**Blog Tour** Review: The Scent Keeper (by Erica Bauermeister)

My Rating: 4.5 stars

A few months ago, I was invited to participate in the blog tour for this book and after reading the summary, I accepted the invite even though I did have a little bit of hesitation about the story.  The reason for my hesitation was because I had never before read any books or stories that revolved entirely around scents and smells and wondered what kind of a story this would turn out to be.  Also, reading the summary, I got the impression at first that this would lean toward magical realism more than anything else, which is not a genre that I read a whole lot in, so I was a little concerned that I might struggle through this one.  Well, it turns out I need not have worried, as this book was nothing like I imagined it and in the end, I not only devoured this one, I actually fell in love with the story as well as most of its characters. 

This was a fascinating read for me, one in which I enjoyed every minute reading it and quite honestly, didn’t want it to end.  I actually have never read a book quite like this one – unique in its detailed exploration of scent through the character of Emmeline and the talent she possessed, done in a way that was fascinating and engaging, yet also incorporating the familiarity of a story about family, love, relationships (with people as well as with nature), and the realities of ordinary life (whether good, bad, or everything in between).  I love books that teach me things, that make me wonder, reflect, and ponder, that give me food for thought, and most of all, that make me continue to think about the story or its characters long after I finish reading – this book definitely did all that and then some!   To be honest, before reading this book, I never gave much thought to our sense of smell or the types of images that certain scents and fragrances can conjure up – it was another one of those things I took for granted as being a necessary part of life but not tremendously special.  This book changed my perspective in a big way, as it helped me realize how scents can be used to evoke memories (both pleasant and unpleasant), but can also be used to steer human behavior and even manipulate people into acting in certain ways.  Already, it has made me more aware in the sense that when I smell certain scents now, I wonder about the people and the story behind those scents…

If I had to choose the thing I loved most about this book, I would have to say the writing, which was absolutely lyrical and immersive – this was a story gorgeously written and beautifully told and yes, some parts did take my breath away.   It was also an emotional read for me – Emmeline’s journey of self-discovery was heart-wrenching at times but also heartfelt and hopeful.  I know that Emmeline is a character I will remember for a long time to come.

With all that said though, my one complaint – and the main reason why this book was just shy of a 5 star read for me – was the ending, which was way too abrupt and actually left me thinking that perhaps I was missing a few pages somewhere.  After such a beautiful, heartfelt journey – one that I was so immersed and invested in – to have it end the way it did was jarring and more than a little bit disappointing.  Luckily, the rest of the story was strong enough that it didn’t impact how I felt about the book overall but I think if the ending had been done differently, this would have been a perfect read. 

Without a doubt, this is a book that I highly recommend – one that I feel no review can do justice to, as it is a story that must be experienced for yourself.  This was one I’m definitely glad I read, as it grabbed me from the first page and didn’t let go, even after the very last page.  Definitely pick this one up, as it is a story that absolutely deserves to be read!

Received ARC from St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley

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About the Author: 

Erica Bauermeister is the author of the bestselling novel The School of Essential Ingredients, Joy for Beginners, and The Lost Art of Mixing. She is also the co-author of the non-fiction works, 500 Great Books by Women: A Reader’s Guide and Let’s Hear It For the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14. She has a PhD in literature from the University of Washington, and has taught there and at Antioch University. She is a founding member of the Seattle7Writers and currently lives in Port Townsend, Washington.

About the Book:

Erica Bauermeister, the national bestselling author of The School of Essential Ingredients, presents a moving and evocative coming-of-age novel about childhood stories, families lost and found, and how a fragrance conjures memories capable of shaping the course of our lives. 

Emmeline lives an enchanted childhood on a remote island with her father, who teaches her about the natural world through her senses. What he won’t explain are the mysterious scents stored in the drawers that line the walls of their cabin, or the origin of the machine that creates them.  As Emmeline grows, however, so too does her curiosity, until one day the unforeseen happens, and Emmeline is vaulted out into the real world--a place of love, betrayal, ambition, and revenge. To understand her past, Emmeline must unlock the clues to her identity, a quest that challenges the limits of her heart and imagination.

Lyrical and immersive, The Scent Keeper explores the provocative beauty of scent, the way it can reveal hidden truths, lead us to the person we seek, and even help us find our way back home.

Buy Links:

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Review: Wunderland (by Jennifer Cody Epstein)

My Rating: 5 stars

 

It’s been a long time since I’ve felt compelled to stay up late into the night in order to finish a book because I couldn’t bear to put the book down without finding out how it ends.  Things get especially complicated when it is a book that had me emotionally invested in the story and in its characters for practically the entire time I was reading it.  Having said that, I will be one of the first to admit that this book was not an easy one to read for several reasons.  

First, the subject matter — having read many books about World War II and the Holocaust over the years, I knew going into this one to expect a difficult read.  Unlike some of the other books covering this subject however, the direction this one took was a bit different than what we typically see, as the central focus (for the storyline taking place in the 1930s) was on the lead-up to the war, starting in 1933 when Hitler first came to power in Germany, and the resulting environment under which toxic Nazi propaganda was able to fester unabated, leading to the gradual shift in attitude towards the Jewish population – the Nuremburg Laws, the boycott of Jewish businesses, the formation of groups such as the Hitler Youth movement, the horrible atrocity that was Kristallnacht, etc. – it was against this backdrop that the story of a friendship between two young girls played out.  In the later timeline (1949 to 1989), the focus was on the aftermath — the devastating impact of the war, not just for the survivors, but also for those who participated, whether directly or indirectly, in the persecution of an entire race having to finally answer for their actions.  In a sense, the war itself played a mostly periphery role in the story, with its impact on the story’s characters forming the crux of this narrative about friendship, betrayal, and family destroyed.

Second, the way the story was structured was also different from the typical dual timeline narratives we often see.  While this one also jumped back and forth in time, it was technically multiple timelines rather than just two — the narrative opens in 1989, with Ava Fisher, a young single mother living with her daughter Sophie in New York, receiving a box containing her mother Ilse von Fischer’s ashes along with a stack of letters addressed to a woman named Renate Bauer, who is discovered to be Ilse’s childhood friend back in Germany.  From there, we are taken back to 1933 and the start of the narrative taking place in the past — after that, the timeline jumps to 1977 and later back and forth  between each of the years leading up to and during WWII as well as each of the subsequent decades, going backward from the 1970s back to the 1940s, only skipping full circle back to 1989 at the very end.  Not only that, each chapter was alternately narrated from the perspectives of each of the main characters: Ava, Renate, and Ilse.  For me, the jumping back and forth between multiple time periods and characters made the story a bit difficult to follow, which required more time and focus on my part in order to keep track of everything.  In the end though, the effort was worth it, as this one turned out to be a gem -- a beautifully told but emotionally heart-wrenching, tragic story that I know I won’t soon forget.   

As always when I read a well-written work of historical fiction, I learn about not just the history behind the events, but also the impact of those events on the lives of ordinary people.  This personal application of historical events is something that history books don’t (or rather aren’t supposed to) cover, but yet, is absolutely crucial in helping us understand this history, its implications, and more importantly, prevent such atrocities from happening again (as much as we are able to).  Through the poignant, heartbreaking story of a childhood friendship between two teenage girls who are eventually torn apart by war, author Jennifer Cody Epstein did a wonderful job bringing this period of history back into the spotlight.  Of equal importance though, through the lives and actions of the fictional characters in the story, we are given insight into the complexities of human behavior and the impact of our actions on others.  The character in the story who most reflected this for me was Ilse, whom I found hard to like for sure, but at the same time, it felt wrong to hate her – to me, she was one of the most tragic characters in the story given how much of her life and actions were shaped by her upbringing and the environment in which she grew up as well as the price she ended up paying in the end.

This is a book I highly recommend, one that I hope many will read and learn from.  It is also a rendering of history that, given the times we live in currently, needs to be understood and vigilantly prevented.  As with many of the books I’ve read about the atrocities of WWII, this one is yet another poignant reminder of the frailty of human life and the importance of not taking the freedoms we have for granted.  This is a story that needs to be read and experienced and hopefully one we can all learn from.

Received ARC from Crown Publishing via NetGalley.

Review: I Know Who You Are (by Alice Feeney)

My Rating:  3.5 stars

Alice Feeney’s debut novel Sometimes I Lie was one of my favorite suspense/thriller reads last year – that book was dark and twisty with an ending that was both shocking and explosive (and frankly left me reeling), but yet still within my “acceptance” level for books in this genre.  As I said in my review of that book, I was so blown away by the story and how cleverly written the whole thing was that I went online and tried to read everything I possibly could about the author and the book afterwards.  Not only that, I was also super-excited to read Feeney’s next book, which I already knew she was working on and would be out some time in 2019.  Indeed, her sophomore novel, titled I Know Who You Are, was published last month (April 2019) and I made sure to get my hands on the book as soon as I possibly could.  Going into it, I already anticipated it would be full of twists and turns (which it was) and that there would likely be a big shocking twist at the end (which there was) that would likely upend the entire story that came before it (which it did).  But that’s about where the similarities end -- now that I finished reading this one, I have to say that my reaction to this book is very different from how I felt about her previous one. 

In the interests of not spoiling the story for those who are interested in reading this book, plus it’s always best to go into a suspense / thriller novel knowing as little as possible, I don’t want to say too much about the plot or the characters.  Rather, I’m going to focus on my reaction after reading this book, which I’m going to be honest in saying that the story was a bit too extreme for my tastes.  Sure, Feeney’s previous novel also leaned more toward “dark and twisty” and the “shock factor” with that one was also high, but I felt like the story progressed a lot more naturally and the ending, while shocking, was perfectly executed.  With this book however, the overall story went in a direction that I have to honestly say was more disturbing than I would’ve liked, and the ending actually left me feeling uncomfortable (and if I’m being honest, a bit queasy too).  I know I’m being a bit vague here but I don’t know how else to describe it without giving away the plot – basically, this was like a wild and crazy roller coaster ride that had plenty of thrilling, suspenseful moments (as it is supposed to), but instead of coming to a satisfying stop at the end, it crash lands and the rider disembarks feeling shaken and perhaps even a bit unsettled.

My reaction aside though, the writing in this one was on par with this author’s first book and the plot was just as intricately and cleverly laid out – the story held my attention throughout and definitely had me at the edge of my seat the entire time.  Regardless of what I thought about the ending as well as a few of the other plot points, this truly was a top-rate psychological suspense novel in my opinion, and many of the elements were also truly well done, which is why I couldn’t bring myself to rate this one too low.  While this one obviously leaned a tad too much on the “creepy” side for me, I still think it’s worth a read, especially for thriller / suspense fans.  And no, despite this reading experience being a little less than pleasant, it has not deterred me from wanting to read more of Alice Feeney’s works in the future – I just hope that her next novel is more along the lines of Sometimes I Lie rather than I Know Who You Are.