"Perfume gives off a rare, sinfully addictive chill of pure evil. Suskind has seductive power as a storyteller."

--Connoisseur

"Mr. Suskind himself is a perfumer of language. ...A remarkable debut."

--The New York Times Book Review

In the slums of 18th-century Paris a baby is born. Jean-Baptiste Grenouille clings to life with an iron will, growing into a dark and sinister young man who, although he has no scent of his own, possesses an incomparable sense of smell. He apprentices himself to a perfumer and quickly masters the ancient art of mixing flowers, herbs, and oils. But his quest to create the "ultimate perfume" leads him to commit a series of brutal murders until no woman can feel safe as his final horrifying secret is revealed.