The Count of Monte Cristo

Book summary

In 1815 Edmond Dantès, a young first mate promised a command and a bride, is denounced on the day of his betrothal. Imprisoned without trial in the Château d'If, he meets the abbé Faria, who teaches him and tells of a hidden treasure. Under the name of the Count of Monte Cristo, he reappears years later in the Paris of the men who ruined him. The novel explores revenge, the justice the courts failed to deliver and the price of a life devoted to redress. Dumas follows his characters across some twenty years, between adventure and social study.