I actually read The Club Dumas because I was frustrated with the ending of The Ninth Gate. Roman Polanski made his film like a noir mystery, but never really provided the explanation at the end that you expect from this kind of movie. Grrrr
I’m glad though that it made me check out this book. I so rarely read contemporary, I would have missed this.

The Club Dumas is much different. Unlike the movie there are two books and two stories that run parallel to each other. I love how Arturo pulls you into this musty, closeted society of book dealers and bibliophiles. And he takes the reader all over Europe. To be honest, I would never have imagined Johnny Depp as Lucas Corso if I had read the book first. Corso is described so fully, with nuance and personality. He’s not really evil, but he has some immoral proclivities which set him up. I rather liked his laid back style.

There is society in this book that loves The Three Musketeers (which is my favorite book) and the characters discuss the novel at length. I found it quite fascinating and it made me come away appreciating Dumas even more.

And finally, yes the ending was much more satisfying in the book then in the movie. Everything is explained so much more, and it fits the tone of the story so much better. I want to read another book Arturo Pérez-Reverte. I’m thinking The Flanders Panel or The Fencing Master. I’m not sure which though.

the protagonist Corso is a lot of fun. a shady, efficient, highly intelligent, deeply contemptuous, globe-trotting purveyor of literature from antiquity - the gumshoe transformed into book detective. he is perhaps the most enjoyable part of the novel and it is a pleasure (although a familiar one) to be seeing events through his eyes. in a way, he saves The Club Dumas from being completely forgettable.

the narrative is shaped as a fast-paced mystery, perhaps along the lines of The DaVinci Code (a book i never finished). it is, unfortunately, a very shallow mystery. well, actually, two mysteries and two pieces of literature at the heart of these mysteries: one an unpublished chapter by alexandre dumas and another a diabolical tome of which only three exist and whose publisher was burned at the stake. the mysteries are - perhaps - entwined. unfortunately, the mysteries are rather standard and the identities of the two villains (one per mystery!) are grindingly obvious. was this intended? i certainly hope so, because otherwise including a quote from a very relevant agatha christie novel as one of the chapter sub-headings was an amateurish move. why show your cards that way, unless it is intentional?

nevertheless, this is a quick and rather agreeable read. highly disposable and annoyingly repetitious at times (about a zillion descriptions of Corso looking rabbity and his companion's wise face and constantly bare feet - wtf?)...but the tight plotting, witty dialogue, and the obvious erudition of the author make it all easy to swallow. i just wish there was more to it all. sigh.

Sensacional, qualquer um que ame a literatura deve ler esse livro. Traz elementos de bibliofilia, romance policial e uma caça implacável e incrível a um exemplar de 'As Nove Portas do Reino das Sombras', de A. Torchia. Lembrou-me muito 'O assassinato de Roger Ackroyd', mas é melhor eu me calar daqui pra diante...

Reseña de la Película: La historia es un poco disparatada, entre ficción y realidad. Fantasía y terror. Me encantó el hecho de la obsesión por los libros, Deep es asesorado en un momento por dos ancianos bibliómanos, que lo ayudan con un misterioso libro satánico. El personaje de Deep a veces me daba la impresión de no saber en dónde estaba o qué hacer, el punto flojo. Una escena es muy similar a la escena de la quema de la cripta en Interview with the Vampire.
Lo encantador es la canción del final, interpretada por Sumi Jo: Vocalise.

(recensione di immagini allusive qui: http://capitolo23.com/2018/03/10/rece...)

Quando ho provato a calcolare gli anni trascorsi dalla mia prima lettura de Il Club Dumas sono saltato letteralmente sulla sedia. Poi mi sono messo a compitare numeri alzando le dita una alla volta, come un bambino di prima elementare a cui chiedi di sommare quattro più tre. Pollice, indice, medio e via dicendo e la risposta non è cambiata: quando ho letto per la prima volta questo bel romanzo di Pérez-Reverte, il ragazzo che la scorsa settimana ha votato per la prima volta aveva appena emesso il suo primo vagito.

Superate, a colpi di cucchiaiate di Nutella e rassicurazioni di MoglieRiccia, le evidenze sopra evidenziate, recupero la lucidità e confermo che Il Club Dumas è un’ottima lettura (e persino una bellissima rilettura).

Il protagonista è Lucas Corso, un “mercenario di libri da collezione”, un po’ bibliofilo e un po’ Philip Marlowe, incaricato da un collezionista dalla personalità borderline di svolgere un’indagine su Le Nove Porte Del Regno Delle Ombre di Aristide Torchia, testo demoniaco di cui sopravvivono solo tre copie dopo che il loro autore (e la quasi totalità delle copie) è stato bruciato sul rogo dalla Santa Inquisizione. Parallelamente, con un incarico non retribuito Corso si preoccupa anche di attestare l’originalità di un capitolo manoscritto de I tre moschettieri capitato tra le mani del suo più caro amico, il libraio Flavio La Ponte. Ed in effetti è proprio questa seconda indagine a dettare i tempi del romanzo di Pérez-Reverte (oltre a stimolarne il titolo), in un continuo rimando che coinvolge gli stessi personaggi, disegnati dall’autore spagnolo con riferimenti evidenti ai protagonisti ideati dall’illustre predecessore francese persino in alcune caratteristiche fisiche (tatuaggi, cicatrici e via dicendo).

Il risultato è un romanzo appassionante, una sorta di thriller colto che occhieggia un po’ all’ottimo cinema e un po’ ad Umberto Eco, senza raggiungerne le vette culturali e guadagnandoci quindi in leggibilità. (disclaimer: Il pendolo di Foucalt è probabilmente il mio romanzo preferito di tutti i tempi, per cui non venite a rompermi i maroni con Eh ma Eco è un’altra cosa. Lo so.). Ha inaugurato una mia passione perez-revertiana che si è consolidata con alcuni lavori che ho trovato magnifici (Il pittore di battaglie su tutti, o il geniale L’ombra dell’aquila), che non ha mai coinvolto la saga di Alatriste ma tutto il resto sì, pagina dopo pagina. Il Club Dumas è un’ottimo punto di partenza per la scoperta di un autore che vi deve avvincere, o vi tolgo il saluto.

Le citazioni:
“Da tempo ormai il suo atteggiamento nei confronti dell’inatteso si riduceva allo spassionato fatalismo di chi aspetta che la vita faccia il passo successivo”
“«Non mi piacciono i regali» mormorò Corso, cupo. «Una volta dei tipi accettarono un certo cavallo di legno. Artigianato acheo, c’era scritto sull’etichetta. Che idioti.» (Corso)”

A mediocre book with lofty ambitions. Advertised as a thriller for intellectuals, it is neither. While it references The Three Musketeers extensively and has (two-dimensional) characters who love books, I would not recommend it for fans of either Dumas or The Shadow of the Wind.

"A beachbook for intellectuals" (NY Times) indeed! Its brilliance is subtle, the prose is accessible, the themes are grand. How hard, really, is the creation of a postmodern "beachbook"? Very. And to wrangle with the conventions without overstepping unto dreaded cliche... And to keep the characters charismatic & vivid... & to keep a labyrinthine mystery going... etc. Very difficult, and this novel does not quite cross into the inanity of Jasper Fforde's terrain nor into the uber-popular, comical turf of Mr. Dan Brown. It is original and entertaining in equal measure. It is, perhaps, one of the sole post-modern neonoir contenders to be forged unto the Must 1001 List.

I watched the Roman Polanski/Johnny Depp film, "The Ninth Gate" a while back and I still remember just how searing reviews had been. I know now why: the book is a minor gem whereas the film is a major flop. Did you know that only half (almost, precisely) of the book exists in that cinematic format? It is because the screenplay destroyed the marvelous effect constructed o-so masterfully by Perez-Reverte, only grabbing one strand of plot (the demonic one) & doing with it what it wanted, that we don't have a good version of a book that, frankly, MUST be read (not heard, or watched). "The Club Dumas" is at its most basic good solid fun.

“One is never alone with a book nearby, don't you agree? Every page reminds us of a day that has passed and makes us relive the emotions that filled it. Happy hours underlined in red pencil, dark ones in black...”

I almost never re-read books but I will be reading this one again... Once I get myself a copy :)

This book is like the epitome of everything I like... dark, mysterious, a bit thrilling, literary and nerdy, devilish, and of course the occult. I didn't want it to end! I love Corso, but Irene is the real HBIC.

EDIT: It's my lucky day. walked to Book Off and found a hardcover for only five bucks!

Visit the blog---https://Mohammed's review.wordpress.com

The club Dumas by Arturo Perez-Reverte

Lucas Corso an antique book dealer from Spain gets a piece of Alexander Dumas's The three musketeers draft written by Dumas himself. Later Corso summoned by Varo Borja, a wealthy book collector from Toledo, Spain. He also insist him to find the falsification of the legendary book " The nine doors of the kingdom of Shadows" that he owns and he believes there is only one copy of this,when actually there is three copies. Corso is now on the move reaching to different countries to find the truth.

Disappointing stuff to be honest, didn't enjoyed any beat of this thriller. Of course there is lot to learn, many information available in this book but somehow everything didn't come to a point.

Rating: 1/5

Υπέροχο μίγμα αστυνομικής πλοκής και φανταστικών στοιχείων. Και βιβλία, πολλά βιβλία.

Страхотна книга, написана от библиоман за библиомани. Реверте в целия си блясък и чар.

Este es uno de los libros más rebuscados e inverosímiles que he leído. Es pretencioso, denso y aburrido y llega hasta ser absurda. El autor hace un vaciado de información irrelevante que no aporta ni avanza en nada la historia que nos cuenta. Los personajes son clichés, el ritmo es super lento y la historia es ridícula.

Había visto la película (the ninth gate) con Johnnie Deep (de la que solo recuerdo que es muuuy mala), pero había escuchado que el libro era muy bueno. Esas personas mintieron. Este libro es horrible. No se como puede ser un bestseller y ser tan aclamado.

Definitivamente, aunque lo critiquen, Dan Brown sigue siendo para mi el maestro de este tipo de aventuras. Te sabe contar una historia audaz, interesante, ágil con mezcla de realidad y ficción, sin ser monótona ni aburrida. Te transporta a los lugares donde se desarrolla la trama y tanto la historia como los personajes cobran vida.

Este autor podrá ser muy famoso, pero yo no vuelvo a leer nada más suyo.