The Scarlet Pimpernel (Dover Thrift Editions)

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Genre: General and Literary Fiction; Revolution, 1789-1799; France; British; Literature - Classics / Criticism; Nobility; Fiction; Historical - General; Classics; Fiction / Classics; Blakeney, Percy, Sir (Fictitious character); Blakeney, Percy, Sir (Fictitio; History;

Average Review: 4.5 stars

Review: Delightful! : This book is a delightful read. In contrast to the sorrow and heaviness of other books on the French Revolution (including Marie Antoinette The Journey by Antonia Fraser), this book is a very different take on the tragedy. Sir Percy vies with his wife Marguerite, a brilliant French actress, in terms of acting ability. He has mastered the role of a brainless dandy to such an extent that he is the last person anyone would suspect as having the wits and wherewithal to be the Scarlet Pimpernel. Aristocrats are spared the guillotine time after time thanks to this man's ingenuity. Shortly after Marguerite and Sir Percy marry, Marguerite tells Sir Percy of her involvement in the arrest of a certain marquis who had humiliated her brother. Marguerite does not tell her husband the whole story, including that she had no idea her words would be taken out of context and used against the marquis and that she had done everything within her influence to try to prevent the marquis's death at the guillotine. Sir Percy's attitude towards Marguerite changes: he is still the gallant he always was, but a certain coldness and reservation mark his manner. Marguerite had hoped that her husband would not need a full explanation, and that his worshipful devotion towards her would continue unabated. She is hurt by his changed opinion of her and retaliates with pointed sallies at Sir Percy's expense. She is considered one of the cleverest women in all of Europe, and she sharpens her wits by making fun of her husband, whom she wrongfully assumes is too unintelligent to take offense. It is not until Marguerite partially confides in her husband when her brother's life is threatened that Sir Percy learns the truth of Marguerite's (unintentional) involvement in the marquis's death. Sir Percy repents his false impressions of his wife and vows that he will do everything within his ability to save Marguerite's brother. As Marguerite makes her way up the staircase after this intense communication, Sir Percy actually kisses the stairs where Marguerite had just walked! His worshipful attitude towards her is renewed, and Marguerite for her own part recognizes how much she has loved her husband all along. But is it too late for the lovers? Marguerite was forced by circumstance to reveal information about the Scarlet Pimpernel to an unrelenting French commissioner (an obsessive, Javert-like character) before realizing that the same man is her own husband. The rest of the book is a clever game of cat and mouse, replete with a happily-ever-after ending (or rather, a happy-for-the-time-being ending, as there are more books in the Scarlet Pimpernel series). I had seen the movie with Anthony Andrews and Jane Seymour several years ago. Both the book and movie are equally wonderful, though the movie's storyline is a bit different. Anthony Andrews (whom I had a crush on as a young girl after seeing him in a TV miniseries) was beyond perfection in the title role, and of course, Jane Seymour was wonderful as Marguerite.