Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime
Try Prime
and start saving today with fast, free delivery
Amazon Prime includes:
Fast, FREE Delivery is available to Prime members. To join, select "Try Amazon Prime and start saving today with Fast, FREE Delivery" below the Add to Cart button.
Amazon Prime members enjoy:- Cardmembers earn 5% Back at Amazon.com with a Prime Credit Card.
- Unlimited Free Two-Day Delivery
- Streaming of thousands of movies and TV shows with limited ads on Prime Video.
- A Kindle book to borrow for free each month - with no due dates
- Listen to over 2 million songs and hundreds of playlists
- Unlimited photo storage with anywhere access
Important: Your credit card will NOT be charged when you start your free trial or if you cancel during the trial period. If you're happy with Amazon Prime, do nothing. At the end of the free trial, your membership will automatically upgrade to a monthly membership.
-35% $10.39$10.39
Ships from: Amazon.com Sold by: Amazon.com
$4.08$4.08
$3.99 delivery May 24 - 31
Ships from: Goodwill Industries of Central Texas Sold by: Goodwill Industries of Central Texas
Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.
Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.
OK
Image Unavailable
Color:
-
-
-
- To view this video download Flash Player
Audible sample Sample
The Count of Monte Cristo (Penguin Classics) Paperback – Unabridged, May 27, 2003
Purchase options and add-ons
Thrown in prison for a crime he has not committed, Edmond Dantes is confined to the grim fortress of If. There he learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo, and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration.
Robin Buss’s lively translation is complete and unabridged, and remains faithful to the style of Dumas’s original. This edition includes an introduction, explanatory notes, and suggestions for further reading.
Penguin Classics is the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world, representing a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
- Print length1276 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherPenguin Classics
- Publication dateMay 27, 2003
- Dimensions8.5 x 5.43 x 3.05 inches
- ISBN-100140449264
- ISBN-13978-0140449266
- Lexile measureHL570L
"All the Little Raindrops: A Novel" by Mia Sheridan for $10.39
The chilling story of the abduction of two teenagers, their escape, and the dark secrets that, years later, bring them back to the scene of the crime. | Learn more
Frequently bought together
Similar items that may deliver to you quickly
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Robin Buss (1939–2006) was a writer and translator who worked for the Independent on Sunday and as television critic for the Times Educational Supplement. He was also the translator of a number of volumes for Penguin Classics.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
The Count of Monte Cristo
By Alexandre DumasPenguin Books
Copyright ©2003 Alexandre DumasAll right reserved.
ISBN: 0140449264
Chapter One
Chapter I
ON FEBRUARY 24, 1815, the watchtower at Marseilles signaled the arrival of the three-master Pharaon, coming from Smyrna, Trieste and Naples.
The quay was soon covered with the usual crowd of curious onlookers, for the arrival of a ship is always a great event in Marseilles, especially when, like the Pharaon, it has been built, rigged and laden in the city and belongs to a local shipowner.
Meanwhile the vessel was approaching the harbor under topsails, jib and foresail, but so slowly and with such an air of melancholy that the onlookers, instinctively sensing misfortune, began to wonder what accident could have happened on board. However, the experienced seamen among them saw that if there had been an accident, it could not have happened to the ship herself, for she had every appearance of being under perfect control. Standing beside the pilot, who was preparing to steer the Pharaon through the narrow entrance of the harbor, was a young man who, with vigilant eyes and rapid gestures, watched every movement of the ship and repeated each of the pilot's orders.
The vague anxiety hovering over the crowd affected one man so much that he could not wait until the ship entered the harbor: he leaped into a small boat and ordered the boatman to row him out to meet the Pharaon.
When he saw this man coming toward him, the young sailor left his post beside the pilot and walked over to the side of the ship, holding his hat in his hand. He was a tall, slender young man, no more than twenty years old, with dark eyes and hair as black as ebony. His whole manner gave evidence of that calmness and resolution peculiar to those who have been accustomed to facing danger ever since their childhood.
"Ah, it's you, Dantès!" cried the man in the boat. "What's happened? Why does everything look so gloomy on board?"
"A great misfortune, Monsieur Morrel!" replied the young man. "We lost our brave Captain Leclère off Civitavecchia."
"What about the cargo?" asked the shipowner eagerly.
"It arrived safely, Monsieur Morrel, and I think you'll be satisfied on that score, but poor Captain Leclère-"
"What happened to him?" asked the shipowner, visibly relieved.
"He died of brain fever, in horrible agony. He's now at rest off the Isle of II Giglio, sewed up in his hammock with one cannon ball at his head and another at his feet." The young man smiled sadly and added, "How ironic-he waged war against the English for ten long years and then died in his bed like anyone else."
"Well, we're all mortal," said the shipowner, "and the old must make way for the young, otherwise there would be no promotion."
As they were passing the Round Tower, the young sailor called out, "Make ready to lower topsails, foresail and jib!" The order was executed as smartly as on board a man-of-war. "Lower away and brail all!" At this last order all the sails were lowered and the ship's speed became almost imperceptible.
"And now, if you'd like to come aboard, Monsieur Morrel," said Dantès, seeing the shipowner's impatience, "you can talk to your purser, Monsieur Danglars, who's just coming out of his cabin. He can give you all the information you want. As for myself, I must look after the anchoring and dress the ship in mourning."
The shipowner did not wait to be invited twice. He grasped the line which Dantès threw to him and, with an agility that would have done credit to a sailor, climbed up the ladder attached to the ship's side. Dantès returned to his duties, while Danglars came out to meet Monsieur Morrel. The purser was a man of twenty-five or twenty-six with a rather melancholy face, obsequious to his superiors and arrogant to his subordinates. He was as much disliked by the crew as Edmond Dantès was liked by them.
"Well, Monsieur Morrel," said Danglars, "I suppose you've heard about our misfortune."
"Yes, I have. Poor Captain Leclère! He was a brave and honorable man."
"And an excellent seaman, too, grown old between the sky and the water, as a man should be when he's entrusted with the interests of such an important firm as Morrel and Son."
"But," said the shipowner, watching Dantès preparing to drop anchor, "it seems to me a man doesn't have to be old to do his work well, Danglars. Our friend Edmond there doesn't look as though he needs advice from anyone."
"Yes," said Danglars, casting Dantès a glance full of hatred, "he's young and he has no doubts about anything. As soon as the captain was dead he took command without consulting anyone, and he made us lose a day and a half at the Isle of Elba instead of coming straight back to Marseilles."
"As for taking command," said the shipowner, "it was his duty as first mate, but he was wrong to waste a day and a half at the Isle of Elba, unless the ship needed some sort of repairs."
"The ship was as sound as I am and as I hope you are, Monsieur Morrel. Wasting that day and a half was nothing but a whim of his; he just wanted to go ashore for a while, that's all."
"Dantès," said Morrel, turning toward the young man, "come here, please."
"Excuse me, sir, I'll be with you in a moment," said Dantès. Then, turning to the crew, he called out, "Let go!" The anchor dropped immediately and the chain rattled noisily. Dantès walked over to Morrel.
"I wanted to ask you why you stopped at the Isle of Elba."
"It was to carry out an order from Captain Leclère. As he was dying he gave me a package to deliver to Marshal Bertrand there."
"Did you see him, Edmond?"
"Yes."
Morrel looked around and drew Dantès off to one side. "How is the emperor?" he asked eagerly.
"He's well, as far as I could tell. He came into the marshal's room while I was there."
"Did you talk to him?"
"No, he talked to me," said Dantès, smiling.
"What did he say?"
"He asked me about the ship, when it had left for Marseilles, what route it had taken and what cargo it was carrying. I think that if the ship had been empty and I had been its owner he would have tried to buy it from me, but I told him I was only the first mate and that it belonged to the firm of Morrel and Son. 'I know that firm,' he said. 'The Morrels have been shipowners for generations and there was a Morrel in my regiment when I was garrisoned at Valence.' "
"That's true!" exclaimed Morrel, delighted. "It was Policar Morrel, my uncle. He later became a captain." Then, giving Dantès a friendly tap on the shoulder, he said, "You were quite right to follow Captain Leclère's instructions and stop at the Isle of Elba, although you might get into trouble if it became known that you gave the marshal a package and spoke to the emperor."
"How could it get me into trouble?" asked Dantès. "I don't even know what was in the package, and the emperor only asked me the same questions he would have asked any other newcomer. But excuse me for a moment, sir; I see the health and customs officers coming on board."
Danglars stepped up as the young man walked away. "Well," he said, "he seems to have given you some good reasons for his stopover."
"He gave me excellent reasons, Monsieur Danglars."
"That's good; it's always painful to see a friend fail to do his duty."
"Dantès did his duty well," replied the shipowner. "It was Captain Leclère, who ordered the stopover."
"Speaking of Captain Leclère, didn't Dantès give you a letter from him?"
"No. Was there one?"
"I thought Captain Leclère gave him a letter along with the package."
"What package, Danglars?"
"Why, the one Dantès delivered to the Isle of Elba."
"How do you know he delivered a package there?"
Danglars flushed. "The captain's door was ajar when I was passing by," he said, "and I saw him give Dantès a package and a letter."
"He didn't say anything to me about it, but if he has the letter I'm sure he'll give it to me."
Danglars was silent for a moment, then he said, "Monsieur Morrel, please don't mention it to Dantès; I must have been mistaken."
Just then Dantès returned and Danglars walked away.
"Well, Dantès, have you finished now?"
"Yes, sir."
"Then will you come to dinner with us?"
"Please excuse me, Monsieur Morrel, but I think I owe my first visit to my father. Just the same, I'm grateful for the honor of your invitation."
"You're right, Dantès. You're a good son. But we'll be expecting you after you've visited your father."
"Excuse me again, Monsieur Morrel, but after that first visit there's another one that's equally important to me."
"Oh, yes; I was forgetting that there's someone who must be waiting for you as impatiently as your father-the beautiful Mercédès. You're a lucky man, Edmond, and you have a very pretty mistress."
"She's not my mistress, sir," said the young sailor gravely. "She's my fiancée."
"That's sometimes the same thing," said Morrel, laughing.
"Not with us, sir," replied Dantès.
"Well, I won't keep you any longer; you've taken care of my affairs so well that I want to give you as much time as possible to take care of your own. Do you have anything else to tell me?"
"No."
"Didn't Captain Leclère give you a letter for me before he died?"
"He was unable to write, sir. But that reminds me that I must ask you for two weeks' leave."
"To get married?"
"First of all; and then to go to Paris."
"Very well, take as long as you like, Dantès. It will take at least six weeks to unload the cargo, and we won't be ready to put to sea again before another three months or so. But in three months you'll have to be here. The Pharaon," continued the shipowner, patting the young sailor on the shoulder, "can't leave without her captain."
"Without her captain!" cried Dantès, his eyes flashing with joy. "Do you really intend to make me captain of the Pharaon?"
"If I were alone, my dear Dantès, I'd shake your hand and say, 'It's done.' But I have a partner, and you know the Italian proverb, 'He who has a partner has a master.' The thing is at least half done, though, since you already have one vote out of two. Leave it to me to get you the other one; I'll do my best."
"Oh, Monsieur Morrel!" cried Dantès, grasping the ship-owner's hand with tears in his eyes. "I thank you in the name of my father and of Mercédès."
"That's all right, Edmond. Go see your father, go see Mercedes, then come back to see me."
"Don't you want me to take you ashore?"
"No, thanks; I'll stay on board and look over the accounts with Danglars. Were you satisfied with him during the trip?"
"That depends on how you mean the question, sir. If you're asking me if I was satisfied with him as a comrade, the answer is no; I think he's disliked me ever since the day we had a little quarrel and I was foolish enough to suggest that we stop for ten minutes at the Isle of Monte Cristo to settle it, a suggestion which I was wrong to make and which he was right to refuse. But if you're speaking of him as a purser, I think there's nothing to be said against him and that you'll be quite satisfied with the way he's done his work."
"If you were captain of the Pharaon, would you be glad to keep him?"
"Whether I'm captain or first mate, Monsieur Morrel," replied Dantès. "I'll always have great respect for those who have the confidence of my shipowners."
"Good, good, Dantès! I see you're a fine young man in every way. But don't let me hold you back any longer-I can see how anxious you are to leave."
"May I take your skiff?"
"Certainly."
"Good-bye, Monsieur Morrel, and thank you from the bottom of my heart."
The young sailor leaped into the skiff and sat down in the stern, giving orders to be rowed to the Canebière. Smiling, the shipowner watched him until he saw him jump ashore, after which he was immediately swallowed up in the crowd. When he turned around, Morrel saw Danglars standing behind him, also following the young sailor's movements. But there was a great difference in the expression of the two men as they both watched Edmond Dantès.
-
From the Paperback edition.
Continues...
Excerpted from The Count of Monte Cristoby Alexandre Dumas Copyright ©2003 by Alexandre Dumas. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Product details
- Publisher : Penguin Classics; Reissue edition (May 27, 2003)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 1276 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0140449264
- ISBN-13 : 978-0140449266
- Lexile measure : HL570L
- Item Weight : 2 pounds
- Dimensions : 8.5 x 5.43 x 3.05 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #1,328 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #2 in Classic Action & Adventure (Books)
- #56 in Classic Literature & Fiction
- #209 in Literary Fiction (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
Videos
Videos for this product
0:28
Click to play video
Why you will love this unabridged version
Kenzie Dalrymple
Videos for this product
1:31
Click to play video
On the lifetime quest of revenge of the main character.
Book Chat Live
Videos for this product
0:58
Click to play video
How this is an amazing revenge story spread over decades.
Book Chat Live
About the authors
Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more
Alexandre Dumas, born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie; (24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas, père, was a French writer. His works have been translated into nearly 100 languages, and he is one of the most widely read French authors. Many of his historical novels of high adventure were originally published as serials, including The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After, and The Vicomte de Bragelonne: Ten Years Later. His novels have been adapted since the early twentieth century for nearly 200 films. Dumas' last novel, The Knight of Sainte-Hermine, unfinished at his death, was completed by a scholar and published in 2005, becoming a bestseller. It was published in English in 2008 as The Last Cavalier
Customer reviews
Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.
Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonReviews with images
-
Top reviews
Top reviews from the United States
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
I would not want to see the film of this book, no earthly creature could match up to the mysterious, romantic, mythical figure of The Count of Monte Cristo. Imagination is far far better. This wonderful man takes on all the various shapes and forms of his different disguises, he is so clever it takes your breath away. Oh, if only we could get away with that! Oh, if only we had half his skill to get back at our enemies the way he did. It makes one's mouth water to think of it. Delicious!
Men are turned on by this book because it is full of adventure, the ultimate "Boy's Own" story. Women are turned on by it not only because it is thrilling but because it speaks to the fairy tale longing, (Cinderella) of finding the perfect man..... He doesn't exist girls and boys, sad to say, it is just a fantasy.
In the beginning, even though far fetched, (the escape from jail, the treasure) one goes along for the ride, but towards the end of the book Dumas gets a bit carried away. The fantasy good as it is becomes a bit hard to sustain, the magic cure-all drops, the murderous step-mother nobody suspects, the crippled grandfather blinking in Morse code, and then of course the almost Shakespearean ending of the star crossed lovers. All stretching the imagination to the limit, but loving it being stretched, and rejoicing in the thrilling ride.
I enjoyed the book enormously and found it almost impossible to put down for all the same reasons everyone else did. It is so well written and the pace never stops. I particularly enjoyed the scene described when Albert and Franz came to watch the carnival with Monte Cristo and Franz asked The Count if he could obtain a window overlooking the Piazza del Popolo where there were to be two executions at the start of the festivities. The coolness with which Monte Cristo explains that the program has been changed, in a "tone of voice" Dumas says, "as though he were reading the personal column." (p.383).
"Hum! The first will be mazzolato, the second decapitato. Yes, this is what was originally intended, but I think that since yesterday there has been a change in the order and conduct of the ceremony. .......they were speaking of some kind of stay of execution to one of the two men...... That means you will be denied a guillotining but you still have the mazzolata, which is a very curious form of torture when you see it for the first time - or even the second; while the other, which in any case you know, is too simple, too unvaried. There is nothing unexpected in it. ..... Ah come now, don't talk to me about Europeans where torture is concerned. They understand nothing about it. With them, cruelty is in its infancy - or perhaps its old age."
You can imagine this man with a sword in his hand, never flinching, nerves of steel!
Read it to escape, it's a ticket to a magic carpet ride. Be a little like Monsieur le Comte himself when he said "....chaque fois que je souhait je peux me séparer du reste du monde" " ....whenever I wish I can separate myself from the rest of the world." (p.314).
Worth every one of its five stars. Another favorite book of mine which will certainly be read at least two or three times more whenever I feel like floating away...
I never in a million years would have thought I would love this book! I never thought I would like something like this book. I never thought I would fall in love with Dantes! I never thought I would have so much anger, sadness, despair and happiness in this book! I never thought, did I!
*********SOME SPOILERS**********
Edmond Dantes was a wonderful man of 19-years-old. He had a woman he loved and was going to marry named Mercedes. A loving father. And he was going to be captain of the wonderful ship, Pharaon.
The the jealous b*stards or just b*stards in general ruined life for Dantes.
1. Danglars
2. Fernand
3. Villefort
I hate these men with such a passion I just wanted someone to kill their evil selves.
All of the jerks had a hand in putting Dantes in prison for 14 effing years! Yeah! For what? For NOTHING!
Dantes was in such despair he was going to starve himself to death. I can't even!
Then one night Dantes hears a scratching sound and soon realizes someone is tunneling. Dantes decides to tunnel as well. At some point the two of them tunnel to each other. Dantes gets to meet Abbe Faria, the mad man (so they say) in the cell next door. Abbe Faria thinks he's tunneling out to freedom but he made a miscalculation. But Dantes and Abbe devise a new plan and this takes some years to do all of this tunneling. But the Abbe is old and sick and having seizures. He's not going to be able to make it so Dantes waits with him. He is like another father figure to Dantes. And who in the hell but Dantes would wait and not leave his friend. Because Dantes is good and kind and loving.
Abbe Faria is also the one that opens Dantes eyes to who the culprits were that put him in jail. Poor Dantes couldn't see this at the time and he couldn't read what we were reading so he had no clue. Abbe Faria also tells Dantes about tons of gold and jewels that he has hidden on the island of Monte Cristo. He makes Dantes remember everything about getting there and where to find the treasure.
Unfortunately, Abbe Faria dies and it was so sad. Dantes was so grief stricken over his friend. Dantes decided to leave then as he had nothing else to stay for and he put himself in Abbe Faria's place all wrapped up waiting to be buried. Well, he doesn't actually get buried but thrown out to sea and luckily Dantes managed to save himself.
We go on to read of the tale of how Dantes get to Monte Cristo and soon he is beyond rich and he is so smart and reading to get IT DONE!
And Dantes doesn't just run off and kill people. He's smart. He tears down their houses, their world without them knowing who he is until the bitter end. And all of the riches they acquired while he rotted in jail was disgusting. Anyway, some people did die but that's of little importance.
Dantes is also kind to all of the people that were kind to him or tried to help him while he was in jail. He's such a wonderful person. Yes, I know I keep saying that. He helps Morrel and his family when they were about to lose everything. They even lost the Pharaon but Dantes brings him a new one without Morrel even knowing where the ship came from. Dantes gave them money. He helped the family even after Morrel was gone. I cried and cried at his generosity.
And to sit and read of all the plans and all of the people crumble.
The only person to recognize Dantes, even with his disguises, was Mercedes. But she went and married freaking Fernand and had a kid. Dantes was friends with Mercedes son but things could never be good for them again. And it's so, so sad for so many involved.
Oh, and Dantes called himself "Sinbad the Sailor" and "The Count of Monte Cristo." Of course I guess if you own a rock and gold and jewels and many other things, you can call yourself anything you want! :-)
I can't sit here and go on and on about the book. It's freaking 1276 pages! I'm not that good of a reviewer to tell you something good about that many pages. Just know. . . THIS BOOK is freaking AWESOME! If you have been debating on reading it and afraid of it's size, who cares, just read it. I mean you can take two months or however long to enjoy Dantes and his adventures, but don't let the "tome" bother you. It's not boring at all! NOT ONE BIT!
I give it all the stars!
Sail on dear, Dantes! ♥
My only regret is not reading this book sooner.
This book has *everything* - realistic and memorable characters who will stick with you long after the last chapter; a riveting plot with multiple twists, turns, and subplots that all somehow weave nicely; compelling prose that'll make you want to read just one more page, and then just one more page, and then another; and a profound message for all to ponder.
I first read the abridged version, which was either 67 or 71 chapters long (can't remember which), and I managed to finish the book in three days. After that, I read this unabridged edition, which I finished in less than a week. I also have an unabridged public-domain edition on my iPhone, which I've yet to finish rereading. Yes, it is that good. It's so good that despite its sheer length (117 chapters for the unabridged version!) I've not only blazed through it in mere days, but returned to it to relive the joy, pain, and rollercoaster of other emotions I experienced.
If you haven't yet, do yourself a favor and read this unabridged version of "The Count of Monte Cristo" from start to finish. All of it. You will thank yourself for doing so, or lambast yourself for not picking it up sooner
Top reviews from other countries
Reviewed in Sweden on December 7, 2023