The Count of Monte Cristo

From the publisher: "Best-selling author Alexandre Dumas—who also wrote The Three Musketeers—tells this heartbreaking yet heroic tale of Edmond Dantes who takes revenge on the men responsible for his unjust fourteen-year imprisonment, keeping him from the woman he loved and the life he was supposed to live. The Count of Monte Cristo is a must-have for any home library or literary aficionado."

Over the years I've been floored by the superlatives readers use to describe this behemoth of a novel: epic, thrilling, the best book they've ever read. WSIRN guest Ahtoosa Dale advised me to read the audiobook narrated by John Lee. Forty-seven hours later, I finally understood why readers love this tale of a man thrown into prison for a crime he didn't commit and his long quest for retribution. This was wonderful on audio, but I did turn to SparkNotes on a half-dozen occasions for clarity on plot details.