The Secret of Scent

The best science book of the year so far. - BBC Radio 4A rich sensory trip … this indispensable guide to all things smelly is as good as it gets. - Sunday TelegraphTurin writes brilliantly, with the easy confidence of the expert and the infectious enthusiasm of the true amateur. - Tim Radford, The Guardian“Highly recommended….With a gifted nose that ranges near-chromatographically over the perfumed landscape of human olfaction, the fabled hero of Chandler Burr’s The Emperor of Scent bridges modern science and the craft tradition of smell as no other on the planet….Galloping through a series of sprightly vignettes and interludes, he leads his readers to his raison d’etre, a theory of smell…The casual reader will learn more than enough to wow them at the perfumery in Bloomingdale’s or Galleries Lafayette, or at their next soiree. Buy it! Read it! Enjoy it! - Choice“A fascinating tour of the world of fragrance, provided by a knowledgeable and passionate expert.” - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)“Delightful … takes the reader through a tour of the almost infinite range of human olfactory possibilities.” - Science“You can see the world in a grain of sandalwood, and heaven in a wildflower–rose, lily of the valley or jasmine–with Luca Turin at your side… . This is one of those books that … open new windows on the wider world… . Turin writes brilliantly, with the easy confidence of the expert and the infectious enthusiasm of the true amateur.” - Tim Radford, The Guardian

Luca Turin holds a Ph.D. in biophysics from the University of London. Since 1996 he has worked on primary olfactory reception and the prediction of odor character. In 2001 he became chief technical officer of Flexitral, where he uses his theory of olfaction to design new fragrances and flavor molecules.