Will I love The Three Musketeers?

It is the romance of an era that fought with swordplay, cunning, and words. And they had great outfits. This French historical adventure novel was written in 1844 (politically correct or not) when men were men and women swooned to be swept up by them.

I have always been captivated by the swashbuckling musketeers' camaraderie and their chivalrous fight for justice. I have watched more versions of this story than I can count and thought it was time I went to its original pages.

I am physically and emotionally drawn to all "four" of the musketeers. They are different and… show more.

The action in this book just keeps pumping.

Each of the heroes is a deep, fully realized person, plagued with flaws, some of them almost unforgiveable. Each character must face their own demons in this fast-paced, mysterious adventure. This book has espionage, swordplay, constant danger, friendship, even romance, everything you could wish for.

It is a swashbuckling tale following the impetuous and brave-to-a-fault D’Artagnan as he grows from an idealistic boy to a man, chasing his calling to fight among the hallowed ranks of the King’s musketeers. 

It’s a classic, of course, and I could have picked any of Dumas’ books. Alexandre Dumas is one of my favorite authors of all time, in part because this guy can write a 700-page book, and still make it a page-turner!

Get the translation by Richard Pevear, in the Penguin Classics series. I know you think you know about the story – you’ve probably seen a movie adaptation or two - but the movies always leave too much out, and some completely change the ending – so when you actually read it for yourself, there will still be plenty of… show more.

An odd choice of book, maybe, when talking of the French Revolution, but Alexandre Dumas’s The Three Musketeers is an excellent portrait of the France that was desperately in need of social reform. It’s a cracking story, too, and gives a fine insight into how the influence of the royal court wormed its way into all aspects of ordinary life, as well as giving a plangent sense of how all-invasive was the power of the monarch’s secret police, managed by his arch minister, Cardinal Richelieu. Dumas makes it very clear how open to manipulation and manoeuvre the ordinary people of… show more.