"In 1533, an Italian orphan with an uncanny knack for creating fragrance is plucked from poverty to become Catherine de Medici's perfumer. To repay his debt, over the years Rene le Florentine is occasionally called upon to put his vast knowledge to a darker purpose: the creation of deadly poisons used to dispatch the Queen's rivals. But it's Rene's other passion -- a desire to reanimate a human breath, to bring back the lives of the two people whose deaths have devastated him -- that incites a dangerous treasure hunt five centuries later. That's when Jac L'Etoile -- suffering from a heartache of her own -- becomes obsessed with the possibility of unlocking Rene's secret to immortality. Soon Jac's search reconnects her with Griffin North, a man she's loved her entire life. Together they confront an eccentric heiress whose art collection rivals many museums and who is determined to keep her treasures close at hand, not just in this life but in her next." -- Provided by publisher.