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stagasaurus's review against another edition
4.0
Reminds me of: The film "Identity" with John Cusack
"It was probably just a practical joke" moment: nope. Caroline B. C. doesn't do this trope.
"You probably just imagined it" moment: Nope, this neither. I don't think Caroline B. C. writes Point Horror novels, just Caroline B. Cooney novels. Her stamp is unmistakable. I bet I could pick them out blindfolded.
Innocent victims?: Dove was as innocent as a non-integrated Jungian Archetype can be.
How blindingly obvious?: It wasn't a mystery so very. Though I thoroughly enjoyed the bit where you think maybe she's just crazy. It could well be split personality disorder, if anyone was likely to have a shadow, Dove is the girl. And can I say how absolutely timeless and realistic the speed with which she was released due to lack of psychotherapy funds is?
Plot holes / Unfinished plot lines: I have the feeling they forced the authors of these books to put a love interest in. Caroline B.C. always leaves the romantic plot ending ambiguous, which I kind of like. Teenage relationships often are a bit of something and nothing so that feels appropriate.
What happened to Dry Ice? Sounded like a premonition of Superdry. And what happened to Connie?
Inappropriate happy ending: Nah. Appropriate. Just relief. Which is realistic.
This book was completely inappropriate in its representation of the following topics: Miscarriage, Twins, Schizophrenia and Split Personality Disorder. Which is quite an effort in one small book.
"It was probably just a practical joke" moment: nope. Caroline B. C. doesn't do this trope.
"You probably just imagined it" moment: Nope, this neither. I don't think Caroline B. C. writes Point Horror novels, just Caroline B. Cooney novels. Her stamp is unmistakable. I bet I could pick them out blindfolded.
Innocent victims?: Dove was as innocent as a non-integrated Jungian Archetype can be.
Spoiler
Timmy was nicer than any teenage boy I've ever met and Helga was some sort of crazy girl who would be drawn to bulls in china shops.How blindingly obvious?: It wasn't a mystery so very. Though I thoroughly enjoyed the bit where you think maybe she's just crazy. It could well be split personality disorder, if anyone was likely to have a shadow, Dove is the girl. And can I say how absolutely timeless and realistic the speed with which she was released due to lack of psychotherapy funds is?
Plot holes / Unfinished plot lines: I have the feeling they forced the authors of these books to put a love interest in. Caroline B.C. always leaves the romantic plot ending ambiguous, which I kind of like. Teenage relationships often are a bit of something and nothing so that feels appropriate.
What happened to Dry Ice? Sounded like a premonition of Superdry. And what happened to Connie?
Inappropriate happy ending: Nah. Appropriate. Just relief. Which is realistic.
This book was completely inappropriate in its representation of the following topics: Miscarriage, Twins, Schizophrenia and Split Personality Disorder. Which is quite an effort in one small book.
liamunderwood's review against another edition
2.5
Although it didn't have quite the same impact as The Cheerleader or Freeze Tag, I must confess I still rather enjoyed Caroline B. Cooney's writing style in The Perfume. Once again her flowery way of writing (mostly) works for the strange story she's spinning here. And thankfully this is a far more enjoyable read than The Return of the Vampire.
There's some really interesting ideas and themes within this book, especially around the sudden mood changes that can inexplicably grip teenagers. Internal conflict and struggling to live up to self-imposed ideals and the allure of the careless. Parental neglect and attempts to break free of friendship groups. It's all incredibly teen angst, but I think Cooney weaves it well throughout this book. Then there's also a healthy dash of absolute ridiculousness, like hot air balloon rides threatening to turn deadly. It's all told with a somewhat poetic prose which mostly works.
But there's also a few elements that don't work. There's an Ancient Egypt narrative thread running throughout this book which feels undercooked, and the conclusion is very abrupt. I think The Perfume is a book which is perhaps more fun to think about and discuss than it is to actually read. The protagonist, Dove, somewhat lacks much of a personality, and her evil counterpart, Wing, is comically one-note. The touching on mental health also raises an eyebrow, but at least Cooney doesn't shy away from taking the story there, unlike most other Point Horror authors. This is ultimately a really mixed bag, but I can't deny I didn't enjoy it once I adjusted to the writing style and the nonsensical plot.
2.5/5
Point Horror Ranked
1) The Girlfriend - 4/5
2) Trick or Treat - 3.5/5
3) Fatal Secrets - 3.5/5
4) Teacher's Pet - 3.5/5
5) The Baby-Sitter II - 3.5/5
6) The Cheerleader - 3.5/5
7) The Hitchhiker - 3.5/5
8) April Fools - 3.5/5
9) My Secret Admirer - 3.5/5
10) The Lifeguard - 3.5/5
11) Freeze Tag - 3/5
12) Thirteen Tales of Horror - 3/5
13) The Accident - 3/5
14) Funhouse - 3/5
15) The Window - 3/5
16) The Invitation - 2.5/5
17) The Perfume - 2.5/5
18) The Train - 2.5/5
19) The Waitress - 2.5/5
20) The Snowman - 2.5/5
21) Beach House - 2.5/5
22) The Mall - 2.5/5
23) The Boyfriend - 2/5
24) The Fever - 2/5
25) The Cemetery - 2/5
26) Mother's Helper - 2/5
27) The Baby-Sitter - 1.5/5
28) Hit and Run - 1.5/5
29) The Return of the Vampire - 1/5
30) Beach Party - 1/5
There's some really interesting ideas and themes within this book, especially around the sudden mood changes that can inexplicably grip teenagers. Internal conflict and struggling to live up to self-imposed ideals and the allure of the careless. Parental neglect and attempts to break free of friendship groups. It's all incredibly teen angst, but I think Cooney weaves it well throughout this book. Then there's also a healthy dash of absolute ridiculousness, like hot air balloon rides threatening to turn deadly. It's all told with a somewhat poetic prose which mostly works.
But there's also a few elements that don't work. There's an Ancient Egypt narrative thread running throughout this book which feels undercooked, and the conclusion is very abrupt. I think The Perfume is a book which is perhaps more fun to think about and discuss than it is to actually read. The protagonist, Dove, somewhat lacks much of a personality, and her evil counterpart, Wing, is comically one-note. The touching on mental health also raises an eyebrow, but at least Cooney doesn't shy away from taking the story there, unlike most other Point Horror authors. This is ultimately a really mixed bag, but I can't deny I didn't enjoy it once I adjusted to the writing style and the nonsensical plot.
2.5/5
Point Horror Ranked
1) The Girlfriend - 4/5
2) Trick or Treat - 3.5/5
3) Fatal Secrets - 3.5/5
4) Teacher's Pet - 3.5/5
5) The Baby-Sitter II - 3.5/5
6) The Cheerleader - 3.5/5
7) The Hitchhiker - 3.5/5
8) April Fools - 3.5/5
9) My Secret Admirer - 3.5/5
10) The Lifeguard - 3.5/5
11) Freeze Tag - 3/5
12) Thirteen Tales of Horror - 3/5
13) The Accident - 3/5
14) Funhouse - 3/5
15) The Window - 3/5
16) The Invitation - 2.5/5
17) The Perfume - 2.5/5
18) The Train - 2.5/5
19) The Waitress - 2.5/5
20) The Snowman - 2.5/5
21) Beach House - 2.5/5
22) The Mall - 2.5/5
23) The Boyfriend - 2/5
24) The Fever - 2/5
25) The Cemetery - 2/5
26) Mother's Helper - 2/5
27) The Baby-Sitter - 1.5/5
28) Hit and Run - 1.5/5
29) The Return of the Vampire - 1/5
30) Beach Party - 1/5
eliser217's review against another edition
3.0
OH MY GOD, I loved Caroline B. Cooney when I was a kid! She never seemed to talk down to the readers, the people in her books weren't stereotypes or boring depictions of what kids should be like. I remember thinking it was clever that the twins were named Dove and Wing when I was a kid. I don't think this one was my favorite of hers, but it still got a lot of play.
crystal_lake80's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
the_bookubus's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
When Dove tries the new perfume, Venom, she unleashes a second personality.
So, this is a pretty bonkers story and really quite enjoyable. I liked how it stands apart from the typical Point Horror mould. Cooney's writing, as always, is excellent and unique with a coldness to it that I find so intriguing. Unfortunately, it does get somewhat repetitive and the ambiguity left me scratching my head as to what on earth actually happened. Definitely worth reading for moments like this: "The creepy tremor came over her again, but on the inside, like something crawling upside down within her skull."
When Dove tries the new perfume, Venom, she unleashes a second personality.
So, this is a pretty bonkers story and really quite enjoyable. I liked how it stands apart from the typical Point Horror mould. Cooney's writing, as always, is excellent and unique with a coldness to it that I find so intriguing. Unfortunately, it does get somewhat repetitive and the ambiguity left me scratching my head as to what on earth actually happened. Definitely worth reading for moments like this: "The creepy tremor came over her again, but on the inside, like something crawling upside down within her skull."
bookish_bobbin's review
4.0
... bit confusing at points but a terrific idea. Just wish I knew more about how it ended.
dtaylorbooks's review
3.0
THE PERFUME started off as a flowery mess of Dove getting existential about not wanting to go into a particular store in the mall because it was giving her bad juju or something. The book levels out somewhere around the halfway point when Dove kind of starts to lose her mind and then you start questioning whether she really is or not. That’s where it finally gets interesting. Unfortunately that’s pretty close to the end of the book.
For most of the book the actual perfume is kept in the background and the focus is on Dove’s vanished twin coming back to life inside of her. The smell of this Venom perfume triggers Wing, the scorned head twin, to emerge while calmer, soothing smells sends her back into Dove’s abyss brain. The concept is kind of strange and the way the perfume gets into Dove’s hands is just really contrived: a perfume that gets yanked after a matter of days sold in a store that disappears after Dove buys it (when she never wanted to go into that store anyway but she was COMPELLED to buy the stuff) and the insanity ensues. Really I wasn’t thrilled with the beginning.
Once the story settled into itself it got a little psychological and I like that in my horror. You start to question whether Wing is a separate entity or whether Dove really does have a split personality (kind of like Session 9, if you’ve ever seen that movie, came after this book was published, by maybe ten years). That part I really liked because as a reader it really throws me off and it makes me question everything that’s happening but not in an unreliable narrator sort of way. Here even the narrator didn’t know what was happening, what was real and what wasn’t for a time, so it added a level of anxiety to the story that amped up the stakes.
There were references to Egypt that I wasn’t sure were relevant. It was intoned that Wing was possibly some ancient being from Egyptian times and she got her power from the glass pyramid in the mall but whether she was that or really Dove’s vanished twin is never confirmed. The concept is neat but it just seemed kind of messy how it was applied within the story.
Overall it had its creepy moments but I felt it tried to get really artsy at the beginning there and it threw me off for the story. It was a bit overly dramatic without much explanation and it set the tone for the rest of the book and it didn’t really match. I did end up liking the story because of the weird psychological place it went to but the perfume itself was mostly a non-entity in its own story. I’ll chalk that one up to poor titling. Of course the perfume did have it’s use but for a book of the same title it didn’t live up. I still think THE PERFUME was better than a good amount of the old school YA horror books I’ve read because it did delve a little deeper into some mysticism and gave me better characters and a pretty decent story but it had a tendency of getting ahead of itself and it would jar me out of it. It’s okay, though.
3
For most of the book the actual perfume is kept in the background and the focus is on Dove’s vanished twin coming back to life inside of her. The smell of this Venom perfume triggers Wing, the scorned head twin, to emerge while calmer, soothing smells sends her back into Dove’s abyss brain. The concept is kind of strange and the way the perfume gets into Dove’s hands is just really contrived: a perfume that gets yanked after a matter of days sold in a store that disappears after Dove buys it (when she never wanted to go into that store anyway but she was COMPELLED to buy the stuff) and the insanity ensues. Really I wasn’t thrilled with the beginning.
Once the story settled into itself it got a little psychological and I like that in my horror. You start to question whether Wing is a separate entity or whether Dove really does have a split personality (kind of like Session 9, if you’ve ever seen that movie, came after this book was published, by maybe ten years). That part I really liked because as a reader it really throws me off and it makes me question everything that’s happening but not in an unreliable narrator sort of way. Here even the narrator didn’t know what was happening, what was real and what wasn’t for a time, so it added a level of anxiety to the story that amped up the stakes.
There were references to Egypt that I wasn’t sure were relevant. It was intoned that Wing was possibly some ancient being from Egyptian times and she got her power from the glass pyramid in the mall but whether she was that or really Dove’s vanished twin is never confirmed. The concept is neat but it just seemed kind of messy how it was applied within the story.
Overall it had its creepy moments but I felt it tried to get really artsy at the beginning there and it threw me off for the story. It was a bit overly dramatic without much explanation and it set the tone for the rest of the book and it didn’t really match. I did end up liking the story because of the weird psychological place it went to but the perfume itself was mostly a non-entity in its own story. I’ll chalk that one up to poor titling. Of course the perfume did have it’s use but for a book of the same title it didn’t live up. I still think THE PERFUME was better than a good amount of the old school YA horror books I’ve read because it did delve a little deeper into some mysticism and gave me better characters and a pretty decent story but it had a tendency of getting ahead of itself and it would jar me out of it. It’s okay, though.
3
missjackieoh's review
3.0
I don't think this book crossed generations easily. It definitely felt old, and had very little atmosphere. Honestly even the plot felt a bit outdated. Not a bad time though, thankfully very short.