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Monday, May 20, 2013

Lesley's Review of Seduction by M.J. Rose


Lesley's Review
When I was a child, I dreamt of adventures steeped in history and discovery.  I wanted to discover the unknown. Travel to secret places and solve the mysteries of those unknown artifacts. Discover the secrets of the world. Sigh. Sadly, I grew up to be a Medical Assistant, turned stay at home mom. My adventures consist of watching the adventures of my children. My mysteries include figuring out what will get that stain off the couch and who left the empty milk carton in the fridge. Hence the reason I escape through books. So, when I received the ARC for Seduction, I dove right in and was not disappointed.
“Can you feel the past here…It’s evocative.”
Seduction starts off back in the 1800’s with a man by the name of Victor Hugo. As the story unfolds we find that Mr. Hugo loses his beautiful daughter to a tragic accident. Fleeing his native France, He ends up in Jersey Isle, England. Still consumed by the grief and sadness surrounding the death of his daughter, he spends his days with his family and mistress. Everything changes when a friend visits and introduces him to séances. And so, the dead begin to seduce him. He becomes obsessed with contacting Didine, his daughter. He begins hearing the voices of the dead and some points wonders, if he is of course mad. Being a novelist, he takes to transcribing the tales of the dead and his inner thoughts.
“This is the story of a lost man. An exile not just from his beloved country but also his sanity. I believe it to be a true and honest account”
At points in the story we fast forward through time meeting JacL’Etoile. She is a trouble young lady, whose mentor/therapist is one of her closest friends. Jac is a myth hunter, who belongs to a long line of talented perfumers. However, she spends her time finding origins of myths and following the trail to prove fact or fiction. But Jac is troubled, she has hallucinations. Her episodes often triggered by a scent.  Some believe these are visions of her past life conflicting with her present self. Jac doesn’t not believe, because most would say she has a personality disorder.  She is seduced with finding the truth, but scared of the answers.A friend from her past contacts her and begins an adventure into the Celtic world. Steeped in magic, mystery and scents to carry you away.
“Perfume is magic. It’s mystery. We recreate the smell of a flower. Of wood. Of grass. We create the essence of life. Liquefy it. We store memories. We make dreams.”
Love, loss, pain, secrets, suspense and Adventure. Seduction has it all. We learn that everything has happened for a reason. Threads of the tapestry have been woven and intertwined to build a magically suspenseful story, bringing this story in full circle.The eloquently written details paint the picture. While, taking the sense of smell and creating a story that’s almost 3-D. When you add in the aspect of the psychology you have the makings of a brilliantly constructed story that hooks you and takes you on an adventure. That not only feeds the mind but feeds the mystical side in us all.I give this book 4.5 Stars
“Mystics have always been aware of it, from the Egyptians to the Sufis, to the Native Americans Indians. In the Twelfth century alchemists called it magic. They could see it. Jung postulated that modern man has trained himself not to see it.”


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