The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro.The Perfume Collector: A Novel: Tessaro, Kathleen: Books - Amazon
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For readers of Ottessa Moshfegh this fearless debut chronicles one woman's escape into a world of obsessive imagination. Three wives, one letter, and an explosive secret that will change everything.
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Media Reviews "Nuanced observations soften the blow of the contrived banter, familiar form, and one particularly overindulgent shopping-day passage.
Reader Reviews Write your own review SandraH. She could only taste strong flavours now. There were still a few more details to be arranged. There was the passage, from London to Paris.
The idea of an aeroplane intrigued her. It was extravagant and unnecessary. Jump to Dedication For my son Eddie Always, evermore. Motivated by curiosity and the need to distance herself from a troubled marriage and a pretentious social circle, Grace wants to know more about the mysterious Eva and sets off for Paris. Relying on the help of the handsome French solicitor and an aging Russian aristocrat, Grace's quest to find the answers might shatter the life that When Grace Monroe receives a letter from a Paris solicitor, she is perplexed to learn that a complete stranger has named her a recipient of a sizeable inheritance.
Relying on the help of the handsome French solicitor and an aging Russian aristocrat, Grace's quest to find the answers might shatter the life that she has built for herself. Alternate chapters are set in the late 's and give readers the necessary details about Eva's back story. Since there are so many similar books in the publishing world written by authors like Kate Morton, Pam Jenoff, and Kimberly Freeman, it doesn't take a great amount of detective work to figure out how the two women are connected.
That's why I will go with 3 stars for this one. This is a Lifetime Movie masquerading as a novel. The characters are woefully underdeveloped and the "mystery" paper thin and obvious almost immediately. Eva, who dies young at the age of 43 in in Paris, leaves her entire inheritance a sizable one to year-old Grace. Grace flies from London to Paris to meet with a solicitor regarding the inheritance and tries to figure out who Eva was and why Eva would leave her not only an apartment but also stocks and a few other trinkets.
The book al This is a Lifetime Movie masquerading as a novel. The book alternates between Eva's life, set mostly in the lates with Eva working as a chambermaid in an upscale New York hotel catering to the discreet needs of the rich and sort of famous, and Grace, unhappily married to philandering Roger, in mids London. She also has an odd habit of switching points of view in the middle of a page, so as we're talking about one character, we'll get their immediate reaction to another character, and so on.
This is unsettling, especially because it's not done well. Tessaro's not a particularly skilled writer; her prose is clunky and obvious, with a lot of telling vs. The ending wraps up everything in a neat package, with the mystery solved and Grace view spoiler [leaving her husband for the hot French lawyer; remarkably, there is no discussion of a divorce or splitting of assets, just her saying, "I'm not coming with you.
Perfume is only an aside here, unfortunately. We get bits and pieces about scents and perfume recipes, but it's mostly perfunctory. The description of this book drew me in, but the novel most definitely did not deliver. Paris, London, New York, Monaco This novel takes you across oceans to take you on its journey. Grace Munroe receives a strange, unexpected inheritance from Eva d'Orsey, a woman who lived in Paris, and who Grace has absolutely no memory of.
She decides to fly to Paris to see what the claim is about and frankly to be sure that they have the "right" Grace Munroe. What she discovers is a lost story that will forever impact her life. She discovers flavorful food, perfect scenery, and how powerful a scent can be. Kathleen Tessaro weaves a beautiful tale, masterfully taking the reader back and forth in alternating chapters. While sometimes this tactic can be hard to follow, she executes it seamlessly, and the effect is unforgettable to the story.
I was lingering on at the end of every chapter, desperate to find out how the story would continue on The ending, for me is where I felt I wanted more. I savored every word, and the ending was a little abrupt for my taste. I enjoyed this book immensely and would give it 4. View all 6 comments. Book club read 32 - August I had a lot of mixed feelings during this story. I didn't like the opening chapters, then I fell absolutely in love with the whole idea of it, then it felt predictable but I was happy there was a slight twist on that front, and finally the ending fell a tad flat.
I think it could have been edited down to a shorter version, and all the plot points didn't necessarily have to be so neatly tied up. But I am glad I finally read this after putting it off for Book club read 32 - August But I am glad I finally read this after putting it off for years, and the process of making scents and perfumes was extremely interesting to me. It sounds like I didn't like this book at all, but actually I did!
View all 8 comments. Aug 21, Carol rated it liked it Shelves: womens-fiction , historical-fiction , donate , read Just ok for me.
While I thought the storyline interesting, the connection between Eva and Grace was pretty predictable early on, and the descriptive detail of perfume making was a bit much sometimes.
Despite all the typo's, still not a bad read. View all 11 comments. May 02, Blondish And Bookish rated it it was amazing. What a wonderful book!
I love books with stories within stories, and The Perfume Collector delivers in spades. Newly married socialite Grace has just discovered proof that her husband is having an affair, when she receives a letter informing her that she is the main beneficiary in the will of Eva d'Orsey, and needs to come to Paris to claim her inheritance.
Except, that Grace has never even heard of Eva d'Orsey. Figuring out who this myster What a wonderful book! Figuring out who this mysterious woman is, and why in the world she has left Grace a luxury apartment and a portfolio of stocks is what blends the two stories together.
Grace's marriage appears to be loveless, she doesn't seem to have confidence or know who she is. So I really liked the slow build up of Grace's power. Being in Paris, experiencing new things, the attentions of the Paris attorney, who appears to like everything about her—all of this was a delight to read. I loved the detective work to find out who Eva was. The book alternates chapters between Eva's life, mostly in the late 's and early 's, and Grace in the present present being in this book.
Eva starts as a maid in an expensive and snooty hotel that caters to the rich, the glamorous, the famous and the infamous. She is not supposed to have any interactions with the guests, but she becomes involved with several of them, and this determines the rest of her life. Eva discovers she has a talent for math and for card games, and she is eventually taken in by an alcoholic gambler, who both uses her and saves her.
Other guests who change Eva's life are Madame Zed, a perfumer, and her protege Valmont. Valmont becomes determined to create a perfume suitable for Eva he is obsessed with her smell and in doing so finds that she is gifted with the ability to make iconic and unique scents. He becomes another who both saves and uses Eva.
The themes about the perfumes were fascinating. I feel like I learned about what goes into making a scent, and the different levels and layers and top notes. I loved how there were key perfumes created at different times that became integral parts of the story. I have purchased another of the author's books and enjoyed it as well—I'm now buying everything she has written which is pretty much my highest praise possible for a book!
This is a great book if you like historical fiction, romance, or literary type mysteries! View all 4 comments. Mar 03, Bren fall in love with the sea. Like the creatures from Greek mythology. They're wrong. In fact, there should be a marked absence of perfection in a muse--a gaping hole between what she is and what she might be. The ideal muse is a woman whose rough edges and contradictions drive you to fill in the blanks of her character.
She is the irritant to your creativity. A remarkable possibility, waiting to be formed. I found both stories to be interesting but what I wanted was more about the perfume industry which, based on the book's description, I thought it was going to be about. For a book that is supposed to be about perfume and its muses, we do not get alot of that. I felt it was a bit Noirish in some places which I generally like but not here.
I wanted to be enveloped into the world of perfume. And that did not happen as much as I would have liked. I also found one woman's story way more interesting then the other.
But neither of them really grabbed me if I am being honest. There was also a "twist". No spoiler.. I did. I guessed the twist almost immediately but I kind of felt we were supposed to if that makes sense. On a positive note, I did get drawn into these women's lives and I cared about them. I think that overall this was an interesting read, just very different then I thought it would be. The husband barely had a speaking role in the book. I wanted a confrontation between him and Grace.
I guess I have mixed feelings.. Some may love it, some may hate it, I kinda sorta liked it but not all that much. Three stars seems fair. View 2 comments. Aug 20, Lauren Henderson rated it it was amazing Shelves: historical-fiction , favorites. Actual review: I'm extraordinarily in love with The Perfume Collector. It is so romantically whimsical.
I felt transported to another place and time - and it was about time - I read so many mediocre books in January that I was beginning to forget that feeling of getting lost in books. The world of Paris and perfume is romanticized so perfectly.. I mean Perhaps, it's an invitation.
Maybe we need to literally come to our senses, to return to our sense of taste, touch, sight, smell, hearing and find sustenance in them, inspiration. Life is, after all, a sexual experience. Our senses have the power to truly transport us but also to ground us. Make us human. You could be laughing in public yet wear, right on the surface of your skin, a perfume ripe with longing, dripping with regret, shining with hope, all at the same time.
He dreamt in smells, he heard music in colours. The story of Grace receiving a surprise inheritance from Eva d'Orsey is perfectly woven with the chapters of Eva's past as Grace is trying to figure out who Eva is and why she left her everything. The entire book is a scavenger hunt with the perfect amount of detail. Eva was a brazen, independent woman as you find out through her chapters, and Grace is trying to learn how to be the woman that she feels instead on the social elite that everyone, including her husband, wants her to be.
There are underlying themes of finding your place in life and following your heart that I really connected with. The plot was just so well thought out and developed. I loved every minute of reading this story.
It's full of so much passion, from all the characters involved. I can honestly say that I have never been interested in going to Paris, but this book actually makes me want to go. This book is magic. I will be reading it again soon, and I can't wait for Tessaro's next book. For all of these reasons, I highly recommend that you go read this. Sidenote: There were an unusual amount of technical errors which is why I can't justify a full 5-star rating I don't usually find these type of errors to be too distracting, especially when I'm already enjoying the book so much, but if you are that kind of person This review is also posted on Great Minds Read Alike.
Jun 24, Perrie rated it liked it. Probably potential spoilers below I picked this up at random from Waterstones when I realise I didn't have my Kindle with me and burned through it in a couple of days. A bittersweet tale of love, loss and enduring relationships, it was an enjoyable book if not one of my favourite ever plotlines.
Grace Munroe is a beginner socialite right on the introductory verge of the London mid-fifties upper class society scene when two unrelated revelations in one night send her fleeing to Paris, away from Probably potential spoilers below I picked this up at random from Waterstones when I realise I didn't have my Kindle with me and burned through it in a couple of days.
Grace Munroe is a beginner socialite right on the introductory verge of the London mid-fifties upper class society scene when two unrelated revelations in one night send her fleeing to Paris, away from her husband and home.
A lady, Eva D'Orcey, who she has never met or even heard of, has left her entire fortune to Grace for apparently no reason at all. With her London life apparently in tatters, Grace throws herself into understanding this mysterious benefactor and if there is any connection between them. There are two plotlines here that weave between Eva's s life and Grace's s one with a few 'sideways' steps for further exposition when it's needed.
The two are neatly done and thread together quite well, but it did mean that I guessed the big reveal several chapters before it was announced thanks to some unsubtle hints in Eva's story. It also meant that although we came to understand Grace and Eva fairly well, every other character like Valmont, Madame Zed and Monsieur Tissot felt frustratingly one dimensional. Mallory was only ever the cheerful light relief, and Grace's husband simmered in the background doing selfish upper class things without a care about anyone else.
Grace's father was only ever unhappily locked away with his work, and her mother only ever the perfectionist titled lady. Valmont in particular had fabulous potential as a frustratingly obsessive perfumer with controversial sexual desires, but this was all swept away in favour of his apparent consuming adoration with Eva. It left him feeling more like a puppy dog than a consummate professional, and that was particularly galling for me. I liked both Grace and Eva well enough, but again they were both fell a little flat as characters.
Eva was never anything less than wonderful, and even though the author tried to give her flaws with the development of alcoholism later in her life, it never felt like it really counted against all of her good points; a fabulous natural scent, charming personality, wit, good business sense, empathy with others, a talent as an actress, beauty, financial and gambling savvy, innate perfumery talent and the ability to draw pretty much any man she wanted. Grace was much more of a real character to me with actual tangible flaws, but even she was constantly overshadowed by Eva despite being separated by two or three decades.
I really would have liked more development for all of the characters more than anything else. I did enjoy the book and would probably recommend it on for someone looking for a good summer read, but it could have been so much more. Three stars. May 04, Connie rated it really liked it Shelves: new-authors , , book-club-reads. What a beautifully written story of two women who's lives are intertwined, one who knows how and one who has no idea of the others existence. I may not have chosen this book and I would have missed out.
Ms Tessaro paints a vivid picture of 's England and France I could envision women who dressed to go out, and men who still wore suits. Of a society that overindulged in sinful encounters, drank too much and lived in the moment. In flashback What a beautifully written story of two women who's lives are intertwined, one who knows how and one who has no idea of the others existence.
In flashback we learn about Eva who overcomes her poor beginnings to become a muse and legend in the world of the perfume business. As extraordinary as she is, as is the life she leads, she is never able to have the one thing that would bring her happiness.
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