Reviews

The Perfumist of Paris by Alka Joshi

cararenee55's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

senaly's review

5.0

I really enjoyed this book, maybe even more than the previous two. Whilst Radha's petulant little sister "love only me" ways were annoying, the rest of her character development was excellent. I loved how she realised and we saw that her saas actually supported her...that Michel was not her adversary... It was lovely to see it all weave together. I also enjoyed glimpsing the character development of Sheila Sharma, who showed a more caring and compassionate side in The Secret Keeper of Jaipur. As a Singh myself, it was a little amusing that the Singhs were the enemy but those characters had been poison since book one! All in all a gripping and enticing read!

aisha_2's review against another edition

informative lighthearted medium-paced

3.0

thepletts's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

gerikrempa1's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

So good, the continuing story of Radha, sister Lakshmi, and their lives in Paris and in Shimla, India so much learned about scents, perfumes so interesting, as well as female empowerment 

ak_nc's review against another edition

emotional inspiring mysterious sad fast-paced

3.75

emilyjeanne's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

hannahleereads's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

thisgirlelle's review against another edition

3.0

2.5 ⭐️, rounded up. This book was much more of a slog than the first two in the trilogy and it is a very slow start (didn’t start to get interesting for me until about halfway through).

I liked that the plot explored the identities and lives of working women and contrasted with ones who were homemakers, but I found Radha to be just as naive and irritating as when she was 13 in the previous novels, if not more. Many of her problems seem to stem from her inability to communicate and deal with things head on - she only does when she’s openly forced to by other characters or occurrences. And yet, she’s quite hamfisted in dealing with her problems, needing those around her to help manage the nuances. In that sense, she didn’t seem like a capable independent woman at all.

Additionally, some of the connections between characters seemed far too convenient, so it felt a bit forced to tie up loose storylines from the previous two books. Some of those could have definitely remain untied, especially since some minor characters seem to be introduced just to tie their storylines up in a bow.

sbookshill's review

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0