HarperCollins is proud to present its new range of best-loved, essential classics. 'I do not cling to life sufficiently to fear death.' Adventurous and spirited in tone, The Three Musketeers is considered one of the greatest historical French novels. When Athos, Porthos and Aramis befriend a young and determined country boy d'Artagnan, together they confront the scheming King's Minister, Cardinal Richelieu and the female spy Milady who threaten to undermine the King. Swashbuckling, romantic and often humourous, Dumas' novel is a timeless tale of friendship and intrigue.

D'Artagnan wants to become a King's musketeer. But before he can have the job he must meet many challenges and prove that he is a strong and brave fighter. Can he protect the Queen from the Cardinal's evil plans? And will he be able to stop the beautiful Milady from murdering the Duke of Buckingham?

«It is May 1660 and the fate of nations is at stake. Mazarin plots, Louis XIV is in love, and Raoul de Bragelonne, son of Athos, is intent on serving France and winning the heart of Louise de la Valliere. D'Artagnan, meanwhile, is perplexed by a mysterious stranger, and soon he learns that his old comrades already have great projects in hand. Athos seeks the restoration of Charles II, while Aramis, with Porthos in tow, has a secret plan involving a masked prisoner and the fortification of the island of Belle-Ile. D'Artagnan finds a thread leading him to the French court, the banks of the Tyne, the beaches of Holland, and the dunes of Brittany. «The Vicomte de Bragelonne» opens an epic adventure which continues with «Louise de la Valliere» and reaches its climax in «The Man in the Iron Mask». This new edition of the classic translation is fully annotated, and an introduction sets Dumas's saga in its historical and cultural context.»

The Three Musketeers (1844) is one of the most famous historical novels ever written. It is also one of the world's greatest historical adventure stories, and its heroes have become symbols for the spirit of youth, daring, and comradeship. The action takes place in the 1620s at the court of Louis XIII, where the musketeers, Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, with their companion, the headstrong d'Artagnan, are engaged in a battle against Richelieu, the King's minister, and the beautiful, unscrupulous spy, Milady. Behind the flashing blades and bravura, in this first adventure of the Musketeers, Dumas explores the eternal conflict between good and evil. This new edition is the most fully annotated to date in English, providing explanatory Top page notes which set the work in its historical, literary, and cultural context.

D'Artagnan wants to become a King's musketeer. But before he can have the job he must meet many challenges and prove that he is a strong and brave fighter. Can he protect the Queen from the Cardinal's evil plans? And will he be able to stop the beautiful Milady from murdering the Duke of Buckingham?

«This title includes an introduction by A. M. de Medeiros, University of Kent at Canterbury. A year after the publication of «The Three Musketeers», Alexandre Dumas produced a sequel worthy in every respect of the original. In «Twenty Years After» the much beloved D'Artaganan, Athos, Porthos and Aramis reunite to fight the forces of evil. In the original novel they defeated Milady, a formidable foe; now they need to face her vengeful son Mordaunt, as well as countering the machinations of the sinister Cardinal Mazarin. Their adventures also take them to England, where Cromwell is about to topple Charles I. Meanwhile, they must overcome the obstacles which the passing of time has placed between them. Rediscovering strength in unity, they fight for Queen and country. «The Musketeer» novels were a huge success in Dumas' own lifetime, and have lost none of their original appeal. Translated into many languages and adapted for cinema and television, they have helped to make Dumas arguably the most successful exporter of French culture to the wider world.»

Edmond Dantes is a clever young seaman, but he has enemies who tell lies about him. On the day of his wedding to the beautiful Mercedes, Edmond is thrown into prison. There he meets a man who tells him about some treasure on the island of Monte Cristo. Will Edmond escape from prison and find the treasure? And will he see Mercedes again?

D'Artagnan wants to be a musketeer. He wants to fight for his king and his country. But the Queen has a problem with the Cardinal, so d'Artagnan and his new friends have to help her. The Cardinal is a very dangerous man. Who will win? Who will lose? And who will die?

«Twenty Years After» (1845), the sequel to «The Three Musketeers», is a supreme creation of suspense and heroic adventure. Two decades have passed since the musketeers triumphed over Cardinal Richelieu and Milady. Time has weakened their resolve, and dispersed their loyalties. But treasons and strategems still cry out for justice: civil war endangers the throne of France, while in England Cromwell threatens to send Charles I to the scaffold. Dumas brings his immortal quartet out of retirement to cross swords with time, the malevolence of men, and the forces of history. But their greatest test is a titanic struggle with the son of Milady, who wears the face of Evil. In his Introduction to this edition David Coward sets both the author and his exciting tale in their historical and cultural contexts.»

D’Artagnan wants to be a musketeer. He wants to fight for his king and his country. But the Queen has a problem with the Cardinal, so d’Artagnan and his new friends have to help her. The Cardinal is a very dangerous man. Who will win? Who will lose? And who will die?

A classic adventure story set in seventeenth century France which has been transferred to the screen many times.

Alexandre Dumas's novels are notable for their suspense and excitement, their foul deeds, hairsbreadth escapes, and glorious victories. In The Black Tulip (1850), the shortest of Dumas's most famous tales, the real hero is no Musketeer, but a flower. The novel — a deceptively simple story — is set in Holland in 1672, and weaves the historical events surrounding the brutal murder of John de Witte and his brother Cornelius into a tale of romantic love. The novel is also a timeless political allegory in which Dumas, drawing on the violence and crimes of history, makes his case against tyranny and puts all his energies into creating a symbol of justice and tolerance: the fateful tulipa negra. This new edition reprints the first, classic English translation. David Coward sets the novel in the context of its author's life, the turbulent history of the Dutch Republic, and the amazing `tulipmania' of the seventeenth century which brought wealth to some and ruin to many.

Edmond Dantès is a young sailor destined for a brilliant career. But during his engagement party is suddenly arrested, accused of conspiracy and imprisoned in the Château d'If. After fourteen years of imprisonment he manages to escape and finds the treasure on the island of Monte-Cristo. He then becomes rich and powerful, but Edmond only has one wish: revenge.

The tale of the imprisonment and escape of Edward Dantes, taken from the classic novel The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas.

La Dame aux Camelias still has the power to cast the spell that has fascinated generations of readers. Dumas's marvellously beautiful, intelligent, and vibrant heroine lives on in revivals of the stage version, in film and television adaptations, and inLa Traviata, Verdi's perennially popular opera. For Marguerite has long since attained the status of a myth. Dumas's subtle and moving portrait of a woman in love is a timeless antidote to the cynicism of every age.

Chez les Silberhaus, tout est pret pour le reveillon de Noel. L’oncle Drosselmayer arrive a la fete avec des cadeaux pour tous les invites. Il offre des soldats de plomb a Fritz et un casse-noisette a Marie. Pendant la nuit, il se passe des choses etranges dans la maison: les objets grandissent et les jouets s’animent. Marie decouvre alors que son casse-noisette est bien plus qu’un simple jouet…

D Artagnan and his three friends from the regiment of the King s Musketeers — Athos, Porthos and Aramis defend the honour of the regiment against the guards of Cardinal Richelieu. Follow the Muskateers fascinating adventures during a difficult period of 17th-century.

Paris, une nuit de février 1578. Dans une ruelle sombre des abords de la Bastille, Louis de Clermont d'Amboise, sire de Bussy, gentilhomme courageux et loyal, tombe dans l'embuscade que les mignons du roi Henri III lui ont tendue. Seul contre cinq, il ne doit la vie sauve qu'à l'intervention providentielle d'une belle inconnue blonde comme un ange... Ainsi commence l'histoire d'amour qui forme le cœur de La Dame de Monsoreau, histoire lumineuse qui se détache sur un fond de sombres intrigues politiques et de noires rivalités de pouvoir. En 1578, en effet, la royauté est menacée de toutes parts: guerres civiles entre protestants et catholiques, ambitions du duc d'Anjou, frère cadet du roi, complot des Guises pour s'emparer du trône et promouvoir un catholicisme intégriste... D'un même élan, Dumas mène le lecteur de la petite maison des Tournelles au palais du Louvre, de l'intimité des amants au cœur du pouvoir royal, en un roman d'amour éperdu aussi bien qu'une fresque saisissante du règne du dernier des Valois.

Populated by some of the most famous names in literary and actual history — D'Artagnan, Athos, Porthos, Aramis, Cardinal Richelieu, Louis XIII — Dumas's peerless adventure offers a rousing read. It traces an aspiring Musketeer's path to 17th-century Paris, where he encounters intrigue, romance, and, of course, thrilling swordplay.

Les Frères corses (1844) est un bref roman ou une longue nouvelle. Deux jumeaux, le sauvage Lucien, qui choisit la tradition, c'est-à-dire la Corse, Louis, qui se francise et vit à Paris; il se voit accuser de renier ses racines. Sera-t-il victime de sa double appartenance, à la Corse par sa naissance, à Paris par son engagement intellectuel? Peut-on soutenir impunément les valeurs chevaleresques qui ont cours dans l'île? Malgré leur séparation, les jumeaux sont restés unis par télépathie, don héréditaire de leur famille. Les héros, dans la marche en avant du monde, éprouvent la nostalgie des hautes valeurs du passé, comme les Mousquetaires. On ne peut laisser reposer un récit si rapide, si chargé de matières diverses, et qui, commençant avec la lenteur des impressions de voyage, finit comme une tragédie. Ce roman est destiné à deux catégories de lecteurs: les Corses, et les autres. Il a fait l'objet de douze adaptations cinématographiques.