I'm taking a petite pause from the Paris Mad Libs series to showcase a wonderful new book. Several months ago, a publicist for author M.J. Rose contacted me about reading and reviewing The Book of Lost Fragrances. As a lover of perfumes, the title alone had me hooked, and I readily agreed to highlight the novel on the blog. Below you'll find the publisher's synopsis and my own review of the novel.
SYNOPSIS:
A sweeping and suspenseful tale of secrets, intrigue, and lovers separated by time, all connected through the mystical qualities of a perfume created in the days of Cleopatra--and lost for 2,000 years.
Jac L'Etoile has always been haunted by the past, her memories infused with the exotic scents that she grew up surrounded by as the heir to a storied French perfume company. In order to flee the pain of those remembrances--and of her mother's suicide--she moved to America. Now, fourteen years later she and her brother have inherited the company along with it's financial problems. But when Robbie hints at an earth-shattering discovery in the family archives and then suddenly goes missing--leaving a dead body in his wake--Jac is plunged into a world she thought she'd left behind.
Back in Paris to investigate her brother's disappearance, Jac becomes haunted by the legend the House of L'Etoile has been espousing since 1799. Is there a scent that can unlock the mystery of reincarnation - or is it just another dream infused perfume?
The Book of Lost Fragrances fuses history, passion, and suspense, moving from Cleopatra's Egypt and the terrors of revolutionary France to Tibet's battle with China and the glamour of modern-day Paris. Jac's quest for the ancient perfume someone
A sweeping and suspenseful tale of secrets, intrigue, and lovers separated by time, all connected through the mystical qualities of a perfume created in the days of Cleopatra--and lost for 2,000 years.
Jac L'Etoile has always been haunted by the past, her memories infused with the exotic scents that she grew up surrounded by as the heir to a storied French perfume company. In order to flee the pain of those remembrances--and of her mother's suicide--she moved to America. Now, fourteen years later she and her brother have inherited the company along with it's financial problems. But when Robbie hints at an earth-shattering discovery in the family archives and then suddenly goes missing--leaving a dead body in his wake--Jac is plunged into a world she thought she'd left behind.
Back in Paris to investigate her brother's disappearance, Jac becomes haunted by the legend the House of L'Etoile has been espousing since 1799. Is there a scent that can unlock the mystery of reincarnation - or is it just another dream infused perfume?
The Book of Lost Fragrances fuses history, passion, and suspense, moving from Cleopatra's Egypt and the terrors of revolutionary France to Tibet's battle with China and the glamour of modern-day Paris. Jac's quest for the ancient perfume someone
REVIEW:
I know some people who are super sensitive to perfume, but I've always wanted to be someone who has a signature perfume--just a light scent to remember me by, not anything overwhelming. The problem is I love too many fragrances to be faithful to just one. I own bottles and bottles of perfume not because I'm particularly enamored with the different scents, but because I enjoy the memories the scents trigger. I have a beautiful butterfly shaped bottle from Anna Sui that takes me back to the night of my first kiss, an elegant bottle of Givenchy Amarige that reminds me of winters in New York, and my favorite, Creed Fleurissimo that summons wonderful memories of a trip to London with my mom. M.J. Rose takes this idea of scent triggering memories and weaves a mysterious tale. This premise, more than any other aspect of the novel, is why I enjoyed reading The Book of Lost Fragrances.
Initially frustrated by the novel's multiple, seemly disconnected plot lines and characters, I grew more attached to the story as I progressed through the chapters. M.J. Rose takes her audience to ancient Egypt, 18th century France, present day Paris, China, and back all the while enticing the reader with a combination of romance, danger, and even a bit of politics. By the middle of the novel, M.J. Rose had me completely lured into her complex plot, and I found myself nearly missing my metro stop on the way to work because I was so engrossed in the book. Despite being put off at first by Ms. Rose's different plot lines, I ended up enjoying the diversity of the novel and looked forward to the way each chapter was set in a different time period. In this way, I also learned about the history of perfume and the power of a scent to transport a person mentally through time. M.J. Rose's novel now sits on my night stand as a reminder to spritz myself with perfume and experience Paris's rich perfume history. I might even need to go ahead and create my own personal scent! Paris does have a least a few perfume houses ;-)
I know some people who are super sensitive to perfume, but I've always wanted to be someone who has a signature perfume--just a light scent to remember me by, not anything overwhelming. The problem is I love too many fragrances to be faithful to just one. I own bottles and bottles of perfume not because I'm particularly enamored with the different scents, but because I enjoy the memories the scents trigger. I have a beautiful butterfly shaped bottle from Anna Sui that takes me back to the night of my first kiss, an elegant bottle of Givenchy Amarige that reminds me of winters in New York, and my favorite, Creed Fleurissimo that summons wonderful memories of a trip to London with my mom. M.J. Rose takes this idea of scent triggering memories and weaves a mysterious tale. This premise, more than any other aspect of the novel, is why I enjoyed reading The Book of Lost Fragrances.
Initially frustrated by the novel's multiple, seemly disconnected plot lines and characters, I grew more attached to the story as I progressed through the chapters. M.J. Rose takes her audience to ancient Egypt, 18th century France, present day Paris, China, and back all the while enticing the reader with a combination of romance, danger, and even a bit of politics. By the middle of the novel, M.J. Rose had me completely lured into her complex plot, and I found myself nearly missing my metro stop on the way to work because I was so engrossed in the book. Despite being put off at first by Ms. Rose's different plot lines, I ended up enjoying the diversity of the novel and looked forward to the way each chapter was set in a different time period. In this way, I also learned about the history of perfume and the power of a scent to transport a person mentally through time. M.J. Rose's novel now sits on my night stand as a reminder to spritz myself with perfume and experience Paris's rich perfume history. I might even need to go ahead and create my own personal scent! Paris does have a least a few perfume houses ;-)
See you later this afternoon with another post in the Paris Mad Libs series!
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