The Book of Lost Fragrances

The Book of Lost Fragrances: A novel of suspense

by M. J. Rose

published 2012 by Atria Books

A complicated and intriguing book.
What would I tell my best friend, whom I want to read this book? It's about the magic of perfumery and the life threads that fragrance triggers. It's about the soul's travel through the centuries, and about reincarnation, and about how our daily lives can be envisioned through past experiences.

But enough ethereal vapors -- this is a darn good mystery  suspense novel too. Somehow the threads of author Rose's plot manage to run through ancient Egypt, revolutionary France, and modern-day New York and Paris. Riding on those threads are the lives of Jac (short for Jacinthe) and her Griffin, Marie-Genevieve and her Giles, and Iset and her Thoth. There's murder, and miracles, and modern mayhem. Yet despite the complexity, the author cleverly maintains the clarity of the threads, and the reader's engagement in them, across the centuries.

What's different about this book

It's an engaging suspense story all mashed up with reincarnation and romance. The characters are engaging, the problems compelling, and the solution is an act of unexpected selflessness.

What I'll do now that I've read it

This is a good one, a book to buy and loan and borrow. And to read again! So my high school library readers will soon have this available on their shelves. And my friends may receive copies as well, just for a good read.

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Hidden Witch

A Hidden Witch, Bk 2 of A Modern Witch series
by Debora Geary
published 2011 by Fireweed Publishing

Over the Christmas holidays I got hooked into this series by a reading friend. Yeah, yeah, yeah, witches and magic and who needs it?

But because I love this friend, I gave the first book a try. The plot line was compelling, the approach to magic and the supernatural was fresh and human-centered (i.e. it's all for good, family, and community), and there was a touch of romance, a good amount of surprise and novelty, and a whopping dose of problems solved with loving, supernatural abilities generously mixed with ingenuity and creativeness.

"Creative" may be the best word for the series, and for this second book, Hidden Witch, as well. There is a winning combination of popular characters from the first book and new and engaging figures in the second.

It's fun reading; unrealistic (not just for the magic but for the absence of bad, evil people -- which I love!); and the story line keeps moving. I was afraid, at one point, that the second book would not be as compelling, but again the sense of community and the creativity with which these witches work their magic is indeed magic. A very satisfying read.

What's different about this book:
The approach is fresh, and the story itself is fun. Not what I read during my school term, but great for the in-between breaks. And the authoring craft is at its best here: to conceptualize all this stuff is an entirely different craft, and it's done as well as the writing itself. Great job, Debora.

Evaluation, or what I'll do now:
This is not something I'll use for my school or church libraries (and there's no issue of it being inappropriate for "spiritual" folk -- it's just made-up, like Santa Claus).

But it is the best reading I've had in a while to recommend to friends. Thanks, Mary Frances!

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