The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro

In 1922, Eva d'Orsey is only 14 when she becomes a chambermaid in the Warwick Hotel in NYC.  In 1955, Grace Monroe is happily married to an rising member of London's elite until she discovers he is having affair.  The she receives a letter asking her to meet with a lawyer in Paris where she learns that she has inherited a fortune from a woman she has never met - a woman named Eva d'Orsey.  So in alternating chapters, their stories unfold among the mysterious power of fragrances that have the power to change lives.  This was so much fun to read even for someone whose experience with perfume extends to lime scented Dove soap.