The scent keeper by Erica Bauermeister

 Name of Book: The Scent Keeper 

Author: Erica Bauermeister 

ISBN: 9781250200136

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Type of book: isolated islands, isolated childhood, scents, single father, decisions, contemporary, magic, capturing scents, contemporary life, magical realism, pet, needs, hearts, stories, growing up, coming of age, decisions 

Year it was published: 2019

Summary:

Erica Bauermeister, the national bestselling author of The School of Essential Ingredients, presents a moving and evocative coming-of-age novel about childhood stories, families lost and found, and how a fragrance conjures memories capable of shaping the course of our lives.

Emmeline lives an enchanted childhood on a remote island with her father, who teaches her about the natural world through her senses. What he won’t explain are the mysterious scents stored in the drawers that line the walls of their cabin, or the origin of the machine that creates them. As Emmeline grows, however, so too does her curiosity, until one day the unforeseen happens, and Emmeline is vaulted out into the real world—a place of love, betrayal, ambition, and revenge. To understand her past, Emmeline must unlock the clues to her identity, a quest that challenges the limits of her heart and imagination.

Lyrical and immersive, The Scent Keeper explores the provocative beauty of scent, the way it can reveal hidden truths, lead us to the person we seek, and even help us find our way back home.

Characters:

Main characters include Emmeline, a young girl who at first is isolated but who believes in magic and deeply cares for both her father and a goat named Cleo as well as a childhood friend she meets at school. She is talented when it comes to scents, devoted to memories, and has a big heart. Also, she questions everything, from modern day lifestyle to the way people treat each other. Emmelines father, John, does his best to create a magical place for his young daughter through possible and impossible ways. He is also obsessed with capturing scents and has his own secrets that he doesn't reveal to Emmeline. There are minor characters such as a man who makes deliveries and whom Emmeline sees as a genie as well as a male friend that acts as a love interest and of course a cold and brilliant woman who is in charge of a perfumery and tends to manipulate Emmeline and take advantage of her needs. 

Theme:

Every sense tells a story 

Plot:

The story is told in first person narrative from Emmelines point of view, and we follow Emmeline through the years, from the time she was a little girl living on mysterious islands with her father, to the time she became a young woman and has learned unsavory truths about a family member. At the same time there is an element of magical realism within the pages that dares to seduce the reader and doesnt let him go. There is also something modern about the stort, especially when Emmeline is forced to confront some choices about what to do.  

Author Information:
(From goodreads)

Erica Bauermeister is the NYT bestselling author of four novels -- The Scent Keeper (a Reese's Book Club pick), The School of Essential Ingredients,, Joy for Beginners, and The Lost Art of Mixing. Her memoir, House Lessons, will be published by Sasquatch March 24th, 2020. She is also the co-author of 500 Great Books by Women: A Reader's Guide and Let's Hear It For the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14. She currently lives in Port Townsend, Wa with her husband and 238 wild deer.

Opinion:

Years and years ago, I read and fell in love with Erica Bauermeister's novels about cooking, which seriously caused me to see food in a different way than before: filled with memories and tales. The whole experience was uplifting, transcendental as well as indescribably beautiful. Now she comes out with a new novel, about a family of scent keepers, and just like with food, she focuses on one sense: this time the nose. While THE SCENT KEEPERS wasn't SCHOOL OF ESSENTIAL INGRIDIENTS nor THE LOST ART OF MIXING, there is still something special and beautiful about this plucky family who uses scents. Just like in previous two novels I have read, Erica Bauermeister dares to go all out when it comes to olfactory as she weaves in memories and stories of a different type. While the previous two radiated warmth and happiness, despite the issues that characters underwent through, THE SCENT KEEPERS is on a more sadder scale, especially when it comes to experiences of Emmeline. 

This was given for review 

4 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)