Where is the scarlet pimpernel set

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. So between that story and watching my sister's copy of The Scarlet Pimpernel , I was an early fan.

Lady Marguerite Blakeney is a beautiful, clever young French woman, once an actress, now wife to Sir Percy Blakeney, one of the richest and most well-dressed men in England - and also, so everyone thinks, one of the most inane and stupid. When her brother Armand, who is working on the side of the Revolution in France, is found out to be in league with the Scarlet Pimpernel, the man in charge of hunting down the Pimpernel, Chauvelin, uses the damning knowledge to blackmail Marguerite into helping him discover the Scarlet Pimpernel's true identity.

When she realises who the Scarlet Pimpernel really is, though, it's too late to save him or her brother - she must to France to warn them, but Chauvelin's trap is closing in fast.

Originally written for the stage in by Baroness Orczy, it became so popular that she novelised it a few years later. In the film, Anthony Andrews - while lacking the impressive height and shoulder breadth described of Sir Percy in the book - did a fantastic job of portraying the urbane fop who hides his cunning and resourceful mind behind a mask of stupidity.

I can think of a couple of heroes Georgette Heyer wrote who were likely inspired by Sir Percy. He is wonderfully charismatic, and the love he suppresses for his wife ever since he found out her role in the execution of an aristocrat, makes for a truly bittersweet romance. They both must learn to trust one another and work through misunderstandings in order to be happy again.

The pacing might be too slow for some readers, but I found the details engrossing and the build-up of tension and anticipation gut-tightening. While the first half of the book was recreated closely in the movie, the second half is quite different. It was a pleasurable surprise, and made the book less predictable than I was expecting.

The characters are well-drawn and feel very real; we mostly get Marguerite's perspective never Percy's , and while she doesn't always make the best decisions, she is at least understandable and even sympathetic.

The true hero is, of course, the Scarlet Pimpernel, whose modern equivalent would be Batman - a superhero without superpowers, unless you count enormous wealth and a sharp mind.

View all 14 comments. Shelves: , reviewed , classics , indulge , wit , historical-romance , lit-europe. Would it have killed the author to have tossed her a couple of decent lines instead of giving them all to Percy?

View all 24 comments. In spite of the time and seriousness of these events, the novel doesn't take itself too seriously. Baroness Orczy wasn't trying to be political or make a statement, she was just trying to write a good story. The story is about an unknown, but gallant, Englishman and his secret band of followers w This novel is set in in England and France during the French Revolution's "Reign of Terror".

The story is about an unknown, but gallant, Englishman and his secret band of followers who sneak into France and save French citizen's, mostly aristocrats, from the blade of the guillotine, and then shepherd them safely to England. The book is not overly long and is not your typical English classic, but I throughly enjoyed it. Shelves: historical-fiction , classics.

The family ultimately settled in England when Emma was 14, and as an adult she did her writing entirely in English and as a part of the British literary tradition. It's undoubtedly the case that this formative experience shaped the literary vision that we find here, in her most famous novel.

Interestingly, she first created the title character, the Scarlet Pimpernel, in one of her numerous short stories; she and her husband Henry Barstow like Marguerite in the novel, she married an Englishman, and the union was long and happy then wrote a stage play titled The Scarlet Pimpernel , which proved to be very popular, running in London for four years.

This book is actually her novelization of the play, and sparked a long-running series of sequels. Set in France and England in late September-early October, , against the background of the French Revolution, this novel takes its title the name of a red wildflower native to England from the nom de plume which conceals the identity of a mysterious Englishman who, with the help of an equally secretive group of supporters, risks life and limb to rescue French citizens, mostly aristocrats, who are at odds with the revolutionary government and in danger of being killed on that account, and spirits them off to safety in England.

The image of the flower appears on pieces of paper slipped to the state prosecutor whenever an intended victim is rescued. In the TV miniseries adaptations, the image is instead embossed on the hero's sword —which is more realistic, IMO-- but there's actually no swordplay in this novel, and the miniseries adaptation of this particular book doesn't follow it very closely at all.

That's also true of at least one of the older black-and-white movie adaptations, judging from the clips attached to Orczy's Goodreads author record. There are some historical inaccuracies here: the Terror didn't really get going in earnest, and the wildly misnamed! Committee of Public Safety and the Revolutionary Tribunal which are both mentioned here weren't created, until ; and even then there was actually no program of automatically trying to exterminate everybody with noble blood.

From some secondary-source reading over the years, and from adaptations, I already knew the Scarlet Pimpernel's true identity before opening the book; many readers may be in the same boat, especially if they've read much about literature. Spoilers about the plots of classics often tend to be common knowledge among literature buffs and students.

However, the original readers wouldn't, and the author keeps that information close to her vest for much of the book. If you don't already know it, discovering it in its proper season undoubtedly enhances the reading experience though some astute readers might guess it first! Just Blakeney. She's relatively newly married to Sir Percy Blakeney aged about , a baronet and by inheritance one of England's richest men.

They met in Paris; the son of a mentally ill mother and a neglectful father, he was raised abroad, and hasn't been in England long. Everybody knows he's lazy, foppish, intellectually shallow, and not interested in much but clothes, horses and cards; but he fell hard for her, and offered her a quality of worshiping devotion that won her heart.

But by the time the tale here begins, their marriage has already soured. The question of why, and the exploration of the complex relationship between this couple, is the second of this novel's two major threads. But the two are about to come together, because early on M.

Chauvelin, the French government's diplomatic representative to England —whose real main mission, and obsession, is to unmask and capture the Pimpernel-- demands that she use her voluminous social contacts Percy's money, and friendship with the Prince of Wales, puts the couple in the center of London society to find out the hidden crusader's identity for him.

She's not inclined to; the St Justs are moderately republican in their attitudes, but not sympathetic to the regime's slide into homicidal totalitarianism.

But he has ways and means of being very persuasive Both this novel and Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities are Romantic school historical fiction, set in the same era, and both view the Revolution from the standpoint of those who supported reform, but abhorred the course that events took.

Dickens, though, does a much better job of conveying the sense of how intolerable and outrageous the pre-Revolutionary oppression of the masses actually was; Orczy has a couple of nods in that direction, but nothing as sustained and dramatically evocative as Dickens' portrayals. The earlier writer's criticism of the Terror thus comes across as more balanced, less open to the charge of whitewashing the old order.

He also delineates at more length, and more sharply, the hate-based group-think and vicious ruthlessness that underlies the hard-Left mindset; and the respective authors' two characters who personify it, Madame Defarge and Chauvelin, also have contrasting natures, the one seeming to embody fire, the other ice. On the whole, while Dickens and Orczy both have a pro-civilized-behavior stance, he tries harder to get readers to share it, where she presupposes that they already do.

Although opposing philosophies are contrasted here, this is not so much a novel of ideas as a straight-up tale of intrigue, danger and suspense. If you have a mindset that glorifies the French Revolution and justifies the Terror, this book won't change that, and will probably infuriate rather than entertain you.

However, if you approach this period of history --as do I-- with a view more informed by the political and cultural ideals of the American Revolution or England's Glorious Revolution of , which was probably more in Orczy's mind , you can find a great deal to appreciate in this novel. It's very well crafted, with the three main characters drawn with great vividness. The focus on adventure and derring-do doesn't necessarily mean it lacks a worthwhile message quite the contrary! With a tight plot compressed into a short time-frame, life-and-death stakes in the balance, and an intense mood of omnipresent danger, it's an extremely gripping read, especially in the last third or so.

In Marguerite, we also have a strong heroine who, though not a pistol-packing swordswoman, still displays plenty of agency, ability, leadership and guts. Of course, like Daphne du Maurier in Jamaica Inn , Orczy occasionally throws in sexist comments about women's supposed limitations, while presenting a heroine who belies them! The Edwardian diction shouldn't present proficient readers with any problem.

The Airmont Classics edition I read has a few pages of introductory matter by B. Allen Bentley, whose qualifications aren't stated. What I read after reading the body of the book! Is he in heaven? That demmed elusive Pimpernel? View all 11 comments. I think The Scarlet Pimpernel has single-handedly rocketed itself into the top five of my favorite classics list. While reading it, I kept wondering why I hadn't read it sooner!

It had been on my TBR for a while, and I was ecstatic upon the discovery that it was free in ebook form on Amazon. But everything else kept getting in the way of reading it Let me tell you why I love it, folks.

And I'll try not to wax too poetic. If you know what I'm talking about, we're friends already. It has many of the same elements of The Scarlet Pimpernel, which won me over immediately upon the reading of the book. Now, for the reasons I love it. A masked man! Okay not literally masked, but figuratively. The romance. I know that this part is kind of controversial, but overall, I thought it was really very sweet.

And the fact that it takes place between a married couple is a refreshing change. I don't really agree with Marguerite's tendencies to describe true love as "worship," since I believe the only thing we as humans should worship is God our Creator , but her marriage was brought back from a sorry state of existence by her realizing what she really had, and appreciating it.

She has brains, and she uses them. She's tough in a way that goes far deeper than mere physical ability, and I think modern books and movies would do well to follow her example.

And let's not forget the dry wit! I laughed out loud more than once, and I love Orczy's way of springing the humorous bits where you least expect them.

Another thing that I enjoyed was the fact that The Scarlet Pimpernel is pretty much historical fiction, but I didn't have to know anything about The French Revolution beforehand to know what was going on, since Orczy explained it. Overall, it was a wonderful adventure set in , filled with real danger guillotines, yikes! Perhaps the only thing I didn't really care for was the open prejudice towards Jews, the frequent use of "demmed" and occasional straight-up "d--n," but that didn't bother me too much since the rest was so amazing.

Why are you still here? Go read the book! View all 19 comments. Apr 25, Lightreads rated it did not like it Shelves: fiction , romance , historical. So boring. I read this weeks ago, and I've been waiting ever since for someone else in the group to come out with a great review.

Something transformative. It would compare this to Radcliff and nineteenth-century opera and talk about modes of romanticism. Or it'd be one of those intensely personal reviews about a grimey, sweaty summer spent singing in the chorus line for a production of Pimpernel , and the backstage affair whose passions ebbed in counterpoint to the story. Or, I don't k So boring. Or, I don't know, something. Except maybe one thing. Of all the times in recent years for this book to hit my radar screen, this is probably the worst.

It's not about rescuing people from the violence of the French Revolution. It's about those poor, persecuted rich people. It's horrible, they've never hurt anybody -- well, except for the starvation, and the institutionalized remnants of feudal pseudo-slavery, and the "I'm not concerned about the very poor" -- oh sorry, wrong guy.

That's the one. This is a book convinced that people are interesting and worthy of respect by virtue of being very wealthy, and I just. It's a small part of my job to absorb national political mood and reflect it back in different analytical modes.

And I was not in the fucking mood for "let them eat cake. View all 8 comments. Sep 10, Malia rated it really liked it Shelves: classic-lit. I have to admit, I just fell for the title of this book, The Scarlet Pimpernel just sounds like fun:- As it happens, the story lives up to expectations. Set in the eighteenth century, the mysterious Scarlet Pimpernel is a notoriously secretive Englishman, who rescues French royals from the guillotine.

The story is told from the point of view of Marguerite, a French woman married to an English aristocrat, Percy Blakeney. Her marriage is unhappy, because her husband is ignoring her after having d I have to admit, I just fell for the title of this book, The Scarlet Pimpernel just sounds like fun:- As it happens, the story lives up to expectations.

Her marriage is unhappy, because her husband is ignoring her after having discovered a mistake she made in her youth. Yet when an old enemy, Chauvelin, tries to blackmail her, she has no choice but to seek help. One way or another, she becomes wrapped up in the clever mystery that surrounds the actions of the Scarlet Pimpernel and his league of cohorts. This is a fun read, surprisingly humorous at times and quite clever.

I would recommend it to fans of historical adventure novels, or writers like Dumas. It is an engaging romp through a notably dark time in Europe's history, and done in a manner that does not diminish the sad truth of the situation, but neither does it get bogged down in depressing details. View all 12 comments. Jun 28, A. Since I love Robin Hood, this story about an English outlaw in disguise was right up my alley.

Feb 11, Rachelle rated it really liked it. I loved this book. It is so much better than the movie. I love the movie too The only reason I didn't go for a 5 is that I am a sentimental fool and I wanted to see more of the reconciliation of Percy and Marguerite.

It ended so quickly. There was so much build up as Marguerite realizes her errors - and her love There were some good thoughts that I really related to People that we dislike It is also interesting to me the way that her heart guided her from the beginning to select Percy She should have trusted her heart all along and known that she would not have chosen an individual that was not admirable and courageous.

Lastly pride is a good theme. Nearly ruined them. I haven't mentioned the political setting of the story. Besides, of course, the enourmous tradegy, it is an interesting study of human nature. It reminded me of the women's movement.

Of course a good thing Brogard, a free citizen, behaves rudely to other characters in the novel View all 7 comments. Jul 11, Allison Tebo rated it liked it Shelves: french-revolution.

Whew, I flew through this one - I was definitely pulled in from page one. What I Liked: Ah - I do love the old style of writing. After slogging through some modern writers recently, opening this book was like slipping into warm and soothing water.

Can we just talk about the POV? It seems that only old writers can do the removed POV and still have some much incredible emotional impact. The emotional impact was palpable; I was almost choking a couple of times with the realness of Marguerite's panic Whew, I flew through this one - I was definitely pulled in from page one.

The emotional impact was palpable; I was almost choking a couple of times with the realness of Marguerite's panic. It was so beautifully, gosmackingly, wonderfully done. They just don't write like this anymore.

The style is great, more like poetry than modern writing and the 'language' is wonderful - extra points for using one of my favorite words jackanapes with delightful frequency.

The story; I don't think I have to say much here - pretty much everyone can agree that the league of gentlemen spies, up to their necks with noble causes is fun. Now the characters: Of course, Sir Percy is a great character - there's no contest on that.

I love those sorts of characters that are 'more than they appear. Even physically, she endured quite a lot. And yet, it all seemed quite believable to the time period. I liked that she didn't whip out a sword thank goodness and start acting like one of the guys - her motivations were one of desperation, she wasn't trying to fly in the face of convention just for the sake of being radical.

The villain was also good, I liked the 'smallness' of how he was portrayed - instead of giving us this huge, Dark Lord type villain - I liked how the authoress emphasized how all that evil shrinks the person, reducing them to a horrible little package, a mere shade or shadow of what they once where as they give over more and more of themselves to the devil. What I Didn't Like: The ending, while sly and understated usually something I liked seemed abrupt to me and I was disappointed because I had my heart set on a good old fashioned confrontation and a Zorro-esque sword fight.

I would have just preferred more swashbuckling over all, and less focus on the emotional side of the story - or rather, more action to balance out the emotional side of the story. Emmuska Orczy seems to be the old version of those modern authors that weave unrealistic, romantic relationships that are destined to set readers up for disappointment in real life.

There seemed to be a lot of emphasis on the physical attraction the MCs felt for one another and their subsequent desire to possess one another. The words 'worship' and 'adoration' were used consistently throughout the book by each character. In one scene, Sir Percy actually goes down on his hands and knees to kiss the ground his wife walks on - this scene literally gave me the creeps and even gave me a nightmare afterwards not kidding.

I know this scene raises some strong feelings and controversy - but in my personal opinion - I have never seen the appeal in these effeminate type of demonstrations from men and the infatuation with having a slave instead of a husband.

Now, I have been informed that this kind of worship for another human being is addressed as wrong in later books and I am open to looking for that in future reads - but this is just my summarization of what I have read so far. Summary: Overall, a fun and enjoyable read, and I look forward to joining the League and delving further into the Pimpernel's adventures.

Content: Rather heady romance even if they are married , brief scene of affection between husband and wife, a fair amount of intense romantic contemplation about the MC's husband and of course the infamous scene of Sir Percy going down on his hands and knees to kiss the ground his wife has walked on. View all 38 comments. Dec 02, Sara rated it really liked it Shelves: classics , gutenberg-download , humor , catching-up-classics , romance.

They seek him here, They seek him there, Those Frenchies seek him everywhere. What fun! An old-fashioned rollicking romance, with dashing young cavaliers and twisted misunderstandings between lovers, set against the horrors of the French Reign of Terror. The Scarlet Pimpernel himself is slightly more daring and strong than his followers and clever enough to be an Oscar Wilde character.

I admit to not being surprised by a single turn of the storyline. I suspect that I saw this in movie form back in m They seek him here, They seek him there, Those Frenchies seek him everywhere. I suspect that I saw this in movie form back in my childhood. But that hardly mattered.

I loved the horrible predicaments Marguerite found herself in, the dastardly nature of Chevelin, and the unassailable British character of Sir Percy. Truth is, when we are young girls we dream of a man who is strong, handsome, owns a yacht, and will have eyes for no one but ourselves. Reading this novel made me feel young again. Also, for many years, after I first heard the title of this book in high school, I thought it was called The Scarlet Pumpernickel , which always sounded rather disgusting to me.

Who wants their bread to be the color of blood? Not this girl. This is why I thought it was the Scarlet Pumpernickel!!! My relationship with this book was doomed from childhood. That was kind of how I felt about this book. This story was a book.

Or how, remember now kids, wimmins is just intuitive and mens is just gallant. In general, there is a lot of boring nationalism, sexism, and anti-Semitism in the story.

Also, there was a lot of telling about how freaking smart Marguerite St. Just was, but she fell for traps and mistaken identity bullshit that the road runner never would have fallen for. So, I had to doubt the scale on which we were measuring her intelligence. There was one part, though, that I really loved. I thought it was beautiful. More of that! His denial of all coldness and his evasiveness, even while the coldness was obvious, but his underlying passion and her perception of it, was nicely done.

Nevertheless, it seems like a few good, honest talks the year before could have at least spared everyone, including the loving couple, some strenuous eye-rolling. And two people living together who despise each other: brrrr. The Blakeneys dodged more than one bullet in this story. I wish I could tell you exactly what Percy said that seemed so smart, but I listened to this on audio, so it is all a vague impression to me.

I think that was a good choice because I could tune out for a little while and still be chapters and chapters ahead of the obvious revelations the book was prepping me for.

If I had read this when I was twelve, I think it would have been a favorite, but really, too much Loony Tunes or Agatha Christie, or something, has ruined me. Anyway, it was a lovely audio, though.

View all 33 comments. I read this book for the first time, almost 16 years back. It was part of those Reader's Digest compiled editions, which has three-four famous books across different genres. This book gets all the points imho for being an adventure sort of swashbuckling sans any pirates though story set during the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution. It definitely tickled my uninitiated palate for romances and need for a happy ending with the end justifying the means.

View all 4 comments. Feb 17, Susan's Reviews rated it it was amazing. Years and years ago, I read the book before I saw the movie. I also read a few of the other books in the Pimpernel series, but I can't remember much about them, alas, or their titles! Trevor Howard captured the foppish Percy to a T.

This is such an excellent story. All that melodrama: perfect for my boundless teenage imagination and Years and years ago, I read the book before I saw the movie. All that melodrama: perfect for my boundless teenage imagination and foolishly romantic heart in those bygone innocent days! Mar 25, Britany rated it really liked it Shelves: books-to-film , , classics , mmd. The Scarlet Pimpernel is a secret force rescuing those imprisoned and sentenced to the guillotine in France.

He rescues those and saves them from death bringing them to the English countryside where they can continue to live a full life. Monsieur Chauvelin is charged with discovering the identity of this French foe and arresting him.

We get an inside perspective of that of Marguerite Blakeney, whose brother is in peril. I quite enjoyed this novel. Suspense was easily crafted and held my attentio The Scarlet Pimpernel is a secret force rescuing those imprisoned and sentenced to the guillotine in France. Suspense was easily crafted and held my attention to the very end of the book, when I had to know who the pimpernel was and if he would manage to get caught by the French authorities and what to become of my dear Marguerite.

Great novel, up until the very end. I have to admit I was disappointed in the ending-- quite anticlimactic in my opinion. They brought the novel full circle and maybe I missed something, but this just left me feeling a teensy bit annoyed. Henry in his excellent review this morning reminded me of this super book I own.

I have a Folio edition and these books are of first-class quality. The "mysterious" illustrations by Lucy Weller all add to the notion of intrigue in this novel.

And finally with an introduction by Hilary Mantel, what could be better. A sentence that comes to mind as I browse through this book: "The Scarlet Pimpernel, mademoiselle, 'he said at last, 'is the name of a humble English wayside flower, but it is also the Henry in his excellent review this morning reminded me of this super book I own. A sentence that comes to mind as I browse through this book: "The Scarlet Pimpernel, mademoiselle, 'he said at last, 'is the name of a humble English wayside flower, but it is also the If you like to read about the French Revolution, as I do, and an author such as this, then this is the book for you.

View all 9 comments. I adore this book. And almost all the characters Andrew really impressed me this re-read. She does not like Marguerite St. Just because she thinks that she caused the demise of the St. Cyr family by denouncing them to the tribunal. Marguerite goes to him when she first learns that Percy is the Pimpernel and is thus in danger of being arrested by Chauvelin.

Marguerite St. She married Percy because she was enamored with his adoration of her, and because he had a fortune, hoping she would someday love him, too. But she discovers her husband's secret identity and we see her husband's heroism through her eyes. Percy Blakeney a. He is ignorant, annoying -- yet one of the richest, most fashionable men in England. He is distant from his wife after learning she was involved in an execution in France.

Percy is of course secretly the Scarlet Pimpernel who raids the barricades of France to save condemned French aristocrats from the guillotine. Armand St. Just - The brother of Marguerite who was beaten after writing a love note to the daughter of an aristocrat.

Chauvelin uses Armand to blackmail Marguerite in an attempt to get to the Pimpernel. He is later endangered after being discovered as a member of the Scarlet Pimpernel's league. Chauvelin - Chauvelin, the novel's chief villain, is a French agent who has English diplomacy rights. An adamant revolutionist who seeks to take down the Scarlet Pimpernel.

He is old friends with Marguerite and wishes to use her influence to accomplish his ends. His 'hard-hearted, vengeful' nature contrasts with the dashing Pimpernel.