruelty implied in the story of how Edmond wanted a mute servant, so he waited for Ali to have his tongue cut out, and then intervened to save him. Hmm.

@Sadik I was also surprised by the hashish! A quick google turned up this article, which I haven't read in full (it's quite dense), but it shows that 19th c. French hashish-eating was definitely a subject of fascination.
https://mikejay.net/the-green-jam-of-doctor-x/

This is such a strange chapter!!!

Its so well written though, not so much the description of the cave, but all the sneaking up on the island, and winding up young Franz with the pirate horror stories. Real adventure stuff.

I would be surprised if Franz (WTF is he anyway?) isn't in for a rude awakening. We shall see.

Can't help feeling that Edmond is losing the plot a bit here & it's all about to go pearshaped - or maybe that's just from a 21stC perspective and the sybaritic luxury & drugs didn't have the same implications back then?

(Also, sounds a lot more like opium than hashish, surely?)

Chapter 31 Summary

Italy: Sinbad the Sailor

• Ten years have passed, folks, and we meet yet another character. A French dude named Franz d'Epinay (he's a Baron) is hunting goats on the island of Monte Cristo. Really? Yes, but stick with us.
• Franz discovers a gang of suspicious looking dudes on the island, and he thinks they are smugglers or pirates. Who would live on an island like this?
• It just so happens that these suspicious looking dudes work for "Sinbad the Sailor," who we readers know to be Edmond Dantès.
• Sinbad lives in a really cool palace-like house on the island, among the rocks and the caves. MTV Cribs would be all over his place – he has decked it out with the most beautiful and luxurious furniture and objects from around the world. AND the food at his palace is mouth-wateringly, makes-you-wanna-weep delicious.
• Sinbad tells Franz that he travels all over the world doing good things for people. He's kind of like Robin Hood. He sets prisoners free and stuff.
• He tells Franz about a particular instance in which he saved the life of a Nubian slave named Ali who had been sentenced to death for getting too near the king's harem. Ali now works for Sinbad. But he can't speak because he has no tongue.
• And the drugs. Sinbad's all about drugs, and he's a big fan of the hallucinations drugs give him. He and Franz do lots of drugs, causing Franz to fall into a kind of dream-world trance.

He really did leave it to the last minute didn’t he! Like in films where the last 10 seconds until the bomb explodes lasts about 5 minutes 😄

It sounds like the nice stuff is done and dusted, and now we’re switching to vengeance…kind of sad about that, I want more happy Morrels!

Awesome quote:

“And now...farewell to kindness, humanity and gratitude. I have substituted myself for Providence in rewarding the good; may the God of vengeance now yield me His place to punish the wicked.”

You can almost see his metaphorical sleeves being rolled up!

I confess I did listen to chapters 29 and 30 together, I was on tenterhooks and couldn’t wait to hear how it played out for Morrel. I get that Edmond needed time to get the new ship built, but poor Morrel, he almost blew his brains out. I love the way Dumas writes ‘instantly they were…’ - is it just me that imagines them teleporting Star Trek style from one place to another? 🤣

Awesome quote:

“And now...farewell to kindness, humanity and gratitude. I have substituted myself for Providence in rewarding the good; may the God of vengeance now yield me His place to punish the wicked.”

I posted back on 11/1 that I had stooped reading as was confused with the storyline and was going to wait for you to catch up to where I am. I have since decided to rejoin and reread from chapter 28 with you all so that I can follow along with the discussion as you’re nearly at my last chapter. Looking forward to what happens next

Love this chapter! All glorious but how wonderful when the ship comes in in front of Morrell’s doubters.

Me too, Edmond was definitely cutting it a bit fine here, I mean the pistol was literally in Morrell's mouth! It was a lovely chapter though, and I'm looking forward to the Downfall of Danglars even more often his treatment of M. Morrell.