In the late 18th century, France was in the throes of the French Revolution. Of particular tumult during this conflict were the years known as the “Reign of Terror”, a time in which a revolutionary tribunal executed thousands of French citizens. It is during the “Reign of Terror” in which Baroness Emmuska Orczy’s “The Scarlet Pimpernel” is set. “The Scarlet Pimpernel” is the story of Sir Percy Blakeney, a chivalrous Englishman married to the beautiful French actress, Marguerite St. Just, with...
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a classic novel, though it is hard to categorize. It is part romance, part adventure, part spy thriller, and part superhero fiction. All of these elements went into the pot and the resulting stew is extremely entertaining. <p> The book follows the adventures of Sir Percy Blakeney as he seeks to help French aristocrats escape the guillotine during the French Revolution. Since official English policy forbids this, Blakeney adopts a masked identity as the Scarlet...
