The Scent of Jade is a fun and fast paced tale of misadventure in the Costa Rica jungle. Julia Fraser uncharacteristically decides to surprise her husband on his latest business trip in Costa Rica but their holiday idyll is short lived when Julia finds him inflagrante delicto amongst ancient ruins. Furious and upset, Julia flees into the jungle only to become hopelessly lost. After two nights in the bug infested rainforest, Julia is grateful to be found by blue eyed Juan until she discovers the jade stone she has been carrying since running away from her husband is a national treasure, and everyone wants to get their hands on it. Julia has to evade the bad guys and the police, rescue her husband from jail and figure out how to return the idol to it's rightful place.The Scent of Jade is a fun story though not without its flaws. I had a few small issues with the plot, but the major problem for me was the lack of reason for Julia to have taken the jade stone that becomes pivotal to the plot. Whereas some of the more outlandish facets of the story (like the pot smoking monkey) can be taken in the spirit of comic misadventure, I feel that this plot point is something that should be resolved (perhaps she picks it up to throw at him but runs before she throws it?) as it is a sticking point that has the potential to derail a reader. The story has a small element of romance but really its an adventure/comedy and there is plenty of both. Julia has to deal with a thieving monkey, a big breasted opportunist, gun toting mercenaries, annoyed police and a stone that controls the climate of an entire country. While the accumulation of the events verge on the ridiculous, the pace is convincing enough to ensure almost everything makes perfect sense. It's obvious DeTarsio's intent is to exaggerate for comic effect, which she does well. The humour of the writing makes up for the minor technical errors with the occasional muddled tenses. I giggled quite a few times at Julia's witty one liners, though being in the first person, much of the dialogue is internal rather than conversational. I liked Julia, despite her self involvement and questionable common sense. When she has to she fights for what she wants and tries to do the right thing. The other characters, including her husband Colin, rescuer Juan and his sister Julia (Hoolia) play their part well enough and fill out the story.It would be a shame to dismiss the entire book based on its flaws though because with its snappy one liners, likeable characters and plenty of action The Scent of Jade a light and entertaining read. It certainly made me smile and distracted me for a couple of hours on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The Scent of Jade was like nothing I have ever read before. It was fast paced and fun with some serious issues underneath it.It follows Julie on a weird adventure after she catches her husband with another woman. She runs to get away from what she has witnessed. However, she ends up lost in the Costa Rica jungle. Julie is very funny. I couldnt help but laugh quite a few times while reading her story. She is very down to earth and just very easy to connect with. On her weird and wonderful adventure she comes across a few characters of course my favourite is a monkey. LOL. I can't really say alot about the monkey I dont want to give anything away but its just funny. The story is very easy to follow and I easily got lost in it and was gripped from the very first chapter. The Scent of Jade is a real treat from my usual reads. Im not usually the biggest fan of adult fiction. However, Dee DeTarsio has a way with words that got me hooked and I will be reading more of her work. My only negative was the ending. Not I can't actually say much here without giving away a major spoiler. Even though the ending was good in way. I just felt if it was me in that situation I would have did it differently. (Sorry that doesnt really explain anything I just dont like giveaway spoilers in my reviews lol)Thank you Dee DeTarsio for letting me review this wonderful novel and I hope other will like it as much I do.
What do You think about The Scent Of Jade (2000)?
A fun read. Not a deep, lasting, memory but good enough to keep me turning the pages.
—Chindolo
Were it not for the last 10 chapters I would have enjoyed this book much more.
—BMXican343
