The Book of Lost Fragrances: A Novel of Suspense

A Secret Worth Dying For …

Jac L’Etoile has always been haunted by visions of the past, her earliest memories infused with the exotic scents that she grew up with as the heir to a storied French perfume company. These worsened after her mother’s suicide until she finally found a doctor who helped her, teaching her to explore the mythological symbolism in her visions and thus lessen their painful impact. This ability led Jac to a wildly successful career as a mythologist, television personality and author.

When her brother, Robbie—who’s taken over the House of L’Etoile from their father—contacts Jac about a remarkable discovery in the family archives, she’s skeptical. But when Robbie goes missing before he can share the secret—leaving a dead body in his wake—Jac is plunged into a world she thought she’d left behind.

Traveling back to Paris to investigate Robbie’s disappearance, Jac discovers that the secret is a mysterious scent developed in Cleopatra’s time. Could the rumors swirling be true? Can this ancient perfume hold the power to unlock the ability to remember past lives and conclusively prove reincarnation? If this possession has the power to change the world, then it’s not only worth living for . . . it’s worth killing for, too.

The Book of Lost Fragrances
fuses history, passion and suspense in an intoxicating web that moves from Cleopatra’s Egypt and the terrors of revolutionary France to Tibet’s battle with China and the glamour of modern-day Paris. This marvelous, spellbinding novel mixes the sensory allure of
Perfume
with the heartbreaking beauty of
The Time Traveler’s Wife,
coming to life as richly as our most wildly imagined dreams.

ADVANCE PRAISE FOR
THE BOOK OF LOST FRAGRANCES

“Resonates with spirit, blending myth with reality, tragedy with triumph, pain with joy. You’ll find yourself questioning everything you believe—and wanting more.”
—S
TEVE
B
ERRY

“An utterly engrossing thriller that weaves together reincarnation, ancient Egypt, international intrigue and a lost book of fragrances. Elegantly written, with unforgettable characters and flawlessly realized international settings . . . will leave you with powerful feelings of revelation, wonder and the infinitude of human possibility.”
—D
OUGLAS
P
RESTON

“A simmering brew that mingles the erotic sensuality of Patrick Suskind’s
Perfume
with the dark and timeless obsessions of Rider Haggard’s classic
She
.”
—K
ATHERINE
N
EVILLE

“A bewitching brew of history and suspense, as well as a deeply felt love story that transcends time,
The Book of Lost Fragrances
had me spellbound from the very beginning . . . will live on in your heart long after you turn the last page.”
—A
NNE
F
ORTIER

“One of those rare novels that reminds us of the beauty and enormous complexity of the human soul. . . . This novel is a marvelous discovery.”
—J
AVIER
S
IERRA

“Clever, with beguiling characters, a wonderful mixture of suspense and pace and good old-fashioned storytelling, and the research never gets in the way of the plot.”
—K
ATE
M
OSSE

M. J. ROSE
is the internationally bestselling author of eleven novels, including
The Reincarnationist, The Memorist
and
The Hypnotist
. She is a founding board member of International Thriller Writers and the founder of the first marketing company for authors, AuthorBuzz.com. She lives in Connecticut and can be reached at www.mjrose.com.

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JACKET ILLUSTRATION BY JULIANA KOLESOVA
ENDPAPER PHOTO (PERFUME BOTTLES) © SYLVAIN GRANDADAM/GETTY IMAGES
AUTHOR PHOTOGRAPH BY KELLY CAMPBELL
PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. COPYRIGHT © 2012 SIMON & SCHUSTER