3.5⭐️. I would first like to thank NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the arc I received of this book in exchange for an honest review! This one is for the chaotic girlies!! Perfume and Pain tells the story of Astrid, a messy, mentally unwell, 30-something lesbian author living in LA. Mix this with a mild drug addiction, intense girl obsession, and lack of self preservation and the result is the story line of this complex, character driven novel. The character of Astrid, although starts off to me quite unlikable, eventually progresses to one I am quite fond of. Her character arc was a treat to read and I enjoyed the general wackiness of this story. If you enjoyed Greta and Valdin or Really Good, Actually you will love Perfume and Pain!! I think for me it fell a bit flat in that I wanted a bit more character background and the end felt a bit rushed. Other than that this was a very enjoyable, quick read!

This book was so different than anything i normally read. It was uncomfortable, messy, and even problematic. The main character was unlikeable but extremely interesting. It keep me hooked.
Extra point for being queer.

Thank you Simon & Schuester Canada and Net Galley for my ARC of this book.

I honestly wasn’t sure what I was getting into when I started this novel. I was excited to read something different than the genre I usually read and boy, was I in for a treat.

Perfume & Pain is at times uncomfortable in a way that makes you pause, think for a while, then go back wanting to devour it. Honestly similar to how Astrid feels on the Patricia Highsmith. Astrid’s relationships with both Ivy and Penelope satisfy both aspects of her personality: the one that’s ruled by addiction and the one that craves the ability to pull away from everything around her and just be.

The use of perfume is also vital to the storytelling. At first it almost felt trivial, a way of explaining her addiction. Then you see how the perfume is a metaphor for her trying to find herself. The scents that Astrid describes can help the reader navigate her emotions.

In the end, this novel captures beautifully how messy life can be. How stressors can pile up and cause us to self harm in ways that we can try to excuse; and that coming down from this can also be beautiful.