Audiobook9 hours
Perfume and Pain: A Novel
Written by Anna Dorn
Narrated by Natalie Naudus
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
()
About this audiobook
“Perceptive and witty—like a Sally Rooney novel set in Southern California.” —Star Tribune (Minneapolis)
“It’s this author’s best work yet. A Sapphic roller-coaster ride.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
A controversial LA author attempts to revive her career and finally find true love in this hilarious nod to 1950s lesbian pulp fiction.
Having recently moved both herself and her formidable perfume bottle collection into a tiny bungalow in Los Angeles, mid-list author Astrid Dahl finds herself back in the Zoom writer’s group she cofounded, Sapphic Scribes, after an incident that leaves her and her career lightly canceled. But she temporarily forgets all that by throwing herself into a few sexy distractions—like Ivy, a grad student researching 1950s lesbian pulp who smells like metallic orchids, or her new neighbor, Penelope, who smells like patchouli.
Penelope, a painter living off Urban Outfitters settlement money, immediately ingratiates herself in Astrid’s life, bonding with her best friends and family, just as Astrid and Ivy begin to date in person. Astrid feels judged and threatened by Penelope, a responsible older vegan, but also finds her irresistibly sexy.
When Astrid receives an unexpected call from her agent with the news that actress and influencer Kat Gold wants to adapt her previous novel for TV, Astrid finally has a chance to resurrect her waning career. But the pressure causes Astrid’s worst vice to rear its head—the Patricia Highsmith, a blend of Adderall, alcohol, and cigarettes—and results in blackouts and a disturbing series of events.
Unapologetically feminine yet ribald, steamy yet hilarious, Anna Dorn has crafted an exquisite homage to the lesbian pulp of yore, reclaiming it for our internet and celebrity-obsessed world. With notes of Southern California citrus and sultry smokiness, Perfume and Pain is a satirical romp through Hollywood and lesbian melodrama.
“It’s this author’s best work yet. A Sapphic roller-coaster ride.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
A controversial LA author attempts to revive her career and finally find true love in this hilarious nod to 1950s lesbian pulp fiction.
Having recently moved both herself and her formidable perfume bottle collection into a tiny bungalow in Los Angeles, mid-list author Astrid Dahl finds herself back in the Zoom writer’s group she cofounded, Sapphic Scribes, after an incident that leaves her and her career lightly canceled. But she temporarily forgets all that by throwing herself into a few sexy distractions—like Ivy, a grad student researching 1950s lesbian pulp who smells like metallic orchids, or her new neighbor, Penelope, who smells like patchouli.
Penelope, a painter living off Urban Outfitters settlement money, immediately ingratiates herself in Astrid’s life, bonding with her best friends and family, just as Astrid and Ivy begin to date in person. Astrid feels judged and threatened by Penelope, a responsible older vegan, but also finds her irresistibly sexy.
When Astrid receives an unexpected call from her agent with the news that actress and influencer Kat Gold wants to adapt her previous novel for TV, Astrid finally has a chance to resurrect her waning career. But the pressure causes Astrid’s worst vice to rear its head—the Patricia Highsmith, a blend of Adderall, alcohol, and cigarettes—and results in blackouts and a disturbing series of events.
Unapologetically feminine yet ribald, steamy yet hilarious, Anna Dorn has crafted an exquisite homage to the lesbian pulp of yore, reclaiming it for our internet and celebrity-obsessed world. With notes of Southern California citrus and sultry smokiness, Perfume and Pain is a satirical romp through Hollywood and lesbian melodrama.
Author
Anna Dorn
Anna Dorn is the author of the novels Vagablonde and Exalted. She is an associate editor at Hobart Pulp. She was a Lambda Literary Fellow and her second novel Exalted is a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. She lives in Los Angeles.
More audiobooks from Anna Dorn
Vagablonde Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Exalted: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to Perfume and Pain
Related audiobooks
Vagablonde Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Greta & Valdin: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Worry: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5A Good Happy Girl Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Fruit of the Dead: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Alice Sadie Celine Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Death Valley: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Poor Deer: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bugsy & Other Stories Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPiglet: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dead in Long Beach, California: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5You Only Call When You're in Trouble: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Like Happiness: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Interesting Facts about Space: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How It Works Out Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Goddess Effect: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Sons of El Rey Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Say Hello to My Little Friend Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Annie Bot: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mothtown Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Kittentits: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Things We Didn't Know Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rosewater: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Butter: A Novel of Food and Murder Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Happy Couple: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Margo's Got Money Troubles: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Help Wanted: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bad Habit: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Parade: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I Hope This Finds You Well: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Literary Fiction For You
All the Light We Cannot See: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Remarkably Bright Creatures: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tom Lake: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nothing to See Here Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Man Called Ove: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Bell Jar Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Demon Copperhead: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Alchemist Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Yellowface: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Covenant of Water Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Stardust Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Picture of Dorian Gray: Classic Tales Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Road Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Poisonwood Bible Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The One Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Measure: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cloud Cuckoo Land: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Ocean at the End of the Lane: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Where the Forest Meets the Stars Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lost Bookshop Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Future Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Flowers for Algernon Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beneath a Scarlet Sky: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Keeper of Lost Things: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Norse Mythology Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anxious People: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Their Eyes Were Watching God Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5To Kill a Mockingbird Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Perfume and Pain
Rating: 3.96 out of 5 stars
4/5
25 ratings0 reviews