The Scarlet Pimpernel with Vampires, told from the viewpoint of servant girl, Eleanor, who just happens to look enough like Marie Antoinette to be invited to take part in a daring rescue in revolutionary France with the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel. Along the way she faces a crazed vampire, is captured by revolutionaries, and begins to wonder who the real villains are. I confess I never read the original (though I’ve seen several movie and TV versions) but this is intriguing enough.

https://lynns-books.com/2024/05/23/scarlet-by-genevieve-cogman/
3.5 of 5 stars
My FIve Word TL:DR Review : A Promising Start to Series

Scarlet by Genevieve Cogman is another of my backlist books. I loved the idea for this book and was really pleased to have a review copy but, the best laid plans, last year’s reading got derailed and this year I’m trying to tick off as many of those books as possible that got left behind in the fallout.

So, Scarlet. A fantasy with vampires and magic, set during the French Revolution with none other than the Scarlet Pimpernel gracing the pages. It brings to us an easy to like MC and a plot to save Marie Antoinette.

I’m not going to over elaborate on the plot. In a nutshell this series brings to us a housemaid called Eleanor. Eleanor works for a Baroness who also happens to be a vampire (vampires are universally recognised in this alternative world and most of them are nobles although none of them are allowed to hold political or military positions). Anyway, our new leading lady bears a striking resemblance to Marie Antoinette, currently imprisoned and awaiting trial. And, so, a plot is hatched, Eleanor finds herself switching employers and under the guise of a seamstress in the employ of the Blakeneys before being whisked off to France as part of a cunning plan.

Lets take a look at what worked for me.

I loved the writing. This does have something of a build up so you need to be aware of that going into the story. I liked that element to be fair in fact I would probably have been a little annoyed if Eleanor had simply been thrown into the deep end without seeing a little of what she had to go through to get to that point. As it is, there is still very little time to really train Eleanor, Madame Guillotine waits for no one after all. I liked the set up, it plays well into the story and the style and settings very much put me in mind of the original story but with something of a lighter and more airy feel.

Although, on the face of it, this is a Scarlet Pimpernel reimagining the story is very much Eleanor’s. Sir Percy makes appearances and he and his trusty band are very much present but we focus on Eleanor and the scrapes she gets into. (and out of) I liked that element, I didn’t want this to be another Pimpernel story, and this instead brings us a new leading lady who questions things, isn’t totally resourceful but at the same time uses her wits to rescue herself. Which isn’t to say that she doesn’t slump with relief sometimes when she can leave control to others but I liked that she had a little bit of punch.

I loved the adventures that Eleanor got into once she arrived in France. There was plenty going on and she went in and out of trouble frequently, falling into the hands of those she really didn’t want to encounter. The pace really picked up for the grand finale and saw our intrepid band racing against time over and under the streets of Paris.

Put simply, I loved reading a period story based on an already very well known fictional character but with a different spin on things.

I did have a few little niggles but nothing that spoiled the story for me. At first, the vampires felt a little bit weak, or they lacked bite, but, we do eventually see the other side to them and I imagine that this is something that will be developed in the next story. I feel like this element of the story has been underplayed in this first instalment and we’re maybe going to get a good look at the wolf that has been hiding amongst the lambs. The author includes some discussion about the haves and the have nots and I think having Eleanor on board helped in that respect because she clearly brings a different perspective to this band of nobles. I would like to see that element strengthened.

Overall, I had fun with this story, I already have Elusive lined up to read and I’m looking forward to seeing what escapades Eleanor gets up to next.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

Eleanor is a lowly maid, but with a ace up her sleeve that she bears an uncanny resemblance to Marie Antoinette.

Which is the exact still the League - of the Scarlet Pimpernel - require for their current mission

Eleanor must convince everyone she is in fact Marie to save revolutionaries and aristocrats alike...

Oh and the best part.... vampires! And secret plots, and heists... oh my!

Such a fun story and interesting take on the French Revolution.

Will definitely be picking up the next in this series!

I had so much fun reading this. I don't read many vampire themed books (I think Twilight put me off for a long time!), but I'm so glad I took the plunge with this one. It has everything you want in a light, historical fiction with magical influences at play.

The term Sanguinocrat might be my favourite word in the whole book. I also need to mention Cogman's attention to detail that never feels too heavy handed or 'info-dumpy'.

Top read, and I cannot WAIT for the next instalment.

I loved the premise for Scarlet - take the French Revolution and add vampires to it seemed like a recipe for mayhem honestly. I'm not really familiar with The Scarlet Pimpernel besides the name (which I'd heard before) so I don't really know how well the retelling element of this compares to the original, but I was very curious about this anyway.

Eleanor, a maid working in the service of a vampire aristocrat in England, bears a striking resemblance to Marie Antoinette and so is recruited by the mysterious League of the Scarlet Pimpernel to embark on a dangerous journey to France, impersonate the Queen and rescue the royal family from their imprisonment at the hands of the revolutionaries before their encounter with the guillotine.

This felt like a fresh look at a very famous historical event, and I really appreciated the portrayal of aristocrats as vampires. This kind of reminded me of the film El Conde, which had a similar premise with respect to Chilean dictator Pinochet. There were plenty of scenes which allowed for deeper reflections on society, social order, freedom and justice, but also some good humour and tense moments.

I also liked Eleanor as the main character. She is a smart, strong-willed young woman who joins a truly dangerous mission to save a complete stranger - and a royal one at that - just because she feels it would be the right thing to do. She does come across as a bit too naive at times, but I enjoyed the way her character developed by the end even though there were a few times when her choices felt slightly at odds with what we know of her.

That being said, I wasn't wholly in love with this book, even though on paper it had everything I usually love. It felt very slow for the most part, and quite repetitive in certain sections. The fantasy element is also not fully explained or even used for most of the book... I guess I expected the vampires to play a bigger role in this. As this is the first book in a trilogy I do wonder if everything will make sense by the end, since a few times this book really just felt as if it were setting the scene for bigger things to come.

Overall, this was a pleasant and at times funny read with some interesting insights, but I didn't really vibe with it. It felt like a slog to get through the middle section and, by the end, I felt as though I hadn't had enough and yet there was suddenly too much going on. It could be that I just wasn't in the right mood for this though, and I can definitely see other people enjoying this one. I'm not sure if I'll pick up the next book in the series, although I might just to see if I can find what was missing in this one.

I think this just had too much going on, without a strong plot to support what it was aiming for. It's historical fiction, with vampires, a secret society and a plucky heroine who looks like Marie Antionette but it felt really convoluted with characters that often felt like charicatures. It's suitably atmospheric, with some nice descriptions of a France in turmoil, with raids and ransacks of rich houses under the pretence of a revolution. However, adding in the fantastical element just felt a little flat to me. The French revolution is already so full of mayhem and intrigue, that I didn't think the vampire element really added anything beneficial to the plot.

The pacing is also rather slow, with our lead Eleanor not really doing much action wise, spending a lot of the story questioning the society and nobles rather than actually doing anything. And even when she does question why she's suppose to be saving all these rich people, she does it anyway.

Unfortunately not for me.

I didn't love this when i feel like i should've done as this was everything i normally enjoy in a book. It just didn't work for me. It felt a little underdeveloped and like the story needed pushing further. The characters felt a little flat and the motivations were a little unclear. I feel that this could've been good but it just needed to be tweaked more.

3.5 (rounded up)⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you so much to Pan Macmillan and NetGalley for an e-arc of this book.

I really like the premise of this book, but the promise of it felt a bit unfulfilled to me. I think this will be best read when all three books are out as this book was very much setting the scene for the story.

For half the book I was wondering what the point of adding vampires into the story was-but it became clear that this will evolve over the trilogy.

I liked the MC, and thought she was written well. The book was written well, and I do really like the idea-I just want more/more explanation!

Looking forward to the next book to satisfy my queries!

Even though this turned out not to be what I expected I did rather enjoy it!
Eleanor works as a seamstress for a upper class vampire. Feeling rather put out initially at being lent out like an object she soon changes her mind when she discovers she might be able to change the course of the countries fortunes be ause she bears an uncanny resemblance to Marie Antoinette who is stuck in a dungeon in France. Adventures and mild peril ensue, including a rather NOT mild at all peril when she ends up on her own with a very hungry old vampire

If you tell me a book is a retelling of the Scarlet Pimpernel but with vampires…I expect vampires to be a key element of the plot. There were some vampires in the first half of the book but they were just rich people. I was so disappointed
I didn’t buy that Eleanor, who had lived her life in service, would merrily join the cause of the aristocracy (who kept forgetting that poor people were still people)
I did not have a fun time with this book
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

I'm afraid this wasn't for m.e. It was well written and easy to get into, the premise was fun and the characters were decent enough. However, I struggled to engage with ir and despite the interesting ideas just couldn't get on with it. That said I do know several readers in my libraries who I know will love this and have recommended this to.

Creating intrigue from page one, Scarlet is a brilliant start to a new trilogy for Cogman. Adding a fun new spin on a well known period of history, I'm really excited for book 2!

Scarlet has such a fantastic concept at the core of it. It's a blend of the Scarlet Pimpernal, that swashbuckling English nobleman freeing French nobles from the guillotine, with a vampire novel. That period of French history, in the aftermath of the French Revolution, is known as the Terror, a period when blood ran through the streets as the nobility were imprisoned and then the revolutionaries turned on each other in turn. Vampires fit so perfectly into that mix of aristocracy, politics, blood, suspicion and death, that it feels almost good enough to be real.

I really liked the main character, Eleanor. In this game of nobility, she's a commoner, a maid. It's a nice little contrast, and it allows us to see this world through her eyes, those of an outsider in their societies. Without really knowing why, she's plucked from her mistress' household and sent to that of Sir Percy Blakeney where she is trained in how to be a spy. Her training is fun and interesting to watch, as she slowly begins to get her bearings, especially her interactions with Lady Marguerite, Sir Percy's wife, who has her own deceptions.

But it is when Eleanor is taken to France that the drama and the tension really starts to ramp up. Everything before that is mingled with a little tension, as she is prepared for some great, but largely unknown, mission. Once there, it feels like there are threats around every corner. As she is separated from the rest of her group, she has to find her courage and determination to continue, drawing upon unexpected allies and facing terrible dangers.

I love the complexities of this. The vampires are skillfully woven into the historical context, and there's nothing as simple as good or bad sides. There are the vampires, the Committee for Public Safety, the team of the Scarlet Pimpernel and the French royal family, all with their own needs, desires and agendas at play. The clash between these factions drives the drama and creates a scary, tense atmosphere. Eleanor is a main character it's easy to feel a lot of sympathy for, and I found myself really rooting for her throughout.

Scarlet is very exciting and utterly thrilling, and I'm eagerly awaiting the next installment.

Three and a half stars.

Eleanor was a maid servant in the house of Lady Sophie, a vampire, until her mistress gave her to Sir Percy Blakeney and his wife. Little does she know that she bears a striking resemblance to the former Queen of France, Marie-Antionette, and Sir Percy and his League of the Scarlet Pimpernel intend to use that resemblance to rescue the Queen and the Dauphin from prison and the Guillotine.

So its like The Scarlet Pimpernel but for a YA/NA audience, with vampires, and sorcerers.

I can't believe I started reading this nine months ago. I got to about 22% and was just meh. Last night I decided to read to 25% and then DNF - instead I finished the book! Just goes to show that sometimes its not the book its the time that makes you lose interest.

I requested this because I absolutely adored The Scarlet Pimpernel as a teenager, I also loved the film version starring Anthony Andrews and Jane Seymour, but of course treading in the footsteps of your heroes is a dangerous game. Genevieve Cogman does it well, but this is for a YA/NA audience and not for die-hard fans of Sir Percy. Although thinking about it, in the books Sir Percy always appears without warning in some brilliant disguise, its just this time he rarely saves the day ... that is left for Eleanor.

Overall, I liked it but I didn't love it, also acknowledging that I am not the target audience.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

I was a little unsure as to whether this was my sort of thing: vampires and revolutionaries sounded a bit of a stretch. But I loved it! It’s a proper riotous romp around Paris, with a great cast of characters, especially the spirited courageous Eleanor, and more twists and turns than a a tricolour flying in the breeze. Great fun.

Even before I started this, I had high hopes. I haven't read anything else by Cogman, but my favourite "trope" in fantasy is historical events with magic/dragons added in. I was so excited when I spotted this. Vampires? Yes. Reimagining of the Scarlet Pimpernel? Yes. French Revolution? Yes.

YES.

All the yes.

This was so much fun. The beginning was a little slow, comparatively, but the rest of the book's pace was great. It had all my favourite elements in a story: magic, mystery, action and a touch of romance. Fantastic world building and some solid character development.

A fabulously fun, historical romp and vampire-themed retelling of the Scarlet Pimpernel that will captivate and thoroughly entertain you!
This is perfect for historical fiction fans who like me prefer a touch of supernatural fantasy (aka devious Vampires and friendly ghosts) added to the mix.

I loved the heist element and character dynamics and friendship between the infamous Pimpernel League.

4.5 stars

Scarlet is my first experience with Genevieve Cogman’s writing and I have to say I really enjoyed it.

From the synopsis the concept sounds a little busy and yes, at times it does feel a little like it bites off perhaps more than it can chew. You have the French Revolution, you have vampires, you have the Scarlet Pimpernel, you have a ghostly/magic entity, you have espionage and just one of these plots alone would be worthy of its own book. That said, I feel like Scarlet manages it well, this is incredibly easy to read, I managed to start and finish this in under 2 evenings.

Eleanor is our main character, an English maid under the service of a vampire, Lady Sophie in 1793, the time of the French Revolution. While no longer the maid who must blood let, Eleanor is still unhappy and feeling trapped in her position. That is until she catches the eye of the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel, a group with a mission to save the persecuted aristocrats in France, namely Marie Antoinette who, in just so happens, Eleanor bears a startling resemblance.
Eleanor is brought to the home of Sir Percy and with the promise of money assistance in following her embroidery ambitions, is asked to assist in freeing the Queen of France and the Dauphin, both currently imprisoned. The plan is for the League and Eleanor to travel to Paris, Eleanor to be so convincing as the Queen she causes a distraction and for Marie Antoinette to be rescued in the uproar. However, of course, this plan does not go smoothly. With the revolution, angry mobs and vampires in their path, can the League even save themselves, let alone the Queen?

While the inclusion of vampires in this story doesn’t necessary feel like it’s needed, with enough material available without this, it’s still an interesting addition. I enjoyed how Cogman included vampires into history, such as with Charles I and Cromwell and integrated into the French Revolution. While vampires aren’t hated for being, well, blood drinking monsters, here they are detested for being rich and powerful, something against the revolution. As such vampires are also hunted down and executed, straight from the first page. That’s not to say vampires are good characters to sympathise with, despite the prologue, these are still menacing predators, even if they don’t necessary feature as much as you may think. Of course this is the first in a trilogy so going forwards, that could easily change.
Cogman also does a great job at setting the tense, desperate, suffocating atmosphere of the revolution, the split sides and causes/motivations and the subsequent bloodthirst.

The characters making up the league, in particular Charles and Percy, are enjoyable enough, the former’s infatuation being quite charming. However Eleanor, as the protagonist, is very likeable, especially as the book progresses and she becomes more confident and is treated as an equal. She’s cunning, kind, brave and I enjoyed spending time with her and for the adventures to come.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and I’m looking forward to where the story goes in the trilogy in regards to the revolution, threats to England and the vampires.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is a historical fantasy retelling of the Scarlet Pimpernel- with vampires.

This is told from the point of view of an English maid who just happens to look like a very important member of the French aristocracy. She agrees to go to Frnace with the Scarlet Pimpernel and his gang to create a distraction while they stage a jailbreak. But of course things go very wrong!

This references events from the original Scarlet Pimpernel although with the change in point of view - and the vampires - there are of course differences. The vampires are on the edge of everything as a normal (but still dangerous) part of society.

This is the first in an intended series, and I enjoyed it. It is a lot of the men who are supposed to be in charge being kind of useless and our main character having to take the lead to ensure her own survival.

Look forward to more in this series!

Set in the late 18th Century this is a reimagined take on the Scarlet Pimpernel first written by Baroness Orczy. However in this world, though much like our own, there are vampires in the ruling classes of England and France. One such vampire Lady Sophie has an ambitious housemaid in her household called Eleanor. Eleanor is a gifted seamstress and dreams of setting up as a modiste in London, but is worldly wise to know that she will have to work to attain this dream.
Chance and a likeness to Queen Marie Antoinette, intervenes and Eleanor is whisked away by a mysterious Lord and offered the choice of assisting the League to rescue the Queen and her son. Despite her fears for her safety Eleanor agrees and is soon being tutored on how to be a lady, riding and intricacies of court life.
The story moves at at cracking pace but still has time for reflective moments on class, sexuality, opportunities and prejudices. Eleanor is a strong willed and resourceful main character and this brings her through the many trials and tribulations of her time in France.
There are also plenty of plot twists to keep you hooked and I would recommend this book as it is well researched for historical detail (ignoring the vampires :) )
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for access to this ARC, all views are my own.