Available Formats
Scent
By (Author) Isabel Costello
Muswell Press
Muswell Press
3rd August 2021
1st April 2021
United Kingdom
General
Fiction
Narrative theme: Interior life
823.92
Short-listed for The Asham Award, 2012
Paperback
232
Width 138mm, Height 216mm
When Clementine and Edouard's last child leaves home, the cracks in their marriage become impossible to ignore. Her work as a perfumer is no longer providing solace and her sense of self is withering. Then, her former lover resurfaces, decades after the end of their bisexual affair, and her world tilts irreversibly. Set in Paris and Provence, this is an intimate portrait of a woman navigating conflicting desires and a troubled past whilst dreaming of a fulfilling future. "Very, very good - an intense and unflinching expose of desire and its legacy." Elizabeth Buchan "Vividly passionate ... Costello's prose is reminiscent of masters like Leila Slimani. Thrillingly stylish." Daisy Buchanan
'It is very, very good - an intense and unflinching expose of desire and its legacy'. Elizabeth Buchan. 'A skilled storyteller. Inventive, vivid and distinctive'. Mary Loudon. 'Vividly passionate, this is assured, addictive precision storytelling. Costello's prose is reminiscent of masters like Leila Slimane - but her voice is entirely unique. Thrillingly stylish.' Daisy Buchanan. 'Costello poses unwavering questions about choice and honesty, about submerging pain to orchestrate survival. Showing how sacrifice can impair an entire existence and that profound passion will return always.' Catherine McNamara.
Isabel was chosen as Best Reviewer in the Saboteur Awards 2016 for her blog, The Literary Sofa, and received a Special Mention for Best Literature Reviewer in 2019. She is also a professionally qualified aromatherapist, which has led to a passionate interest in perfumery, one of the themes of her novel. She lives in London and travels to France as often as she can.