Alana Estelle

There are two recent releases that caught my eye - The Turnout and Mrs. March. I rarely impulse buy books, but the synopsis of both of these novels I knew I wanted to squeeze them onto my reading list this year. 

The Turnout by, Meg Abbott - I couldn’t say no to a psychological ballet thriller. Apparently this novel is quite twisted and dark. The Turnout is about two sisters who’s mother founded a famous dance school. The sisters end up running the school together after their parents’ tragic death, along with one of the sisters’ husbands. However, leading up to the annual Nutcracker performance a strange incident happens. I also love the title - turnout is crucial in ballet. It refers to how flexible a dancer is at the hips; the goal is to have the thigh get as parallel as possible from that joint that connects it to the hip. This helps produce those long, graceful lines and extensions that ballet dancers are known for. I’ll be curious to see how and if Abbot plays on this a metaphor.

Mrs. March by, Virginia Feito - Mrs. March’s husband is a famous novelist and she a person who places the utmost importance on appearances. She portrays a perfectly tailored life in the Upper East Side. However, someone points out to Mrs. March that the main character in her husband’s new novel, a prostitute, is about Mrs. March, or rather assumes that it’s Mrs. March. From there, Mrs. March begins to psychologically spiral. What really convinced me to pick up this novel is the nod paid to du Maurier’s novel Rebecca that Mrs. March has on her nightstand. I’ve heard this this novel is a slow burn but worth it, as Mrs. March’s mental state begins to decline and there are points in which the reader isn’t quite sure what’s real or what’s a figment of Mrs. March’s imagination. Also, I HATE roaches and the roach this cover is creeping me out! 

Have you read either of these books and are you a fan of psychological thrillers?

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Is there an author you’ve known about for a long time, but you haven’t read anything from them yet? 

That’s Amor Towles for me - I’ve had Rules of Civility and A Gentleman in Moscow saved on my Amazon book list for years and then with the release of The Lincoln Highway in 2021, I decided to finally bite the bullet. 

I just know I’m going to like his novels. I’ll be starting with A Gentleman in Moscow, then I’ll backtrack to Rules of Civility and then read The Lincoln Highway. 

Have your read Amor Towles’ novels? What author have you been meaning to read for a long time?

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Diptyque launched Eau Duelle in 2010 and is available in both eau de toilette and eau de parfum formulations. I own the eau de parfum because I feel it pays better homage to the richness and booziness of this fragrance. 

Notes (Diptyque doesn’t detail the tier that these notes fall in, so I just have a list of the notes):

• Cardamom, Asian Cyprus, Elemi, Juniper, Saffron, Calamus, Black Tea, Black African Olibanum, First Vanilla, Bourbon Vanilla, White Musk

I’m not even going to attempt to break down all of these notes, but I will describe what I smell when I wear Eau Duelle. This is one of my favorite fragrances of all time, so there may be some fangirling.

At its heart, Eau Duelle is a spicy, amber-vanilla fragrance. This is a vanilla scent for adults, not for teenagers seeking to smell like a cupcake. This fragrance is intoxicating, smooth, intense, exotic and resinous. There is a touch of sweetness, that again, doesn’t make the wearer smell like a dessert, but harkens a bit to something more natural, perhaps even a touch animalic, as if the wearer’s body chemistry is producing this sweetness. Couple this with the earthiness of the Cyprus, saffron, and black tea and the scent will remind you of a dried vanilla bean pod that that’s laying in a bed of dried spices and incense. There is something slightly sticky about this fragrance - when I smell it I get this image of sap on a tree trunk that is slowly oozing from the tree at a glacial pace, so slowly in back that the sap is hardening and forming sweet globs of crystalized sap on the trunk. If you touch it, your fingers will have a slightly sticky residue that lingers on you finger tips. 

This is a sophisticated, mature vanilla that is slightly familiar, but different enough to turn heads and make people inquire about what you’re wearing. Eau Duelle is warm and inviting, a little spicy, a little earthy, a little animalic, and just interesting. It’s so difficult to describe this vanilla because it’s got so much going on beneath the surface, but it’s subtle.

Wear Time & Sillage: This has great wear time (for the eau de parfum - I can’t speak for the eau de toilette). A couple of sprays and I can smell it on myself all day. As do most of Diptyque’s fragrances, Eau Duelle sits close to the body, which is what makes is lean more on the sexy side. Walking past someone, they will catch a whiff of your fragrance, but just enough of a hint to make them want to get a little closer. Eau Duelle is the type of scent you spray just at the base of the neck, where the skin is warm and inviting and may be come intense in the wearer becomes flushed. It can be appropriate for any setting, just adjust the amount of times you spray to make it appropriate for the office or a date night out. 

Season: This is a scent that really shines in the winter - the slight spiciness and the rich booziness reminds me of the holiday season. This could easily get cloying in the heat and humidity, but on a crisp winter night? *chef’s kiss*

Recommended For: This is definitely a unisex fragrance, so people who prefer inviting, interesting vanilla scents with depth will really enjoy Eau Duelle. If you are looking for a vanilla that is an upgrade from the cliche vanillas that smell like baked goods (no harm in those…) then look no further. This is a cozy scent, the leans a little mysterious, so if you like fragrances that make you smell a bit coy or cryptic, then this is for you. When I smell of Eau Duelle, I think of a restaurant in Manhattan, on a cold winter night. The wearer is sitting at the bar wearing a minimalist, yet tastefully curated long black outfit, while sipping on something the color of amber, in a slightly smoke filled room. It’s just exquisite. I will always have a bottle of this in my collection. 

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Sukie, a student in her early 20s, lives with Nathan, a man in his late 30s. Nathan’s older sister married one of Sukie’s uncles, which is how they are acquainted. This short story takes place during the Christmas season and Sukie is back in Ireland from the United States for winter break. It’s evident that Sukie’s homelife growing up was troubled, which is why she’s been living with Nathan for quite some time. Sukie’s father has cancer and she is figuring out how to process this, while also figuring out what to do about Nathan, as the two have an obvious attraction to each other. 

You guys know me, I’m blunt. I really, really, really disliked Mr. Salary. Borderline hated it. This story is so odd that the whole time I was reading this I was rolling my eyes and saying outloud, “What is this?!”

The writing style is blunt, which in and of itself I don’t mind. It can be just as difficult to right in a sparse, direct style as is it to write in a flowery, descriptive manner. Just read the Ancient Greeks - they mastered the art of direct yet poignant and evocative writing. However, Rooney’s style here is not my cup of tea - in my opinion there is another elegant here. And yes, a writer can be blunt and direct and still be elegant. Homer; John William; Dorothy Whipple; Barbara Pym; Elizabeth Taylor... Her use of similar and metaphor are frankly, elementary and cliche - if I had used some these metaphors in my high school papers, my English teachers would have corrected me. I can hear one of them now in my head, “Didn’t I just teach a class on avoid cliche comparisons?” She thus would have proceeded to circle the offending sentence in pen and told me to try again. 

“My face was cold, burning with cold, red like a traffic light.” I’m just … not feeling it. 

Yes, this is a short story and constructing short stories is not easy, as the writer has less space to get the message across. To me, Mr. Salary felt disjointed and it seemed like Rooney was trying too hard to make this deep by piecing in other events got symbolize Sukie’s inner existential crises. There’s a life boat scene that really could have been omitted and that word count could have been used towards more character development between Sukie and Nathan. 

I winced several times throughout  this 34 page, petite book at a lot of the dialogue between Sukie and Nathan. It was just cringey and nothing I’ll quote here, lest IG flag my post for indecent content. 

To play devil’s advocate, I guess I can see what appeals to people about Rooney. There were a few sentences that “got to the point” in a way that most people may find relatable. 

Alas, this was a painful reading experience for me and even skimming back over Mr. Salary to write this review is making me angry. I’m mentally saying, “What the @#!& is this!?” And I still have her novels to read, which I will persevere through for the sake of my reading project. Perhaps I’ll like those a bit better than this. Pray for me. 

Rating 1/5. 

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It’s going to be a bit tricky summarizing the last quarter of Bleak House because here are some massive spoilers in the section, as one would expect at the end of a novel. Dickens spends Parts 16 through 20 tying up all the loose ends. There’s some more Richard & Ada drama, someone is in custody for murder but did they snag the right person, there’s some Sir & Lady Dedlock drama, and there’s definitely some Esther romance drama. #drama. 

I like how Dickens really focuses on the concept of forgiveness and redemption in this section of the novel, which is an overarching theme for him in the majority of his works. My boy Chuck just can’t say no to characters who are recompensed, have a Come to Jesus moment, and see the error of their ways. I’m here for it. 

One thing I asked myself throughout the novel, and more so as the novel came to an end is, 

“What was the point of Dickens using the case Jarndyce and Jarndyce as a backdrop for this whole novel?” After thinking about this for some time, this is what I came up with: I think Dickens is showing how easily it is for people to become consumed by and obsessed with things, especially when we think that thing pertains to us. For example, Richard hopes that the case will turn out a certain way so that he can reap the financial benefits. However, he allows this court case to take over his life. One can get so involved, that one begins to out on blinders and completely block out the life that is happening around oneself. What is the point, when one ends up missing out on what’s truly important?

So there we have it - Bleak House. This is such an engaging novel with a slew of interesting characters. For a 1000+ page novel, and compared to some of Dickens’ other novels, I found Bleak House to be approachable and fairly easy to navigate. The subplots did not bog me down and get confusing. I really enjoyed Esther as the central character - she’s funny, witty, smart, devoted and pragmatic. She deserves to be compared to Jane Eyre and Marion in The Woman in White. I think the three of them would make a fearsome trio to behold. I also think that Bleak House is a good novel for people to read who want to dive into Dickens’ novels, but don’t know where to begin. This is my fourth Dickens and I actually got a better understanding on how he constructs his novels with Bleak House. His works were serialized and it’s very evident with Bleak House; each chapter starts off a bit like a new episode. He likes to set the scene and then dive into what’s happening. Also, Dickens tends to have fairly static characters, which I don’t mind with his writing, because there are so many and they tend to represent caricatures within human nature. There is some character development in a couple characters, but it’s deliberately done. And lastly, the writing, as one would expect, is stunning. I say it over and over, but my Boy Chuck and turn a phrase. 

The more I read Dickens, the more I fall in love with him as an author, and dare I say he’s becoming a favorite? Bleak House was such a pleasure to read and this is a novel that will stick with me. I look forward to reading all of his novels and I have a fair amount of them unread on my shelves. I’m more and more eager to cozy up with them. 

Rating: 4.5/5 

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I like to read especially dense and to cozy reads at the beginning of the year, and what better way to do that than to start off with this very mixed selection for January. These books are so unrelated to each other it’s laughable. 

• Outlander: A Reread for me. I was in the mood for something familiar and also for pure escapism. I was able to start Outlander during the last week of 2021, so I’ve definitely got a head start. I’d forgotten just how quickly this book reads, how fun it is, how completely absorbing. I’m really looking forward to reviewing this one because there is so much to unpack. 
• Dracula: Continuing my buddy read with [tag]. I’m about halfway through and I am really enjoy it. It’s so well written, bizarre, a little eerie. So good. 
• Moll Flanders: Continuing this one from last month. I’m at the halfway point at the time of this post and… this book is okay. I don’t dislike it, but I am bored with it at this point. But you never know, my feelings may change by the end.
• In Search of Lost Time, Swann’s Way: After I finish Outlander, I’m diving into this masterpiece. So excited for the one and it’s one of anticipated top reads fo this year. [tag] and I decided to impromptu read this together!

What are you reading this month?

Ah here we are, at the beginning of another year with fresh TBR lists. I don’t have a goal for how many books I’d like to read this year, but I have selected some books that are “priorities.” I’ve also left a bit of wiggle room because as I read, I often get inspired by what I’m reading to read similar texts. I also have 2-3 books going on at a time, so this stack of books does not include what some of those other books may be. In fact, I’m not entirely sure what some of those other books may be - I have some ideas, but it’s not set in stone. 

Here are my priories for 2022:

• Outlander (reread) 
• Jane Eyre (reread) 
• The Old Curiosity Shop
• A Gentleman in Moscow 
• Bring up the Bodies 
• Vanity Fair (Potential buddy read with [tag])
• Transit 
• Pachinko
• Mansfield Park
• To the Lighthouse 
• The Italian
• The Count of Monte Cristo 
• In Search of Lost Time, Swann’s Way
• War & Peace
• Grove 
• Milkman
• The Idiot
• The Hobbit (not pictured)
• The Fellowship of the Ring (reread/not pictured)
• I can’t wait to show you guys my new editions of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings trilogy. They’re still in transit. 

What are you’re main reads for 2022. Have you read any on my list?

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3. The Secret History by, Donna Tartt - “There are such things as ghosts. People everywhere have always known that. And we believe in them every bit as much as Homer did. Only now, we call them by different names. Memory. The unconscious.” The Secret History is a book I still can’t get out of my head. It reminded me of how much I love ancient literature and rekindled that passion. It inspired me to reread The Odyssey, as well as add more Ancient Greek and Roman texts to my reading list. It’s also such a clever, dark, academic novel and I already looking forward to rereading it. 

2. The Brothers Karamazov by, Fyodor Dostoyevsky - “Actually, people sometimes talk about man’s ‘bestial’ cruelty, but that is being terribly unjust and offensive to the beasts: a beast can never be as cruel as a human being, so artistically, so picturesquely cruel.” I actually anticipated this novel being in the number one spot for the year, yet here it is resting in 2nd place. This is a close second though, because this novel is a thing to behold. It’s dense with philosophical debates and conversation on every element of society and human nature, written in such a way that only the Russians can achieve. It’s such a poignant look at familial relationships, religion, socialism, atheism, psychology, class, Russia as a whole, etc. I identified so much with Alyosha as a character and this novel has shot it’s way to the list as one of my favorite novels of all time. It’s massive but it’s a novel that deserves to be rereads over and over. 

1. A Little Life by, Hanya Yanagihara - “My life, he will think, my life. But he won’t be able to think beyond this, and he will keep repeating the words to himself - part chant, part curse, part reassurance…” When I decided to read A Little Life this year, I did not expect it to be the top read of the year for me. I went into this novel thinking it would lead to some interesting conversations, and that hopefully I’d like it, but I didn’t expect to love it and I didn’t expect it to leave this much of an impact on me. A Little Life has also made it to the list of one of my favorite novels of all time. I enjoy gritty, dark, uncomfortable and intelligent novels and this checks all the boxes. Yanagihara hit the nail on the head with this one - she perfectly managed to capture the essence of family, friendships, the highlights of life and the most unbearable elements of living in this novel. Another one that I look forward to rereading over and over again. 

What was your favorite book of 2021?

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I like to recap the 5 star books of my year. My ratings average at around 4, which means I really, really liked that book. It’s not uncommon for books that I originally rated as a 4 to bump up to a 5 on the reread. However, there has to be something “extra” for a book to receive a 5 on the first read through. 

Here are my 5 star reads of 2021: 

• The Odyssey - A reread. Classic. Nostalgic. War. Mythology. Voyages Home. Gods and Mortals. 
• Stoner - A reread. Existential. Dark Academia. Introversion. The quiet life. Story of a mundane, yet poignant person. 
• A Little Life - Survival. Friendship and Family. Endurance. Perseverance. The threads that weave together the entirely of a life story. 
• The Greek Way - The genius of the Ancient Greeks. The kernels of democracy. Ancient roots of the modern West. 
• The Brothers Karamazov - Philosophical. Dysfunctional Families. Poignant. Corruption. Redemption. 
• The Secret History - Murder. Why, not who. Dark Academia. Greek Madness. Intricate. Bizarre. 

I’ll be posting my top three reads in another post from this list. Any guesses? 

What are your 5 star reads this year?

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I have to say, the third quarter of Bleak House... woah what a blast! Parts 11 - 15 have to be my favorite sections of the novel so far, even though I’m already well into the last quarter of the novel (and almost finished) by the time of this post. There is some really juicy stuff happening at this point that I did not see coming, or even if I saw some of it coming, it was still engaging. 

Poor Esther recovers from being ill, but it doesn’t leave her untouched; Richard continues to obsess over the Jarndyce and Jarndyce case, while sinking deeper and deeper in debt; there’s some drama with the seemingly stoic Lady Dedlock; Mr. Woodcourt the handsome doctor makes an appearance (Esther is low-key in love with him); and there is another death (murder)! This is no means all encompassing, this is just what I can safely relay without giving away too much. 

I won’t continue to reiterate the themes I’ve come across in this update because I’ve covered them in my last two Bleak House posts - Dickens continues to principally discuss how the wealthy and philanthropic tend to ignore those who have those most need in their own back yards. We see this the most with Poor Jo. 

This section also really focuses in on Esther’s parentage and it’s some saucy stuff!

This is such a fun novel to sink into and there are chapters where I’m flying through the pages to find out what happens next because the drama is real. I’m really looking forward to seeing how Dickens ties this all together because he’s not still not revealing much about what Jarndyce and Jarndyce is about. This doesn’t bother me - there so much else going on, that I have to remind myself that this course case is looming overhead. 

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Today I’m here to potentially ruffle some feathers. 

It’s the time of year in which book nerds all over the internet start updating us all on how many books they’ve read this year, while lamenting how many books they didn’t get to read this year. Huh? Pick a struggle. 

Ok, don’t get me wrong, I keep an annual list of how many books I read each year because I find it to be interesting data. I like to see how the number changes from year to year, as it can be indicative of what else I may have had going on, or not going on. Was life extra busy? Was I in a reading slump? Was life extra quiet for some reason? Also, what type of books did I tend to gravitate towards?

However, I do not put any weight on this number at all, in fact, I do not set an annual goal of how many books I’d like to have read by the end of the year because, in all honestly, it means absolutely nothing. 

If you read 10 books this year that were meaningful to you, then you had a productive reading year. If you read one book this year but you loved that one book, you had a meaningful reading year. If you read 100+ books and you accomplished that goal, great! Good or you, you also had a meaningful reading year. And if you were in a reading slump and read nothing, that’s ok! Slumps happen and I’m a fan of embracing the slump. 

This arbitrary total number at the end of the year is incredibly suggestive and can’t be compared from one reader to the next. For example, not all people read the same, plus we all have different schedules and demands on our time. The person who read 10 physical copies of 1000 page novels, and read them page by page, pouring over the language and annotating them, vs. the person who listened to 250 audiobooks nonstop throughout the day at 2X the listening speed, in which the hard copies average 250 pages each … is that even comparable? I’m not saying one is less than the other, I’m saying they are two completely different “end of the year” lists, so don’t get your undies in a bunch. 

One does require the reader to sit down and tune the rest of the world out and solely focus on one thing, while the other is able to multitask. I do occasionally use audiobooks, though very rarely and for me, it’s an entirely different experience, but I digress, because I’m not here to debate the use of audiobooks, because I could really care less how someone chooses to read, I just like the fact that people are interacting with books. But let me reiterate - you’d be hard pressed to compare these two mediums. 

But it does make me pose this question - when people throw out these massive numbers at the end of the year … how much did they actually process and absorb, whether or not they used audiobooks or read the hard copies? It’s like an assembly line of books and content. And, did the reader only seek to reach this “goal” for the sake of saying “hey look, I did this thing!”? And again, don’t get all tight and raise your blood pressure - I’m sure that there are many people who can read a copious number of books in a year and recall the intricacies of the books, but it’d be naive to not acknowledge that there are also people who shallowly run through texts for the sake of appearances.

By the end of the year, my book count will total around 33 books, which is about 20 books less than last year and I’m totally ok with that. Yes, I do seek to read as many books as I can, but there is no goal. I get to what I can get to, when I can get to it. Last year was an anomaly because life literally stopped in some cases. There was nothing else to do but read. However, the books that I did read this year were no less meaningful and felt like a 100 books to me based on the richness of the content, how much I enjoyed them and the fantastic conversations that resulted from having read these books. 

So, again, if you read one book or 100, own it. The purpose of reading is to enjoy what you read, not to impress others with some vague, subjective number. You read for yourself, not other people, so take these lists with a grain of salt and don’t let someone else’s list make you feel “less” than. Comparison is the thief of joy. You do you. I like seeing what other people have managed to read by the end of the year, but that’s what they’ve managed to read. What on God’s green earth does that have to do with me? Let other people be great - it has no bearing on what you were able to accomplish reading-wise this year.  

I’m done. Thanks for coming to yet another one of my TED Talks. 

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Surviving Home by, Katerina Canyon is a collection of poems that provide glimpses into Canyon's troubled and abusive home life as she grew up. Canyon also writes about blackness/identity from her perspective. 

I've said before that I have a difficult time with poetry - often times I just have a hard time understanding what I'm reading. Pleasantly, I was able to understand the majority of Canyon's poems, though there were definitely poems or lines that completely went over my head. Her poems mainly focus on her home life - it's evident that her father was abusive and there was also drug use. In a few of the poems, Canyon shares her perspectives on being black - there are references to Trump, how the media capitalizes on certain movements/organizations, the current Pestilence that Shall not be Named, current events, etc.  Some of her points I said to myself "ok, I can see that."  Other points.... I just kind of scratched my head and said "correlation does not always equal causation."  For me, at this point in time, my eyes personally glaze over when people start talking about specific political figures or left vs. right, because it's been said over and over again that it's just exhausting, predicable, and decisive to me. It's like speaking in an echo chamber at this point and I'm officially bored with the political talking points now. However I'm all for freedom of speech so writers should and can write what they want to write. Canyon can write it, how she wants to write it, when she wants to right it. This is just my opinion. 

That being said, I always like to read writers with various perspectives and I often found that the way Canyon portrayed her points of view to be interesting. She has a really unique and creative way of using language that I find intriguing. Am I a poetry convert? No 😂 but I liked being out of my comfort zone and I think I'll reference this poetry collection from time to time because there are some really well written and thought provoking lines here. I think that fans of poetry may like this collection, especially if they like writing with a lot of grit.  

Here are some of my favorites lines: 

"My story is not one revealed with chapter 

And verse. It is expressed in blood and bone." 

"I hover through storms and report 

The heat index of memories." 

"In the end, I prefer to watch reruns. 

They sit on my mind like happy memories." 

Rating: 3/5

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Recapping Parts 6 - 10 of Bleak House by, Charles Dickens will be a bit more challenging than recapping say, the first half of The Brothers Karamazov. There are no long philosophical debates in this novel that one can spend an eternity discussing, thus making it easier to avoid major spoilers. Bleak House, in true Dickensian style, progresses in a way that definitely reminds the reader that this novel was serialized. It feels episodic. By the halfway point of this novel, there are some very interesting plot developments. The storyline proceeds with the reader still left in the dark as to what the court case Jarndyce and Jarndyce is actually about, Richard and Ada have a bit of drama, the married couple Mr. & Mrs. Snagsby have a whole lot of drama, poor Jo is always in everyone else’s way, and Dickens is throwing major hints at who Esther’s mother may be. If you can’t already tell, this novel needs a character tree because… there are a lot of them and these are only some of them. 

There is this whacky character named Mr. Skimpole, a grown man that Mr. Jarndyce refers to as a child because the man doesn’t function an an adult should - someone who can take care of their business without bumming off others. Skimpole is artistic and philosophical, but he’s living in a way that isn’t really functional. Dickens is posing a question here: What happens to a man that never settles down? Richard is seeking to obtain a career and he’s indecisive, while also getting distracted by digging in to the weeds of the court case. If Richard isn’t careful, and doesn’t focus himself, he could end up paralleling Mr. Skimpole. 

Dickens continues his commentary about how the wealthy are hypocritical and are willing to help abroad, while ignoring those in need within their own communities. He also blatantly states that those who may appear benevolent on the outside, due to their wealth and social status, can be some of the most devious of all. 

Lastly, the second death in the novel occurs and now I’m under the impression that these deaths are actually murders…

Again, it’s difficult to go into much more detail than this because I’m not trying to give away too much of the plot. I’m still surprised by how readable Bleak House is - it’s just a massive book and I think this makes it seem more intimidating as it is. Don’t get me wrong, this novel still suffers from the classic “way too many subplots” that is quintessential to a Dickens novel, but even these subplots are more manageable than I thought they’d be, and I know Dickens will cleverly tie all of these ends together. 

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Spoiler: This is my favorite fragrance of all time. If you told me to get rid of all my perfumes and I could only keep one, this is the one. Brace yourself for a lot of raving. 

Notes:

• Top: Cardamom, Lime Blossom, Grapefruit, Red Berries
• Middle: Blue Agave, Sea Salt, Lily, Orchid, Geranium
• Base: Cacao, Vanilla Pod, Cinnamon, Vetiver, Musk 

I cannot being to describe Blue Agave & Cacao without saying that this scent is absolutely intoxicating, sophisticated, alluring, intriguing, unique, sexy, warm, powdery, soft, sexy, classy. This is signature scent worthy. 

The Cardamom at the top is bright and inviting. I find that cardamom is a spice that can be quite a clean smelling spice. It can really liven up a scent. It’s warm, but not warm in the way you’d think of cinnamon or star anise being warm and heady. It makes me think of the cardamom in masala chai tea blends - it’s dry but vibrant.  The fruit and floral notes at the top and middle layers are extremely distinct to me - but blended together they serve the purpose of keeping this fragrance fresh and natural. This a gourmand scent, but not in a vanilla cake, candied type of way, but rather, it evokes the essence of the spices themselves. The fruit and floral notes really balance out this scent and keep it from becoming heavy or heady. Though it is warm, it remains clean. The base is really intoxicating here. The cacao is dry and soft. Think unsweetened, high quality, 100% pure cacao powder. This is not the scent of melted chocolate. Nothing about this scent is viscous or thick, it’s powdery and soft. The vanilla, cinnamon, and musk are also soft and dry. The cinnamon is barely present, but just relevant enough to lend a bit of spiciness to this fragrance. Again, it’s not candied, like in an overpowering cinnamon candy or gum, but it’s the subtle scent of a cinnamon stick (just one, but the whole pack) Let’s circle back to the sea salt note. How Jo Malone managed to do this, I have no idea. It reminds me of the combination of sea salt on top of a dark chocolate candy bar. It just subtly complements the sweet. It also adds a bit of a mineral quality to this fragrance that makes it uniquely sexy. I can see why Blue Agave & Cacao was inspired by Latin music. If you’ve ever danced and got a bit sweaty while wearing a fragrance, the perspiration and heat of your skin can enhance a fragrance. The touch of perspiration adds a slight animalic quality to the scent, which can be alluring. Hello, pheromones. 

Wear Time & Sillage: Blue Agave & Cacao, especially for a Jo Malone, has decent wear time. I don’t really need to top this up after I’ve applied it in the morning. However, I often find myself reapplying it because I can’t get enough of it. I want to inject this and have it coming out of my pores (emoji). It also has moderate sillage. Others can smell it on the wearer, but it’s not taking over the whole room. It definitely leaves a travel after you that is soft and alluring. People will want to follow you to figure out what you’ve got going on. 

Season: This scent can shine all year round. Remember, it was inspired by Latin music, so it really projects from the body when it’s warmed up. It’s never cloying or heavy. I personally prefer to wear this in the cooler/colder months because there is just something about this warm, soft, slightly spicy scent that is cozy. It makes me want to spray this on my soft wool sweaters. 

Recommended for: This leans feminine, but I’m sure there are men out there who could pull this off. That’s the beauty of personal body chemistry - if it works for you, it works for you. People who like gourmands, scents that are timeless, sophisticated, memorable and mature (but not old) will appreciate Blue Agave & Cacao. At the risk of sounding pretentious - those who want to smell expensive will achieve that here. And really, clocking in at $144 for 3.4 ounces… it better smell like it. The outfit that comes to my mind when I smell this is an individual wearing a cream colored wool turtleneck, paired with matching cream slacks. They have a camel colored over coat draped over the shoulders and jewelry is gold and minimalistic. Understated, yet impactful. Timeless. Man, I love this one and will always have it in my collection, as long as Jo Malone keeps it and if I ever catch wind again that it’s going away, I will hoard enough bottles of it to last me a life time. 

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Northanger Abbey is known as Austen’s satire on the gothic novel and she directly mentions the queen of gothic literature Ann Radcliffe and her novel The Mysteries of Udolpho frequently. Catherine is enthralled by this novel and talks about it every chance she gets. 

“Oh! I am delighted by the book! I assure you, if it had not been to meet you, I would not have come away from it for all the world.”

Catherine enjoys these dramatic, sensational novels, and yet she doesn’t seem to really reflect much on what she’s reading. Austen circles back around to this quality of Catherine’s later on the novel, when her lack of discernment and propriety catches up to her.

“It seemed as if the whole might be traced to the influence of that sort of reading which she had there indulged.”

These quotes made my chuckle, but it also led to me ask some interesting questions:

• What type of influence, if any, does fiction/the novel have on the reader? What happens when the reader takes fiction too seriously? What happens when we don’t reflect on and think critically about what we read? Does the author bear any responsibility on how their works are interpreted?

I think these are opened ended questions that don’t have right or wrong answers, but rather reveal just how dynamic, nuanced and individualized reading a piece of fiction is. Catherine complete dives into this gothic world of her novels and it does cloud some of her judgment, yet this is contrasted nicely with Henry Tilney, Catherine’s love interest, who also enjoys these works of fiction, yet he is able to draw a sharp distinction between fiction and reality. 

Austen provides quite a bit of commentary on the benefits and joys of reading novels, yet this is my favorite quote that made me laugh out loud.

“The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be incredibly stupid.” 

Ouch, Jane Austen. Ouch.

As in most of Austen’s novels, a central element of the plot is dependent upon the relationships/friendships between females. Catherine becomes friends with Miss Thorpe, her brother’s love interest, and Miss Tilney, Henry’s younger sister. These two women couldn’t be more dissimilar - one is pushy, bossy, dramatic and selfish, while the other is calm, quite, a bit reserved and kind. There is quite a bit of drama that results with one of these women in particular, but Austen still uses both of these characters to provide some really lovely quotes and thoughts on the value of friendship and the important of female companionship. 

“There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends. I have no notion of living by halves, it is not my nature. My attachments are always excessively strong.” 

I also enjoyed Austen’s commentary on the differences between men and women - I found these passages quite hilarious. Some may see this as archaic, but I find it really entertaining. 

Rating: 4.5/5

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