The 20th century was one full of history: full of action, beauty, glamour and art, but also full of blood and suffering. Kathleen Tessaro deftly juxtaposes art and bloodshed in her newest novel: The Perfume Collector.
London 1955. New York 1928. Two periods, two stories, two women.
A letter delivered to Grace Munroe in 1955 transports her to Paris and to an inheritance from a woman she has never met. Eva D’Orsey was just a fourteen year-old chambermaid in a New York hotel in 1928 when she discovered her talent in being a “nose,” ie a master perfumer.
Three perfumes tell the story of a lifetime, revealing deadly secrets that threaten to change Grace’s life forever. Two lives will intertwine in the most unexpected of circumstances and pasts will be revealed.
Tessaro shows that the world of fiction can open the doors to wonderful scents in beautiful—if not tragic—times. She teaches you to hone your senses and to go back to the basics…to the savage-like reliance on the senses.
Most novels rely on your sense of imagination to be able to visualize, feel and connect to the story, but rarely does a novel conjure the sense of smell like this literary work. What Tessaro manages to do is tease your olfactory senses by overlapping descriptions in a story woven intricately with the creation of each scent.
So take a stroll in the streets of Paris, delve into the secrets of a perfumery and the intrigue of scent making, and smell the almost-disappearing scent of gunpowder and coal in post-WWII London. This is a journey your nose will not quickly regret.
by Azza El Masri
Azza El Masri is an avid reader and is always looking for new recommendations! If you want her to review a book you fell in love with, or leave a comment on her book bulletin, then you can reach her on: www.tempoplanet.com/category/talking-books
