Books like The perfume collector by Kathleen Tessaro

Reid’s lush tale follows film legend Evelyn Hugo as she unveils the truth of her glamorous, scandal‑ridden life to an unlikely biographer, revealing the intersecting fates of Hollywood’s biggest star and a struggling reporter.

The Signature of All Things traces a family from modest English beginnings to wealth in the South American quinine trade, through the life of brilliant botanist Alma Whittaker as she explores evolution, love, and the clash of science and art across the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

A former Japanese POW survivor in post-war Malaya journeys to the secluded Garden of Evening Mists to learn from a reclusive gardener, uncovering secrets of war and forgiveness amid the country's turbulent fight for independence.

Natty Bumppo's first journey into frontier life and the challenges of defending his freedom against dangerous Indians and the corrupting influence of a ruthless new lawman, setting the stage for the larger story of The Last of the Mohicans.

A family’s idyllic summer party at a grand estate in Cornwall turns into a desperate search when six‑year‑old Theo vanishes, leaving the house abandoned and the siblings torn apart.

Monsieur Perdu, a literary apothecary aboard a Seine barge, prescribes novels to heal broken hearts. When his own love remains a mystery, he journeys south of France to find closure and prove stories can mend souls.

A quest across time, from a lost girl on an Australian voyage to a Cornish inheritance, where a hidden garden holds Victorian secrets and a desperate search for justice reveals family history and forgotten loves.

A 1941 espionage thriller set in post-war Paris, featuring a reluctant spy trying to survive in the dangerous world of resistance and sabotage.

A spy thriller set against the backdrop of World War II Paris, focusing on Jean Casson's tumultuous romance and moral compromises during the occupation.

Julia Forrester, a concert pianist, returns to the estate of Wharton Park after wartime grief, uncovering a family secret that links her to the Crawford heirs and a forbidden love that shaped the house’s history.

A definitive, comprehensive guide to over 1,200 perfumes, written by scent experts Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez, blending scientific insight with critical review to help readers navigate fragrance choices.

A New York socialite embarks on a perilous journey to find true love and independence in a remote Nebraska town, challenging conventions and facing deadly obstacles along the way.

An exploration of the Harlem Renaissance through the eyes of its larger-than-life residents in a New York apartment building setting, with satirical characters and themes that intersect with Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, and Alain Locke. This novel is a blend of historical fiction and satire, set in the vibrant world of the 1920s Harlem and bringing to life the era's vibrant culture and characters. The story is a celebration of the Harlem Renaissance's artistic and intellectual contributions, set against the backdrop of New York's vibrant cultural scene.

The life of Virginie Gautreau, the notorious beauty of Madame X, John Singer Sargent's most famous and scandalous portrait, provides inspiration for this absorbing and intriguing novel. Madame X caused an immediate furor when Sargent unveiled it at the 1884 Paris Salon. The subject's bold pose, provocative dress, and decadent pallor shocked the public, and the critics panned the picture, smashing Sargent's dream of a Paris career. The artist soon relocated to England, where he established himself as the favorite portrait painter of the wealthy. In this remarkable novel, Gioia Diliberto tells Virginie's story, drawing on the sketchy facts of Virginie's life to re-create her tempestuous personality and the captivating milieu of nineteenth-century Paris. Born in New Orleans to two of Louisiana's prominent Creole families and raised at Parlange, her grandmother's lush plantation, Virginie fled to France with her mother and sister during the Civil War. The family settled in Paris among other expatriate Southerners and hoped, through their French ancestry, to insinuate themselves into high society. They soon were absorbed into the fascinating and wealthy world of grand ballrooms, dressmakers' salons, luxurious country estates, and artists' ateliers. Because of Virginie's striking appearance and vivid character, her mother pinned the family's hopes for social acceptance on her daughter, who became a "professional beauty" and married a French banker. Even before Sargent painted her portrait, Virginie's reputation for promiscuity and showy self-display made her the subject of vicious Paris gossip. I Am Madame X is a compulsively readable immersion in Belle Epoque Paris. It is also the story of a great work of art, illuminating the struggle between Virginie and Sargent as they fought to control the outcome of a painting that changed their lives and affected the course of art history.

A historical detective mystery set in New York, following the fictional detective Pieter Tonneman as he unravels crimes in 19th‑century urban life.