Scan barcode
louisekf's review against another edition
3.0
This book bounces back and forth between present-day (well, 2001-2002) and the 1930s, in London and Spain. The two threads intertwine and although I was able to guess the "mystery" that linked them, I still enjoyed the book. I learned a lot about the Spanish Civil War along the way.
dionaea's review against another edition
1.0
I was 200 pages in when I realized that I was hoping that Brown would at least accidentally make a likable character to follow.
lgallo's review
4.0
Firstly, I loved the not-often-done setting of Spain in the 1930s during the Civil War. Secondly, the transitions between past and present were, at first, a bit rough, but they quickly became fluid and the characters different plots were all woven together very tightly by the end of the book. It was hard for me to connect with Emma at the beginning of the story, when she was considering returning to a lover who had betrayed her.
colleenlovestoread's review
4.0
I reviewed this book for www.luxuryreading.com.
When Emma Temple's life seems to hit rock bottom the perfect opportunity to heal and start over presents itself when her mother bequeaths her a rundown villa in Valencia, Spain. Emma sets out to repair the home and her heart and possibly begin a new fragrance company using the local exotic scents, a skill and love she acquired from her mother. But Emma’s grandmother, Freya, and great-uncle, Charles, caution her not to go. Both are hiding secrets connected to their time serving in the Spanish Civil War and are terrified that Emma will uncover the truth of what happened in Valencia almost seventy years before, information that will change everything Emma thought she knew about who she is and where she belongs.
Weaving back and forth between the early 2000s and the late 1930s, The Perfume Garden shows the horror and brutality of a world at war but also the strength and courage of those that will fight for the truth even when everything else has been lost. It also highlights the devastation that can come from secrets and fear and the need for honesty and love to repair the damage life can cause.
Loving stories that mesh together the past and present I was very excited to read The Perfume Garden. The descriptions and story lines centered around the Spanish Civil War were vibrant and compelling. The horror and savagery of war was made even more poignant by humanizing it through Freya and Charles’s perspectives. These scenes are very realistic and hard to read at times but made so touching by the beauty – in butterflies and babies – the characters seem to find through the haze of horror. These portions were beautifully done.
I found Emma’s modern story line to be less interesting. While I understand that Emma remodeling the villa and meeting the people she does helped bring about the secrets Freya and Charles have been keeping for so long, I kept waiting for more from her, especially more dealing with her garden and the business of making perfume. I didn’t really connect with the romantic aspect of her story and the story ended rather strangely to me. I found myself hurrying through the modern story line to try and get back to the 1930s.
While I love history, I knew very little about the Spanish Civil War and The Perfume Garden did an excellent job of bringing that portion of history to life and making me want to read more. Even with the issues I had with Emma’s story line, I still enjoyed the story very much and would be interested in reading more from this author.
When Emma Temple's life seems to hit rock bottom the perfect opportunity to heal and start over presents itself when her mother bequeaths her a rundown villa in Valencia, Spain. Emma sets out to repair the home and her heart and possibly begin a new fragrance company using the local exotic scents, a skill and love she acquired from her mother. But Emma’s grandmother, Freya, and great-uncle, Charles, caution her not to go. Both are hiding secrets connected to their time serving in the Spanish Civil War and are terrified that Emma will uncover the truth of what happened in Valencia almost seventy years before, information that will change everything Emma thought she knew about who she is and where she belongs.
Weaving back and forth between the early 2000s and the late 1930s, The Perfume Garden shows the horror and brutality of a world at war but also the strength and courage of those that will fight for the truth even when everything else has been lost. It also highlights the devastation that can come from secrets and fear and the need for honesty and love to repair the damage life can cause.
Loving stories that mesh together the past and present I was very excited to read The Perfume Garden. The descriptions and story lines centered around the Spanish Civil War were vibrant and compelling. The horror and savagery of war was made even more poignant by humanizing it through Freya and Charles’s perspectives. These scenes are very realistic and hard to read at times but made so touching by the beauty – in butterflies and babies – the characters seem to find through the haze of horror. These portions were beautifully done.
I found Emma’s modern story line to be less interesting. While I understand that Emma remodeling the villa and meeting the people she does helped bring about the secrets Freya and Charles have been keeping for so long, I kept waiting for more from her, especially more dealing with her garden and the business of making perfume. I didn’t really connect with the romantic aspect of her story and the story ended rather strangely to me. I found myself hurrying through the modern story line to try and get back to the 1930s.
While I love history, I knew very little about the Spanish Civil War and The Perfume Garden did an excellent job of bringing that portion of history to life and making me want to read more. Even with the issues I had with Emma’s story line, I still enjoyed the story very much and would be interested in reading more from this author.
eating_or_reading's review against another edition
4.0
I always forget how much I love stories like The Perfume Garden. The back of the book likens it to the novels of Kate Morton and Victoria Hislop and that's the best description I can start with. Family secrets, scandals, mixed messages and misunderstandings and half-forgotten intrigue are all blended together and sprinkled with such warmth and compassion that there are some wonderful poignant moments tucked amongst the mysteries.
The story kicks off strongly and goes straight for the tearducts. I'm an easy target for films and books and am more than happy to shed a tear but I usually save them for when I've had the chance to get to know characters. With The Perfume Garden, I was welling up in the first few chapters. Maybe because the novel starts out with a depiction of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and I can empathise more readily with the pain and suffering experienced by thousands while I was in my late-teens than I can with the tragedies of the 1930s. The sympathy I felt for Emma Temple did also make me more inclined to like her so I didn't have those awkward few chapters where I'm trying to work out if I even like the character I know I'm going to need to be rooting for.
Sympathy vote aside, Emma did turn out to be a character I liked and respected, independent and brave as she was. My heart hurt for her as she dealt with her mother's recent death and I was willing her to make her peace with her past and her family's past. I had a hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach that I get when I'm really invested in a story a lot of the time while I was reading, which made me oddly happy. The characters are a blend of emotionally-scarred, complex and wonderful people and I loved them. Except for the ones that I HATED, in which case I just loved to hate them.
The only real down-side with the characterisation was painting Emma as a world-famous perfumier. Some speeches about the glory of aromas and comments on characters' unique scents aside, I felt that there wasn't quite enough to make me really believe that Emma was as talented and passionate as other characters seemed to feel that she was. The title had me expecting indulgent descriptions of smells and a vision of the world through Emma's nose and it wasn't as strong as I'd hoped.
The story has a very rigid structure, with chapters alternating between 1930s Spain and twenty-first century Spain. Most of the time, I was more than happy to flit between the periods because it meant that I never had long enough to get sick of either. The obvious flip side is that the narrative moves around a lot and when the chapters are shorter, it can feel a bit as though you're being dragged around. Generally, though, I thought that the balance between the darker Civil War story and the relatively lighter modern day one was well held and worked.
I really did enjoy The Perfume Garden but I was rather disappointed in the final few chapters. There was definitely one twist of drama too many in the final pages and I felt that some events were done almost for a last-minute shock for readers. Perhaps intended to have readers closing the pages gaping. I wouldn't go so far as to say that the ending spoilt the book for me because that would be a bit melodramatic but I did feel it completely jarred with the rest of the story and was unnecessary.
Overall: The writing in The Perfume Garden is really very charming and I got that jumpy feeling in my heart while I was gripping the pages and yearning for a happy ending in both eras. Recommended to readers looking for something a little bit bitter-sweet that will give more than a few solid tugs on your heartstrings. A word of caution: I loved the combination of "women's fiction" and historical fiction but fans of the fluffier side of romance/women's fiction or of the grittier side of historical fiction might be put off by the presence of the other. If you're a fan of both, you won't be disappointed.
The story kicks off strongly and goes straight for the tearducts. I'm an easy target for films and books and am more than happy to shed a tear but I usually save them for when I've had the chance to get to know characters. With The Perfume Garden, I was welling up in the first few chapters. Maybe because the novel starts out with a depiction of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and I can empathise more readily with the pain and suffering experienced by thousands while I was in my late-teens than I can with the tragedies of the 1930s. The sympathy I felt for Emma Temple did also make me more inclined to like her so I didn't have those awkward few chapters where I'm trying to work out if I even like the character I know I'm going to need to be rooting for.
Sympathy vote aside, Emma did turn out to be a character I liked and respected, independent and brave as she was. My heart hurt for her as she dealt with her mother's recent death and I was willing her to make her peace with her past and her family's past. I had a hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach that I get when I'm really invested in a story a lot of the time while I was reading, which made me oddly happy. The characters are a blend of emotionally-scarred, complex and wonderful people and I loved them. Except for the ones that I HATED, in which case I just loved to hate them.
The only real down-side with the characterisation was painting Emma as a world-famous perfumier. Some speeches about the glory of aromas and comments on characters' unique scents aside, I felt that there wasn't quite enough to make me really believe that Emma was as talented and passionate as other characters seemed to feel that she was. The title had me expecting indulgent descriptions of smells and a vision of the world through Emma's nose and it wasn't as strong as I'd hoped.
The story has a very rigid structure, with chapters alternating between 1930s Spain and twenty-first century Spain. Most of the time, I was more than happy to flit between the periods because it meant that I never had long enough to get sick of either. The obvious flip side is that the narrative moves around a lot and when the chapters are shorter, it can feel a bit as though you're being dragged around. Generally, though, I thought that the balance between the darker Civil War story and the relatively lighter modern day one was well held and worked.
I really did enjoy The Perfume Garden but I was rather disappointed in the final few chapters. There was definitely one twist of drama too many in the final pages and I felt that some events were done almost for a last-minute shock for readers. Perhaps intended to have readers closing the pages gaping. I wouldn't go so far as to say that the ending spoilt the book for me because that would be a bit melodramatic but I did feel it completely jarred with the rest of the story and was unnecessary.
Overall: The writing in The Perfume Garden is really very charming and I got that jumpy feeling in my heart while I was gripping the pages and yearning for a happy ending in both eras. Recommended to readers looking for something a little bit bitter-sweet that will give more than a few solid tugs on your heartstrings. A word of caution: I loved the combination of "women's fiction" and historical fiction but fans of the fluffier side of romance/women's fiction or of the grittier side of historical fiction might be put off by the presence of the other. If you're a fan of both, you won't be disappointed.