The Scarlet Pimpernel in Around the World in 80 Books

Nov 02, 2020 Pam rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, 2020-books-read, england

AUTHOR Baroness Emmuska Orczy
TITLE The Scarlet Pimpernel
DATE READ 10/20/20
RATING 4/B
FIRST SENTENCE
GENRE/ PUB DATE/FORMAT/LENGTH Fiction/ 1905/audio/7 CD's
SERIES/STAND-ALONE SA
CHALLENGE Good Reads 2020 Reading Goal/176/120
GROUP READ Vintage
TIME/PLACE 1792/ England & France
CHARACTERS Sir Percy and Lady Marguerite Blakeney
COMMENTS Set during the reign of terror in France when members of the aristocracy are being beheaded … the mysterious Scarlet Pimpernel is the one who has eluded the French ...more

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Jan 16, 2015 Nadine in NY Jones rated it it was ok

Shelves: classic, gutenberg, era-regency, historical-fiction, napoleonic-wars-and-spies, saw-the-movie-b4-i-read-the-book

I'm reading this as part of the 2015 Ultimate Reading Challenge, a book more than 100 years old.

I'd certainly HEARD of the Scarlet Pimpernel before ... I saw the Anthony Andrews TV movie, I've heard it mentioned and referenced (not least in the Pink Carnation series) ... But somehow it never occurred to me that I could actually, you know, READ the book. (Kind of like it had never occurred to me that I could read Frankenstein ... until it was assigned in a class in college, and I was all: "hey! ...more

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Jul 22, 2009 superawesomekt rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction

So fun! I loved it. Totally frivolous and charming - I will definitely re-read this one. I had seen the musical, the movie, etc. and am pleased with the inspiration of the same. Love the Scarlet Pimpernel!

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May 16, 2010 Deedee rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, world-europe-france, classic-gr-7-and-8, historical-fiction, espionage, french-revolution, challenge-2012-winter, challenge-2012-winter-rws-vegas, historical-fiction-18th-century

Straightforward adventure tale, set during the time of the French Revolution. If the gentle reader can accept (1) all members of the aristocracy are heroic, brave and noble; and, (2) most members of France's soldiers and innkeepers are very bloodthirsty and stupid (and probably better off as serfs than as free men); then the gentle reader can enjoy the romance and adventure of aristocrats winning their conflicts. The copy I read attempts to put the anti-Jewish subplot in historical context, but ...more

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Aug 07, 2007 Jen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: classic-fiction, british-literature

I really loved this book when I read it. Adventure and mystery stories are always fun for me and this was one of them. It's especially captivating because the whole time the reader is trying to figure out the mystery just as hard as all the characters in the book. ...more

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Mar 28, 2012 Anie rated it liked it

Shelves: female-author, classics, fiction, 2012, ebooks, male-protagonist, female-protagonist, project-gutenberg

I liked the Scarlet Pimpernel when I first read it in high school, and as it turns out, I still enjoy it. Marguerite is a surprisingly strong character (despite the bizarre fawning love), and Orczy can be wickedly funny.

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