Description

The Count of Monte Cristo is an adventure novel by French author Alexandre Dumas completed in 1844. It is one of the author’s most popular works, along with The Three Musketeers. The story takes place in France, Italy, and islands in the Mediterranean during the historical events of 1815–1839. It begins just before the Hundred Days period (when Napoleon returned to power after his exile). The historical setting is a fundamental element of the book, an adventure story primarily concerned with themes of hope, justice, vengeance, mercy, and forgiveness. The book is considered a literary classic today and has become a fixture of Western civilization’s literature, as inescapable and immediately identifiable as Mickey Mouse, Noah’s flood, and the story of Little Red Riding Hood.