The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas Pere

Blurb

This swashbuckling epic of chivalry, honor, and derring-do, set in France during the 1620s, is richly populated with romantic heroes, unattainable heroines, kings, queens, cavaliers, and criminals in a whirl of adventure, espionage, conspiracy, murder, vengeance, love, scandal, and suspense. Dumas transforms minor historical figures into larger- than-life characters: the Comte d’Artagnan, an impetuous young man in pursuit of glory; the beguilingly evil seductress “Milady”; the powerful and devious Cardinal Richelieu; the weak King Louis XIII and his unhappy queen—and, of course, the three musketeers themselves, Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, whose motto “all for one, one for all” has come to epitomize devoted friendship. With a plot that delivers stolen diamonds, masked balls, purloined letters, and, of course, great bouts of swordplay, The Three Musketeers is eternally entertaining.

My Perspective

The Three Musketeers follows d’Artagnan, a young Frenchman, as he journeys to Paris to join the King’s Musketeers. He soon becomes firm friends with three of the King’s Musketeers whilst entangling himself in the political war between the King, the Cardinal and the Queen.

I really enjoyed this book.

It was fairly slow to start off with and the language took a bit of getting used to however once d’Artagnan was in Paris, it started to flow a lot more smoothly.

Although young and a bit foolhardy, d’Artagnan is easy to like. His companions, Athos, Porthos and Aramis are extremely likeable and the more you read, the more you feel a part of their friendship group. They are both honourable and courageous as well as arrogant and pleasure seekers. I pitied the Queen, thought the King was spineless, and the Cardinal both cruel and intriguing. I absolutely loathed and abhorred Milady. I wondered what on earth happened to her to create such a monster of a person.

The story was long and fairly detailed and although it had a steady pace, most of the time it had me hardly able to put it down. It was quite complex due to its political nature and there were times that I got a bit lost however it was so interesting that I didn’t mind that at all. It had action, some romance, intrigue and drama – all what make a great novel.

I enjoyed the way in which it was written, it was fairly unique with the author’s tidbits throughout.

Overall I really enjoyed the story and I would definitely recommend it if you like historical fiction.

 

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Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

Blurb

A mysterious seaman hides at a country inn; cut-throats raid a sleepy English village; suddenly, young Jim Hawkins becomes the owner of a map leading to a lost tropical island and a fortune in stolen gold. Three adventurers–Jim, Squire Trelawney, and Dr. Livesey–set out to find the treasure. — But they trust the one they should most fear, Long John Silver. Charming, brave, ruthless, murderous, Silver fills the squire’s ship with pirates. And on the desolate, fever-infested island, the quest for gold becomes a deadly war of hide and seek. Desperate defenders against merciless killers battling over a cursed treasure won with blood, buried with blood, sought with blood. Incredible wealth that Jim and his friends can only claim…

My Perspective

Treasure Island is the story of how Jim Hawkins came to be in possession of a treasure map and the journey and adventure he went on with Doctor Livesey and Squire Trelawney to acquire it.

I’m really in the mood for adventure stories at the moment so this is exactly what I felt like reading.

I really liked Jim. He was an easygoing young man, eager to please, hardworking, quick thinking and he had a lot of courage. Doctor Livesey was also an easy character to like whether Squire Trelawney I found a bit too freely spoken and over confident. John Silver was friendly and very easy to like, which of course made me suspicious. The rest of the crew were typical pirates, or “buccaneers”, self interested, not too smart, violent and drunk on rum all the time.

The story was very interesting and well paced, keeping you on your toes and turning the pages quickly. I did find some of the language hard to understand at times however it added to the feel of the story so I wouldn’t change it.

Overall it was a really enjoyable story, well written and full of adventure. I would definitely recommend it if you like classics, adventure stories or historical fiction.