The Perfume Collector

Summary (from the publisher): London, 1955: Grace Monroe is a young newlywed, eager to make a success of her marriage. However, with her intellectual curiosity and her unladylike talent for advanced mathematics, she finds the routine of elegant luncheons and exclusive parties among post-war London’s social set more tiresome than exciting.

When Grace receives an unexpected inheritance from a woman she’s never met, she finds herself suddenly in Paris, embarking upon a journey to discover not only the identity of her mysterious benefactor but also the hidden secrets of her own past.

In a story that takes us from New York in the 1920s to mid-century Monte Carlo, Paris and London, Grace discovers a world filled with the evocative, intoxicating power of perfume; an obsessive, desperate love between muse and artist; and a trail of dark memories that may mean she isn’t the person she thinks she is at all.

Review: I received an Advance Reader's Copy from HarperCollins.

The Perfume Collector tells the stories of Eva, a young woman growing up in New York City in the 1920s and Grace, a newlywed in London in 1955. Their tales overlap and interweave, as the story jumps back and forth in time and place to reveal how the two are connected, and why Eva left everything she owned, including her French apartment, to Grace when she died. 

I flew through this novel despite its not insignificant length, because the story unfolded at a fast clip and I was anxious to see the conclusion. I loved the theme of perfume and scent that was laced throughout this novel. Several of the main characters are famous perfumers and the ability for scent to recall memories is frequently referenced. For example, "she'd smelled of something familiar, something so natural, so elemental that for ever afterwards and for reasons she could never quite place, Grace would associate the sudden drop in temperature, the darkening of the sky and the low growl of thunder, with peace and comfort. She'd smelled of rain." The characters, particularly Eva after her hotel maid days, and Grace are very sophisticated and I got a clear idea of their appearance and wardrobe. Tessaro's writing thus appealed to me on a aural and visual level, which is rather unusual to convey through the written word. 

From the beginning, Eva and Grace seem so alike, almost twin-like, in appearance, temperament, abilities, I knew that their was a connection larger than a random inheritance. It was intriguing to see how very different two very similar lives played out in different generations. Eva and Grace are both victims of circumstance and society, in their own ways. Yet Eva's inheritance allows Grace independence or "le droit de choisir" - the right to choose. 

One of my only disappointments with this novel is that the two main men in Grace's storyline, her husband and her French lawyer, are largely undeveloped. I felt that they were both largely unexplored figures, with the only thing the reader being told they needed to know was that her husband was bad and French lawyer was good. But the lack of background or development meant that I was startled by Grace's choice in the conclusion of the novel. It was not entirely unexpected, but I think her new found independence warranted a rejection of men entirely, at least for a while.

I quite enjoyed this novel and feel fortunate that I was able to receive an advance copy. Despite Eva's largerly sad life, this book concluded with a sense of possibility and hope for whatever Grace chooses to do next. 

Stars: 4