Director Clive Donner. Top credits Director Clive Donner. See more at IMDbPro. Photos Top cast Edit. Jane Seymour Marguerite St. Just as Marguerite St. Ian McKellen Chauvelin as Chauvelin. Eleanor David Louise as Louise. Malcolm Jamieson Armand St. Just as Armand St. Richard Morant Robespierre as Robespierre. David Gant Fouquet as Fouquet. John Quarmby Ponceau as Ponceau. Gordon Gostelow Duval as Duval. Carol MacReady Mme. Duval as Mme. Tracey Childs Suzanne as Suzanne. Clive Donner.
More like this. Watch options. Storyline Edit. During the French Revolution, a mysterious English nobleman known only as The Scarlet Pimpernel a humble wayside flower , snatches French aristos from the jaws of the guillotine, while posing as the foppish Sir Percy Blakeney in society.
Percy falls for and marries the beautiful actress Marguerite St. Just, but she is involved with Chauvelin and Robespierre, and Percy's marriage to her may endanger the Pimpernel's plans to save the little Dauphin.
Not Rated. Did you know Edit. Goofs When Sir Percy's courier is shot, he can be heard screaming. But when his face is shown, his mouth is closed as the scream continues.
User reviews 84 Review. Want to Read Currently Reading Read. Other editions. Enlarge cover. Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Open Preview See a Problem? Details if other :. Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. Armed with only his wits and his cunning, one man recklessly defies the French revolutionaries and rescues scores of innocent men, women, and children from the deadly guillotine.
His friends and foes know him only as the Scarlet Pimpernel. But the ruthless French agent Chauvelin is sworn to discover his identity and to hunt him down.
Get A Copy. Paperback , pages. Published February 28th by Quiet Vision Pub first published More Details Original Title. Other Editions Friend Reviews.
To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. To ask other readers questions about The Scarlet Pimpernel , please sign up. What is the correct sequence of the book series?? Rhedyn For many of them there isn't really a sequence.
Then comes The Scarlet Pimpernel. Thi …more For many of them there isn't really a sequence. This is followed by the other books in assorted order many of them are short story compilations that have stories from many different dates, and ending with The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel, A Child of the Revolution, and The Pimpernel and Rosemary.
Hope this helps! I want to read this book? Essie H. Just know this is the third book in the series. See all 11 questions about The Scarlet Pimpernel…. Lists with This Book. Community Reviews. Showing Average rating 4. Rating details. More filters. Sort order. Start your review of The Scarlet Pimpernel. Here's my new and improved title for this book I can't usually make it through classic literature. Does this make me a bad person?
I think not. There are manymanymany other things I do on a daily basis that make me a bad person, but not being able to force myself to read in my opinion outdated and overrated books is not one of them.
There are other readers out there like me, I'm sure of it! And it's you guys that I'm talking Here's my new and improved title for this book And it's you guys that I'm talking to now. Rejoice, fellow slackers! There is a classic that you can actually read! Imagine it You're sitting on a bench engrossed in a book.
The person next to you leans over and asks, "What are you reading? You can finally plaster a smug-ass smile on your face and say, "Why, right now I'm thoroughly enjoying Orczy's classic, The Scarlet Pimpernel. Doesn't that sound awesome! And when someone asks you what you've recently read, you won't have to admit to the fact that you're deep into a series about an alien who falls in love with his human neighbor, your extensive comic book collection, or all of that erotica that's hidden neatly away on your Kindle!
Now is this book really a four star novel by my 'real-book' standards? Fuck, no! It's old as shit. The copy I got didn't even have anything on the cover.
You know it's old when it has got that black cover-thing going on. The pages were creaky, it smelled weird, and I think there's a possibility I should have had it tested for mold before I brought it into my house. It's a readable book. Go get it, and for a few blissful moments, you can pretend that you're an intellectual giant.
Loved it! This book has everything I want in an adventure novel - daring rescues, crazy disguises, a clever and bold heroine, an intelligent hero with a sense of humor, and a love story with a twist.
Highly Recommended! View all comments. Michelle Haha. But I do enjoy this book. Anne I've always wondered which movie I should watch for this book, so thanks!
I'm going to see if the library has that one. I've always wondered which movie I should watch for this book, so thanks! Odd's Fish! Is this book an action adventure, a romance, historical fiction? Baroness Orczy has provided us with all that. Tis a fun romp, I say. Had I known how much of this story was romance, I might not have read it but then I would have missed out on how good an all round story it really is. Baroness Orczy was a playwright and this book was adapted into a play or the play was adapted into the book.
I know not which was first. It does have it's faults but still deserving of it's place in liter Odd's Fish! It does have it's faults but still deserving of it's place in literary history. Sir Percy Blakeney is an English dandy in his normal life. But it is when he takes on the guise as The Scarlet Pimpernel that he becomes a hero to the French aristocrats.
Crossing the English channel on his yacht, The Day Dream, in order to save. Yeah, yeah, yeah, Now I know not where those writers received their inspiration but surely there had been other, earlier, similar stories. First comes to mind, The Bible. Josiah disguised himself in order to make war with Neco, King of Egypt.
This adventure didn't turn out good for Josiah. So close, but not quite. Then I look to ol Willy Shakes. You gotta know Shakespeare couldn't, wouldn't leave this type story-line alone. Measure for Measure, fitting title I believe, is a play written by Shakespeare back in In this play Vincentio, the Duke of Vienna, lets everyone know that he is leaving the city on a diplomatic mission.
What he does then is stay in the city disguised as Friar Lodowick in order to observe the governing of the city in his absence. At the end of the play The Duke reveals himself in order the save an innocent man from the guillotine. View all 35 comments. I've always had a thing for books that use the Scarlet Pimpernel trope: the intelligent, capable person who hides behind a mask of inanity.
So Emma Orczy gets extra points from me for popularizing this secret identity plot device in her book The Scarlet Pimpernel. It's , the early days of the French Revolution, and the Reign of Terror is at its peak: thousands of French aristocrats, men, women and children, are sent to the guillotine, regardless of actual fault.
But a group of brave Engl I've always had a thing for books that use the Scarlet Pimpernel trope: the intelligent, capable person who hides behind a mask of inanity. But a group of brave English noblemen, led by the mysterious Scarlet Pimpernel, are rescuing many of the condemned French aristocrats and spiriting them away to England. French authorities are outraged. Meanwhile, Marguerite St. Just, a lovely French actress who inexplicably married the slow-witted, foppish but extremely wealthy Sir Percy Blakeney, is having issues in her marriage: she thought her rather foolish husband adored her, but they've drifted far apart, ever since she confessed to him that her accusation against a French noble family resulted in their deaths, while being too proud to explain the whole story to him.
She's not quite sure why, but now she finds she misses the adoration of the big galoot. But Marguerite has worse problems: the French envoy to England is blackmailing her into spying for him, so he can find out who the Scarlet Pimpernel is and make sure he dies the next time he sets foot in France. If she doesn't cooperate, her beloved brother Armand will be guillotined.
It frequently gets high on the melodrama I about lost it when Sir Percy passionately kisses the places Marguerite's feet and hand have touched, half-crazed with frustrated love and it's incurably pro-aristocracy, though Baroness Orczy reluctantly admits that some of the French nobility had caused much suffering for the common people.
And Marguerite, for a person who's supposed to be the cleverest woman on two continents, sure got smacked hard on the head by the Oblivious Fairy's wand. But the exploits of the Scarlet Pimpernel and his merry band are well-plotted and exciting to read, and the romantic relationship is unusual: can two married people who don't really understand each other and have become estranged, ever work things out?
I totally got sucked into it and was all, d'awww! Good times! View all 48 comments. When the guillotine dropped quickly, remorselessly and often, there arose a mysterious Englishman, who crossed the channel, to rescue the French Aristocrats mostly innocent victims , he called himself, "The Scarlet Pimpernel". Named after a modest, British flower, this person organized a band of twenty high-born men, he like the flower, was unpretentious.
Their daring deeds thrilled the world, Antoine Fouquier-Tinville director of the French government, wants to capture these enemies. Offers When the guillotine dropped quickly, remorselessly and often, there arose a mysterious Englishman, who crossed the channel, to rescue the French Aristocrats mostly innocent victims , he called himself, "The Scarlet Pimpernel". Offers 5, francs, for the head of the unknown leader, but the brilliant Pimpernel, has supernatural powers, they say The Terror was just beginning, Sir Percy Blakeney is a rather silly, unintelligent, fop everyone thought so.
Percy travels in High Society, his friend is the dissolute Prince of Wales, similar men are his young followers, and copy all Blakeney's latest clothes he wears. Recite his witty words, the riches man in England was surprisingly Having recently married a French actress, Marguerite St.
Just, the most beautiful, smart woman in the country. All her friends, were stunned, she had many suitors, love of money, undoubtedly was the reason. A hard, precarious childhood, Marguerite and her older brother, Armand, endured, as they lost their parents, at an early age.
Unusually close, they depended on each other to survive, but still, how can she, lower herself to such a nitwit dandy? With an irritating laugh? Her many friends, can't accept it In Paris the barricades, surround the city, everyone leaving, is thoroughly searched.
Their carts, barrels, animals, all that goes by, particularly the frightened citizens, the fleeing aristocrats, can't get out. An old, ugly woman, approaches the western barricades, the cart will not be searched, her grandson has the plague, she says The guards, back away and the vehicle slowly passes, into the countryside, never to be seen again. Yes, The Scarlet Pimpernel, is the old woman, and some nobles are hidden, in the wagon.
Sir Percy is a master of disguise, it will save his life, numerous times. The Committee of Safety, the notorious Revolutionary French government, sends an agent to England, to find out, the identity of this Scarlet Pimpernel. Such a silly name!
Citizen Chauvelin , the spy, is also an accredited official, of the bloody, French regime, and a former friend of Lady Blakeney. When her brave brother, or foolish, Armand, working for her husband, in France, to help some Aristocrats escape, is apprehended.
The "Day Dream", Sir Percy's yacht, which has been used, often, to get them, across the sea, back to freedom England , needs to sail in the opposite direction.
But now the ruthless Chauvelin, threatens to kill Armand, if Lady Blakeney, doesn't find out who is the Scarlet Pimpernel And she is in the dark, that her despised, idiot of a husband, is that person! Will Marguerite, have to choose between her husband and her beloved brother , one must die?
Appearances are not always reality, as this book shows. A man wears a mask, for the world, but inside, he is a totally different animal. View all 44 comments. Nov 11, Ahmad Sharabiani rated it really liked it Shelves: classics , fiction , romance , adventure , 20th-century , hugarian-british , historical.
It was written after her stage play of the same title enjoyed a long run in London, having opened in Nottingham in The novel is set during the Reign of Terror following the start of the French Revolution. Sir Percy Blakeney leads a double life: apparently nothing more than a wealthy fop, but in reality a formidable swordsman and a quick-thinking escape artist. The band of gentlemen who assist him are the only ones who know of his secret identity.
He is known by his symbol, a simple flower, the scarlet pimpernel. Marguerite Blakeney, his French wife, does not share his secret. She is approached by the new French envoy to England, Chauvelin, with a threat to her brother's life if she does not aid in the search for the Pimpernel. She aids him, and then discovers that the Pimpernel is also very dear to her. She sails to France to stop the envoy.
View 2 comments. Apr 23, Julie rated it it was amazing Shelves: classics. I have seen a movie version on this book at some point but I had not read the book. I am so glad I did. I highly recommend it. Don't rely on the movie versions of this classic, they don't do it justice.
If you have an e reader this book should be free. I ordered mine on Kindle. There were some typos here and there, but nothing serious. View all 15 comments. The French Revolution is one of my favourite periods of history to learn about despite the morbidity and the violence and cruelty. It's shocking to be reminded of the fact that even children were guillotined.
It makes you wonder why on earth people felt the need to be so barbaric and unforgiving. Baroness Orczy also introduces us to one of the most interesting characters in literature, in my opinion, Sir Percival Blakeney, Bart. Sir Percy is a fop who is obsessed with fashion and making inane comments that amuse those around him.
View all 32 comments. Jun 13, Lyn rated it liked it. Rick Flair talks about The Scarlet Pimpernel. Let me step it down a notch for you literary librarian types and let me pose a question: was the Scarlet Pimpernel the first masked superhero? All those cats had a hidden identity and they had their crime fightin side too. The Stylin', profilin', limousine riding, jet flying, kiss-stealing, wheelin' n' dealin' son of a gun!
The English at least. View all 18 comments. Sep 28, Evgeny rated it liked it Shelves: adventure. To start let me quote the book blurb.
Let me assure you, this To start let me quote the book blurb. Let me assure you, this is exactly that the book does not have. What it actually has is melodrama coming from a married couple in love with each other, but having wrong impression about their partner.
So a gorgeous smart French woman married a simple in terms of intellect , but rich British nobleman. It seemed to be a match made in Heaven: she got money and he got a young beauty, but it did not work for them.
Especially after the guy realized his wife was the reason one of the French noble was sent to guillotine. I cannot even say the later had not deserve it.
The book is about couple's attempts at trying to understand each other. The rest: French revolution, Scarlet Pimpernel, etc. From my side I can say I expected something different. Had this book been billed as melodrama I would not have any complaints about it. As such it delivers fully: angst, emotional trauma, tragedy, etc. From this point of view it is good. Let me mention characters now that I talked about the story.
The heroine was quite good, but ultimately useless and helpless which is to be expected considering the time the book was written.
The hero was written in such a way that made me suspend my disbelieve as I could not imagine him being a person ever existing in real life. Other characters only served to move the plot forward. Despite everything the story was good enough for me to never think about not finishing the book. It was good and taken together with everything else my rating is 3 stars: quite good, but not outstanding in any way.
Speaking about adventure books taking place during French Revolution I found Scaramouche by Rafael Sabatini to be better. View all 6 comments. Aug 18, Madeline rated it liked it. For a book about a secret team of English nobleman working to rescue French nobles from the scary revolutionists who want them dead, this is a surprisingly unexciting book.
The pace is fast, and there's plenty of spying and blackmailing and races against time, but there isn't a single fistfight, swordfight, gunfight or slapping fight in the whole book. There's sort of a chase scene at the end, but the pursued party is in a slow-moving cart and the pursuer is on foot. There's plenty of drama and intrigue and excitement, but just one duel would have been nice.
Luckily, the characters are all great. Sir Percy, in addition to being a precursor to Bruce Wayne's vigilante-disguised-as-idiot-rich-boy act, also reminded me of Lord Peter Wimsey another fan of the Badass Disguised as Fop method , which was awesome. His archenemy is Chauvelin, basically the French version of Hans Landa in Inglorious Basterds , and everybody was generally so cool that I forgot about how amazingly not scary a name like "Scarlet Pimpernel" is. The true hero of this story, surprisingly, is not the Scarlet Pimpernel.
He mostly stays in the background while people talk about him, and throughout the whole book we never really get to see him in action. Instead, we see almost everything through the eyes of Sir Percy's wife, Marguerite, who despite everything manages to be awesome.
The issue I had with Marguerite was that she's repeatedly referred to as the cleverest woman in Europe, but god damn is she stupid. Sir Percy might as well have been dancing around wearing a sign that read "Hello, I am secretly the Scarlet Pimpernel" and she wouldn't figure it out. At one point, Marguerite snoops around in Percy's study and sees the following objects: maps of the English and French coastlines on the walls, and a small ring with a scarlet pimpernel flower engraved on it.
Marguerite stares blindly at these objects and is like, "But what does it all mean? First we find out that Marguerite had a French family arrested by accident before she was married, and never told Percy about it even after she found out that she'd made a mistake. Then, when Chauvelin tells Marguerite that she has to work as a spy for him or he'll kill her brother, Marguerite doesn't tell her husband what's going on until after she sells out the Pimpernel without knowing who he is. I mean, Jesus.
Also he's in disguise for the last part of the book and it was so fucking obvious which character was actually Percy in disguise I wanted to throw the book at the wall. But fortunately, this all ends with Marguerite becoming awesome, racing against the clock to save her husband and defeat Chauvelin, and the ending between Percy and Marguerite is surprisingly sweet and very satisfying.
Anyway, in conclusion: a fun espionage story, even if it's not as swashbuckling as I expected and everyone except the Pimpernel is an idiot. I'll be looking up the movie version soon, and will likely prefer it to the book. View all 17 comments. Shelves: reads , all-time-greats , classy-classic , donning-that-detective-hat , i-heart-it , july-reads , modern-classics , turn-of-the-century , favorites , ibooks.
How I had always imagined that the classics are only for those who are born, brought up, spoon-fed in and potty-trained in English and how wrong was I to think that they are out of the reach of people like me who had only subnormal command over the English language. Among many other popular authors of the classic era, Emmuska Orczy was a name much bandied about for her magnum opus, "The Scarlet Pimpernel" , even during my school days.
I can't quite pinpoint the exact reason why I was motivated to choose this book as the first proper classic novel that I will ever read, but it sure delivered the necessary impact that made me change my course of this book journey of my life and embrace the uphill task of delving into the treasure trove of works left behind by the writers of yonder and unearth the hidden riches of the literature world that I have so far eschewed.
This story describes the many facets of the post-revolution France and the ripples that reflected off from places as far as London. The story is written in a simple, lucid style and the narrative is very straightforward and candid, that never once did I feel like I am in the middle of a momentous undertaking as this one.
Throughout the first half, we are left to our own devices to hazard a guess as to who this Scarlet Pimpernel could be and the sense of bewilderment ties you to the story to the hilt. After all, you have been hearing about this titular character for ages and you are only a few hours away from learning the true identity of this much celebrated hero of all ages.
On a parallel timeline, you are treated to the boisterous and always-in-the-spotlight kind of life of Lady Blakeney aka Marguerite St.
Just who is popular equally among the intelligentsia and the fashionistas of the 18th century London and her ridiculously rich but inanely infectious laughter along with other attributes husband Sir Percy Blakeney. Her undulating affections for Sir Percy- ranging from utter hatred for his foolish ways to unconditional love for the worshipper in him- keep us riveted to the story; in an effort to help us understand which direction a witty woman's feelings for a dim-witted husband should swing towards.
This is where Lady Blakeney is unwittingly fooled into aiding in the capture of The Scarlet Pimpernel by the evil French official Monsieur Chauvelin, who used to be her close associate during her young days in France, in return for her beloved brother Armand's life. Her arduous journey in a league member Sir Andrew Ffoulkes' company to save her loved ones or die alongside them trying presents to us the typical dilemma of choosing one of two equally valuable things and that's why this novel is worthy of being hailed as one of the finest precursors to the modern day whodunits, even though the dearth of a multitude of characters made it easy for the readers to zero in on the suspect not in the usual life-taker sense, but in the unusual life saver sense.
Oh, and you wouldn't quite believe how the quirky masks and strange countenances helped our dashing hero to slip away right from under the nose of his archenemy. That this novel is a wonderful commentary on love, family, gallantry, friendship, loyalty, commitment and betrayal in the times of turmoil comes as no surprise to me. But, if "simple" could move me so much, in this age where there is a tendency among people to complicate things, and usher in a paradigm shift in my reading habit, then I owe it to this brilliant, elegant yet plain prose.
And this story makes hero-worshipping only that much better. PS: If you read my review, you'd notice that I have left a clue as to who the eponymous Scarlet Pimpernel is. Gah, the joy of giving away to the world the secret identity of someone you know!! Human nature is century- independent, huh?
This is a beautiful book, with a well-written storyline, a smooth flow, a good pace, and an interesting set of characters. Set up in the backdrop of the Reign of Terror in France, in the aftermath of the French revolution, the author creates a story of a fictitious small league of British aristocrats led by one named "The Scarlet Pimpernel", who help smuggle the French royals and aristocrats into the safety of England away from the clutches of the vengeful Republican Government of France who see This is a beautiful book, with a well-written storyline, a smooth flow, a good pace, and an interesting set of characters.
Set up in the backdrop of the Reign of Terror in France, in the aftermath of the French revolution, the author creates a story of a fictitious small league of British aristocrats led by one named "The Scarlet Pimpernel", who help smuggle the French royals and aristocrats into the safety of England away from the clutches of the vengeful Republican Government of France who seek their lives.
Troubled and humiliated by the actions of this unknown league, the French government appoints an official to seek and destroy the daring "Scarlet Pimpernel". Threats, dangerous bargains, and betrayals take place while the two opposing enemies try to outwit the other in a dangerous game of life and death. This is a beautifully crafted story, full of intrigue and suspense. The flow was smooth, and the story became more and more intense as the author gradually builds up suspense. Also, despite the gravity of the background in which the story is set, there was humour, too, especially in the actions of the Scarlet Pimpernel.
The writing is simple and that made it quick and easy to read. I really loved the way the story was structured and executed. There were no unnecessary details, no exaggerations. Everything was appropriate and to the point including the emotions of the characters. Out of all, however, what captured me the most is the characters. The male protagonist is the daring Scarlet Pimpernel, who is brave, resourceful, and astute. No one would fail to love him, the dear hero. The female protagonist is a beautiful and clever woman who enters into a dangerous bargain with the enemy not realizing the consequences.
Once her mistake comes to light, she takes on herself a courageous journey to the jaws of death to rescue her loved ones from peril. The emotional trauma the author takes her through disclosing her suffering yet elaborating on her courage makes her character close and dear to the heart of the readers.
What is most interesting is that I could even like the vile enemy of the hero and heroine! Overall, it was a great read. I really enjoyed it, and would easily recommend it to those who love a fast-paced, good adventure. If, like me, you watched the movie more times than you'd care to admit when you were growing up; or if, like me, you've read all of Georgette Heyer's Regency romances and then some, you'll love this book. It doesn't pretend to be anything extraordinary, it doesn't even offer a social commentary on the period in which it's set - written by an aristocrat who is clearly on the side of the aristocrats, it's easy to see where her sympathies lie.
But it is a rollicking good ride, a fun adventure story If, like me, you watched the movie more times than you'd care to admit when you were growing up; or if, like me, you've read all of Georgette Heyer's Regency romances and then some, you'll love this book.
But it is a rollicking good ride, a fun adventure story, a very sweet and at times intense love story, and a daring, cunning dash into danger. For sheer entertainment's sake, I loved it. Set in during the French Revolution when, if your history is a bit hazy, the French people rose up in revolt and began executing their wealthy aristocracy on "Madame Guillotine" - including the King and Marie Antoinette their young son was famously unaccounted for, if I remember correctly - stories of "innocent" aristocrats especially women and children, who were beheaded alongside the men being rescued and taken to England are perfect for a romantic adventure story.
When I was a little girl, my mother's best friend returned from a trip to Russia, where her family was from, with a birthday gift for me - a book printed in Yugoslavia called Girls' Adventure Stories of Long Ago.
The very first story, and my favourite, was about a young girl fleeing France who is rescued by a Englishman with a secret identity, going by the name of Red Hawk. Adventure and romance ensued.
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