The Perfume Collector - Hardcover

Tessaro, Kathleen

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1471347184 ISBN 13: 9781471347184

Publisher: Windsor, 2013

Synopsis

A secret history of scent, memory and desire from the Sunday Times bestselling author of ELEGANCE and THE DEBUTANTE.

One letter will turn newly-married Grace Munroe’s life upside down:

‘Our firm is handling the estate of the deceased Mrs Eva D’Orsey and it is our duty to inform you that you are named as the chief beneficiary in her will. We request your presence at our offices at your earliest convenience, so that we may go through the details of your inheritance.’

There is only one problem. Grace has never heard of Eva D’Orsey.

So begins a journey which leads Grace through the streets of Paris and into the seductive world of perfumers and their muses. An abandoned perfume shop on the Left Bank will lead her to unravel the heartbreaking story of her mysterious benefactor, an extraordinary woman who bewitched high society in 1920s New York and Paris.

About this title

Review:

Praise for The Perfume Collector:

‘This evocative novel spins you back a few decades to the grace and elegance of the ‘20s and ‘50s’ GLAMOUR

‘A mesmerising novel of passion and scent’ – WOMAN AND HOME

‘The joy in Tessaro’s books, however, is her knack for describing glamour. She leaves readers greedy for satin and lace, for angular cocktail dresses and complex scents spilling from beautiful bottles. It’s a voluptuous and desirable world to drop into, but her characters have enough depth and moral ambiguity to lift this above most’ EMERALD STREET

Praise for The Debutante:

'It's an elegant and glamorous plot ...which means lots of mouth-watering descriptions of decaying stately homes by the sea'
Daily Mail

‘The latest from the author of bestseller Elegance. New Yorker Cate immerses herself in the mystery of the Mitford-esque 1920’s London debutante’
Red

‘A shoebox filled with mementoes sets artist Cate on a hunt for the truth behind the disappearance of a dazzling 1920’s ‘it’ girl in Kathleen Tessaro’s The Debutante’
Good Housekeeping

‘Tessaro gets her story-weaving wand out with a gloriously rich story of past and present love’
InStyle

‘Reading The Debutante was the most delicious treat. Engrossing, romantic, wise and witty – the perfect read. I could not put it down’
Gillian Greenwood, author of Satisfaction and The Ghost Lover

From the Back Cover:

An inheritance from a mysterious stranger . . .
An abandoned perfume shop on the Left Bank of Paris . . .
And three exquisite perfumes that hold a memory . . . and a secret

London, 1955: Grace Monroe is a fortunate young woman. Despite her sheltered upbringing in Oxford, her recent marriage has thrust her into the heart of London's most refined and ambitious social circles. However, playing the role of the sophisticated socialite her husband would like her to be doesn't come easily to her—and perhaps never will.

Then one evening a letter arrives from France that will change everything. Grace has received an inheritance. There's only one problem: she has never heard of her benefactor, the mysterious Eva d'Orsey.

So begins a journey that takes Grace to Paris in search of Eva. There, in a long-abandoned perfume shop on the Left Bank, she discovers the seductive world of perfumers and their muses, and a surprising, complex love story. Told by invoking the three distinctive perfumes she inspired, Eva d'Orsey's story weaves through the decades, from 1920s New York to Monte Carlo, Paris, and London.

But these three perfumes hold secrets. And as Eva's past and Grace's future intersect, Grace realizes she must choose between the life she thinks she should live and the person she is truly meant to be.

Illuminating the lives and challenging times of two fascinating women, The Perfume Collector weaves a haunting, imaginative, and beautifully written tale filled with passion and possibility, heartbreak and hope.

About this edition

• Publisher: Windsor
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1471347184
• ISBN 13: 9781471347184
• Binding: Hardcover