“The Scarlet Pimpernel is a novel by Baroness Orczy that takes place during the French Revolution. The story follows a group of French aristocrats who are being targeted by the revolutionaries and are in danger of being executed. The Scarlet Pimpernel is a mysterious figure who has been rescuing these aristocrats from France and bringing them to safety in England. The French authorities are desperate to catch the Scarlet Pimpernel, but he always manages to evade them. The main character is Sir Percy Blakeney, a wealthy Englishman who is secretly the Scarlet Pimpernel. Sir Percy’s wife, Marguerite, is a French actress who is caught up in the political turmoil of the revolution. Marguerite is initially suspected of being a spy for the revolutionaries, but Sir Percy eventually clears her name. The novel ends with the Scarlet Pimpernel successfully rescuing the last of the French aristocrats and returning them to England.” – ChatOn description of the book. ‘
By the description of the book, it states that Sir Percy is the main character of the book, yes, a lot of the story does revolve around him, but I more so think that Marguerite is the main character here. She is a woman in a foreign country, a country that looks down upon her own, and a woman who has no idea what is happening to her family across the channel. She is being black mailed and a strong and passionate woman in the situation that she is placed into within these pages. That being said, she was the most developed of the characters. This book does present themes such as anonymity and deception, that made it hard to tell the difference between the male characters.
The atmosphere is a common one for the Edwardian time period of when ‘The Scarlet Pimpernel’ was published. I am curious if authors of the time were inspired by the French Revolution like today’s authors are inspired by World War II. The descriptive writing gave this story a rich atmosphere and it was easy to picture the scenes that were playing out.
Playing in with the atmosphere, the writing was very descriptive, but it never over did it. It never made you feel bogged down and you could not get out. However, my mind did seem to drift off a lot, I think this is from either too many characters, or the lack of development on said characters. The writing was reminiscent of the likes of Dickens and Shelley with the ability at painting a scene inside of the reader’s head.
The plot sounds great in theory and when I first read this book it really did spark me interest in historical fiction. However, I have since read books that follow the same historical events, those books being Les Miserable and The Tale of Two Cities, this one just does not compare to those. It is very one dimensional and I do think if this book was published today, it would still be popular because of its main female lead.
By the description of the book, it states that Sir Percy is the main character of the book, yes, a lot of the story does revolve around him, but I more so think that Marguerite is the main character here. This book does present themes such as anonymity and deception, that made it hard to tell the difference between the male characters. The atmosphere is a common one for the Edwardian time period of when ‘The Scarlet Pimpernel’ was published. The descriptive writing gave this story a rich atmosphere and it was easy to picture the scenes that were playing out. Playing in with the atmosphere, the writing was very descriptive, but it never over did it. The writing was reminiscent of the likes of Dickens and Shelley with the ability at painting a scene inside of the reader’s head. The plot sounds great in theory and when I first read this book it really did spark me interest in historical fiction. It is very one dimensional and I do think if this book was published today, it would still be popular because of its main female lead. This book has nothing wrong with it but it could be so much more.
2.25 out of 5 stars.
Izzy Reads 