The Perfume Thief: A Novel

First let me say that the prose is poetic and very sensual, not sexual, conjuring beautiful images in a beautiful war torn country. Interesting characters were not quite developed, save for Clementine and Voss. The story never really felt complete due to the underdeveloped plot, and I felt like it was primarily a story of the senses and the Resistance part was short on development. It didn't come together for me.

Beautiful, seductive writing that draws you into a terrible time and space in history. Set in Paris during its occupation in the Second World War, the major characters are fascinating misfits that you can’t help but like who are trying to survive as their world slowly crumbles. The villains are drawn with cruelty blended in beneath their masks of civility. You are constantly conjuring scent blends that mark major story points. When you slip into this world, you are beguiled but waiting for the underlaying horror. Timothy Schaffert is a masterful storyteller blending fact and fiction perfectly among the ethers.

My title is a little jokey, but I loved the book. First thing - while it's set in Nazi-occupied Paris, it's not terrifying or wrenching. (Always a trigger point of mine.) The author's writing is so confident and seduction - and the characters and background so unique and bewitching - that you just slide into the book and don't stop. Basically, a search for a particular kind of perfume that could prove deadly - to thousands of people. But in a way, that's the Maltese Falcon to characters living life on the outside - lesbians, gay men, outcasts - and trying to survive. i really loved it.

The book is well written and the subject is interesting. It was a little lengthy at times.

I've long been a fan of Tim Schaffert's work - The Swan Gondola - was excellent. But The Perfume Thief is at once a page-turner, set in glorious Paris, told in a thrilling voice, but it is also beautifully written. Every sentence sparkles. Someone PLEASE make this into a movie, starring Helen Mirren.Treat yourself to this glorious book. Could not put it down.

I'd follow Timothy Schaffert's protagonist, Clementine, anywhere. Brilliant and dazzling, she's the most memorable protagonist I've read in a long, long time. The writing is gorgeous, sensual, sublime -- if you loved A Gentleman in Moscow and Moulin Rouge, you will love this book. Run, don't walk !

recommended

I'm so involved in this beautiful novel that I have to pry it from my fingers and order myself to bed. The language is both sensuous and dangerous. Very worth your time.