The Perfumist of Paris: A novel from the bestselling author of The Henna Artist (The Jaipur Trilogy Book 3)

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The Perfumist of Paris is set in 1974 with Radha forging a career in the perfume industry. A career she loves and is good at. Despite not having a chemistry degree, Radha is now a lab assistant to Delphine Silberman, a master perfumer at the House of Yves, in Paris, and rising up the ranks much to the chagrin of her husband who would prefer that she would be happy being a “stay at home” wife and mother.

Ultimately, The Jaipur Trilogy is about women finding themselves: finding their agency in this world, finding their power. Although the time period is set many decades ago, I didn’t feel alienated from their issues. In some senses much has changed since the 1970s, but it remains true today that men and women alike struggle with the home-work life balance. It’s possible to “want it all” in the area of love, career and family, but there are limits to each arena. Radha pushes those limits, sometimes to their breaking points. The resolutions she finds are not always perfectly neat and tidy, but they are authentic to the character and the book series.

The decline in values for the newer generation is a big topic of discussion these days. Many people complain that youngsters don't have the discipline and patience to behave appropriately. The author shows us who should be blamed for this behavior. This book takes through the character of Radha in Paris. She lives in Paris with her husband and two children and is trying to build up a career as a perfumer. The allusion to the baby boy that she gave up is always reflected in her activities. She has never said anything about her son to her husband, Pierre. She is somehow able to overcome it through altruism and passion for her new career. Due to a confluence of circumstances Lakshmi takes in her 13-year-old sister Radha, whose teenage behavior gets her into trouble. It was pretty slow starting, not much going on really, just setting up later events. But this time served to show us just how little Radha has managed to mature as she has gotten older. She still bears a significant resemblance to the emotionally scarred and resentful girl she was at 13, and I was a bit disappointed in this. There is growth in her character, but it happens almost exclusively in the last third of the book. Still, I loved the peek into the perfume world and enjoyed reading about scents and how they were made. I loved “traveling” to India through the author’s vivid imagery, although that same imagery didn’t extend as thoroughly into the Paris portion.

Radha's mother-in-law Florence, a difficult opinionated woman, is decidedly cool towards Radha and her Indian culture. Nevertheless Florence loves her grandchildren, and takes care of Asha and Shanti when Radha is at work. A stunning portrait of a woman blossoming into her full power…[and] evoking India and France with equal beauty.” To add to Radha's problems, there's skullduggery afoot at 'The House of Yves', and Radha's possible promotion to master perfumist is imperiled. Paris, 1974. Radha is now living in Paris with her husband, Pierre, and their two daughters. She still grieves for the baby boy she gave up years ago, when she was only a child herself, but she loves being a mother to her daughters, and she’s finally found her passion—the treasure trove of scents.The story is very slow to take off. Nothing of any real significance happens in the first 40% of the book.