Ling Ling Huang’s Natural Beauty is a hypnotic descent into the grotesque allure of the wellness industry, where the pursuit of perfection veers into horror. Suspenseful and slow-burning at first, the novel builds an unsettling tension as its narrator, a former piano prodigy, finds herself drawn into Holistik—a high-end wellness brand that promises transformation but demands something far more sinister in return. With sharp, lyrical prose and an incisive critique of beauty, capitalism, and assimilation, Natural Beauty is as intoxicating as it is unsettling.

When the narrator abandons her promising career in music after her parents are in a car accident, she takes a job at Holistik, recruited by the enigmatic Saje, who recognizes her from her conservatory days. Holistik is a temple to curated perfection, offering customized treatments and supplements that promise an almost divine level of beauty enhancement. As part of her onboarding, the narrator is required to undergo biometric testing and consume mandatory supplements—dispensed from a remote-monitored necklace—gradually molding her into an indistinguishable replica of her colleagues. The novel’s prose shimmers with eerie beauty, as the narrator initially revels in her newfound social capital: “There is no longer any way to deny it. I am becoming my best self.” But as she looks in the mirror and sees her ethnicity, her individuality, and even her autonomy slipping away, the cost of this transformation becomes horrifyingly clear.

Huang deftly critiques the commodification of beauty, exposing how capitalism preys on insecurity while enforcing homogeneity. Holistik’s ethos of “natural beauty” is anything but—it is curated, manufactured, and consumed, reinforcing the unsettling truth that in this world, even ethnicity is malleable if it serves the aesthetic ideal. The novel also delves into the pressures of assimilation, tracing the narrator’s struggle to navigate expectations, first as a prodigious musician and later as a willing participant in the elite beauty industry. Her gradual loss of identity is as much a reflection of societal pressures as it is of Holistik’s sinister machinations.

As the novel builds to its climax, its speculative horror elements fully emerge, culminating in revelations about the grotesque origins of Holistik’s products and the chilling experiments conducted under the watchful eye of its young, tech-visionary CEO, Victor Carroll. The novel’s pacing shifts dramatically in its final act, a rapid unraveling that some readers may find jarring. Yet, the underlying themes remain potent—who profits from beauty standards, and who is consumed by them?

One critique I had was the novel’s ambiguous handling of implied childhood sexual abuse, pedophilia, and incest. These themes, while unsettling, were never directly addressed or resolved, which felt unnecessary and potentially triggering, given their lack of impact on the overall plot. Despite this, Natural Beauty remains a compelling, thought-provoking read that lingers long after the final page. Huang’s ability to weave haunting, poetic imagery with biting social commentary makes this a standout debut. I was so enthralled by her writing that I immediately requested an eARC of her follow-up on NetGalley—if Natural Beauty is any indication, her next work will be just as mesmerizing.

📖 Recommended For: Fans of lyrical speculative fiction, social horror, and incisive critiques of beauty culture; readers interested in the intersections of capitalism, race, and bodily autonomy; Mona Awad, Sayaka Murata, and Ling Ma enthusiasts.

🔑 Key Themes: The Commodification of Beauty, Assimilation and Identity, Power and Exploitation, The Allure and Cost of Transformation.