The Manuscript

[artisjok]

Quitely creeping into the castle window, the book theif tiptoes across the library in the dark shadows of night. Moonlight streams through the open window, gleaming across the spines of thick leather-bound books. She moves cat-like along sculpted shelving, knowing exactly where her target resides. The dark blue cover is covered in occult symbols. She runs nimble fingertips lightly along the edges of the thick soft pages and inhales deeply their sweet scent, encapsulated between dense leather. It seems to be whispering for the girl to unleash its secrets, promising power. An unearthly chill runs down her spine. Knowing better than to give into the lure of opening the volume without proper preparations, she tucks it into her cloak and retreats back to the window ledge. With one last glance into the gloom of the library, the thief vanishes back into the night air like a phantom. 

 

The Maniscript is full of imagery, full of forbidden knowledge and dark purpose. A story unfolds in each sniff. I’m enamored. 

 

Edited September 5, 2019 by artisjok

[CharB]

Im totally confused and disappointed in this one. I was so excited for it, but all I can smell, in bottle and on skin is mild V8 juice and a slight hint of mint? So I think Im detecting the 'chill', but what the hell. A few people mentioned smelling cucumber, which Im guessing is what Im interpreting as veggie juice? But there's something tomatoey to me too.. Maybe the ink is coming off as an acidic tomato-esque whiff? Also not getting leather nor paper🤔

Edited July 30, 2020 by CharB

[Dancing Raven]

If it smells like old books, dust, or paper I am all for it, so I had to try this one.

Wet: The Day Burned White. I actually own and enjoy that one, but it is very faint on me. This is a win and a loss because now I have a stronger version of something I already own. Hmmm. Definite cucumber for the ink (or plaster/paint since my brain interprets what it smelled this scent in first). I will need to test to see if there are any differences, but right now I'm not smelling any.

Drydown: Still TDBW (I only discovered BPAL a few years ago, so I don't know which scent came first, so maybe that one smells like The Manuscript instead). About 20 minutes in, some vanilla starts to come out to soften and differentiate this from the other one, but the cucumber/ink is still the strongest note.

Further drydown: The sweet vanilla finally takes equal billing. Now it's The Day Burned The Manuscript, and I am actually enjoying how it is developing. Then, as quick as flipping a switch (or a page in this case), I get a soft floral. It's faint, but sweet. It reminds me of violet for a brief moment. Heliotrope? It's vanilla/almond, so I am thinking yes. So far no leather and no chill or ghostly note. I am hoping to get some in the final drydown. It has become so light that I have to be practically nose to arm to smell it.

I think I will let this one sit for a while and retry it. I like where it was heading before it disappeared on my skin.

5 out of 5 stars.

[gamermouse]

This may be my all-time favorite book scent. It is gorgeous and far superior to the others I've tried prior to it. This is the ideal blend of leather and pages, with a splattering of ink that summons memories of drafting class in art school. I love the smell of the paper, but what I find most intriguing about it is the "ghostly chill" emanating from the pages. To my nose, it is cucumber melon, and that is absolutely fine with me because I wore nothing but cucumber melon throughout my high school days. This perfume unites precious memories, of books, of art, and writing.