Reviews with content warning for Antisemitism - The Scarlet Pimpernel

swashbuckling indeed, with interesting main characters, disguises, humor and a bit of sexual tension that honestly surprised me.

three things detracted from ultimate enjoyment:
1) the sudden antisemitism right near the end
2) the overly obvious stance of promonarchy from the author, to the point of being frankly, an aristocratic kiss-ass
and 3) the fact that Marguerite, while being very witty, was kinda dumb despite being toted as "the cleverest woman in all europe"

Still....will I read the other books? hell yeah

Content Warnings

jessrock's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

The Scarlet Pimpernel is apparently the origin of the "hero with a secret identity" trope. I really enjoyed the story in spite of plenty of weaknesses and issues, including: the relationship between Marguerite and her husband was baffling; the Scarlet Pimpernel in spite of being written as a Robin Hood type of hero isn't stealing from the rich to give to the poor but actually stealing the rich to get them away from the poor (ferrying aristocrats out of France during the Reign of Terror); the author, a baroness, is very wink-wink in the way she writes about classes; and there's a LOT of antisemitism in the latter half of the book.

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evitak's review

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emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I'm not too fond of pro-rich people narratives to be honest, so I approached this with low hopes to begin with. It was something of a pleasant surprise on that aspect I suppose, since it did attempt to empathize with both sides and only directly condemn the extremities, through Marguerite and her brother. The author tends to overuse specific words and phrases to an occasionally noticeable extent. Some parts towards the end have aged quite poorly, even if they may not reflect the author's opinions.

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csifbi23's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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cm93's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Content Warnings

utopiaandmelancholy's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I wish I could have read this book without knowing the twist! There was surprisingly less swashbuckling in this than I expected from popular culture surrounding the story, but what I got instead was a good story told from a female perspective which allowed for the twists and turns to be unfolded, rather than experienced directly. The characters felt very vivid (along with the lovely engravings in this edition) and I liked the story so much I've immersed myself in its myriad adaptations since - all of which I enjoyed - which I hope is a sufficient testament to Orczy's story and writing.

Content Warnings

sarahflies's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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