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The Scarlet Pimpernel (chronological order) #11
A Child of the Revolution
First published in 1932, A child of the Revolution is (chronologically) the last book in the Scarlet Pimpernel series by Baroness Orczy.
During one return home, Sir Percy tells the story of André Vallon, a young Jacobin, to the Prince of Wales. André, wishing to revenge himself on a despotic seigneur, uses the Jacobins' rise to force the seigneur's daughter to marry him. Once wed, they come to love each other, only to have the old seigneur denounce André in an attempt to free his daughter. Will André be rescued in time? Can the young lovers survive the last heated whirlwind of the Revolution?
During one return home, Sir Percy tells the story of André Vallon, a young Jacobin, to the Prince of Wales. André, wishing to revenge himself on a despotic seigneur, uses the Jacobins' rise to force the seigneur's daughter to marry him. Once wed, they come to love each other, only to have the old seigneur denounce André in an attempt to free his daughter. Will André be rescued in time? Can the young lovers survive the last heated whirlwind of the Revolution?
310 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1932
12 people are currently reading
614 people want to read
About the author
Emmuska Orczy
858 books1,095 followersFull name: Emma ("Emmuska") Magdolna Rozália Mária Jozefa Borbála Orczy de Orczi was a Hungarian-British novelist, best remembered as the author of THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL (1905). Baroness Orczy's sequels to the novel were less successful. She was also an artist, and her works were exhibited at the Royal Academy, London. Her first venture into fiction was with crime stories. Among her most popular characters was The Old Man in the Corner, who was featured in a series of twelve British movies from 1924, starring Rolf Leslie.
Baroness Emmuska Orczy was born in Tarnaörs, Hungary, as the only daughter of Baron Felix Orczy, a noted composer and conductor, and his wife Emma. Her father was a friend of such composers as Wagner, Liszt, and Gounod. Orczy moved with her parents from Budapest to Brussels and then to London, learning to speak English at the age of fifteen. She was educated in convent schools in Brussels and Paris. In London she studied at the West London School of Art. Orczy married in 1894 Montague Barstow, whom she had met while studying at the Heatherby School of Art. Together they started to produce book and magazine illustrations and published an edition of Hungarian folktales.
Orczy's first detective stories appeared in magazines. As a writer she became famous in 1903 with the stage version of the Scarlet Pimpernel.
Baroness Emmuska Orczy was born in Tarnaörs, Hungary, as the only daughter of Baron Felix Orczy, a noted composer and conductor, and his wife Emma. Her father was a friend of such composers as Wagner, Liszt, and Gounod. Orczy moved with her parents from Budapest to Brussels and then to London, learning to speak English at the age of fifteen. She was educated in convent schools in Brussels and Paris. In London she studied at the West London School of Art. Orczy married in 1894 Montague Barstow, whom she had met while studying at the Heatherby School of Art. Together they started to produce book and magazine illustrations and published an edition of Hungarian folktales.
Orczy's first detective stories appeared in magazines. As a writer she became famous in 1903 with the stage version of the Scarlet Pimpernel.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 9, 2022
What a gem!
The narration like in fairy-tales - but the story, especially historical background was far from fairy-tale. Just read:
It was so moving and so thoughtful. One of the best descriptions of French Revolution and the study of revolutions I have ever read. It was so gripping. In my opinion, Emmuska Orczy captured here the core of French Revolution. And although one sympathizes with poor, Mrs. Orczy tried also to be fair showing point of view of aristocrats, that they were mostly products of centuries-old tradition, a part of the currents of history.
It was a big surprise for me. I have read The Scarlet Pimpernel and I liked it but I decided that I am not interested in other books of series. Nonetheless Alisha's review convinced me to try this one.
Perhaps I am biased. I have simply fallen in love from the first page with this book and each next page kept me in this state, to the end. I was very anxious about André, Aurora, Marianne, the Curé. I struggled with them.
It wasn't a story about Scarlet Pimpernel, there was only a small connection to the series. You don't have to read 'The Scarlet Pimpernel' at all to read this one if you don't mind that you will find out here who Scarlet Pimpernel was (this mystery is a core of the plot of 'The Scarlet Pimpernel').
PS I am deeply sad because of all children of all revolutions... This novel can be considered as a tribute to them all.
The narration like in fairy-tales - but the story, especially historical background was far from fairy-tale. Just read:
The worst of the great political storm had not yet touched the outlying villages. The people, of course, were desperately poor, for the year had been one of the hardest the unfortunate country had ever known; a prolonged drought had been followed by terrible hailstorms on the very eve of harvesting; the price of corn was prohibitive, and the winter that ensued was so severe that even forest trees suffered from the frost. Poor? Of course they were poor! There was no such thing as a plump girl to be seen in any village: children were emaciated, their growth stunted, their future health hopelessly impaired. But life had to go on just the same. There was marriage and giving away in marriage; babies were born and old people died; and those that were not old clung to life in spite of the fact that it promised nothing but misery.
It was so moving and so thoughtful. One of the best descriptions of French Revolution and the study of revolutions I have ever read. It was so gripping. In my opinion, Emmuska Orczy captured here the core of French Revolution. And although one sympathizes with poor, Mrs. Orczy tried also to be fair showing point of view of aristocrats, that they were mostly products of centuries-old tradition, a part of the currents of history.
It was a big surprise for me. I have read The Scarlet Pimpernel and I liked it but I decided that I am not interested in other books of series. Nonetheless Alisha's review convinced me to try this one.
Perhaps I am biased. I have simply fallen in love from the first page with this book and each next page kept me in this state, to the end. I was very anxious about André, Aurora, Marianne, the Curé. I struggled with them.
It wasn't a story about Scarlet Pimpernel, there was only a small connection to the series. You don't have to read 'The Scarlet Pimpernel' at all to read this one if you don't mind that you will find out here who Scarlet Pimpernel was (this mystery is a core of the plot of 'The Scarlet Pimpernel').
PS I am deeply sad because of all children of all revolutions... This novel can be considered as a tribute to them all.
May 6, 2016
Wow!
Is it odd that one of the best Pimpernel books basically doesn't have the Pimpernel in it at all?
I'd been feeling like I must be "over" the Pimpernel books because the last few I've tried have wearied me a bit with their high-flown language, cookie-cutter ladies, and a godlike hero who is so unassailable that all suspense is gone... and then there was this!
The story is framed by Sir Percy, who's supposedly telling it, but you never really feel his presence again till right at the end.
Andre is a poor boy whose temper is often getting him in trouble with the higher-ups. After he grows up and the French Revolution begins, he skirts dangerously near to the bloodshed and the rising stars of the new republic, almost being counted as one of them. When he returns home to find his mother's house burned to the ground, and she's dead, he vows vengeance on the aristocrat who's responsible.
This aristocrat, de Marigny, is a pretty heartless guy, but he has a daughter who's really sweet, Aurore. She and Andre shared a "moment" in their childhood, and when he sees her again in adulthood, he moderates his vengeance toward her father, and says only that if she will marry him, she and her father will be kept safe from the bloodthirsty villagers, no matter what. She hates him for this, but pretty much has no choice; also, he is QUITE aggressive about this plan.
And the rest is, you know, a lovely tribute to Stockholm Syndrome... I sound sarcastic, but I really did just eat it up, it was a pretty compelling story of its type! At least Aurore had more gumption than some of the girls in the other Pimpernel books.
Anybody who's cool with the occasional novel about an alpha male, broody but misunderstood, will probably like this.
Is it odd that one of the best Pimpernel books basically doesn't have the Pimpernel in it at all?
I'd been feeling like I must be "over" the Pimpernel books because the last few I've tried have wearied me a bit with their high-flown language, cookie-cutter ladies, and a godlike hero who is so unassailable that all suspense is gone... and then there was this!
The story is framed by Sir Percy, who's supposedly telling it, but you never really feel his presence again till right at the end.
Andre is a poor boy whose temper is often getting him in trouble with the higher-ups. After he grows up and the French Revolution begins, he skirts dangerously near to the bloodshed and the rising stars of the new republic, almost being counted as one of them. When he returns home to find his mother's house burned to the ground, and she's dead, he vows vengeance on the aristocrat who's responsible.
This aristocrat, de Marigny, is a pretty heartless guy, but he has a daughter who's really sweet, Aurore. She and Andre shared a "moment" in their childhood, and when he sees her again in adulthood, he moderates his vengeance toward her father, and says only that if she will marry him, she and her father will be kept safe from the bloodthirsty villagers, no matter what. She hates him for this, but pretty much has no choice; also, he is QUITE aggressive about this plan.
And the rest is, you know, a lovely tribute to Stockholm Syndrome... I sound sarcastic, but I really did just eat it up, it was a pretty compelling story of its type! At least Aurore had more gumption than some of the girls in the other Pimpernel books.
Anybody who's cool with the occasional novel about an alpha male, broody but misunderstood, will probably like this.
April 24, 2020
Andre is a young hothead during the French Revolution who hates the aristocrats in his village. He joins a gang of ruffians to storm the estate of the Duc de Marigny and loot their riches. Because of a law that says an aristocrat can be saved from the guillotine if they marry a revolutionary citizen, Andre forces young Aurore de Marigny into marriage. She is horrified by this, but agrees to the marriage to save her father's life as well as her own.
I had so many problems with the direction of this plot, but I loved the writing style. I was also very disappointed that the Scarlet Pimpernel himself is not in this book at all. He barely gets two sentences in the entire book.
Andre as a character is described in delicious detail. We see his fury against the aristocrats who have everything, while his poor mother slaves away doing odd jobs of washing and sewing to make a few pennies. Andre is constantly described as having this unquenchable rage and hatred of the aristocrats, but especially of the de Marigny family in his village. As a teenager he gets into some minor trouble, and he is publicly punished, receiving a whipping in the town center where the aristocrats come to watch the public spectacle. He is humiliated and his rage increases.
He becomes more devious and depraved. As a teenager, he catches girls in side streets and steals a kiss from them. I think that is meant to sound romantic, but it sounds absolutely nightmarish to me. He is meant to be a lovable rogue, but I hated him so much. I've never been one to like the brooding bad boys, and this guy is the worst.
However, I will say that his character is extremely well-written. He is complex and emotional and a powerful character. The force of his personality dominates the entire book.
There are two early scenes where he meets Aurore de Marigny by chance, and both times he is struck by her beauty, but scowls at her to the point where she is frightened by the murderous look in his eye. Later on after their marriage, they have several tense scenes where they argue, and each time Andre goes out of his way to humiliate and emotionally torment Aurore. He is verbally abusive and threatens her several times.
The scene on the cover is when he offers her a sword to commit suicide, mocking her, knowing that as a good Catholic, she will not commit suicide, but will choose to suffer in an abusive marriage rather than take the easy way out.
The first 75% of the book establishes Andre as a really horrible person. He has a couple of good points. He loves his mother and is loyal to her, but ignores her sensible advice and gets into trouble anyway.
My whole problem with this book is the Stockholm Syndrome romance and the shoddy redemption arc that Andre supposedly goes through. It's never explained why Aurore finally falls in love with the husband who basically kidnapped her and has tormented her, and it's never explained how Andre came to have a change of heart and turn away from his evil deeds. He never exhibits any remorse for forcing her into a marriage she didn't want.
The redemption arc is sloppy at best. I didn't find it believable. Andre's friends tell Aurore a story about how he saved some soldiers lives during the war, and how brave and loyal that was.
Hmmm.... not buying it. Everything we hear about his redemption arc is second-hand. Other people tell Aurore about Andre and how "good" he is. We don't really see any significant change in his actual behavior, other than that he stops actively tormenting Aurore and mostly leaves her alone and is polite to her.
The romance happens way too quickly. One minute Aurore hates him and is horrified by his very presence, then she barely tolerates him because he is polite to her, and then suddenly she is madly in love with him.
Most of the first part of the book is spent establishing Aurore's absolute terror of Andre. These feelings of dread and intense fear are described so vividly, in Aurore's thoughts, her physical reactions, and in her dialogue. Everything about the beginning scenes scream that Aurore is disgusted and terrified by Andre, and that made me, the reader, disgusted and terrified with her. It would take a lot to diminish that level of fear and revulsion. And the story does not lead us into anything like a gradual romantic feeling developing. So disappointing.
If the author is going to establish such strong emotions of hatred in Andre and revulsion in Aurore at the beginning, a hasty romance cobbled together from bits of hearsay from other characters is NOT going to erase those first impressions.
The redemption arc is sloppy. The romance is not believable. I was not happy with this book. I was going to give it 2 stars, but ended up making it 3 stars because the writing style really is powerful.
I had so many problems with the direction of this plot, but I loved the writing style. I was also very disappointed that the Scarlet Pimpernel himself is not in this book at all. He barely gets two sentences in the entire book.
Andre as a character is described in delicious detail. We see his fury against the aristocrats who have everything, while his poor mother slaves away doing odd jobs of washing and sewing to make a few pennies. Andre is constantly described as having this unquenchable rage and hatred of the aristocrats, but especially of the de Marigny family in his village. As a teenager he gets into some minor trouble, and he is publicly punished, receiving a whipping in the town center where the aristocrats come to watch the public spectacle. He is humiliated and his rage increases.
He becomes more devious and depraved. As a teenager, he catches girls in side streets and steals a kiss from them. I think that is meant to sound romantic, but it sounds absolutely nightmarish to me. He is meant to be a lovable rogue, but I hated him so much. I've never been one to like the brooding bad boys, and this guy is the worst.
However, I will say that his character is extremely well-written. He is complex and emotional and a powerful character. The force of his personality dominates the entire book.
There are two early scenes where he meets Aurore de Marigny by chance, and both times he is struck by her beauty, but scowls at her to the point where she is frightened by the murderous look in his eye. Later on after their marriage, they have several tense scenes where they argue, and each time Andre goes out of his way to humiliate and emotionally torment Aurore. He is verbally abusive and threatens her several times.
The scene on the cover is when he offers her a sword to commit suicide, mocking her, knowing that as a good Catholic, she will not commit suicide, but will choose to suffer in an abusive marriage rather than take the easy way out.
The first 75% of the book establishes Andre as a really horrible person. He has a couple of good points. He loves his mother and is loyal to her, but ignores her sensible advice and gets into trouble anyway.
My whole problem with this book is the Stockholm Syndrome romance and the shoddy redemption arc that Andre supposedly goes through. It's never explained why Aurore finally falls in love with the husband who basically kidnapped her and has tormented her, and it's never explained how Andre came to have a change of heart and turn away from his evil deeds. He never exhibits any remorse for forcing her into a marriage she didn't want.
The redemption arc is sloppy at best. I didn't find it believable. Andre's friends tell Aurore a story about how he saved some soldiers lives during the war, and how brave and loyal that was.
Hmmm.... not buying it. Everything we hear about his redemption arc is second-hand. Other people tell Aurore about Andre and how "good" he is. We don't really see any significant change in his actual behavior, other than that he stops actively tormenting Aurore and mostly leaves her alone and is polite to her.
The romance happens way too quickly. One minute Aurore hates him and is horrified by his very presence, then she barely tolerates him because he is polite to her, and then suddenly she is madly in love with him.
Most of the first part of the book is spent establishing Aurore's absolute terror of Andre. These feelings of dread and intense fear are described so vividly, in Aurore's thoughts, her physical reactions, and in her dialogue. Everything about the beginning scenes scream that Aurore is disgusted and terrified by Andre, and that made me, the reader, disgusted and terrified with her. It would take a lot to diminish that level of fear and revulsion. And the story does not lead us into anything like a gradual romantic feeling developing. So disappointing.
If the author is going to establish such strong emotions of hatred in Andre and revulsion in Aurore at the beginning, a hasty romance cobbled together from bits of hearsay from other characters is NOT going to erase those first impressions.
The redemption arc is sloppy. The romance is not believable. I was not happy with this book. I was going to give it 2 stars, but ended up making it 3 stars because the writing style really is powerful.
September 13, 2020
I found the love story between Andre and Aurore to be unbelievable. One minute they hate each other's guts and the next second they love each other so dearly they can't keep their hands off each other.
I did like that the Scarlet Pimpernel was not the main focus of the book.
I did like that the Scarlet Pimpernel was not the main focus of the book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 16, 2023
A very interesting and well-written book. I used a map to follow the locations in the story and checked out some of them on Google Earth. The tale is told by the Scarlet Pimpernel himself and is a spell-binding tale indeed.
July 9, 2025
It is legitimately uncanny how well Orczy can manipulate the emotions of the reader. I became nervous or excited or frantically miserable all in a moment, all my emotions ruled by her whim.*
*cue the violent sobbing
What is more, this book featured my all time favorite plot point in a romance: the forced, initially loveless marriage of necessity.
Don’t ask me why, but there are few things that I love so much as that, and dynamic it generally entails.
I also love ridiculously handsome, bitter, broody, passionate heroes. Oh, Andre….
And a perfectly gorgeous blonde beauty as his languishing lover.
I love, love, LOVED the dynamic between Andre and Aurore. From their toxic, bitter beginnings to their respecting, reserved middles and I loved them. Let’s just say that for the torturous few chapters when It was the kind of tension that made you want to scream and hop around your bedroom squealing…except that this book had kept me up till past midnight and I didn’t want to betray my unhealthily late-night habits to my oblivious (and sleeping) parents.
Andre, desperate for revenge after the death of his mother at Monsignor’s hands and a childhood full of mistreatment from him, storms m’lord’s chateau with the over village peasants. Instead of sending them off to be guillotined, Andre makes an offer to the horrified aristocrat: give him his daughter in marriage, and they will both be spared. He refuses, but Aurore makes the sacrifice to save her father life.
That’s how it starts, with them both professing extreme hatred for each other, him treating her rather brutally and her scorning and fearing him as a monster.
Then they come to respect each other.
And, then comes love. The most passionate, head-over-heals romantic love you ever saw. Delicious.
*cue the violent sobbing
What is more, this book featured my all time favorite plot point in a romance: the forced, initially loveless marriage of necessity.
Don’t ask me why, but there are few things that I love so much as that, and dynamic it generally entails.
I also love ridiculously handsome, bitter, broody, passionate heroes. Oh, Andre….
And a perfectly gorgeous blonde beauty as his languishing lover.
I love, love, LOVED the dynamic between Andre and Aurore. From their toxic, bitter beginnings to their respecting, reserved middles and I loved them. Let’s just say that for the torturous few chapters when It was the kind of tension that made you want to scream and hop around your bedroom squealing…except that this book had kept me up till past midnight and I didn’t want to betray my unhealthily late-night habits to my oblivious (and sleeping) parents.
Andre, desperate for revenge after the death of his mother at Monsignor’s hands and a childhood full of mistreatment from him, storms m’lord’s chateau with the over village peasants. Instead of sending them off to be guillotined, Andre makes an offer to the horrified aristocrat: give him his daughter in marriage, and they will both be spared. He refuses, but Aurore makes the sacrifice to save her father life.
That’s how it starts, with them both professing extreme hatred for each other, him treating her rather brutally and her scorning and fearing him as a monster.
Then they come to respect each other.
And, then comes love. The most passionate, head-over-heals romantic love you ever saw. Delicious.
"My exquisite Aurore!" he whispered in her ear, "you are the most perfect being God ever made. I was a fool not to tell you this before, but I will not die, Dawn of my Soul, before I have taught you how good it is to love, how sweet it is to kiss."
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews