The Scarlet Pimpernel (Signet Classics)

I really wish there was a easily available sequel. I really could not think of a way this book could be improved. It maybe could have been a little longer. The foreshadowing was awesome, just hidden enough so that a reader is not completely sure what will happen, but enough so that a reader really enjoys the book. Please read this book, its the best read Ive had in a long time.

When reading older books, one needs to balance historical significance with present enjoyment. The Scarlet Pimpernel was a significant book when it was written. It launched an entire series of books, was turned into a popular movie, and helped start the female protagonist movement in mystery/adventure books. As such any fan of the golden era of mystery should read it.
However, the book has not aged well. The writing is simplistic, the surprise is hardly surprising, and matters get settled a bit too easily.
So the book will disappoint a modern reader, but will be a treat for golden age fans.

This is probably the first spy thriller stories ever. The story is good enough, but it devolves (?) into a romance in the later chapters.
The time is that of the French revolution during the Reign of Terror. An Englishman has been helping aristocrats escape/ He is beiong sought by the French authorities not only because he is helping those who the authorities consider traitors or enemies of France, but also because he taunts them with little notes left to be found after the deed is done and each with athe picture of a scarlet pimpernel, a flower from England. The story is of one more escapade that the Scarlet Pimpernel dares, only this time his wife is mixed up in it.
As an American, I am not partial to aristocrats, but I am also not partial to killing people for little of no reason, so this story gets me to thinking of what the situation entailed and how to resolve it without killing and without sucking up to aristocrats. In the heat of the moment, the French people had no concern but for revenge or animosity for the aristocrats. This was well borne out by Margaret Blakely, the heroine, whose brother was beaten by lackeys of an aristocrat. Yet she later regretted the action because she abhorred the killing that ensued.
I listened to this from a recording my Librevox. The recording was really well done. There were very good, if not professional, actors speaking the parts of the characters, laughing and chortling, etc., as called upon in the story. This separation of narrator and characters got a bit strange because when the quotes are broken into two parts by a 'she said' or some such, the narrator interrupted the dialog with those words. Usually the reader, doing all the parts, makes it a seamless translation between spoken and written. It is weird to listen to this, becoming more of a radio play crossed with a book reading.

The Internet tells me "The novel was written after Orczy's stage play of the same title enjoyed a long run in London and popular success in earlier in 1905". I wanted to read this book as an author, Jack Caldwell, whose books I have been following has written a "final" sequel (The Last Adventure of the Scarlet Pimpernel, a story of Jane Austen’s Fighting Men). In doing so I did look this book up and read what Wikipedia had to say. 768 reviews on the store and 4,560 reviews on Goodreads plus film versions released in 1934 and 1982 and a TV series which ran for 2 seasons in 1999 and 2000 tells us that this is a long enduring classic.

I am not going to go into long details as that would be rather pointless with so much popularity. This is set in 1792 during height of the French Revolution/The Reign of Terror. With any person considered an aristocrat summarily “tried” and guillotined, “justice” ignores personal history. Men, women, children, old and young are being slaughtered by the thousands. One Englishman, the Scarlet Pimpernel, and his band of 19 followers dare to flaunt the rule in France and time after time rescue some of these unfortunates and escort them over the English Channel.

The story was enthralling and I read it in one “sitting” late into the next morning. Marguerite Blakeney, the intellectual darling of European society, whose husband, Percy, is a fop whose quips and retorts amuse the English court, has a guilty conscience. A slip of the tongue has sent a man and his family to the block. Now she is torn asunder in being forced to again betray someone. However, this time her reason is to save a dear one. Subsequently she comes to the horrifying realization that her decision has not been between a loved one and an anonymous figure, even a hero. It was between two loved ones.

We follow her as she seeks to rectify her blunder and to save not one but hopefully both men dear to her.

The wonderful black and white movie version with Merle Oberon had always been a favorite of mine, but I had never read the Baroness Orczy books until I was an adult. This book has become another favorite, and one that I have read often to my children over the years. They loved the characters and the twists and turns of the plot, which kept them asking for "just one more chapter." This is a wonderful glimpse into honor, courage, and love.

The cruelty of the French Revolution is well known but the book brought it to a life. We are still battling the same problems- the rich and ensconced rule the society. I hope it will not come to this extreme of a solution.

This is the story that inspired Zorro (and, in turn, Batman and the like), and so I was expecting it to be filled with the exploits of its dashing title character. But it isn't like that at all. We get a brief glimpse of the Scarlet Pimpernel at work in the first chapter, but after that, it is all about a noble French lady who is living in England. She spends the entire first half of the book complaining that her husband doesn't love her (I mean, literally, like 2 out of every 3 pages), and then the rest of the book trying to atone for her sins. That's all well and good, but the title of the book led me to believe it was going to be about the Scarlet Pimpernel himself. It isn't. AT ALL! And so, because of that, I was disappointed. (Imagine if the very first Batman story written were told from Vicki Vale's viewpoint.)

Beyond that, there isn't much to complain about. The writing is good, and when the plot is actually in focus then the story is very suspenseful. I just wanted more -- a lot more -- of the Scarlet Pimpernel himself. Alas.

Don't get me wrong: This is a classic and has many reasons to be. But I have no doubt that others will go into this with the expectations I had and will likewise come away disappointed. I am not saying not to read it -- just be aware of what you will be reading.

It was a hoot - I remember seeing the original movie with Leslie Howard when I was in high school, back in the 50's. The book was entertaining, but really corny by today's standards. I remember looking for the flower when I traveled to England 15 years ago and was not disappointed.

I have seen several Scarlet Pimpernel videos so felt it was time to read the book that led to their production. It is a decent story with some twists and turns. I am considering purchasing additional volumes in the series, but not right now.

After seeing so many movie adaptations of this story, it was refreshing and eye opening to read the original work.
I recommend the read. The story is delightful. My only admonishment to any reader is; remember the time in which this was written.

It was a hoot - I remember seeing the original movie with Leslie Howard when I was in high school, back in the 50's. The book was entertaining, but really corny by today's standards. I remember looking for the flower when I traveled to England 15 years ago and was not disappointed.

I have seen several Scarlet Pimpernel videos so felt it was time to read the book that led to their production. It is a decent story with some twists and turns. I am considering purchasing additional volumes in the series, but not right now.

After seeing so many movie adaptations of this story, it was refreshing and eye opening to read the original work.
I recommend the read. The story is delightful. My only admonishment to any reader is; remember the time in which this was written.

I read this book in junior high school and simply adored it, so I wanted to delve into it again. It was one of the books I read that really got me excited about adventure books and reading in general. It didn't disappoint the second time around.

I read "The Scarlet Pimpernel" many years ago and have recently come across a DVD version which stays to the themes of the story, but is quite different. I decided to obtain a copy of the original to compare the differences. I was disappointed that 2 scenes which I remember clearly from those many years ago, are not in this version. I assumed "classic" meant that it was an original--"classic"--complete version of the story. Alas, now I have to order another version. At least this time, I was able to scroll through the new version to find the scenes that I missed. It suggests that this version is truly complete and "classic".

The Scarlet Pimpernel is both a flower of five crimson petals and an English Lord named Percy Blakeney, who uses that code name in France to smuggle aristocrats and their families away to safety from the French Revolution and the guillotine, into England. The first novel The Scarlet Pimpernel is considered a classic of page, stage and screen, even though originally, the play and book were produced by the Hungarian Baroness Orczy and her British husband. Publishers wouldn't publish the book; the critics hated it, yet the public loved both the play and the book. The charming, crafty Pimpernel outwitting the the bloodthirsty principals of the Revolution was high entertainment. So, the Scarlet Pimpernel series of books and movies began.

In this variant, instead of being independent and singlehandedly getting families and people out of France, the Scarlet Pimpernel has a league of English gentlemen he works with. The Scarlet Pimpernel is the head of the league, reporting to the Prince of Wales. He stays in France, switching between his many disguises and hideouts, finding aristos in need of export. The league works with him, helping fool the Committee for Safety in ingenious ways and smuggling people out of France.

These books are a series of vignettes where the Scarlet Pimpernel goes against Chauvelin, the head of the Committee for Safety - which controls the guards, the spies, the jails, the Surete and the guillotine. Years have passed since the Revolution and the riots, but the guillotine is still active full time. The Pimpernel is a now almost more a legend than a man to the Committee of Paris. The Pimpernel has made fools of them, and yet he is like a ghost; making aristos disappear from prison, guarded rooms and from ambushes. He can't be human, yet it keeps happening. To Chauvelin, he is public enemy number one.

In these eleven short stories, the Pimpernel is a combination of Sherlock Holmes, William Windham (his real life counterpart), John Steed and Michael Westin (without weapons). A master of disguise, strategy, tactics and human nature, he can bluff, confuse, misdirect and mislead the hordes of officials who are feverishly dreaming about his capture.

Each story is different and highly entertaining. Good for a quick, fun read. The older grammar and vocabulary is charming. I've never heard of a dirty old man described as indign in my life, but it happens here. Amazing...

Just so you know, the Scarlet Pimpernel theme:

We seek him here, We seek him there!
Chauvelin seeks him everywhere!
Is he in Heaven? Is he in H-'ll?
That demned, elusive Pimpernel

Highly Recommended for Historical and Holmes fans...

The Scarlet Pimpernel, an adventure novel by Hungarian-born British author Baroness Emma Orczy, was published in 1905. It is based on her 1903 play of the same title. The story takes place during the French Revolution. The new Republican government of France is rounding up aristocrats to lop off their heads with the guillotine. Much to the chagrin of these bloodthirsty revolutionaries, a mysterious Englishman has been rescuing those destined for the blade and spiriting them off to Britain where their heads remain firmly attached to their necks. The identity of this daring savior is unknown. He is referred to by the name of the flower he uses as his signature—the Scarlet Pimpernel.

The book kicks off to a great start with the titular hero pulling off some ingenious capers that baffle and infuriate his French antagonists. They never know where or when this master of disguise will show up to snatch potential victims from their clutches. Unfortunately, the book doesn’t maintain this high level of excitement, and drags quite a bit in the middle. Those expecting the sort of swashbuckling one finds in the movie versions will be disappointed. The Scarlet Pimpernel doesn’t actually appear much in the book. He is an elusive legend, always off in the wings somewhere. We know of him mostly through references made by other characters. Though written in the third person, we experience the story primarily from the point of view of Marguerite Blakeney, the French-born wife of an English nobleman, who through plot twists better left unsaid is tasked with discovering the secret identity of the Pimpernel. By 1905 standards, Marguerite may have been a strong and independent female protagonist, but by 21st-century standards, she’s still a damsel in distress. By centering the story around her, Orczy leads the narrative into heavy melodrama. Marguerite spends much of the novel fretting over her marriage, her brother, and the whereabouts of the Scarlet Pimpernel.

Of all the literature set in the French Revolution, this is the most overwhelmingly anti-Revolutionary work I’ve seen. It’s not just about saving people from the guillotine; Orczy is advocating the salvation of the very class hierarchy that spawned the conflict in the first place. She barely acknowledges the Republican cause or the concept of democracy. Orczy, an aristocrat herself, thinks France should have retained the British system where gentleman are born gentleman, servants are born servants, peasants are born peasants, and everyone keeps their place. Such feudalistic conservatism could be overlooked if the novel were fun, but it’s not quite fun enough. The identity of the Pimpernel is truly a mystery at first, but soon becomes obvious. Orczy herself reveals the secret about halfway through. The climactic confrontation between the Pimpernel and his French nemesis is far less exciting than the exploits alluded to earlier in the novel. There’s an intended surprise twist that’s painfully obvious, and the Pimpernel’s success hinges on some unbelievably stupid moves on the part of his pursuers.

The Scarlet Pimpernel is a great character, but his debut novel is merely good at best. Judging from this book, I prefer the adventures of Pimpernel knockoffs like Johnston McCulley’s Zorro or Bob Kane’s Batman. Orczy wrote a whole series of sequels, and I suspect there’s probably a good story among them somewhere. If nothing else, this novel deserves to be praised for the profound influence it’s had on later generations of heroes. For that, fans of adventure fiction owe Orczy a great debt.

It brought back childhood memories and the delight of witnessing the Scarlet Pimpernel's successes against the terror of the revolution. A limited insight into history, but an important entry point for a young reader. Perhaps 5 stars?

Good book! I remember watching an old movie about The Scarlet Pimpernel a long time ago and I absolutely loved it. I never thought about the book until I saw it for free on the store. The book was as entertaining as the movie. I really enjoyed it.