mcresnick3's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
i was captivated the whole time, and i really like a horror-y, culty book that starts by making you feel a little uneasy and then devolves into utter chaos. i liked the musical elements, as well as huang’s treatment of the narrator’s race and class backgrounds and their interplay with starting and continuing at holistik. i thought that some things (some of the wellness/beauty ideas, some of the descriptions of the first gen immigrant experience) were a little heavy-handed/tropey, but the world she created and the stakes and the horror were all excellent, and it was a super impressive, fun, and thought-provoking debut novel
malnuro's review
3.25
the writing just felt too detached and clinical which prevented me from getting attached to the characters. i felt like some of the scenes in the book felt very disjointed so i got confused while reading some parts
zoe_marie's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
wambsreads's review
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Sensational debut.
notoriousesr's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
When the unnamed narrator of Natural Beauty, a former piano prodigy, gets offered a plum sales job at a health beauty boutique, she thinks she can finally pay for her parents’ care facility. But not everything at Holistik is what it seems.
This book was a good debut, but it certainly felt like a debut. I thought it had a lot to say about race, beauty, heritage, and exploitation, but sometimes it felt too obvious. This is not to say that I didn’t enjoy it--it was a pretty good literary horror book! It’s creepy, gross, and intelligent, and nothing about the main character felt wasted or irrelevant. Huang also did a great job of continuously upping the stakes and putting our naive protagonist in increasingly difficult and complicated situations. However, some of the arc felt a bit rushed, especially for how eerie the set up was, and the climax could’ve benefited from being a bit longer. I might need to re-read it to catch everything, but there were also some things that felt underexplained to me that I won’t put here; I don’t want to spoil anything! It’s still a good, suspenseful read. Overall, Natural Beauty is 3.5 out of 5 face creams.
This book was a good debut, but it certainly felt like a debut. I thought it had a lot to say about race, beauty, heritage, and exploitation, but sometimes it felt too obvious. This is not to say that I didn’t enjoy it--it was a pretty good literary horror book! It’s creepy, gross, and intelligent, and nothing about the main character felt wasted or irrelevant. Huang also did a great job of continuously upping the stakes and putting our naive protagonist in increasingly difficult and complicated situations. However, some of the arc felt a bit rushed, especially for how eerie the set up was, and the climax could’ve benefited from being a bit longer. I might need to re-read it to catch everything, but there were also some things that felt underexplained to me that I won’t put here; I don’t want to spoil anything! It’s still a good, suspenseful read. Overall, Natural Beauty is 3.5 out of 5 face creams.
deltajuliet83's review against another edition
3.0
The creepiest part of this book is knowing that people would really do this stuff… anything for beauty.
reunitepangaea's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5