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smcleish's review
2.0
Originally published on my blog here in May 2000.
In this melodramatic romance set during the French Revolution, the factor that has ensured it a measure of survival (the involvement of the Scarlet Pimpernel) is fairly incidental to the plot, as he is basically a supernatural element to bring a successful resolution in an impossible situation. It is the silliest and least realistic of the Scarlet Pimpernel novels, and it is also the one which has dated the most.
The plot is about revenge (hence the title, from Romans 12:19 paraphrasing Deuteronomy - "Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord: I will repay"). Before the revolution, Paul Déroulède was wealthy enough to be accepted by aristocratic society despite his bourgeois origins until he is forced into a dued by the stupid Vicomte de Varny and kills his opponent. The Vicomte's father forces his devout daughter Juliette to make a solemn promise to avenge his death (even though this was honourable by the standards of the time). After the Revolution, Juliette is able to carry out this vow when she discovers that Déroulède is involved in a plot to rescue the imprisoned queen, even though she has herself fallen in love with the man supposed to be her enemy.
The ludicrous plot - almost bad enough for a third rate opera - is accompanied by a romantic style full of phrases which today seem extremely old fashioned. Sentences like "Man-like, he did not understand to the full that great and wonderful enigma which has puzzled the world since primeval times; a woman's heart" are hard to take seriously; they seem more like a deliberate parody of the worst of romantic fiction.
In this melodramatic romance set during the French Revolution, the factor that has ensured it a measure of survival (the involvement of the Scarlet Pimpernel) is fairly incidental to the plot, as he is basically a supernatural element to bring a successful resolution in an impossible situation. It is the silliest and least realistic of the Scarlet Pimpernel novels, and it is also the one which has dated the most.
The plot is about revenge (hence the title, from Romans 12:19 paraphrasing Deuteronomy - "Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord: I will repay"). Before the revolution, Paul Déroulède was wealthy enough to be accepted by aristocratic society despite his bourgeois origins until he is forced into a dued by the stupid Vicomte de Varny and kills his opponent. The Vicomte's father forces his devout daughter Juliette to make a solemn promise to avenge his death (even though this was honourable by the standards of the time). After the Revolution, Juliette is able to carry out this vow when she discovers that Déroulède is involved in a plot to rescue the imprisoned queen, even though she has herself fallen in love with the man supposed to be her enemy.
The ludicrous plot - almost bad enough for a third rate opera - is accompanied by a romantic style full of phrases which today seem extremely old fashioned. Sentences like "Man-like, he did not understand to the full that great and wonderful enigma which has puzzled the world since primeval times; a woman's heart" are hard to take seriously; they seem more like a deliberate parody of the worst of romantic fiction.
hcq's review
3.0
I very much enjoyed [b:The Scarlet Pimpernel|136116|The Scarlet Pimpernel|Emmuska Orczy|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1406764899s/136116.jpg|750426], in various forms; first Leslie Howard’s movie version, then Anthony Andrews’, and eventually I got around to the book.
Sloppily, though, I’d stopped there, and failed to realize that there was a series—Sir Percy had more adventures! Sink me! I realized my error the other day, and I’ve happily embarked on catching up.
This is the next book the Baroness wrote in the series (I’m going by publication order, not chronological), and I’m glad to have read it. It’s not as consistently entertaining as the first, but that’s largely because Sir Percy plays a smaller role. He does bring off a grand finish, though, and I’m always more concerned about how a book ends than how it starts, so that worked out for me.
The main story of Juliette’s need for family vengeance against the man she naturally falls in love with was okay, but unmemorable; the dashing bits with Sir Percy were of course far more fun. I think the parts of this that will stay with me the most, though, were the sad echoes of current American politics. The Baroness seems to understand, far better than I do, the way that otherwise kind, caring, sensible people can turn into…something else.
Sloppily, though, I’d stopped there, and failed to realize that there was a series—Sir Percy had more adventures! Sink me! I realized my error the other day, and I’ve happily embarked on catching up.
This is the next book the Baroness wrote in the series (I’m going by publication order, not chronological), and I’m glad to have read it. It’s not as consistently entertaining as the first, but that’s largely because Sir Percy plays a smaller role. He does bring off a grand finish, though, and I’m always more concerned about how a book ends than how it starts, so that worked out for me.
The main story of Juliette’s need for family vengeance against the man she naturally falls in love with was okay, but unmemorable; the dashing bits with Sir Percy were of course far more fun. I think the parts of this that will stay with me the most, though, were the sad echoes of current American politics. The Baroness seems to understand, far better than I do, the way that otherwise kind, caring, sensible people can turn into…something else.
ejderwood's review
4.0
This one reads a lot more like wish-fulfillment on the author's part, which is very interesting given she's literally created Percy Blakeney, but the endless waxing poetical on the nature of men's adoration for women on pedestals and vice versa got very tiresome after a while. Percy himself was of course perfection in every way for the brief moments he was present.
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