The Man in the Iron Mask

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Summary: The Man in the Iron Mask
Review: This book was really long and could be incredibly confusing at times but all in all it was a very good, in-depth book. If you have read "The Three Musketteers" Then you absolutly must read this book, it follows the adventures of Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D'artangan. The man in the mask is actually a very minor charactor in the cast. He hardly matters at all except as a way for Aramis to display his cunning and the loss of his loyalty to his fellow Musketteers. If you have enjoyed The Three Musketteers, or Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, then you will probably enjoy this but be warned that it is quite confusing at times and that it is pretty lengthy. Happy Reading!

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Summary: The last in the series
Review: I have read all five books in the that began with "The Three Musketeers", and ended with this book. There isn't a bad book in the series and I recomend that you read them all.

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Summary: It's not a tragedy, It's a travesty
Review: After reading "The Count of Monte Cristo", "The Three Musketeers" and "Twenty Years After", I was convinced that Alexandre Dumas was a genius. But after reading "The Man in the Iron Mask", I'm going to have to reconsider that decision. This book was just an appalling disaster and was a sad waste of paper and ink.

Before beginning this book (if you do make the mistake of doing so) you should be aware that it is not a stand alone story. Before reading "The Man in the Iron Mask", I strongly recommend that you have read "The Three Musketeers", "Twenty Years After", "The Vicomte de Bragelonne" and "Louise de la Valliere" (in that order). If you try to read this book without reading those first you probably won't know what's going on. Not that it's worth it to know what's going on in this book though.

First of all, this book was absolutely not worth getting to. As previously stated, you need to read the other four books before getting to this one. "The Three Musketeers" and "Twenty Years After" were both great and I highly recommend them. However, "The Vicomte de Bragelonne" and "Louise de la Valliere" left much to be desired. They were both very tedious reads comprised mostly of pointless scenes. And in addition to that, Athos, Porthos, Aramis and D'Artagnan were not in them enough to justify reading them for the characters. The only reason that I was able to finish them is because I had read a lot of reviews that said this one was suppose to be worth getting to. Well, "The Man in the Iron Mask" was absolutely not worth the effort of reading through the two previous books.

I found the plot to be very weak. I don't want to say too much about the plot so as not to spoil it for anyone who may want to make the mistake of reading this thing. I'll just say that the book had potential in the first half but then it fell apart completely and the second half of it was just a complete mess that I don't really know how to describe.

Another problem that I had with this book was the fact that it added very little to the characters of the four musketeers and to their relationship. One of the things that made "Twenty Years After" good for me was the fact that it added so much more to the characters and their friendship than the first book had. This book added so little that it wasn't worth the time and effort to read.

I was also disappointed with the characterization in this book. The characterization of D'Artagnan, Athos, and Porthos was quite okay other than the above mentioned problem. Well, and except for the fact that Athos and Porthos were really pointless characters in the novel. Neither of them were given much to do. Dumas couldn't seem to make up his mind as to how he wanted to portray Aramis in this book. At times, Aramis seemed to be portrayed as being sympathetic and doing what he did for noble reasons. But then at other times he was portrayed as being selfish and ambitious, and doing what he did merely for personal gain. Dumas also entirely failed to develop Philippe's character. Philippe just disappeared about half way through the book and wasn't heard from again.

There also was not enough interaction between the four musketeers in this book. What made the first two books so good for me was these characters and the interaction between them. The musketeers were in the book a lot, but it was usually only one or two of them at a time. There were only a few scenes in which three of them appeared together and those scenes were brief. All four of them never appeared together at all in this book.

The ending was also a disappointment. But then by the time the book got that far, it was a lost cause anyway so it's not like a good ending could have saved it. It wasn't really what happened in the ending that I had such a problem with. It was the fact that I got the impression that Dumas put no thought whatsoever into it. I felt like he was writing just anything so he could hurry up and finish the novel.

So I would recommend that everyone avoid this book unless you just have to read it for school.

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Summary: The Man In the Iron Mask
Review: A most compelling read, "Iron Mask" is the incredible, exciting finale to the five-volume set written by Dumas of the saga of the Muskateers. We have seen the growth and development of our beloved Muskateers (Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D'Artagnan) in the previous four volumes, and now all culminates in a whirlwind of a finish!

Aramis, as always, has designs and visions all his own, giving only the details necessary to appease his oldest and dearest friends. He demonstrates his wisdom for his latest adventure, one that deigns to replace King Louis XIV with his twin brother on the throne of France! He gets assistance from Porthos, who is only too happy to help his friend despite not knowing the cause behind these actions.

Meanwhile, D'Artagnan is suspicious and must smell out the rat in order to protect his master, none other than King Louis XIV himself. Athos, meanwhile, shares in the utter grief and despondency of his young son, the Comte de Bragelonne, who has been spurned by the love of his life. D'Artagnan comforts as he can, but his attentions are decidedly fixed on his pressing concerns.

Thus, we follow our four heroes on a thrilling ride of intrigue, dashing actions, and incredible feats of strength and battle, in which each hopes not only for his success but, indeed, the success and happiness of their friends as well. If you have ever read any of the Muskateer saga, or have seen the movie, for that matter, this book is a MUST READ!

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Summary: The Musketeers Get Old
Review: This is the last part of Alexandre Dumas' Musketeer Cycle, so do read the first four books first. (Oh, all right, you can read this one first if you want to. I did, to be honest. But it is made all the more powerful by the backstory.) Also, do yourself a favor and get an edition of The Man in the Iron Mask that matches your edition of Louise de la Valliere and Le Vicomte de Bragelone. Different publishers cut into the story (the three novels were intended to be one novel) at different chapters.

I cried and stayed awake all night the first time I read this one. It depressed me for a week-- but it is beautiful novel, and the action writing is as good as any Dumas ever does. Would you expect any less in D'Artagnan's last adventure? The tale, by the way, is that of D'Artagnan and his friends. The title character is for the most part a plot device. (AND NO, NONE OF THE MOVIES HAVE MUCH TO DO WITH THE BOOK! THE BOOK IS BETTER!)

Long live Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D'Artagnan.

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Summary: "The Last of The Muskateers"
Review: I read this book a few months ago and I agree that it is a good book. The adventure and depiction of the characters is excellent. You feel as if you are watching the scenes come to life right in front of you. I feel the title of the book is not a good one though. "Phillipe", for one, is the "Man In the Iron Mask", but, he isn't a main character at all. He also never becomes one. I had watched the movie and now own it, so I assumed that it would follow the book. It doesn't at all. It's totally a different story from the book. I loved the movie, don't get me wrong. But if you've watched the movie and now want to read the book, expect something totally different. This book should be titled "The Last of the Muskateers", because that's what it's really about. How all of the muskateers are in their prime and how they slowly but bravely die off. Until there's only one left. I don't know if Mr. Dumas wanted to suprise people or if he thought that he had the appropriate title, but it really doesn't fit the book. The outcome of "Phillipe" is extremely different from the movie and the "Queen Mother" isn't so kind. The movie was appropriatley titled, not the book. Both good stories, two different depictions.

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Summary: Wonderful-Much better than the movie
Review: I have always been a fan of the three musketeers characters and so had to buy this book when i saw it on the shelf. It did originally surprise me how much different it was from the 'movie' and was a little confusing at the beginning since i had not read the others but i soon became addicted to the story and couldn't put it down. My favorite character would have to be that of Aramis as you can always imagine him being the so mysterious and brooding character that Dumas describes him as.It provdes an excellent insight into the court and social happenings of the time and is definatley one of my favorite books.

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Summary: The Best In The Series
Review: This is the best book in the 5-part series. A great conclusion to the story is made, and we are introduced to the myth of the man in the iron mask. It didn't really happen... or did it?

But anyway, this is simply a great book. After following the Muskateers through all their adventures some people have been known to cry at the conclusion of this book. Yes, it's that good!

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Summary: You have to read this book
Review: This is one of the best books ever written. I would like to clear up a misunderstanding. The man in the Iron Mask is not the last part of the musketeers series. There is another book called The Son of Porthos, that is the final book in the series.

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Summary: The most boring book I have ever read...
Review: I don't believe I've met anyone who could finish this book. Characters are boring dialogue incessant, the pace seems to be molasses dragged by a snail through mud, descriptions are simply boring.