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Title: The Scarlet Pimpernel

Author: Baroness Orczy

Narrator: Ralph Cosham

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 19 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-14-07

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 760 votes

Genres: Classics, European Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Some said this man of many disguises, endless ruses, and infinite daring was an exiled French nobleman, returned to wreak vengeance. Others said he was an English lord, seeking sheer adventure and supreme sport in playing the most dangerous game of all. But of only one thing could those who sought him be sure. They knew all too well the symbol of his presence: the blood-red flower known as the Scarlet Pimpernel.

Critic Reviews:

"A swashbuckling adventure tale of epic proportions...an exciting, fast-paced story." (

Large Print Reviews)"Arguably the best adventure story ever published, and certainly the most influential that appeared during the early decades of the 20th century." (Gary Hoppenstand)

Members Reviews:

Good read/good listen

I was a fan of the book long before listening to the audiobook, and I just have to say, wow! This is one of those books where the nationalities of the main characters is critical to keep in mind, and it's hard to do while just reading - the narration really made it pop. Excellently done!

excellent classic and excellent narrator

I really enjoyed this book - had seen the movie but enjoyed hearing all the unabridged details more. Narrator is excellent with french accents - one part at end during chase scene got a little long for me but overall I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Wonderful Story

This is a book I read over and over again. The Scarlet Pimpernel is the perfect romantic hero, as he serves and sacrifices for the many.

Narrator does a great job, though it's not perfectly smooth. But I love his voices and he adds so much to the story.

Not great literature but a great classic

I almost gave this 5 stars -- I really wanted to because it was hugely entertaining for such a quick, light read, but I found Orczy's prose just a little too purple and repetitious at times. She gives great descriptions, and Sir Blakeny's clever disguises and escapes from the French Republicans are great fun to read (if very obvious to the reader), but while this is a worthy classic in the spy/adventure novel genre, it falls short of being a literary masterpiece; Baroness Orczy just is not a Dickens or even a Bronte.

That said, many people - especially if looking for something light to read - may well enjoy Orczy more than one of Dickens's dense multi-layered tomes, or a depressing Bronte novel about dysfunctional Byronic anti-heroes.

The Scarlet Pimpernel is all close calls and daring rescues by the dashing Sir Percy Blakeny, who adopts the persona of a dull-witted playboy but is secretly the Scarlet Pimpernel, leader of a band of English gentlemen who spirit French aristocrats condemned to die by the guillotine out of France. He's kind of like an 18th century superhero, Bruce Wayne in a cravat. His French-born wife, Marguerite, has no idea that her seemingly stupid and inane husband is the heroic figure admired throughout England and despised throughout France. Much of the tension in the novel is marital tension between these two -- Marguerite has done some bad things in the past that she regrets, but she can't explain them to Percy, so he of course doesn't trust her. Never fear, the story has a romantic happy ending.

Again, great fun to read, but Orczy was a bit of a hack as a writer and the story sort of careens from one unlikely escape to another, so don't expect much depth.