The Count of Monte Cristo cover art

The Count of Monte Cristo

 Preview

Get 30 days of Standard free

£5.99/mo after trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options

The Count of Monte Cristo

By: Alexandre Dumas
Narrated by: John Lee
Try for £0.00

£5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for £19.73

Buy Now for £19.73

Season's Savings | £0.99/mo for 3 months

£5.99/mo after 3 months - terms apply. Cancel monthly

Now a television miniseries directed by Bille August and starring Sam Claflin

Dashing young Edmond Dantes has everything: a fine reputation, an appointment as captain of a ship, and the heart of a beautiful woman. But his perfect life is shattered when three jealous friends conspire to destroy him.

Falsely accused of a political crime, Edmond Dantes is locked away for life in the infamous prison at the French Chateau d’If. But it is there that he learns of a vast hidden treasure.

After fourteen years of hopeless imprisonment, Dantes makes his daring escape and follows his secret map to untold fortune. Disguised now as the mysterious and powerful Count of Monte Cristo, Edmond seeks out his enemies—and nothing will stand in the way of his just revenge.

Filled with thrilling episodes of betrayal, romance, and revenge, The Count of Monte Cristo is one of the greatest adventure stories ever written.

(P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Action & Adventure Anthologies Anthologies & Short Stories Classics Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Short Story Adventure
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

Critic reviews

“John Lee imbues this classic with exactly the right balance of solemnity and compassion…Lee works with Dumas’s text to give each character complexity and emotion. The listener regrets the story’s end, wishing to live with Edmund and his adventures just a little longer. Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award.”

(AudioFile)

“Lee’s deep muscular voice works well for this swashbuckler…His reading is highly expressive, his pace brisk, his tone rich with foreboding.”

(Kliatt (audio review))

“A piece of perfect storytelling.”

(Robert Louis Stevenson)
All stars
Most relevant
I had always wanted to read this and have no regrets at listening to the 40+ hours. I would only recommend this if you have a lot of time on your hands and are prepared for it to go a little off the boil in the middle third. It is still an excellent story and full of twists and turns that should keep you interested until the end. I loved it and as I do have a lot of time on my hands (3hrs car commute every day) I found it a very enjoyable listen. You would benefit from listening to it in large chunks as keeping track of who is who over the many years of the story, with early family names changing to the "Count of X" and "Baron Y" confused me a little.

Excellent but sags a little in the middle

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I've enjoyed The Count of Monte Cristo in a number of presentations, I think this may be the first unabridged delivery I've listened to in its entirety.

John Lee is such an expert in the audiobook field, he effortlessly traverses the emotions of the various characters with power and conviction - transporting the listener into the midst of the characters.

Dumas's classic tale of being wronged and seeking revenge has a number of contemporary dramatisations, adaptations and derivative works (take Stephen Fry's - The Stars Tennis Balls as a great example) that returning to the source (or at least a good translation thereof, my understanding of the original French would not allow me sufficient understanding to enjoy this masterwork) is something of a pilgrimage for me and one I would wholeheartedly recommend to anyone.

It IS very long, at nearly 47 hours, but the narrative is still quite dense and, again, for me, needed to be enjoyed at the speed at which it was intended (1x) - Dumas delivers with such detail that the listener would be poorer were they not allowed to fully interpret the story into their mind's eye.

If you feel that you have not the time to enjoy this, get it anyway, and set aside some time from your schedule to be whisked back a couple of centuries to 1800's France (and elsewhere) - free your mind from this all consuming 24/7 modern world which is it's own Chateau d'If. If you have a holiday, listen for hours daily and maybe you will complete the book in a week, at 10 minutes a day you will get nine month's enjoyment from this Plus Catalogue title - and be sure to look for more works read by John Lee.

A true "Must Listen", expertly delivered

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I really enjoyed listening to this great classic about the determination of the count to devise appropriate retribution for the people who wronged.

A great classic

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Loved it, kept at x1 speed, very relaxing, in the car, after work, perfect way to unwind

Very enjoyable

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
They certainly don't make them like this anymore!! Committing to this is a huge undertaking, but it's certainly worthwhile. This is a wonderful adventure, exploring the themes of love and vengeance, and the ultimate futility of vengeance. The performance is fantastic. The story is rich and engaging. It's a classic for a reason!!!

Majesterial

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews