2012 TBR Pile Challenge Completed

I completed the 2012 TBR Pile Challenge! I’m so proud of myself, because these are all books that I’ve been meaning to read for a LONG time and I finally got to them! Thanks to Adam at the Roof Beam Reader for hosting the challenge and encouraging me to pick up these long neglected titles. I read 11 books from my original list and one of the alternates, a total of twelve books.

Here is my complete list, including the month I read them and links to all of my reviews.

1) Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell (finished March 2012)

2) The Loved One by Evelyn Waugh (finished April 2012)

3) Raise High The Roof Beam, Carpenters by J.D. Salinger (finished June 2012)

4) Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams (finished July 2012)

5) Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss (finished April 2012)

6) Bleak House by Charles Dickens (finished March 2012)

7) Silver on the Tree by Susan Cooper (finished January 2012)

8) The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood (finished September 2012)

9) Affinity by Sarah Waters (finished September 2012)

10) The Quiet American by Graham Greene

11) The Scarlet Pimpernel by Emmuska Orczy (finished May 2012)

12) Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson (finished February 2012)

ALTERNATES:

1) Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo

2) That Hideous Strength by C.S. Lewis (finished July 2012)

Image form here.

The Scarlet Pimpernel

The Scarlet Pimpernel

by Baroness Emmuska Orczy

★★★☆

The Reign of Terror in France is in full swing and members of the Royalty are getting their domes loped off left and right by the handy-dandy guillotine. With the help of the infamous “Scarlet Pimpernel” many are fleeing the country to the safe shores of England. Unfortunately the Pimpernel, whose identity is a mystery, is being hunted by the French.

Marguerite, a French woman who made it out of the country, is being blackmailed to help with the search for the Pimpernel. Her estranged husband, Sir Percy Blakeney, disapproves of her past actions and she’s left to find a solution on her own.

SPOILERS

I really loved the ending. It wasn’t shocking, but I felt like it was a good twist and wrapped everything up nicely. In a funny way, it reminded me of Batman. The story of a dimwitted playboy who is actually a super hero saving lives. He never tells his love interest who he is, but he manages to save her and others multiple times. It felt like a super hero action movie.

SPOILERS OVER

BOTTOM LINE: It’s fun and entertaining; a great adventure book, but don’t expect too much depth. Read it if you’re in the mood for a bit of swashbuckling.

“A woman’s heart is such a complex problem, the owner thereof is often most incompetent to find the solution of this puzzle.”