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Patrick Süskind: Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (Vintage International) (2014, Vintage)

Das Parfum, a contemporary novel, which at first sight stands out for the extensive …

Old-fashioned

Set in 18th Century Paris, a man with no scent possesses an incredible sense of smell. If it were written today, it could easily be a super-villain story: scent is the key to power and control here. It avoids those tropes, but gets mired in others that are unfortunately very gendered and tired. Interesting details on perfumery though, and the language can be entertaining in its hyperbole.