Sir Percy Blakeney presents himself as a dim-witted, foppish playboy, but in fact he is a master of disguise, an imaginative planner, a formidable swordsman and a quick-thinking escape artist who rescues individuals sentenced to death by the guillotine. With each rescue he taunts his enemies by leaving behind a card showing a small flowera scarlet pimpernel. His secret is kept by a band of friends known as the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel. The league operates as an undercover team in enacting Sir Percy's rescue plans. The Complete Scarlet Pimpernel Series contains 15 novels and 20 short stories: The Laughing Cavalier The First Sir Percy The Scarlet Pimpernel Sir Percy Leads the Band The League of the Scarlet Pimpernel Sir Percy Explains A Question of Passports Two Good Patriots The Old Scarecrow A Fine Bit of Work How Jean-Pierre Met the Scarlet Pimpernel Out of the Jaws of Death The Traitor The Cabaret de la Liberté Needs Must A Battle of Wits I Will Repay The Elusive Pimpernel Lord Tony's Wife The Way of the Scarlet Pimpernel Eldorado Mam'zelle Guillotine Sir Percy Hits Back Adventures of the Scarlet Pimpernel Fie, Sir Percy! The Principal Witness The Stranger from Paris Fly-By-Night The Lure of the Old Chateau In the Tiger's Den The Little Doctor The Chief's Way The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel A Child of the Revolution In the Rue Monge Pimpernel and Rosemary The Scarlet Pimpernel Looks at the World

Baroness Emmuska Orczy (1865-1947) was a Hungarian-born British novelist and playwright. She is best known for her series of novels featuring the Scarlet Pimpernel, the alter ego of Sir Percy Blakeney, a wealthy English fop who transforms into a formidable swordsman and a quick-thinking escape artist, establishing the "hero with a secret identity" into popular culture.