"The Perfume Thief" crashed through my reading ennui like . . . like. . . jeez, I'm not sure how to find a metaphor that would fit a novel that sweeps you off your feet, puts your mind in a flurry, tucks you in its pocket and keeps you in that state until the final page. "The Perfume Thief" like nothing you've ever read before.

Let's start with the protagonist. Clementine is a 72-year-old American living in Paris in 1940. She dresses as a man and runs a perfume shop, daily mixing new fragrance for her dear friend Day Shabille, a Black American cabaret singer. Clementine has spent her life life on the con until fleeing to Paris and establishing herself as an honest broker. She's a master of observation with quick feet and a quick mind.

The Nazi occupation is not the time for someone to be dressing as a member of the opposite sex, but Clem has gathered a lot of goodwill in her time in Paris. Another cabaret artist asks Day for help. Zoe's master perfumer father is in the hands of the Nazis. They're estranged and she's terrified that something will clue to Germans off to the fact that she's Jewish. She asks Clem to find her father's diary of perfume recipes which will certainly include her name as the inspiration for one of his most famous perfumes. Their home is now occupied by Nazi Oskar Voss, with whom she'll have to become chummy.

This book is everything you want a novel to be. Great writing, taut plotting, high stakes, and a hero who defies description. Timothy Schaffert has absorbed occupied Paris, it's smells, the streets, the food, the entertainment scene. There are remarkable love stories, and cruelty that will leave you breathless.

Let me thank Netgalley and publisher Doubleday for access to this title in exchange for an honest review. In all honesty, read this book!

Catching the Scent

A book about a perfume made especially for LGBTQIA and a missing recipe book from a famous Jewish perfumer. The book is hidden somewhere in the perfumer's home, which has been taken over by Nazi's. Clementine, a con artist, is attempting to find and steal the book before her friend Day is found out as being the daughter of the perfumer and a Jewish girl.

I read a lot of books on WWII and I really enjoy them. This book not so much. It took me three days to read, it just rambled on and was quite repetitive in the scene's. I did not connect with the characters nor the settings. I did keep reading because I thought it might get better and because I never give up on a book . I never did connect with the book.

Thanks to Timothy Schaffert, Doubleday Books and NetGalley for providing me a copy of the book for an honest review.

Exciting book set in Paris during WWII. I was interested to read more about Paris which seems to be a bit forgotten in most of the novels set in WWII. I enjoyed learning about perfumes. The details were so exquisite I could almost feel that I could smell the scents. and I loved the descriptions of the people. I could see them in my mind!

I enjoyed this perspective on World War II and the lives of LGBTQ+ community residing in occupied Paris. I found myself reading not to find out what happened but to finish the book at points. Some of the story lines dragged on and seemed unfinished all at the same time.

Paris, perfumery, historical-novel, historical-places-events, historical-research, history-and-culture, LGBTQIA, espionage, theft, entertainer, cabarets, captives, occupation*****

Historians and novelists rarely delve into the hardships and persecution of other marginalized people by the Germans at any time in WW2. The are usually given a token mention because their numbers are less dramatic and negative attitudes persist. Little is mentioned about the hypocritical actions of the various officers of the Reich as they occupied the city's cabarets and brothels. Their thievery is well known about some things, but not this particular area. The tale is of an elderly non-conforming perfumer with exceptional talents, even as the author has exceptional talents in describing the personalized scents created. The book is unusual as well as thought provoking and well written.
I requested and received a temporary digital ARC of this book from Doubleday Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

The perfume thief is a historical fiction, lgbtq story that follows our main character Clementine; a 72 year old reformed thief and now perfumier in Nazi occupied Paris. Clem finds herself recruited by a young songstress to do one last job; retrieve her fathers journals that contain both his infamous perfume formulas as well as potential family secrets that threaten to expose not only Zoe St. Angel but others as well. This book is incredibly well written; you can almost smell Clementines perfume concoctions, the references to leather, lillies, musks are lyrically written. I also found the take on Nazi story new and original despite it being in a historical setting. I also enjoyed how well the story flowed and I found myself wanting to keep on reading and find out what she uncovered!
if you enjoyed Moulin Rouge, Spy and espionage stories and/or lgbtq stories check it out

Have you ever read a work that you can almost smell? Schaffert does this in his description of Paris during its Nazi reign. The scents are so descriptive. The perfume thief is a 72 year old queer American woman who provides perfume to a number of cabaret entertainers on a daily basis. She must collaborate with the Nazis, yet finds a way to redeem herself.

Thanks to Net Galley for this free electronic copy in exchange for a unbiased review.

I can definitely see the Moulin Rouge comp. A compelling queer historical fiction novel that feels so unlike anything I've read before.

Just when you think all of the stories about the resistance against the Nazis have been told, along comes Timothy Schaffert's, "The Perfume Thief." Not only does this book shed new light on the queer experience in Paris during WWII, it explores the intricate roles of of perfumes, poisons, scents, invisible ink and even paper. All of this feels new and refreshing. Those seeking page-turning tales of espionage and impossible love will not be disappointed, but they will learn so much along the way. The combination of unexplored topics and powerful, yet whimsical, writing is irresistible.

This book didn't grab me enough to keep reading. I thought it would be a faster, more propulsive read, but it tends more toward the literary end of the spectrum for my tastes. DNF

The Perfume Thief features an unusual and fascinating protagonist, Clementine, a lesbian perfumer and former thief, in WWII Paris. Clementine is trying to keep safe her younger friends, two cabaret singers (one of whom is the reluctant mistress of a Nazi officer) and a gay actor, while struggling with the privations of Paris during the war. Over the course of the novel, we learn a bit about Clementine's history as she attempts to rescue the notebook of a major manufacturer (also the father of cabaret singer Zoe) while appearing to work with the Nazi officer tasked with finding the notebook for the German cause. The first 3/4 of the book moved pretty quickly, but I thought the last 1/4 lagged just a bit. Nonetheless, a very intriguing story with a sympathetic heroine.