An acclaimed bestseller and international sensation, Patrick Suskinds classic novel provokes a terrifying examination of what happens when one mans indulgence in his greatest passionhis sense of smellleads to murder.
In the slums of eighteenth-century France, the infant Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is born with one sublime giftan absolute sense of smell. As a boy, he lives to decipher the odors of Paris, and apprentices himself to a prominent perfumer who teaches him the ancient art of mixing precious oils and herbs. But Grenouilles genius is such that he is not satisfied to stop there, and he becomes obsessed with capturing the smells of objects such as brass doorknobs and fresh-cut wood. Then one day he catches a hint of a scent that will drive him on an ever-more-terrifying quest to create the ultimate perfumethe scent of a beautiful young virgin. Told with dazzling narrative brilliance,Perfumeis a hauntingly powerful tale of murder and sensual depravity.
Translated from the German by John E. Woods.
