Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (King Penguin) (Paperback)

One of the things that I found so fascinating about this book was Susskind's in-depth knowledge of the olfactory senses; the way people, places and objects have certain kinds of odours which can be stored in the memory and recalled at a later date. His descriptions were so well written and convincing that I could almost smell them. Susskind's style of writing and use of language, brings to life the decadence and stench which must of existed in 18th century Paris, giving the reader and insight into the realities of the era.

I cannot say that this novel is unputdownable as I had to put it down many times in order to absorb much of what I had read, and also to bring me back up for some fresh air. This would have to be one of the most bizarre books that I have ever read but I am so glad that I did read it because it now belongs to my collection of favourites. The sheer brilliance of Perfume places it in a genre of its own.

In many ways it is unique – the life story of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, the unloved, abandoned street urchin born in a putrid gutter in eighteenth-century Paris moments before his mother died. What makes Grenouille different to all the other orphans though is the fact that he has no odour, no smell at all; and he has the most remarkable nose that can not only pick out a scent from miles away but can also unravel its strands until every element has been teased out. As Grenouille ambles through his life from friendless child to a tanner’s labourer, and then onto the position of apprentice to Baldini, a washed-out, cheating perfumer, it becomes clear that Grenouille has not only the ability to pluck scents from the air but also to create the most wondrous perfumes the world has ever known.

Grenouille doesn’t want to just produce magical scents that will take Europe by storm and give him unimaginable wealth though. He wants to create something else, something just for himself, and he will stop at nothing to achieve this. So, his journey takes him out of Paris and finally to Grasse in southern France where the true abomination of this creature truly comes to light.

Perfume is in many ways an epic novel and whilst it wanes a little in the middle, the plot glides with a steady pace across France, over many years and a sizeable cast of fascinating and colourfully drawn caricatures. Suskind succeeds in the seemingly impossible. He writes (and is translated) with such skill that the scents waft off the page right in front of you, whether in the steaming, putrid streets of Paris or the pungent flower crops of Grasse.

If anything the only flaw is a climax in Grasse that verges on farcical, and the fact that Suskind draws Grenouille as such a disagreeable protagonist that it is very hard for the reader to have any sympathy for such a vile monster. The real enjoyment of the book, however, comes from the delusional, selfish, naïve, cruel, corrupt and – above all – ignorant – cast of thousands that roam the back streets of the plot. The ultimate comeuppance for some of these renegades that infiltrate Grenouille’s story are truly pantomime and hysterically funny. If anything, these minor characters sparkle more brightly than Grenouille himself and so leave the protagonist looking rather soulless in comparison (maybe the author’s wish, I don’t know). All–in–all though, Perfume whisks you into the vile, crazy world of eighteenth-century France and the mind of a truly heartless murderer. When you turn the last page, the odour is left with you for days to come and that, surely, is the true gift of a masterpiece.