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Two Essays on The Count of Monte Cristo

I love The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. I have read the unabridged version more than once, and my most recent reread was in 2023. At that time, I wrote a couple of brief essays which I posted on Tumblr, one of which was about a canonically queer character and the other discussed a character who is often left out of the various adaptations. I present for you these essays with expansion and alteration, because I keep returning to them as pieces of writing and because I don't want them to be limited to those original posts. I'd like to thank longtime Patron Case Aiken, who receives a monthly shoutout, as well as new patrons DivineJasper and Sasha Khan. (Quotes are from Robin Buss’ English translation of Alexandre Dumas’ work.) Link to Audio Version. ----- Canonical Queerness in The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas You’d need to change surprisingly little of The Count of Monte Cristo to confirm Eugénie Danglars as a trans man (or a masc-leaning nonbinary person...
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The River of Silver by S.A. Chakraborty (The Daevabad Trilogy, #4)

A prospective new queen joins a court whose lethal history may overwhelm her own political savvy…

An imprisoned royal from a fallen dynasty and a young woman wrenched from her home cross paths in an enchanted garden…

A pair of scouts stumble upon a secret in a cursed winter wood that will turn over their world…

Now together in one place, these stories of Daevabad enrich a world already teeming with magic and wonder. From Manizheh’s first steps towards rebellion to adventures that take place after The Empire of Gold, this is a must-have collection for those who can’t get enough of Nahri, Ali, and Dara and all that unfolded around them.

TITLE: The River of Silver: Tales from the Daevabad Trilogy
AUTHOR: S.A. Chakraborty
PUBLISHER: HarperVoyager
YEAR: 2022
LENGTH: 400 pages
AGE: Adult
GENRE: Fantasy
RECOMMENDED: Yes

Queer Rep Summary: Gay/Achillean Main Character(s), Bi/Pan Main Character(s).

*I received a free review copy in exchange for an honest review of this book. 

THE RIVER OF SILVER is a group of stories arranged alongside and between the main books of the Daevabad trilogy, showing hidden moments with characters you know and (maybe) love already.

To me, the best way to read this would be to read the stories alongside the main trilogy, in the order indicated at the start of each chapter. Because most of these stories were originally drafted as part of the writing process for the other books, they contribute to but are unable to alter the emotional landscape and general trajectory of the series. They work well as companion stories to the trilogy, but are unable to stand on their own for someone who hasn’t read the other books. There are some excellent sections relating to events before the main trilogy featuring characters not seen before, and I enjoyed. This book is absolutely worth reading if you want more of Jamshid and Muntadhir, singly and together. Many of the stories touch on the arc of their relationship, and for me the highlight of the book is a story featuring both of them which takes place near (or perhaps slightly after) the end of EMPIRE OF GOLD. Anyone hoping also or instead for more of Nahri, Ali, or Dara shouldn’t be disappointed either. 

CW for cursing (brief), sexual content (brief), grief (graphic), xenophobia, pregnancy (backstory), sexual harassment, sexual assault (brief), panic attacks, alcohol, fire/fire injury, blood (graphic), gore (brief), torture, body horror, violence (graphic), emotional abuse, toxic relationship, suicidal thoughts (brief), genocide (backstory), self harm, suicide attempt (backstory), parental death (backstory), death (graphic).

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A silver archway with a view of an oasis under a dark blue night sky


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