- The gorgeous artwork on the front is what originally caught my eye about this book, and on that front, it certainly delivers. I don’t remember much about The Count of Monte Cristo other than high-level plot points and characters, since I read it in sixth grade. What I do remember was that it was tough to get through and super boring to me. While still being a historical fiction and retaining the overall themes and structure of the plot, this book does a wonderful job of presenting it in a way that looks almost more modern, easily consumable, and much more engaging. Part of that, I’m sure, is the difference between reading a graphic novel and reading a book written a very, very long time ago, when it was a challenge to see how long a sentence could go without a period. The artwork, though, felt very clean and modern and easy to follow, and it’s every bit as pretty as the cover suggests.

- There’s this constant, ongoing argument about whether kids should be forced to read classics, and you know what? This is the best of both worlds. Does it leave things out from the original? Sure. What exactly, I couldn’t tell you, because, as I said, it’s been a while. The overall story and the message and themes, as far as I can remember them, stayed the same. Best yet, it was like discovering the story again, in a whole different format, and even though it felt familiar, it was still something somewhat new. While the story relies a little too heavily on exposition in some places, the overall plot seemed easier to follow and more accessible to younger audiences. Kids seem to love graphic novels, and I love the idea of meeting them where they’re at and presenting the classics in a format they seem to gravitate towards.

- There are a lot of threads (as there were with the original), and it’s sometimes hard to follow. That being said, I do believe it was easier to follow the graphic novel than the book, though I don’t know if that’s because of my age when reading them or the differences in the books themselves, so take that with a grain of salt. From very early on, it’s easy to see how the count is manipulating things and laying seeds, even if you don’t know what his plan is beyond “revenge,” so there’s a nice air of mystery and plotting that’s particularly fun when told through art rather than words.

I can't read the book because it isn't readable on any device that I own. I don't have apps on my Android and neither my Kindle app or computer can read .acsm files and I really don't know what's the point because here it says that are PDFs not .acsm. Really disappointed.

I have a very hard time reading classics sometimes. The writing is usually very different from contemporary books, the language is different and it takes a lot of effort to read and like it.

And that's why I love reading Manga versions. While the storyline is basically the same as in the book, the manga version brings the story to life (and it's much shorter, more condensed story :)). The drawing are beautiful. Also reading the book from the backside to the front, it's an extra bonus. :)

On the day, that should have been the happiest, his wedding, he is falsely imprisoned for life. After a few years, he manages to escape and reinvent himself as a Count of Monte Cristo and plot revenge on those who wronged him.

I love a good revenge story and Edmund's character development. It made me want to read the original too. :)

received from Netgalley

It is unbelievably commendable how they rendered this novel into such a compact imagery of art and story. Brilliant!

It was wonderful. I really enjoyed this. The artwork was good and so was the story. I hope to read more manga classics soon.

As a young sailor, the Count was on the cusp of a lifetime of happiness but even he had his doubts it was sustainable. A conspiracy between three men thwarted the young man and sent him to jail for fifteen years. When he escapes, he becomes The Count of Monte Cristo and begins exacting revenge on the three men who ruined his life. All is not as it seems and he has to make some quick changes to his plan because as much as he wants to destroy these families, he can't stop young love or betray the woman he once loved.

Full disclosure: I've never read The Count of Monte Cristo. The afterward in the book talks about how the illustrator and adapter had a hard time narrowing the book down to the Manga Classic size that it is while still making sense. They talked about cutting a character arc completely (glad they didn't) and how they combined other things to pack a bigger punch to the story. As someone who has never read the classic, I'm very tempted to hunt the classic down and give it a read (or more likely, listen).

The adaption is pretty strong. I got a decent sense of the story of revenge, the Count's emotions, and his sense of "right and wrong" as determined by a higher power (well, him really). The Count of Monte Cristo weaves many threads to tell this story and incidents and people connect seamlessly by the end. My only issue with the book was the sudden introduction of a character that was with the Count after his return to society. It took a while to understand who and why the character was there, but once I found out why, it made sense.

The manga is in black and white like typical manga. All characters present as white (there is a character who is from Greece). It follows a "serious" manga tone. There are no chibis or overly drawn expressions (big eyes, gaping mouths). It holds to the tone with the dark haired, brooding Count to the flowing gorgeous women who take the stage. Drama is drawn onto every page. Big reveals hold solid panels and there are a few really nicely done panels where a character is the focus while the past is behind them on the page. Manga fans will not be disappointed.

Overall, Manga Classics delivered another great adaption that deserves a place on the library shelves both at schools where the original might be studied as well as at public libraries for readers, like me, who want to be introduced to a classic. I look forward to more adaptations from this publisher.

I'm a devoted fan to this series!

The classic tales they are telling are classics and therefore a little outdated, so such a trendy new treatment makes these an excellent choice for encouraging reluctant readers. The illustrations are very emotional and engaging and the entire series is worth a read!

Aaaaaaaah, yeeees, another great classic in manga format!!! I love everything about this one! I haven't read the story of the Count of Monte Cristo in many years and this brought back so many memories of my time in highschool. Some parts of the story I remember, others not so much. Great job turning this classic into a graphic novel!

Thank you, NetGalley and UDON, for a complimentary copy of this fantastic book!

My first Manga and I loved it. A concise version of the classic book and it highlights the important aspects of the story.

A great first Manga for me.

The illustration is captivating and filled with stunning detail (from character details to settings and background). Not only is the artwork beautiful, but it also captures the character’s emotions and atmosphere. I was instantly drawn in by the gorgeous cover and the fact that this was a manga adaptation of the beloved Count of Monte Cristo and I was glad this did not disappoint.

Understandably, the original novel was condensed to suit the manga format (as is acknowledged in the book). However, despite the condensation, the story was easy to follow and remains faithful to the text without cutting too many details and plot.

I feel like this manga would be a great introduction to the classic tale—especially to those who may be put off or intimidated by the original 1000+ page book. Although, I feel like this particular book may be easier to follow with some prior knowledge of the original. In saying that, there is additional helpful information included at the end of the book (character chart and artist notes) to serve as a guide if needed.

Overall, this was a fun read and a great manga adaptation.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher Udon Entertainment for a copy of this manga in exchange for an honest review.

The Count of Monte Cristo (Manga Classics) art by Nokman Poon, 401 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL
Udon Entertainment, 2017. $27.
Language: G (0 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG13
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
After receiving promotion to captain and less than two hours from marrying the love of his life, Edmond Dantes is arrested. Edmond spends the next several years in prison, learning from a fellow prisoner while nurturing his desire for vengeance on those who wronged him. When the death of his fellow prisoner allows Edmond to escape, Edmond inherits the dead man’s fortune and uses it to punish those who took everything away from him.
The Count of Monte Cristo is an enthralling tale full of amazing feats and impossible achievements. I understand that fitting all the details into a shortened graphic novel version of the story would equal one of said impossible achievements; still, it was a little disappointing that so much of the story had to be removed. Enough of the story remains to be exciting and make sense, but it doesn’t have the same captivating feel because there are fewer reasons to understand Edmond’s point of view and fewer details of his plans to be awestruck by. I admit, though, that the artwork is beautiful and allows for readers to both better understand the time jumps and better keep the characters straight. Furthermore, the need to use pages and dialogue more wisely in the abridgment forced the graphic novel to make some nuances more clear than the original does, which I actually appreciated. I hope that this manga version of the story inspires more people to pick up the original.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

Really loved the art style! This is the first time I am reading manga or comic of this format!

I have never read the actual novel, but I knew a bit about the story. The beautiful illustrations made it so easy to follow the story.

Udon Entertainment and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of The Count of Monte Cristo. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

On the day of his wedding, young merchant sailor Edmond Dantès is falsely accused of a crime and thrown into prison. After many years of suffering, Edmond escapes and reinvents himself as the Count of Monte Cristo. Will his desire for revenge against those responsible for his demise lead Edmond down a dark path?

First of all, the cover art is striking and captures the feeling of the original classic novel perfectly. Although I usually do not read Manga, I have become quite a fan of the classic novels written and illustrated in that style. I have mixed feelings about The Count of Monte Cristo, as the illustrations were a bit rough and lacking in places. At least one of the panels was roughly sketched, with blank faces where the features should be. The story itself was sometimes a bit confusing, especially with the multitude of characters. Overall, the plot of the original novel is well represented here, despite the fact that the page count is less than half. Readers who want to get the main idea of the story without reading the classic novel may like this rendition of The Count of Monte Cristo.

The original novel of Alexandre Dumas is a thousand-page book, hence it will take several days or weeks before I could finish reading it. However, through this adaptation, I was able to finish reading this classic story in just several hours. It's a great alternative for someone like me who wants to read this classic but don't have much time to spare to read the novel. The tale of Edmond Dantes' and the revenge he did for the three people who deceived him will set readers to anticipate what will happen in the end. This story reminds everyone not to be naive and trustworthy just like Dantes at the beginning of the story. If only he was observant of the people around him, he would not be imprisoned because of the false accusation that Danglars and Fernand conspired. The Count of Monte Cristo is undoubtedly one of the best classic stories I've read so far. And these Manga Classics encourage not only reading, but also on promoting and appreciating the greatest classic novels of all time.

4.5 stars.

The Count of Monte Cristo is a classic that I've been meaning to read but have always been too intimidated to actually pick up, so when I saw this manga I immediately jumped on it! Surprisingly I realised I didn't really know the specifics of the story when I started reading it and since I haven't read the novel I also can't attest to how well the manga actually adopts the classic. I do however know that it's a fairly chunky text and I have no doubt that it has some very complex plot lines and in-depth character studies. Based on that, I think that the manga artists did an amazing job in condensing everything into a more simplified text. It took me a couple of hours to read this 400 page manga while I'm sure it'd probably take me one month+ to finish the original!

The story was perfectly illustrated! Sometimes I wish that manga was done in color because I would've loved to see what type of colour palette the artists would choose for the story. I definitely felt a darker more gothic tone to the story and I think the illustrations would've been made even more amazing with rich and dark reds.

I'm sure that there are probably big sections of the original story that were left out but I thought the story still flowed very well from the start. There were parts that initially confused me, especially where there were big time lapses between sections that introduced new characters, but my confusion didn't last long as everything was quickly explained. For the most part, I really couldn't stand many of the main characters in the story, especially the Count's enemies, but I think the story of revenge more than made up for it! I loved the Count of Monte Cristo's character. Even in manga form you can tell that he's such a complex character that has a lot of different layers to his personality and I continuously wanted more scenes with him (that's not to say he's not in many scenes because he's actually in 95% of them lol). I do enjoy a good morally grey character and the Count really delivered on that front. I don't know what it says about me, but it was surprisingly satisfying to see him exact revenge on the terrible individuals who saw to his unjust imprisonment for their own selfish interests, for over a decade.

One character that I wished we got to see more of was Haydée. The manga only shows glimpses of her, mostly about her past, but based on what happens with her character in the manga, I can tell that she must play a bigger role in the original text. Although she was a 'slave', she seemed like a strong and courageous character and I wished we got more of that from the women in the story. I couldn't get on board with the romance that ends the story. The Count's sudden turn around in his feelings for Haydée felt forced because in my opinion, the build up on their connection was missing.

Overall, I'm so glad that this book was adapted into a manga. I now feel like if I ever decide to read the full text of The Count of Monte Cristo I won't end up being as confused or intimidated. I'm definitely keen to check out more Manga Classics (I see they have Les Mis!) because this was such a fun and simple read! I would highly recommend checking out these mangas if you're intimidated by classics or would simply like to have a more fun way to consume them!

Thanks to NetGalley and Udon Entertainment for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Beautifully crafted and well done. Condensing down such a massive classic such as Count of Monte Cristo is a hard task to accomplish but this was done amazingly well and sticks to the original tale as much as possible. I recommend reading the original classic at some point in your life, however, for the younger generation this is a great introduction to the world of classic literature.

This adaptation does a good job of remaining faithful to the text. The full complexity of Dantes vengeful quest is preserved, no small feat with so many characters. This book is easy to read and kept me turning pages, although I think prior knowledge of the story does make it easier to follow along with Dantes' schemes. I enjoyed the dramatic style, and how the some of Dumas' philosophical points came through in this adaptation.

I could not review this book. This Manga book did not render correctly. Artwork and panels were blacked out, showed as a static mess.

The art was great in this. It told the story well, though that could be me remembering it from junior year reading.

Love the concept of changing classics into manga!! Great way to get more people to give them a chance.