Scarlet Pimpernel

Emma — Thu, 11 Jan 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Designed to appeal to the book lover, the Macmillan Collector’s Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector’s Library are books to love and treasure.

The French Revolution is in full swing and the aristocracy are being sent to the guillotine in their hundreds. In the shadows, English dandy Sir Peter Blakeney – working under his alter ego, the Scarlet Pimpernel – is breaking the condemned out of prison and leaving his distinctive calling card, a picture of a red flower, to torment the French authorities. A master of disguise, infamous escape artist and flamboyant swordsman, his identity is such a closely guarded secret that even his wife is in the dark. But, with enemy agents on close his tail, his failure to trust her might be his undoing.

The very first hero with a secret identity, the Scarlet Pimpernel is a worthy precursor to Zorro and Batman. His daring antics (and undeniable flair) are just as delightful today as they were a century ago.

Scarlet Pimpernel

Emma — Thu, 01 Oct 1998 00:00:00 +0000

The exotically named Baroness Orczy was the daughter of a Hungarian aristocrat who came to London at the age of fifteen. first published in 1905, her historical novel The Scarlet Pimpernel became almost as famous as the French Revolution itself. It tells of the escapades of Sir Percy Blakeney, whose mission is to help the innocent victims of the Reign of Terror escape the guillotine. Assuming ever more daring and ingenious disguises he suceeds in both outwitting his opponents and in keeping his activities a secret from his English friends. Everyman’s Library Children’s Classics publishes the novel in a new and up-to-date edition to tie in with the BBC production to be screened this Christmas.

Orczy, Baroness – The Bell Bookshop

Scarlet Pimpernel

Scarlet Pimpernel