Some of the French aristocrats fleeing the revolution aren't just metaphorical bloodsuckers in Scarlet by Genevieve Cogman (The Untold Story; The Dark Archive; The Invisible Library), but that "demmed" elusive Pimpernel and his league are out to rescue all they can just the same. Nellie Dalton hopes for more than her position as a housemaid to a vampire baroness. She has enough seniority that she's no longer required to bleed into a cup for her mistress, but she hopes one day to be a lady's maid or even an embroiderer in a shop in London. Then the baroness calls her in specifically to serve refreshments for two of her guests, and show them that she bears an uncanny resemblance to someone they all know from France. Soon she is whisked away to Blakeney Manor to learn how to play her role in the most ambitious plan yet from the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel.
Cogman perfectly captures the voice of the original Scarlet Pimpernel in the novel of the same name by Baroness Orczy, and is clearly well-versed in the entire series. Fans will be thrilled to find themselves half a step ahead, with just the right subtle reference cluing them in on a character's identity before it's revealed. Still, there is plenty of adventure for those with no previous knowledge--all of it just melodramatic enough. If the ramifications of the Scarlet Pimpernel being friendly with literal vampires are to be explored more thoroughly in future installments, the result could be an even more perfect paranormal pastiche. --Kristen Allen-Vogel, information services librarian at Dayton Metro Library