Perfume by Patrick Suskind [suggested by Linda Wong]

Survivor, genius, perfumer, killer: this is Jean-Baptiste Grenouille.  He is abandoned on the filthy streets as a child, but grows up to discover, he has an extraordinary gift: a sense of smell more powerful than any other human’s.  Soon, he is creating the most sublime fragrances in Paris.  Yet there is one odour he cannot capture.  It is exquisite, magical: the scent of a young virgin.  And to get it, he must kill.  And kill.  And kill.

(Review from amazon.co.uk)

Patrick Suskind was born in Ambach, near Munich, in 1949.  He studied medieval and modern history at the University of Munich.  His first play, The Double Bass, was written in 1980 and became an international success.  It was performed in Germany, in Switzerland, at the Edinburgh Festival, in London, and at the New Theatre in Brooklyn.  His first novel, Perfume became an internationally acclaimed bestseller.  He is also the author of The Pigeon and Mr. Summer’s Story, and a coauthor of the enormously successful German television series Kir Royal.  Mr. Suskind lives and writes in Munich.

Find a complete bibliography and more information on his Fantastic Fiction or go to his Wikipedia entry.

Shortlisted for this month

My Name Is Asher Lev [suggested by Amy Gregg]

The group had decided that (at least some of) the choices for December should be made from books shortlisted during the rest of the year that had not been selected.  This book was originally shortlisted in May by Sue Owens and details may be found here.