A review by vadslittlecrow
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick SΓΌskind

adventurous dark funny reflective tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

[ A classic historical fiction about a passionate perfumer with an extraordinary sense of smell, who seeks to create the perfect scene by any means necessary. Even one that includes murder. ] 
 
𝔭𝔩𝔬𝔱 β˜†β€” 
Plot driven. This book offers you the obsession of our mc, Jean, or often called in this book as Grenouille, towards scent, or literally anything that correlates to it that it drives him to murder people that carry the most exquisite scents so that he can produce the absolute perfect perfume. Godly perfume, if you will. One that brings people to their knees, and….some other questionable stuff that made my jaw dropped not only to the floor, but to the earth’s core. CENTER of the earth. This book is fascinating, disturbing, weird, amazing, and disgusting all at the same time. Going into this book blind would be a brave and interesting move because none of what happened in this book could be easily predicted, not even at all.  
 
𝔠π”₯π”žπ”―π”žπ” π”±π”’π”― β˜†β€” 
The way the characters were written is so interesting to me. I can agree that the side characters in this book were so boring and bland because there were absolutely zero depths in them and may have made some parts a little bit boring in this book when Grenouille isn’t there, but the contrast between Grenouille and other characters really highlights not only his role as a main character, but also shows how passionate and in depth his obsession is, that we get to experience each and every moment of his journey. Yes, by everything, I mean everything. TMI does not exist whatsoever in this book. You will see EVERYTHING. 
 
𝔴𝔯𝔦𝔱𝔦𝔫𝔀 β˜†β€” 
The writing is very unique and….peculiar. It is atmospheric and very immersive in my opinion. Very descriptive and vivid that I can almost smell what the author was describing, which was both pleasant and unpleasant. The catshit perfume….??? No<3 While reading this book, I really felt like I was in the book, smelling the premises with our mc and I felt like I was a ghost following him around. Other than that, some things in this book that are most definitely not casual were written and discussed in this book as if they were normal and not at all bizarre. Like I said, nothing in this book is predictable. You can’t even try to imagine, just save yourself the hussle, because you WILL be wrong. Lastly, the combination of beautiful lyrical writing with the horrible abysmal violence made this book one of the most unique books I have ever read. Loved the writing. 
 
𝔰𝔲π”ͺπ”ͺπ”žπ”―π”Ά/𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔠𝔩𝔲𝔰𝔦𝔬𝔫 β˜†β€” 
Definitely one of my favourites. I need to read more classics to be able to say this is one of the best, but as of now, it is one of the best to me. The hype is justified.