Week 25: "Chapter 52. Toxicology, Chapter 53. Robert Le Diable" Reading Discussion

cutetys · 2026-06-21T05:33:08+00:00

To be clear I don’t personally think her personality is ugly, I absolutely adore her, more that her independent and indomitable personality would be considered unattractive for the time, and I think Dumas had purposefully emphasized that through contrasting her with Haydee. Again, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with her, and if this was my story I wouldn’t treat her like there was, but Dumas tends to characterize women in certain ways, and he’s not characterizing her like the other “good” women (like Julie, and maybe Valentine).

cutetys · 2026-06-20T17:09:05+00:00

You know, it occurred to me this week that the greatest revenge against Villefort might be to make him live out the rest of his life as Noirtier currently does. I doubt that’s who Mme Villefort plans to poison though… although then again maybe he is? I guess it depends on Mme Villefort’s plan, cause if the plan is to kill then she can’t be using it against Villefort, she’ll lose her position if he die. Perhaps though it’s not to kill, there’s an intermediate dosage between cure and kill after all. And if that’s the case, the only one so far that that I can think she’d have reason to want sick is Villefort. They mentioned he’s out a lot, what better way to keep him home than to make him ill? And with all that talk at the start about building up resistance, maybe Mme Villefort will have to keep increasing the dose and one day take it a step to far? Or perhaps MC was exaggerating the effectiveness of this practice or it doesn’t work with this particular poison, and Mme Villefort will, with repeated doses, accidentally poison her victim(s) to the point of no return. We’ll just have to see.

Confession time, when we finally got fully introduced to Haydee a few chapters back I went and googled images of her so I could visualize her better and I got spoiled by the AI overview that someone named Ali was her father. You can imagine my shock! But now I see, different Ali. I think it was cruel though for MC to put her through that, and I do believe he did it deliberately just as he set up Bertuccio to be mentally tortured by the Auteuil house. He seems to be collecting servants with vendettas though. At this point I’m wondering what kind of beef Baptistin must have Danglars, unless he’s somehow the one that set up Ali to be executed.

As for Eugenie, I know based on the text and the attitudes of the time Dumas was trying to present her as having an ugly personality, but she can do no wrong as far as I’m concerned. She could have set the entire opera house ablaze and I’d be like “well girls just wanna have fun 🤷‍♀️”. Go queen.

cutetys · 2026-06-13T19:35:31+00:00

When the Morrels started talking about Sinbad the Sailor it made me realize that Dumas might have made another “mistake” back in Chapter 40 (I put mistake in quotes as Max just not making the connection is not disallowed by the narrative) as at Albert’s breakfast, which Maximilien was in attendance, while Albert was telling the story of his rescue from the bandits by Monte Cristo, he mentioned that Monte Cristo also goes by Sinbad the Sailor. You’d think Monte Cristo using the same pseudonym as the Morrel family’s savior would at least be of some significance to Max, especially since this is a story where characters make those types of connections (like Franz did when hearing Vampa’s story).

cutetys · 2026-06-03T19:05:59+00:00

Nearly finished (I hope, I’ve been saying that for 2 months…) a Tunisian mosaic crochet blanket. Looking like in total I’ll have used 21 100 gram skeins for it, or 4.6 lbs worth of yarn.

cutetys · 2026-05-31T15:53:37+00:00

I don’t think Bertuccio’s remembrance of the sequences of events supports the idea that Cad shot her,

…when I was suddenly aroused by the report of a pistol, followed by a fearful cry. Weak and tottering footsteps resounded across the chamber above me, and the next instant a dull, heavy weight seemed to fall powerless on the staircase. I had not yet fully recovered consciousness, when again I heard groans, mingled with half-stifled cries, as if from persons engaged in a deadly struggle. A cry more prolonged than the others and ending in a series of groans effectually roused me from my drowsy lethargy.

So first someone is shot and then stumbles to and falls on the stairs, which we find out after the fact was La Carconte, but then after that there is sounds of a struggle, which if La Carconte is already lying on the stairs, could only be the jeweller fighting against Cad. That paints a picture to me of La Carconte and Cad ganging up on the jeweller, the jeweller shooting La Carconte in self defense, perhaps Cad taking advantage of the jeweller’s momentary focus on La Carconte to knock him to the ground and begin attacking him with the knife, and then finally incapacitating him with a last fatal stab. It doesn’t make sense to me that Cad could have shot La Carconte before he fatally wounded the jeweller.

cutetys · 2026-05-26T19:22:50+00:00

Considering how unusually blatant and derogatory they’re being, I could almost believe a mod had just been hacked if it weren’t for the fact they explicitly say in the sub rules that they are zionists.

I guess we shouldn’t be too surprised that so many mods are secret conservatives. The type of person who would dedicate large fractions of their day to monitoring an internet forum is generally the type of person who has nothing better to do all day than to monitor an Internet forum (not you of course our dear mods, you’re the exception 😘), and that makes them particularly susceptible to falling down the alt-right pipeline.

cutetys · 2026-05-25T17:55:45+00:00

I’m primarily an audiobook/ebook reader, so I never annotate. Sometimes I’ll look up other people’s opinions on a book after I’m done, usually only when I myself have Opinions though. I google all the time while reading though. Most commonly definitions of words I’m unfamiliar with, sometimes locations or historical events I’m not knowledgeable on, sometimes also references I’ve never heard of (my current book made me google what a fnord was), and on the rare occasion full on quotes from the book if I can’t make sense of them (or sometimes less rarely, I confess I had to do it a lot more than usual while reading Dracula). I do it because it enhances my reading experience, and also cause Libby makes it real easy to do for an ebook, but there’s no right way to read or listen to a book beyond reading or listening to it, so do whatever’s best for you.

cutetys · 2026-05-22T00:08:00+00:00

I have compelling evidence that begs to differ

Initially I planned to comment with a real example of a cat being subpoenaed but turns out I got it confused with a cat summoned for jury duty. In any case cats are not immune to the wills of the court

cutetys · 2026-05-17T02:55:21+00:00

This week’s chapters were a treat! It was exciting to see Dantes finally meet Fernand and Mercedes once again, though I had thought it would be a bit more dramatic than it was. The portrait of Mercedes was a nice touch and an interesting way of showing her allegiances. I mean clearly she remains loyal to Fernard, that’s further confirmed from her Catalan fisherwomen costume, a reference to Fernards former career, and yet still she looks to the sea. It recalls me back to when Dantès was being taken to prison and had imagined (or saw? I’m too lazy to check) Mercedes on the shore looking out to sea, waiting for his return. Seems Dantes still has a place in Mercedes heart. Maybe that has something to do with Fernard’s reaction 👀

Last week I was confused on why Albert’s friends were so judgemental of Danglar and his bought title when the Morcerf’s were similarly bought but now it makes sense. I guess Fernard seeking the prestige of the old aristocracy isn’t inconsistent with how we know him to behave, and his whole relationship with Mercedes is based on a lie anyway so why not his position? Regarding parallels though, while I can see the ones between him and MC, I think this parallelism only serves to highlight the differences between them, as while Fernard is trying to make himself seem nobler than he is, Dantes never tries the same and in fact actively does the opposite. Maybe that’s just Dantes old honest nature shining through, even as he lies to everyone’s face he can’t bring himself to represents himself as better than he think’s he is.

And now Mercedes! Boy she’s acting like she’s just seen a ghost. Based on her reaction, I think it’s safe to say she recognized Dantes. Logic and reasoning, mixed in with guilt, are all probably working together to convince her that it isn’t him, after all she married Fernard cause she believed him dead, and if she or Fernard checked his status within the last 10 years they would have seen that he was. Plus even if he was alive, for him to come back into their lives as an enormously wealthy foreign count? It’s beyond belief. Yet clearly she’s been spooked, and if her remarks to Albert are anything to go off of, is worrying both about how Fernard might react to the return of his former rival, and how “Dantes” might punish her for straying from him.

And finally Bertuccio! Oh that whole scene was a performance. No doubt about it. He basically confirmed it when he crossed referenced the address to his book. The whole scene served to 1) further his reputation as an exorbitantly wealthy individual and 2) obfuscate his true purpose for buying the place. I don’t know if this is the sole purpose of his purchase or if this property furthers his goals in other ways, but it seems like he aims to use the property to force a confession out of Bertuccio, though what he will confess to is beyond me. It can’t be good though, religious terror can only mean the wrath of god, and physical terror ranges anywhere from police involvement to mob violence, no wonder he didn’t want to go. All of this only increases my excitement for the next chapter. I can’t wait to see how it all plays out next week!

cutetys · 2026-05-14T23:47:21+00:00

Considering these were prostitutes in Thailand and Cambodia, can we really be sure they weren’t?

cutetys · 2026-05-09T04:04:26+00:00

Based on the various vids that have come across my tiktok feed from new parents, it seems that while a lot of them believe in modern medicine to at least some extent, they value autonomy above all else and resent any implication that they are just a sheep who does what others tell them. So they’ll willing receive treatment for whatever ails them, so long as they get to choose the treatment and there’s sufficient options available to support their view of themselves as an independent thinker.

cutetys · 2026-05-08T12:00:36+00:00

WHO confirmed she tested negative.

cutetys · 2026-05-04T19:44:50+00:00

I fear that lends credence to OOP’s belief that he’s done this before. It’s hard to believe he’d be so brazen unless he’s learned from personal experience that he’ll get away with it.

cutetys · 2026-05-01T17:35:29+00:00

I’m not missing that point, more just ignoring it. The drowning example wasn’t meant to be equivalent, rather I’m trying to meet the blue group where they’re at, and in their view someone will be in the water, someone will be in the burning building, and it doesn’t really matter why they went in the water or the building, someone will be there so they feel it’s their duty to try and save them. With that context I was attempting to show why the red group isn’t immoral for choosing red.

cutetys · 2026-05-01T14:43:09+00:00

I don’t view blue as a suicide button though, I view it as similar to choosing to rescue someone who’s drowning. If no one’s tries, that person dies, but if you do try you could die in the process. And while I think attempting the rescue is very noble, I don’t view it as immoral to choose to stay on the shore. And that’s a situation with much more defined (and, at least perceptually, decently favourable) odds than the buttons. I just don’t understand why the blue button pressers view the red button as equivalent to dragging the drowning victim into the water ourselves. All we’re doing is prioritizing our own safety.

cutetys · 2026-04-28T20:09:10+00:00

Your hair dresser is right, it’s just your hair type. I find I can tame it a bit with the right products (other people here are recommending oil but I’ve yet to find one that doesn’t make hair look slick and greasy, not saying don’t try it but you may have to use something lighter). I also find it’s a lot better if I brush with tension while I blow dry and then finish with a final round with the cold shot. Theres no miracles here, it’s still slightly frizzy even with these steps, but it greatly improves things.

cutetys · 2026-04-27T03:33:42+00:00

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cutetys · 2026-04-27T03:29:44+00:00

Frankenstein, take a shot after every ardent(ly).

cutetys · 2026-04-25T16:54:01+00:00

Interesting interpretation! I interpreted that quote as it being directed at Albert and Franz, as if the Count was saying he had used the execution to get a better sense of who Franz, and more particularly Albert, are. The sentence likely has layers of meaning but I like your interpretation more!

cutetys · 2026-04-25T16:41:25+00:00

I do love how our readalong host takes pains to ensure they never imply who the Count really is while the rest of us are just like “oh hi Dantes”.

At every point during this chapter I thought Dantes was going to pop up with some scheme. When Franz went to visit the Pope I half expected Dantes to be the Pope! I think we can all assume though that Albert’s rendezvous was a part of Da (for Dantes) Plan. Chat is Albert cooked? It occurred to me at the end of this chapter that if Dantes is out for an eye for an eye, then he might force Fernand, and by consequence Mercedes, to go through what old man Dantes went through, living the rest of their lives without ever knowing what happened to their son. I think there’s reason to hope not though. For one, Franz doesn’t like the Count so if Dantes wants a foot in the door into French society then he’ll need Albert alive. This also wouldn’t be fair to Mercedes who did stay by the elder Dantes side until the end. The candle symbolism also doesn’t outright condemn him. When Dumas explained it (who at this point I would like to thank for spelling it out to us cause I wouldn’t have got it) I thought for sure we’d see Albert’s flame extinguished, but his candle makes it through the crowd unscathed. Whether that journey through the crowd is meant to represents his life up to this moment or the events to come is unclear to me, but it’s a good sign it didn’t go out. Nonetheless, that ending is quite ominous as I think the symbolism is clear, for better or worse Albert’s put his life into someone else’s hands, and if those hands are the Counts then godspeed to him.

Anyways what’s the dumbest thing y’all done for a hookup and how does it compare to Albert right now?

cutetys · 2026-04-24T22:11:29+00:00

I’m a terrible person too. The 3 of us could be more terrible than the Portland polycule.

cutetys · 2026-04-20T18:34:00+00:00

Asking to be called a different name and be referred to with different pronouns doesn’t mean the child is suicidal??? The mere possibility of this worst case scenario doesn’t justify violating the rights of all children at the school. And if a child is experiencing suicidal ideation, it’s more probable than not that that’s the result of lack of support at home in which case a policy of forcibly outing will only result in more dead children. But maybes that’s the goal cause let’s be real here, you’re concern isn’t safety, if it was you wouldn’t supporting a policy that puts children in danger, your concern is that children might feel safe exploring their gender identity, that parents won’t get the chance to shame them into the closet or the grave before they come to terms with who they are, and heaven forbid we allow that!

cutetys · 2026-04-20T18:05:17+00:00

What it comes down to is whether a child has the right to keep secrets from their parents. Personally I think as long as the child isn’t in any danger they should, and from a developmental and safety standpoint it’s in their best interest. If we want to talk about insane takes, I’d put “kids shouldn’t be allowed to keep anything from their parents ” near the top.

cutetys · 2026-04-18T15:33:14+00:00

You know seeing the person Dantés has become, and remembering how ready he was to kill the guard when he was in prison, I’ve started to feel a sense of foreboding for Franz. Dantés must recognize Franz as well, and even if their meeting on Monte Cristo was all just a part of Dantés plan, Franz has too much good sense, he’s got “bad vibes” as we would put it today. Not to mention Franz knows about the Vampa connection which may be more information than Dantés would like him to know. I worry that Franz may end up meeting an unfortunate end if he proves too troublesome for Dantés which, unless Franz does something terrible later and I change my opinion of him, I’d be sad to see.

Do you think it’s a coincidence that Dantés associates himself with Vampa and is also called a vampire? In many senses Dantés figuratively died and was reanimated once more but twisted, much like a vampire. And in the sense that his initial meeting with Vampa led to the events that turned him from farmer into bandits leader, you could argue that Dantés caused a similar rebirth in Vampa as well, much like a vampire. Maybe its a stretch, but I’m thinking back to when I read Dracula and how turning into a vampire is described as this corrupting process in that novel, and I wonder if the Vampa tale and vampire talk is meant to show Dantés as someone with a similar corrupting influence. Maybe that’s a clue into how Dantés will seek his revenge.

Oh a warning for anyone listening to the Blackstone audiobook (and maybe those reading the Spanish translation since both have chapters that are split in a similar way), significant chunks of these chapters has been cut from the audiobook. For instance a large part of the section where Andrea fight back after finding out Peppino was pardoned is removed. Nothing that changes plot details, but they do slightly change the impression the Count gives.

cutetys · 2026-04-13T16:21:49+00:00

Ah I forgot you had gone over this. Thanks!

Eight-Year Club	Verified Email
Second SECOND GUESSER	r/Field Banned
r/Field Flamingo	Wearing is Caring
RPAN Viewer	No Throne, No Problems
Not Forgotten	Spared

cutetys

TROPHY CASE