The Count of Monte Cristo Book Summary

The Beginning

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas tells the story of Edmond Dantes, who, on his safe arrival at Marseilles after the death of the Captain of Pharaon, the ship he works in, and his delivery of a package to respect the Captain’s dying wish, is promoted by Monsieur Morrel, the owner of the shipping company, to replace the dead Captain, under the envious eyes of the ship’s supercargo, Danglars. At home, Dante finds his indebted, starving father and helps him by paying off their neighbor, Caderousse, before meeting Mercédès, the woman he loves. He finds her with Fernand Mondego, who also loves her. She, however, loves Dantes, and they decide to get married. 

Conspiracy and Trial

This infuriates Mondego, and he joins Caderousse and Danglars in their hatred for Dante, and they start planning his downfall. It was a time when Napoleon lost his power in France, and sympathizing with the Bonapartists was treasonous. Danglars writes to the public prosecutor, informing him of Dantes’ delivery of a letter from Napoleon to the Bonapartists, spurring his arrest at his betrothal feast. He is presented before the deputy public prosecutor Villefort, who, on inspection, acquits him only to find that the person the letter was addressed to was his father. He gets Dantes rearrested and sends him to the infamous Château D'If prison for political prisoners. This is followed by Napoleon temporarily regaining power, sacring the conspirators into fleeing or joining him. Amidst this unrest, Dantes receives no justice, and his father dies.

Prisonbreak

Locked up within the unbreakable walls of Château D'If for years, a depressed Dantes wishes for death when he hears a faint noise from the adjacent cell and makes a hole to communicate with the inmate, who introduces himself as Abbe Faria, a learned priest from Italy who was digging to escape. He educates Dantes and informs him about a treasure hidden on the deserted island of Monte Cristo. He dies, and Dantes escapes by replacing the priest's body with his. He is thrown into the sea, where he cuts out of the shroud and swims to freedom on the Isle of Tiboulen amongst smugglers who take him in.

Back to Marseilles via Monte Cristo

When they arrive at Monte Cristo, Dantes feigns injury, asks them to leave him behind, and searches for the treasure in solitude. He finds it, takes the diamonds, and travels back to Marseilles. With his newfound wealth, he buys back his father’s house before meeting an impoverished Caderousse at the Inn of Pont Du Gard. He offers him a diamond and the greedy innkeeper discloses everything about the conspiracy and the conspirators’ whereabouts.

The Revenge

Over the next ten years, Dantes gathers incriminating evidence against them before arriving in Rome as the Count of Monte Cristo and uses Mondego's son Albert to enter the noblemen’s society, where he finds Mondego as Count de Morcerf, who betrayed his patron Ali Pacha and sold his wife and daughter. Mondego pays for his crimes by committing suicide when Pacha’s daughter Haydée testifies against him before the senate. Next, Dantes instigates the murderous Madame de Villefort to use poison to kill people at her house. Villefort is dragged to court and loses his mind, assuming everyone is dead. Dantes renders the greedy Danglars bankrupt with his financial schemes, help from Italian bandit Luigi Vampa, and shrewd manipulation of his unfaithful wife. 

The Conclusion

In the end, Dantes finds time to fall in love with Haydée and helps the kind shipowner’s son, Maximilian Morrel, reunite with fiancée Valentine Villefort by saving her from her dangerous stepmother, Madame de Villefort.

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