The Book of Lost Fragrances

I pre-ordered The Book of Lost Fragrances because I'm a HUGE fan of Rose's Butterfield Institute Series; I was severely disappointed. First, the book's "pace" was extremely slow making it a drag to read. I put it away several times and purely on principle "if I bought I'll read it" was I able to finish it. Second, the premise was interesting and could have been quite alluring, if not for the main character's , "Jac", continuous denial of spiritual-esoteric things and acceptance of  "being crazy" instead. Third, the ending seemed to be put together very quickly, as if suddenly realizing the book has taken way too long and its time to get to its conclusion. However, this is done at the expense of developing more of the positive quality of the book, the idea that there is a fragrance that will allow individuals to view their past lives in order to correct mistakes in their current lives and fix their karma. Because of this quick wrap up, the book's conclusion is quite disappointing and leaves a feeling of "that's it????". Also, I never read anything about a BOOK of fragrances...it was more of broken shards of pottery that were infused with the hallucinogenic fragrance...since 32BC.

I praise Anne Rice for venturing beyond Vampire's and Witches, but after having anxiously waited for her latest novel I must admit that I was seriously disappointed.

The beginning captured me because, true to Rice, the descriptions were lavish and I was transported to another place. However, the language was more akin to 1940's era rather than the modern day when the events were occurring which at times was confusing.

The sexual encounters were definitely a new and imaginative twist, but there was waaaaaay too much romance and romanticism behind the main characters. This made a chunk of the books "filler" and there was endless redundancy. Personally, this made it hard for me to get through most of the book. It was also in dissonance with the book's ending, which still leaves me scratching my head....why did she go with that ending?

This is not true to Anne Rice's style which makes this book seem like it was a stretch for her to produce. When asked on an interview if she was on team Edward or team Jacob, Anne responded "I'm on team Lestat" and I must admit that I am too! But, as pertains to this book, I affirm that Anne should stick to the formula that works for her: Vampires and Witches!

The Lion the Lamb and the Hunted is a quick read and you may even have some suspicion as to its ending. However, from the very first page this book gripped me with the hints about the main character's traumatized past and a suicide attempt. Each chapter offers a recollection of the authors horrific childhood making me want to jump into the book and scream at his mother! There was also enough suspense throughout to keep me engaged and wanting to discover who was behind the kidnapping and the murders. I wasn't able to put the book down and read it in less that 24 hours. I wish the book had been longer and there had been more twist and turns. Despite the interest in the character's past, and wanting to know "who done it" there wasn't much depth to the depth overall. It's a quick beach or weekend read.