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

[AgualusasLover]

Following the success of the continuing Dickensalongs, Fallen Women and various other classics, please join The Count of Monte Christo read-a-long, kicking off on 1 January 2025.

The ultimate tale of revenge, with swashbuckling, chicanery and bare faced lies - The Count of Monte Christo has it all.

Editions: most important point is an unabridged version, coming in at just over 1,200 pages. This thread discusses the various translations – the Penguin Classics, trans by Robin Buss is very popular and the one I am reading but what you have already is likely fine and the nuances of translation are always fun to discuss.

What’s the best translation of The Count of Monte Cristo? • We Love Translations

I’ve been thinking about the best way to read-a-long. There have been red-alongs by the day, in chunks and every which way.

I think we have two options:

There are 118 chapter and my proposal is we do one a day, starting on 1 January, 2025. (W&P and all the Fallen Women books worked well this way)

We could also convene weekly e.g. no spoilers until Sunday and read it as it was released, in 18 parts c.65 pages per week. (I remember The Woman in White worked well this way and so do the Dickensalongs)

For now, I have assumed a chapter a day as it has served us well so far, if the majority strongly object, I have put placeholders in my copy breaking it down and can update in readiness for January.

Schmoop very handily has chapter by chapter breakdowns. Here is the Intro https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/count-of-monte-cristo/

MN meet up in Marseille 2025!

Yes today really tested my determination not to read ahead. I can't wait to hear what Caderousse has to say!

Danglars and especially Villefort were far more to blame than Caderousse. I hope Edmond's revenge reflects that.

Well today’s chapter was a convenient bit of exposition - thanks to Caderousse’s good memory! Not sure he deserves the reward he got even if he wasn’t one of the really bad guys - he seems the type of person who would have been “only following orders” in WW2…but I have a feeling we will see more of him, and his wife, and maybe they’ll eventually get their just deserts (will this involve redemption for Caderousse or will he just let things happen as before?)

Seems like Edmond is really rewarding him for a LOT of information.

I'm not quite sure how Caderousse knows what was in Mercedes' heart? He seems to know a lot of detail.

I know. That was a bit of a reach.

I liked his account though. It was interesting to see where they all ended up. His father's story is very sad.

It seems to me that Dantès has the measure of Caderousse and took pity on him. He appreciated his honesty. I agree with DuPain that he seems to be the type to follow orders. I have the impression that he wouldn't have given Dantès a second thought if his own life had worked out better. He has linked his misfortune to the day of the arrest.

There was rather a cynical tone to this chapter, with all the bad guys having done really well in the last 14 years, and all the good guys having lost everything. However, I guess that gives Edmond more to get his teeth into when he rights all the wrongs.

Caderousse went on a bit, didn’t he? I couldn’t decide if it was a genuine baring of his soul to the ‘Abbé’ as a sort of confession, or making a desperate case to be the only person to receive the diamond. I decided it’s a bit of both, but as mentioned, there may be more to come from Caderousse and his wife.

The main purpose of the rather suspiciously detailed information he provided is to get the reader up to date with where all the key players are before the revenge proper begins. It’s been said already that realism isn’t one of the novels strengths: yes, you have to suspend your disbelief in places, but that said, I’m happy to do so if I’m enjoying a book 😀

[24 hrs without gas or electricity - 0/10, would not recommend 🥶]

Chapter 27 Summary

The Story

• Caderousse, stricken by poverty, salivates over the idea of having more than one-fifth of that diamond, and so he tells Edmond-disguised-as-Abbé-Busoni about the scheme that Dangler and Fernand cooked up so many years ago to get Edmond imprisoned.
• When Caderousse spills the beans, Edmond-disguised-as-Abbé-Busoni realizes that Faria's suspicions and hypotheses about how Edmond wound up in prison were right all along.
• Fortunately for him, Caderousse is genuinely wracked with guilt over Edmond's false imprisonment fourteen years ago. Edmond is touched by Caderousse's display of guilt and torment, and he (still disguised as Abbé Busoni) proclaims that Caderousse is the "dead" Edmond's only real friend.
• He gives Caderousse the entire diamond, and, well, you can imagine how the old innkeeper feels about that.
• OK, now to pour some more salt on Edmond's wounds: Edmond discovers that, after going to work for a Spanish merchant, Danglers then found his way to a Spanish bank and turned into Donald Trump. Apparently, he's somewhere in Paris, rolling in his millions of dollars at this very minute.
• Our favorite brooding brooder, Fernand, has gone and married Mercédès. After he returned from being a soldier in Greece, he and the little lady got hitched. At that point, Edmond had only been in prison for a year and a half. They both believe that Edmond is dead, and they, too, make their happy home in the city of lights (Paris).
• Sucks? You bet.
• But, now let's add some vinegar to Edmond's wounds. Caderousse tells Edmond-disguised-as-Abbé-Busoni that his padre (Dantès Sr.) died of starvation – he was so sad that his son had been sent to prison that he didn't (or maybe couldn't) eat. Apparently, Mercédès and Morrel (remember him?) both tried to nurse the heartbroken old man, but he refused their help. During his last days, Morrel left a purse full of money for the old man, but the old man refused.
• Edmond-disguised-as-Abbé-Busoni asks for the purse, and Caderousse, impassioned and heartbroken himself, proclaims the unfairness of life. Remember how Morrel was a successful merchant back in the day with ships and goods and a business? Well, every ship but one (the Pharaon) has sunk. Like Caderousse, he is completely broke – destitute even.
• Caderousse reflects on how unfair it is that the good guys never win. Edmond-disguised-as-Abbé-Busoni responds that this is not always the way things go down. Wink, wink.

I enjoyed that longer than average chapter. Didn't think much of Caderousse's wife and her suspicions about the diamond.

I enjoyed the chapter too, even though I agree that Caderousse seemed at times to be implausibly omniscient as a narrator, ha.

My impression is that his wife is so ill, poor and worn down that she's lost all faith in the potential goodness of human beings.

Btw I read that Dumas co-wrote this novel (and others) with a much less famous author (Auguste Maquet) helping out behind the scenes. It must have been hard work, churning the pages out at the rate they did!

I think we are definitely going to hear more from them. I think Caderousse isn't active,y bad, but will always look after himself and I wouldn't be surprised if he plays both sides off against each other, with the active encouragement of his wife.

Chapter 28 Summary

The Prison Register

• It's Halloween up in here. Edmond is getting the hang of identity swapping, and he now disguises himself as an agent from Thomas and French, an English investment firm, of course.
• Edmond pays a visit to the Marseilles mayor, who he has heard has invested in a big part of Morrel's shipping business. But the mayor tells him to go see the inspector of prisons who has an even bigger share.
• The inspector of prisons? How convenient! Edmond-disguised-as-an-investment-dude meets up with the inspector and buys out his share of Morrel's business. Then Edmond sneakily asks to see the prison records, explaining that Abbé Faria was his teacher once upon a time.
• While scanning the prison records, Edmond looks up his own record and steals the incriminating letter that Fernand and Danglers forged so many years before. He also notices that Villefort indeed sentenced him to life-in-prison (he didn't really get a trial, and he never really got to find out what his prison sentence was).

Hilarious how brilliantly good Edmond is at doing the perfect impersonation of an Englishman!

Smiling as an Englishman does with his teeth clenched made me smile.

@Orland0 Re: no electricity. That was us in October (we did have gas though). It was fun for about 30 minutes but not days! Hope it gets sorted soon!

Thank you @Orland0 for posting the summaries, which sounds like a heroic feat given your current circumstances!

Edmond is certainly acquiring all the information he needs with remarkable ease.

Thinking of you @Orland0 and hoping your electricity will be restored very soon.
Thank you for posting the summaries!

Another enjoyable chapter and thanks @Orland0, another one who hopes your electricity is soon sorted.

Thank you all 😅 I’m thankfully back on the grid. Sunday evening after I’d listened to the Count for a bit, I switched to reading a physical book, under a pile of blankets with a torch propped up behind me 😂 Yesterday morning I was so cold I decamped to a family member’s house for the day for some hot drinks, food, and phone & tablet charging. So my plans for yesterday went out of the window, but I’m sorted now.

The chapter summaries aren’t vital, I know, though for me consistency and the humour in the Shmoop set-up help me keep on track. Also, I think once we get in to February, it might get confusing (for me at least) to know what chapter we’re on, especially if I have a busy few days at work.

As for Edmond, I feel like Dumas could of had some fun taking the reader with him on a shopping trip where he buys all sorts of hats, cloaks, wigs, false beards and moustaches… I think my imagination is getting carried away! 😆

Excellent news @Orland0 👏
Yes! I'm also wondering what guise Edmond will turn up in next.
I don't remember being told his name as a priest (Abbé Busoni) but maybe I missed it in the text.

That's interesting about Dumas's accomplice, Auguste Maquet, that cassandre mentioned. I wonder how that worked out and who did what.

I enjoyed the description of Edmond as someone between 30 and 32. It's definitely all coming together in this info gathering, pre revenging, pages!

Exciting chapter (or two) today. I like that Edmond prioritising helping his friends before starting his revenge !

I've switched to a morning read today. As much as I'm looking forward to the baddies getting their comeuppance it's definitely nice to see Edmond helping those who supported him, and M Morrell is an absolute sweetheart.

I have been out of synch with reading and the thread for a few days but finally caught up on both.

Edmond has surprised me both with his venal streak in respect of the treasure and his capacity for deception. Also loving the fact that he can pass as an Englishman and the stereotyping.