They seek him here, they seek him there...

I've decided to try reading the entire Scarlet Pimpernel series of novels by Baroness Emmuska Orczy. I think I first read The Scarlet Pimpernel my freshman year in college Lo, these many years ago. I totally fell in love with it. (I also fell in love with Sir Percy Blakeney, and well, who wouldn't?)

Apparently, I was somehow until very recently unaware of the fact that Orczy wrote over a dozen novels featuring the various members of the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel. She wrote them in no particular order, taking place at different times in the characters' lives. My husband ran into this when reading the Horatio Hornblower series by C.S. Forester. To help with story flow, he read the books in the chronological order of the story rather than in the order in which they were written. I am thinking of doing the same with the Pimpernel series; however, I'm still starting off with a re-read of The Scarlet Pimpernel first.

*** Edited to add: I found what I think may be a better resource for a recommended reading order if you want to read them in the chronological order of the story, so here's the revised listing:

1. The Laughing Cavalier (1913) *prequel
   
2. The First Sir Percy (1920) *prequel
   
3. The Scarlet Pimpernel (1905)
4. Sir Percy Leads the Band (1936)
5. The League of the Scarlet Pimpernel (1919) *short stories
   
6. I Will Repay (1906)
7. The Elusive Pimpernel (1908)
8. Eldorado (1913)
   
9. Mam'zelle Guillotine (1940)
10. Lord Tony's Wife (1917)
11. The Way of the Scarlet Pimpernel (1933)
    
12. Sir Percy Hits Back (1927)
13. Adventures of the Scarlet Pimpernel (1929) *short stories
    
14. The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel (1922)
15. A Child of the Revolution (1932)
16. Pimpernel and Rosemary (1924)

I was also delighted to discover that Project Gutenberg has several of these available for download as free ebooks (great for reading on the sly at work!)