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Vintage

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

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INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • Set in eighteenth-century France, the classic novel that provokes a terrifying examination of what happens when one man’s indulgence in his greatest passion—his sense of smell—leads to murder. In the slums of eighteenth-century France, the infant Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is born with one sublime gift—an 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 Grenouille’s 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 perfume”—the scent of a beautiful young virgin. Told with dazzling narrative brilliance, Perfume is a hauntingly powerful tale of murder and sensual depravity. Translated from the German by John E. Woods. Read more

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Vintage


Publication date ‏ : ‎ February 13, 2001


Edition ‏ : ‎ Reprint


Language ‏ : ‎ English


Print length ‏ : ‎ 255 pages


ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0375725849


ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 45


Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds


Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.13 x 0.8 x 8 inches


Best Sellers Rank: #9,709 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #75 in Contemporary Literature & Fiction #120 in Historical Mystery #248 in Classic Literature & Fiction


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Top Amazon Reviews

    • "Perfume" - A Surreal & Chilling Tale Gloriously Told
First and foremost, German author Patrick Suskind's novel, "Perfume: The Story of a Murderer," is a celebration of the written word, and an affirmation of good popular literature. Suskind's beautifully crafted narrative excites the imagination and expands the reader's senses - especially that least appreciated of faculties, the olfactory. John E. Woods should be lauded for bringing the richness and texture of the author's language to his English translation. "Perfume" is much more than a murder mystery or suspense thriller. It is an extraordinary tale that defies genre classification. Jean-Baptiste Grenouille was born in the most squalid, stinking marketplace of 18th-century Paris, perhaps even the most putrid place in all France, on July 17, 1738. And, as the author explains, the stench of 18th-century Paris is one that modern man cannot begin to fathom - manure, moldering wood, rat droppings, human excretions both common and exotic, caustic lyes and sulfur from the tanneries, congealed blood from the slaughterhouses, the great unwashed masses, spoiled and rotting food, etc., etc.. His mother, who suffered from "gout, syphilis and a touch of consumption," was otherwise healthy. She was not concerned when her labor began. She had delivered four other babies beneath her fish booth, all illegitimate, and disposed of all four, along with the bloody refuse of fish and entrails at the end of the market day. Amoral, she had no idea she was doing wrong, nor did she particularly care. Jean-Baptiste was fortunate. He cried lustily at birth, thus calling sufficient attention to himself, that his mother was forced to acknowledge him. The baby boy was allowed to live. Taken in by the church, he was placed in the care of a wet nurse. In the novel's wonderful first paragraph, Suskind introduces John-Baptiste. "In eighteenth-century France there lived a man who was one of the most gifted and abominable personages in an era that knew no lack of gifted and abominable personages. His name was Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, and if his name - in contrast to the names of other gifted abominations, de Sade's, for instance, or Saint-Just's, Fouche's, Bonaparte's, etc. - has been forgotten today, it is not because Grenouille fell short of those more famous blackguards when it came to arrogance, misanthropy, immorality, or, more succinctly, to wickedness, because his gifts and his sole ambition were restricted to a domain that leaves no traces in history: to the fleeting realm of scent." Grenouille had no scent of his own - absolutely no odor. This was a terrible handicap which caused all to shun him from infancy, without understanding why they avoided him. However, in a bizarre attempt to balance this aberration, nature provided Jean-Baptiste with the most acute sense of smell of any human that ever lived. At an early age, he was able to clearly distinguish differences in people with his eyes closed. He knew the different scents of wood, which he had to chop everyday, and even which of a variety of cows provided the milk he drank each morning. He spent his every waking hour identifying, ordering and classifying scent. This extraordinary olfactory gift, and his passion to pursue, capture and distill all scents, were to be the cause of his unforeseeable elevation in society, which rarely recognized one of his lowly class, and also, his ultimate downfall. Mr. Suskind chronicles here Grenouille's life - from his stint at the home of Madame Gaillard, who took in orphans like Jean-Baptiste, to his arduous apprenticeship with the tanner Grimal, his work with the famous perfumer Baldini, where he became a journeyman perfumer, and his wanderings throughout all Paris to learn the city's every smell. He aspired to become the omnipotent god of scent. He knew that the person "who ruled scent also ruled the hearts of men," for "scent was the brother of breath." Then came the day he discovered the single most exquisite scent of all, which he became obsessed to possess for his own. Grenouille had never known love or the slightest affection, not even a tender touch. No one educated him about right and wrong, and he had no inherent ability to distinguish between good and evil. From the earliest age, he did what was necessaey to survive. He was truly a man with no conscience - totally narcissistic. Morality played no part in his life - the pursuit of scent was all that gave him joy. It is to Patrick Suskind's credit that I felt such empathy for this creature. I don't excuse his behavior, but given his background and life, how else could he have been expected to turn out? "Perfume's" various settings are illustrated, and the characters depicted, as Jean-Baptiste would perceive them, through smell. The descriptions are so vivid, and the use of language so bountiful, that I found myself reading passages aloud at times, just to savor the words. The historic detail is meticulous and fascinating, as is the process of perfume making, much of which is described here. This is a compelling tale, that is surreal, almost otherworldly. It is also a chilling portrait of a psychopath with a mission. The conclusion is brilliant, unexpected and riveting. A marvelous read! JANA ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2005 by Jana L.Perskie
    • Well written and creepy!
Good, and really creepy! The story is about a man born with no smell to him, and the amazing ability to smell things from far away and to decipher smells as well. He can tell people apart by their smell, he can smell when their emotions change, he can smell stones and glass and things no human can sense. Periodically he runs into a girl with a fantastic and desirable smell—and he HAS to kill her in order to capture that scent. The crimes themselves weren't more horrible than average (probably less so, compared to most modern crime novels), but the killer himself was REALLY creepy. He was unlikable throughout the whole book, and not only does the reader dislike him, but really no other character in the book likes him at all. Even when he was a baby his wetnurses hated him. The other thing that was really good was all the stuff about perfumes. It was really interesting to learn all about the various ways to extract the scents of different kinds of flowers, trees, or animal products. And the parts about creating new perfumes by combining these scents in various ways was also fascinating. What wasn't great was that the ending was strange and rather unsatisfying. Aside from that, the book was haunting and powerfully written, with a well created murderer that was repellent on every level! ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2017 by Blondish and Bookish
    • Based on my favorite Nirvana song (Scentless Apprentice)
One of my favorite books that I’ve read in the past few years. It’s weird for sure. But this is a book that will stick with you. I bought it because it’s what my favorite Nirvana song (Scentless Apprentice) is based off of. I’d highly recommend it. I can’t think of any book that describes smells so vividly. It’s something you don’t really think about too much, but when this author talks about it it’s fascinating ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2025 by Benjamin Jones
    • The book is alright
Review Image by Karen Karen
Review Image by Karen Karen
Review Image by Karen Karen
Review Image by Karen Karen
Review Image by Karen Karen
Review Image by Karen Karen
Review Image by Karen Karen
The dust jacket came in great conditions although a little scratched from the packing process. The pages are serrated, which might not be for everybody, but I don’t mind it. Under the dust jacket it is just matte black with gold lettering. The inside page has a nice print.
Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2025 by Karen Karen

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