Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer

Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer

by
3.94 of 5 stars 3.94  ·  rating details  ·  86,915 ratings  ·  4,761 reviews
An acclaimed bestseller and international sensation, Patrick Suskind's classic novel provokes a terrifying examination of what happens when one man's indulgence in his greatest passion—his sense of smell—leads to murder.

In the slums of eighteenth-century France, the infant Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is born with one sublime gift-an absolute sense of smell. As a boy, he lives...more
Paperback, 255 pages
Published February 13th 2001 by Vintage International (first published 1985)
more details... edit details

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)
filter  |  sort: default (?)  |  rating details
Michael Fierce
Apr 02, 2013 Michael Fierce rated it 5 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: fans of Gothic horror, serial killer lovers, and the literate crowd

description

Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer is simply one of the greatest horror novels ever written.

Taking place in 18th century, France, it begins with an infant born with one difference from the rest of the world: Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is born with the ability to smell anything and everything in the world around him.

Although not a novel of the supernatural as commonly defined, in a sense, it is, because his ability can only be defined as that of supernature.

While not being the most prolific author...more
John Wiswell
Nov 07, 2012 John Wiswell rated it 5 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: Historical fiction readers, fantasy readers, readers who love bizarre characters
I had a heck of a time thinking who I'd recommend this to. It won a Fantasy award, yet I can't call it Fantasy. It's set in a bygone period, but it doesn't play with history, so it's not Historical Fiction. It's about a murder, yet it's not terrifying like Horror, nor is it a mystery. It's just the story of a peculiar boy who became a dangerous and most interesting man. He was born without an odor, you see, and lacking that part of identity, became obsessed with smell. That identity crisis trigg...more
Nandakishore Varma
There are some books which can be called unique. They may be good, bad or indifferent: but their authors strike out from the trodden paths of narrative themes and structure to explore totally new vistas, so that the product becomes unique. Perfume by Patrick Suskind is such a book.

Jean Baptiste Grenouille is "an abominable and gifted personage, in an era which was not lacking in abominable and gifted personages". Born a bastard in the stinking heart of the city of Paris in the eighteenth century...more
Martine
A cross between The Silence of the Lambs and a period drama. That's how I would describe Perfume, the great German classic of the 1980s. Basically, it's an eighteenth-century murder story, except that it doesn't focus on the victims and the hunt for the killer, but rather emphasises the life and times of the murderer, who is an unusual protagonist to say the least.

Perfume tells the story of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, an eighteenth-century Parisian with a unique gift: a prodigiously well-developed...more
Patrick
Apr 11, 2008 Patrick rated it 5 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone willing to enjoy something...different
This book was different and brilliant. The story of an orphaned boy born without a scent, but with an incredibly refined sense of smell, the book drags a bit in parts, but the ends justify the means, in more ways than one.

All things considered, the book is a valentine to the beauty, elegance, and power of smell. A truly underrated sense, Suskind reminds the reader of just how powerful an effect our sense of smell can have. Although Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (one of the great names in contemporary...more
Christy
Let me begin by telling you that this book is hilarious, and I am mildly obsessed with it. I loved it. Grenouille is my new favorite literary character. I’ve even started doing little impersonations of him when I'm feeling particularly annoying, which I think is going over pretty well around my house. He lurks in the shadows, is mildly hunchbacked, and sniffs the air like a total freak.

Anyway, as you may know, Perfume is the story of Grenouille, a man born with the ability to smell every little...more
Tedb0t
May 29, 2008 Tedb0t rated it 5 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: people who eschew irritating film adaptations
Recommended to Tedb0t by: someone (?) via Matt
I'd like to make something very clear with my review of this book. I normally don't go overboard with the whole "the movie vs. the book" argument because I'm not interested in making people's decisions for them, even though I'm strongly opinionated about the subject. But this is a case where I have to speak out. Süskind has created here a work of literary art in prose, and I take that seriously. I admire lots of books but I wouldn't say this about any old novel. The movie "Perfume" makes an utte...more
Jacob
This book was lent to me by a friend. This friend was really a great writer and kind of a genius but also an asshole. I should have known about this friend. Her name means sadness and she carried herself either in awkwardness or fierceness or hipper than you savagery or a combination of all of those or none of them and I’m just constructing a mythic version of her. Her writing was amazing. It was zany, rich, violent and grotesque. It would reach down into intense emotional depths and then get co...more
La Petite Américaine
Dec 16, 2008 La Petite Américaine added it  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: People Who Don't Read While Eating
UPDATE: I do have to admit that going through the first trimester of pregnancy did have me thinking back to the main character in this book. I mean, smelling everything just SUCKS.Who knew everything stank so bad?? I mean, I wouldn't go around killing redhead virgins like he did to rectify the situation, but the time he spent alone in the scentless air of the mountaintop in France suddenly sounded so appealing. :)


I only finished this book for 2 reasons, 1)my brother recently paid for it for me w...more
مهدي
رواية العطر عمل بديع
باتريك زوسكند يملك سحراً خاصاً ولغة مدهشة ومفرطة في عذوبة الوصف وإحساس عميق في حقل الروائح الطيّارة
كيف استطاع أن يصف لنا العطور والروائح وكأنه يتبختر في كل صفحة بعطر جديد أشمه بنقاءوتركيز عال
باتريك الكاتب الألماني الذي درس التاريخ كتب هذا العمل بثقافة عالية وأسلوب جديد وباهر جداً
الرواية التي تدور في القرن الثامن عشر - ومزامنة مع أحداث تاريخية لا تبعدنا عن أحداث القصة - كانت بفكرة مستحدثة , اللغة كانت جميلة والمفردات كان مُعطرة , الوصف عميق جداً ومُتقن استمتعت كثيراً بكل فصل...more
Katy
Nov 11, 2012 Katy rated it 5 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: those who enjoy dark but lush stories
Book Info: Genre: Literary Fiction
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: Those who enjoy dark, strange, twisted, yet lushly beautiful writing

Please note: I picked up and first read this book several years ago in the early aughts; I wanted to watch the movie subsequently made of this book, but wished to re-read it first to refresh my memory about the book itself. I’m not aware of having written a review for this book the first time around, as at the time I was not writing a review for everything I...more
Khadija
إذا كانت الترجمة خيانة للنص الأدبي - وهي خيانة مغتفرة على أية حال- فإن تحويل بعض الروايات إلى أفلام خيانة لا تُغتفر. هذا ما خطر ببالي و كاميرا المخرج الألماني "توم تايكوير" تبتعد ببطء عن مِـزَق "غرينوي" في نهاية سوريالية لقصة مربكة. لقد استثار "زوسكند" خيالي لأقصى حدوده – إن كان ثمة حدود - و جاء الفيلم ليضغطه و يحشره في إطار بدا ضيقًا بالمقارنة مع الرواية. لم تكن إمكانات المخرج متواضعة بقدر ما كان خيال الكاتب جامحًا، عصيًا على التجسيد.

مستغرقًا، متماهيًا، و بنبرة لا تخلو من السخرية، يتحدّث "زوسكن...more
eleonora -
Sublime. Irriverente. Geniale.
Solitamente le 5 stelline le riservo ai quei romanzi per i quali provo un certo valore affettivo, che ho riletto più volte o che so che rileggerò più volte. Romanzi che sono diventanti come degli migliori amici o che lo diventeranno.
Probabilmente non rileggerò Il Profumo, perché penso che sia uno di quei libri che ti rimangono talmente impressi da non aver bisogno di un rilettura per essere meglio compresi.
Ma passiamo a lui. Passiamo a Jean-Baptiste Grenuille. Que...more
Bonnie
'Perfume' tells the story of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille a boy who grew up on the streets of Paris. Jean-Baptiste was no ordinary boy, he had a gift... a sense of smell that could not be rivaled. Naturally he found his niche by becoming an apprentice to a master perfumer who teaches him the art of making perfume. He excelled at this and people were scrambling to buy his product. As he branched out and started searching for new scents to include in his perfumes, his fascination with trying to find t...more
Angela
this book sounded really interesting, but i really didn't like it. couldn't wait to be done with it, but also had a hard time just finishing it cause i really didn't like it. felt like the writing and plot was just very amateurish. hopefully the movie is better.
Anastasia
Avevo deciso di leggere questo libro dopo averne sentito parlare in Come un romanzo di Pennac. Il pezzo citato dal caro professore mi era piaciuto così tanto che nella mia testa era subentrato un altro promemoria: leggere il sicuramente sensazionale libro di Süskind.
E fortunatamente non me sono scordata, miracolo.

Questo libro parla col naso. No, non è una sorta di anormale ventriloquio, semplicemente si esprime attraverso l'olfatto. Che, se ci pensate, è un organo molto sottovalutato. Si loda...more
Rania
الجميل في هذه الرواية انها تطرح موضوع لم يطرح مسبقاَ، في الحياة نتسأل دائما عن سبب انجذابنا لأشخاص و نعزو الاسباب لتجاذب الأرواح، الشخصية، و الكاريزما.
نعزو الانجذاب غالبا إلى حاسة النظر... الكتاب يحول انظارنا لناحية أخرى

الرواية تتحدث عن شخص ولد من غير رائحة و ايضا بحساسية عالية للعطور،و في حياته يتلقى فقط النفور و التجاهل و الإهمال ، لسبب واحد وهو أنه إنسان بغير رائحة.
فيسعى لتكوين عطر يتفرد به وحده.

تصور الرواية العطر او الرائحة البشرية و كأنها هالة تجذب او تنفر. تركت الرواية أثرها علي كالعطر و...more
Aneen
يعتقدون أنهم يشاهدون كل شيء بعيونهم "

.
.

أكان شيطاناً ، مسخاً أم شبحاً لانسان؟ جسده الضئيل قد يوحي بذلك
هذا الكم الكبير من اللامبالاة ، البرود والحياة وحيداً هي ما تشير لذلك

.
هل كنا في يوم ما نهتم بحاسة الشم أكثر من النظر
أو اللمس أو التذوق ، هل كنا نرى الاشياء بعدة حواس
أم نكتفي بتكثيف حاسه واحده فقط ؟
كان "غرينوي" يشم ويرى ويتذوق بأنفه
استنشق كل شيء ما عدا أهم شيء
وهذا ما صنع منه هذا الشخص البالغ في الهزال
واللامبلاه والغيبوبة الانسانيه
.
التفاصيل الدقيقه افكاره حياته تشوقه المستمر لاستنشاق كل شيء
خلق...more
Petra X
Original story, well-written, a bit creepy, a lot silly, morality turned on its head for sex and drugs, it put me in mind that it was the Pied Piper in reverse. Not an exact analogy, just what it put in my mind.

I've just downloaded the film. It will be interesting to see how much humanity is allowed Grenouille.

Arah-Lynda Hay
Smell, they say, is the strongest of the senses.

Hmmmmm

I remember a time, years ago, on the beach.
I could smell the lake, the night air
Feel the Harley spinning out of control as it hit the sand. No pain just
The smell of wet leather and silk
Bob Seger singing
Moonlit endless sand
The taste of beer and cigarettes
His scent……..mine….mingled.

That’s the thing about smell; it commands an immediate and visceral response. It is instinctive, automatic; void of conscious thought or will, all the while affecti...more
Yulia
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Bryce Wilson
Because sometimes you just have to read about an 17th century perfumer who may or may not be the Anti Christ and goes on a killing spree, before starting aa giant omnisexual fuckfest and being voluntarily cannabilized.

Ah literature. That's why I read you, the class. The class.
Undrakh Ganzorig
Grenuoille бол өөрөө үнэргүй хэдий ч Парисын магадгүй бүх ертөнцийн хамгийн үнэрлэх чадвар сайтай хүн . Түүнд өөрийн хүссэн бүх мэдээллээ авахад тухайн зүйлийн эсвэл хүний багахан үнэр нь л хэрэгтэй . Анхнаасаа хайрлах тухай жаахан ч болов мэддэг байгаагүй учраас түүнээс энэрэнгүй сэтгэл гарна гэж найдах нь утгагүй хэрэг. Зөвхөн үзэн ядалт , эхнээсээ эцсээ хүртэл үзэн ядалт л дүүрэн . Бас хэзээ ч хэнд ч хүн гэдэг утгаараа хүлээн зөвшөөрөгдөж , анзаарагдаж эсвэл хүндлэгдэж байгаагүй , учир нь тэ...more
Aubrey
What a heady mix of disgust and pleasure, outrage and ecstasy, spartan existence and orgiastic frenzy. Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is as close to a deity as you can get; so removed from the human sphere of existence, and yet can easily shift the sphere in the most drastic ways. His reasoning behind committing these actions that cause such violent repercussions throughout the world is no more logical than addiction is, and he cares not about the hoards that are dragged along in his wake. I have neve...more
PurplyCookie
In 18th century France, Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, born with no scent of his own, but with with a supernatural ability to detect the scent of others is driven to murder in order to create the perfect perfume.

This extraordinarily original premise of "Perfume" succeeds so well because it is so startlingly novel--that is, an olfactory genius who can make a fortune creating perfumes more complicated and subtle than any ever made, is a sociopathic monster. Or as Süskind describes him, a "tick" who ca...more
Molly
Apr 20, 2009 Molly rated it 2 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition
Recommended to Molly by: Betty - bettysbooks.blogspot
Shelves: fiction
I want my last 2 weeks back. I dove into this book expecting a hell of a lot more than I dragged out of it. From the very beginning I did not like the author's writing style and should have known then that this book just wouldn't be for me.

This book is set in the mid-1700's France and centers around a horrid man who has no redeeming qualities other than the fact that he has likely the most perfect sense of smell in the history of mankind. But he uses this skill for selfish and evil purposes and...more
Madeline
Creepy, amazing, beautifully written, with another dose of creepy.

Perfume is the story of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, who is born into absolute poverty, but is gifted with an extraordinary sense of smell. The book describes his life, beginning with his birth in a fish market (his mother gives birth to him under her fish stall and then leaves him there) to his totally bizarre death. In between, Grenouille becomes obsessed with preserving scents - human scents in particular, because Grenouille does...more
Nina
This book starts out interesting, I will give it that much. It is a story of a reclusive man, who, born without a personal odour, becomes obsessed with creating the perfect human scent. The description is interesting, and while Suskind paints a perfect picture of the scene, the idea itself is void of true substance of meaning, and tires quickly. The only thing to be valued in this book is Suskind's style of writing. The underpinning values or morals in this book is simply non existent, there is...more
أروى
قرأته بالعربية
(العطر..قصة قاتل)




مذ قرأت هذه الرواية وأنا أشعر أن حاسة جديدة لدي قد تيقظت إلى أقصى مدى ..

ولعلي منذ زمن مولعة بذلك الأثر الساحر المخفي المربك لمجرد "رائحة جميلة"..

دعوني أبدأ قصة هذا الكتاب من البداية..!


كنت أضع هذه الرواية ضمن قائمة طويلة من الكتب والروايات التي قرأت عنها أو سمعت عنها كي أحصل عليها ريثما تيسرت الأمور..

صادف أن قرأت تقريراً عن السينما الأسبوعية ومن ضمن الأفلام المعروضةكان فلم
perfume
والمأخوذ عن هذه الرواية.
اتصلت صديقة بي كانت موجودة في ذلك الوقت في دبي، سألتني عن كتب ي...more
Morgan
Cold and inhuman look on humanity. Cynical and dark, but humorous at times injecting a Voltaire like quality. Beautifully described and detailed, without bogging down. Sharp and to the point at all times while still exuding a rococo quality. It never wastes time despite the extreme amounts of perfectly detailed flourishes. The text always feels like it accelerates the plot.
« previous 1 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 99 100 next »
topics  posts  views  last activity   
رأيي الشخصي 2 12 May 03, 2013 08:30pm  
العطر ..قصة قاتل 7 54 May 01, 2013 11:17am  
The Perks Of Bein...: Completely addictive books - slightly off-beat 6 143 Apr 16, 2013 05:59pm  
I'm looking for good foreign horror novels 14 115 Mar 31, 2013 12:11pm  
Muscat Book Club: Part one: chapters 1-14 2 10 Mar 06, 2013 06:00pm  
Muscat Book Club: Part one: the murder (SPOILER) 2 8 Mar 06, 2013 05:57pm  
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (Paperback)
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (Paperback)
Das Parfum: Die Geschichte eines Mörders (Paperback)
El perfume: Historia de un asesino (Paperback)
العطر: قصة قاتل

39402
From 1968-1974 he studied medieval and modern history in Munich and Aix-en-Provence. In the '80s he worked as a screenwriter, for Kir Royal and Monaco Franze among others.

After spending the 1970s writing what he has characterized as “short unpublished prose pieces and longer un-produced screenplays”, Patrick Süskind was catapulted to fame in the 1980s by the monodrama Der Kontrabass [The Double B...more
More about Patrick Süskind...
The Pigeon The Story of Mr. Sommer El contrabajo On Love and Death Three Stories and a Reflection

Share This Book

Your website
“Odors have a power of persuasion stronger than that of words, appearances, emotions, or will. The persuasive power of an odor cannot be fended off, it enters into us like breath into our lungs, it fills us up, imbues us totally. There is no remedy for it.” 129 people liked it
“He succeeded in being considered totally uninteresting. People left him alone. And that was all he wanted.” 108 people liked it
More quotes…