Preliminary 5-star review. Will post a full review and adjust the rating accordingly after I finish the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC copy of this book, in exchange for this honest review.

Laura has done it again! This book is honestly GENUIS in it's concept, whilst being fast paced and a tale you won't be able to put down.

This is not just a mere Dorian Grey retelling, this is an exploration of the issues around body image and societies obsession with beauty. This book HEALED parts of me in ways I don't think I can truly explain the way I love this book. It's enjoyable whilst exploring a topic that is usually shied away from.

The concept of Dorian Grey and the way Laura has shaped it, have made a tale that honestly your brain will just scream at; it works in a way that now when I think of the tale of Dorian Grey. It's Laura's version I will remember and hold close.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It helped me to get out of a reading slump. The theme of beauty and the standards women are held to was done beautifully.

A sapphic YA horror academia very reminiscent of other well known books in the dark academia genre, especially ‘If We Were Villains’.

I did enjoy this but found the plot to be lacking, it’s very much a character driven story but felt like we didn’t delve deep enough into other characters - just the narrator.

There were some good discussions about body image and pressure from society to look a certain way, throughout the book and I think this was done well.

**Please check triggers before reading**

My god. My god almighty. Laura Steven, who do you think you are? This is absolutely everything I needed. I love Penny and Catalina; I loved this world; I loved the magic; I loved the emotion thrown into this. This made me cry for real, it made me chuckle at times and it made me swear. The ending… just WHAT - but in the very best way. These kids just… yeah, went through a lot. There’s bits about this theatre school that made my skin crawl. There’s bits about this that showed me the power of humanity and loving yourself. There’s bits of this that made me wanna throw stuff. There are so many important messages in this about loving yourself and accepting yourself, about forgiveness and the power it has. I just… I need a lie down now.

Who am I to turn down a sapphic Dorian Gray inspired mystery? Every Exquisite Thing follows Penny Paxton, daughter of an actress following in her mother’s footsteps in more ways than one, when she is offered the chance to stay exactly how she is forever through a painting of herself. Laura Steven’s writing held some gems, mental health was handled carefully and still provided some beautiful insights into Penny’s mind.

Something I especially liked was the discussion of the pressures girls go through growing up and the standard set for beauty, how we are set against each other at a young age and how generational trauma does not avoid the privileged. A stunning read.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book to review.

"Girls don't want beauty. Girls want power. And sometimes beauty is the closest substitute."

There are books in life that just draw you in and will stick with you forever, not just because of the characters, but because of the lessons you learn from them. Laura Steven's newest book Every Exquisite Thing is one such book worth every single star I've rated it.

A sapphic reimagining of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray with a dusting of Darren Aronofsky's 2010 hit Black Swan, Every Exquisite Thing follows the story of Penny Paxton, who attends the infamous Dorian Drama Academy where she meets rival Davina Burns after both auditioning for the role of Lady Macbeth. Penny desperately wants the lead to impress her actress mother, and does something so cutthroat it lands her in the lap of Orlagh Camran who offers Penny the chance to combat her Hunger without ever having to worry about her looks again.

Penny is like an onion, she has layers to her that not even she remembers until in the liminal world - which felt like an acid trip. She wants so desperately at the beginning to succeed, that Penny sees the lead of Lady Macbeth as being the be-all-and-end-all. It's not, and this is something that she learns. This is only partial to the driving force in Penny making the decision to have her portrait painted. When she discovers her hair is falling out she wants to preserve it. Along with the fact that she sees the painting as a way of combating her eating disorder. It's a shallow decision ultimately, but Penny needs to make this choice in order for her to learn. Without it, Penny would have continued to struggle with her body image.

"Bodies are just bodies, but they're also not. Bodies are sex and power and identity."

Identity is a heavy theme throughout Every Exquisite Thing. It's something that Penny is yearning for in the shadow and expectations of her mother, it's her reasoning in controlling her body weight, and ultimately the decisions that she makes. Catalina is Penny's counterweight: curvaceous and seemingly comfortable with her body, Penny learns from Catalina that she too struggled with eating until she was diagnosed with type one diabetes. And then you have Davina, who as a ballerina is perhaps even more skin and bone than Penny. Body image is something that has become so pivotal over the years through social media and western ideals. Teenagers are taught that you have to look a certain way in order to get anyway, but Laura Steven works to reverse this, it reminds us of body positivity and to be confident in who you are as a person because there's more to us than the way we look. It's a book that I wish I could have read when I was fifteen or sixteen, characters to show me that the bullies were wrong.

There are so many layers to this book. It's full of twists and turns, and I just wanted to keep peeling back the layers until I had devoured everything. Honestly, the opportunity to be on the street team for Laura is amazing, and to have been able to read this and review it before release is humbling. It's an important book that everyone should read and celebrate.

This book is not for the faint of heart, and if you do have any triggers or mental health fights, especially around body image, bullying, or eating disorders, I would highly recommend reading the triggers, and considering carefully before you read this book. As much as it is a beautifully emotional, and Empowering read, it also produces much sorrow and thoughts towards your own situations; That I will admit leave me needing to take a break mid read for some calm down time.

Laura Steven has done it again, and created a beautifully emotional yet, twisting story with such a simple yet complex idea and world. Characters that you relate to on a deep level and leave you feeling so much in your heart and soul. The pain that engulfs their mind and body. As I said above this book is not for the faint of heart, it is a rollercoaster of fantasy and mental health, combined into a spiritual journey, inspired by the story of Dorian Gray, but taken to a new level any fan will darkly love.

If you are a fan of books like Bitterthorn by Kat Dunn, With Fire in their Blood by Kat Delcorte, and enjoy the writing styles of those authors, as well as Holly bourne, or just fell in love with Laura Steven’s Society for Soulless Girls, I would highly recommend going to your local Waterstones or popping online and buying this book, so you too can feel in the depths of your heart, this emotional mental health rollercoaster dipped into a fantasy world that will leave you sitting there for hours, pondering your own emotions and feelings.

One of the best things I have read in 2023 so far - WOWZERS what a book! Such a topical read with a historical setting that is so relevant for today. A must buy when it comes out!

Every so often you read a book that will stop you in your tracks. This is one of those books.

The way Laura deals with body image in this book is like nothing else I have read before. It's the book you wish you had when you were a teenager, and that you want to give to everyone to read.

So please, do me a favour, and when this book is released, run, don't walk, and buy it! Or better yet, pre-order and get a beautiful limited edition copy!

[Thanks to NetGalley and the author Laura Steven for providing me with an ARC copy of Every Exquisite Thing]

Every Exquisite Thing is a feminist dark academia retelling of The Picture of Dorian Gray spiced up with horror, thriller, and mystery elements. We follow the story of Penny, a young woman who has just entered Dorian Drama School. Her goal is to become a famous actress and prove to her mother - who is also a notorious actress - that she's worth her love and attention.

Dorian Drama School takes in only the best thespian talents and Davina is one of them: she's known to bring men to tears during her audition without even uttering a word. As Penny navigates classes and rehearsals, Davina becomes her rival and Penny resorts to having her portrait painted by a mysterious painter who is known for preserving the beauty of the subjects he portrays. But where is the catch? Who has killed Penny's mentor? And why are the subjects of the mysterious painter dying one after the other?

The rivalry between Davina and Penny is well-developed and most importantly enjoyable: it is not based on some childish quarrel but driven by a deep hunger for success. The side characters are complementary to the story, and I have to admit I immediately grew fond of Catalina, one of Penny's flat mates.
The pacing is perfect as the story progresses without being rushed or watered down. The prologue is entriguing and captivates the reader from page one.

Main characters and side characters' psychology are carefully depicted. Penny isn't the usual spoiled girl: she's both fragile and tough, has been through events that broke her and deeply changed her, has a very complicated relationship with her mother, and most importantly with her own body which she strictly controls. Davina is the other side of the coin: if Penny managed to grow up and maintain a somewhat positive and cheerful attitude, Davina has learned to hide her feelings behind a thick armor and a scornful and sarcastic demeanor.

The idea of a Dorian Gray retelling is carried out beautifully: the readers find themselves in a drama school, where talent, beauty, and ambition are key factors to success. Beauty as a universal value, as a currency, and beauty as a means to reach fame are at the core of the criticism against beauty standards imposed by Western society. As one of my favorite quotes says: "Girls don't want beauty. Girls want power. And sometimes beauty is the closest substitute."

The Picture of Dorian Gray is one of my all time favorite books, so my expectations were very high when I started reading Evey Exquisite Thing. I have to say that I was completely satisfied by my reading experience: this is one of the few books that took me from 30% to 70% in one sitting. I was completely hooked and couldn't stop turning pages!
The feminist and societal topics are well inserted in the story and I really appreciated reading reflections about how girls and women are impacted by imposed beauty norms.

!!! - Some very delicate topics are discussed in Every Exquisite Thing, so be sure to check the trigger warinings before diving into the story - !!!

4.5!! Loved this reimagining of Picture of Dorian Gray!
It was so sinister and captivating. Definitely don’t need to know the original story to enjoy this, but fun to recognise references and parallels. Honestly, I’d rather read this fabulous sapphic version than the original 🤣

The setting of a prestigious drama school was brilliant, adore these kind of dramatic, dark academia vibes. It reminded me of If We Were Villains, but think this one is slightly more accessible in its writing style.

The themes felt incredibly salient with all the focus on body image and societal beauty expectations. So many of the feelings and anxieties were relatable!

I would have perhaps liked a bit more depth to some of the side characters, wanted to know even more about Catalina, Maisie, Davina and Fraser. But, what we did get was interesting! They were all so different, but united by their talents and all the portrait drama!

Great spooky sapphic book! Would be perfect for a Spooktober read!

Every Exquisite Thing is exactly as it says on the cover: exquisite in every way. A sapphic, dark academia retelling of Dorian Gray which delivers a real punch to the gut. Think mysterious school, sentient portraits, compelling mystery and complex characters with powerful emotion.

Penny is starting at the magnificent Dorian Academy in her pursuit to become an actress. Having lived in the shadow of her famous actress mom all her life, this is Penny’s chance to really make her mother proud. A mother who is cold and quite frankly callous to her daughter, showing little care or love no matter how hard Penny tries to impress her.

Upon securing a lead role in Macbeth, Penny starts mentoring with the infamous Orlagh Camran who offers Penny an opportunity not to be missed: to have her portrait painted by the mysterious Masked Painter. A portrait that will immortalise Penny forever - but at what cost?

From here Penny’s world unravels as she comes to terms with the consequences of her deal with the ‘devil’. Little does she know how much her own fate will become intertwined with her new enemy: the ‘barbed wire’ Davina.

“I was so perfect before the world told me otherwise.”

I loved the exploration of beauty standards, power and self-worth in this book. Penny’s journey through self-loathing and self-loving made me feel so many different emotions and I think Laura Steven has done a spectacular job with her character.

Full of complex, layered characters with a compelling, addictive storyline, I can confidently say that Every Exquisite Thing is going to be HUGE when it hits shelves in September. Get your preorders in now - you won’t want to miss this!

Thank you to Farshore Books, Laura Steven and NetGalley for my early review copy in exchange of a fair and honest review.

'Being beautiful is so important to me and I don't know why that is. I don't know why I would value it over my life'

This is a retelling of The Picture of Dorian Gray from the POV of young women. It is a story that every woman should read; however, I would highly recommend it to young girls as the struggle is real! The struggle to be seen, to be individual, and to have a sense of identity is a struggle that most young girls, if not all, have. This is explored expertly throughout the book in every character, no matter their background and privilege, or lack of. Laura expertly navigates the topics of body image, eating disorders, and traditional beauty standards.

Despite the diversity of the main characters, they were all relatable. I felt like I could identify with each one and it is hard to pick a favourite.

From the moment I picked this book up, I could not put it down. The story was well-paced, captivating (I can't count the number of times I sat up in bed), and left you wanting more! There are so many quotes in this book that hit you hard. My favourite is 'I was so perfect before the world told me otherwise'; I cannot wait to receive my physical copy so I can reread it and go mad with my tabs!

This is my first read from Laura Steven (unforgivable!) but I loved it so much that I ordered Soulless Girls halfway through!

Thank you to Laura Steven, Farshore, and Electric Monkey for the chance to read and review this book early.

5 stars

Content warnings: eating disorder, body horror, mild mention of drugs

Tropes: enemies to lovers,

Character rep: Sapphic, minor diabetes (character has an insulin pump).


I was lucky enough to get an arc of this book thanks to Laura and the publishing team. All opinions are my own.

This book is one of the best that I have read this year. This has been on my radar since I heard about it. I loved "The Society for Soulless Girls" and I knew I'd love this. And I was not wrong. First I was gay for Alice, now I'm gay for Davina too (both of them could step on me).

This book has an amazing Gothic vibe and the way that Laura tackled the topic of body image and eating disorders, it is dealt with in such an understanding way. From the first page, I was hooked.

The main cast of characters are all so nuanced that it's so easy to fall in love with them all. It's so difficult for me to pick a favourite between Davina (see reason above) and Catalina, who is just the best friend to Penny and is a complete sweetheart.

There were a few parts of the book that stood out to me, with one scene in particular, where Penny questions feeling worthy of an act of kindness from her friend, where the gremlin voice inside her brain is making her feel unworthy, and her inner child questions why should she feel unworthy, in this scene, I felt myself represented in Penny and it was healing to see how Penny changed as the story progressed and how the actions she took brought her closure.

This was a book I needed in my life and I'm glad that I have read it and I will be recommending it to everyone who I think will enjoy it.

"Dedicated to the girls who are born hungry" every now and then you read a book and it resonates on so many levels with you "Every Exquisite Thing" is that book - this was the book that I needed at school, this is the book I needed at Uni, this is the book I needed in my 20s, 30s and now in my 40's it brought so many feelings back to me but in such a cathartic healing way!

Picture this: a sapphic dark academia retelling “of The Picture of Dorian Gray." But ,you don't need to have read the original to get lost in Laura Steven's interpretation.

We join our main protagonist Penny, daughter of an iconic actress turned model as they start at the prestigious Dorian drama school an elite school that makes or breaks you! But Dorian is not as it seems there is a more than meets the eye.

Penny takes the stage as Lady Macbeth (talk about a power move!) and life imitates art with some serious scheming. In Dorian tradition the lead is assigned an esteemed mentor but this relationship doesn't last long and we are taken on a deep dark academia dive filled with murder & body horror as Penny and her friends rush to unravel the dark secrets at Dorian. 



This book is beautifully written with the most angst ridden enemies to lovers that I’ve read in a while. I loved the found family in this tale and Penny's housemate, Catalina, is an absolute gem and must be protected at all costs - those descriptions of baked goods!! I’ve never craved fictional treats more!

The themes explored in this book are heavy so please check your trigger warnings but the author's note at the start is everything. This book is a takedown of traditional beauty standards and explores body image- it is utterly raw and filled with feminine rage!

"Every Exquisite Thing" is an absolute mood and can we talk about the ending??!! What was that???!!!! I devoured this book, I didn’t want it to end but when it did I needed to sit with my feelings, this is a really special book.

"Haunting, horrifying and honest - all in the best way!”

The Picture of Dorian Gray but make it feminist? Perfection!

This book delivers everything you imagine it will, and more. It truly is horrifying, with the creepier moments scarring images into my mind. And yet, it never feels like the horror if glorified or unnecessary, it is so beautifully woven into the story.

But the real takeaway of this book is how it discusses and deals with body image and eating disorders. There were many moments that had me in tears from the shining honesty on the page.

Just like The Society for Soulless Girls it is also delightfully queer and neurodivergent, with a sprinkle of romance throughout.

This is truly a book that I wish I could have had as a teenager, and I am so glad that it's here for the younger generation.

We join Penny, daughter of icon Peggy Paxton, as she joins the illustrious Dorian Drama School... under the shadow of her famous mother, who also attended (even as a drop out she's still has a swathe of adoring fans). Her mothers shadows come with a weight of expectation and Penny is battling to keep up with these and make her mum proud.

When Penny gets the lead in Lady Macbeth, her newly assigned mentor makes her an offer of eternal youth, only by sitting for one portrait. Penny simply cannot refuse as it seems like she would be getting the perfect image without the constant effort.

But when the same mentor is found dead after Penny has had her portrait, Penny realises just how sinister the offer she has accepted is... can she figure out what is happening before her new found youthful life is cut short....

Now, when I heard the pitch of feminist horror/thriller retelling of the Picture of Dorian Grey from the same author that brought me the feminist Dark Academia Jekyll and Hyde retelling .... I knew I needed it.

What I didn't know was just how profound this book would be, it made me feel feels!

Thank you to Laura Steven, Farshore and Electric Monkey for the chance to read and review this book early. Albeit all opinions are my own (and I am glad I have also preordered the stunning Waterstones edition as this is definitely a book that I will be proud to have on my shelf as well as my kindle)

This is released on 14 September... I cannot wait for this book to be out in the world

This book. Oh. My. Gods. You know that feeling when a book knocks all the air from your lungs and leaves you staring into space thinking you might never pick up another book? That.

Every Exquisite Thing by Laura Steven promises a sapphic, dark academia retelling of Dorian Grey, a haunted portrait gallery trying to murder people and a deep dive into beauty standards, and it absolutely delivers.

The Dorian Drama Academy is the perfect setting: old, decadent, with dark, sprawling estate vibes and a lake filled with vicious swans.

Penny has come to make her name in the acting industry, desperate to make her mother proud. It hit me hard in the mummy issues. Her mother is so distant and dismissive, and nothing Penny does ever seems good enough for her. Penny's journey back to her self is the most beautiful thing about this book for me. Honestly, the way this was explored was very healing for my inner child and I loved it.

Penny is obsessed with staying beautiful and Laura dives into this with Penny's disordered eating, which is dealt with beautifully and sensitively. When she's offered the opportunity to stay beautiful forever with a portrait in an exclusive gallery, she jumps at the chance. But, of course, actions have consequences and Penny ends up in a situation she didn't expect.

Alongside all this, she's made an enemy of Davina. Davina is all sharp edges, spiky, stompy boots and venom. If Soulless Alice is a throat punch, Exquisite Davina is being slammed hard and fast into a stone wall (were I not old enough to be her mother without it being a scandal, I would let her slam me into any wall she liked and thank her for the opportunity).

When other portrait subjects start showing up dead and aged, and warning marks appear all over Penny's body, she and Davina are forced to work together and it is just exquisite. The way this mystery played out floored me. The ending had me screeching (in a very literal way).

Put simply, Every Exquisite Thing eviscerated me and I will absolutely let that happen again. Don't sleep on this book. It's out in September.

Thanks to the absolute legends at @farshorebooks for approving me for this.

I couldn't put this book down--it's smart, enthralling, and has so many important messages for teenage girls about beauty standards and societal expectations.