Sathue is going to be big on the horror scene, especially with such a satiric and feminist take on vampires, the beauty industry, and getting the eyes of other horror greats on it (see: Rachel Harrison).

A young woman works for a shady cosmetics company. Simple enough premise, right? Definitely not what you think, though! Beautifully written prose, with a b-plot that I wasn't specifically sure where it was heading. A little on the anti-climactic side, sure, but definitely worth a read. This short book has moments of humor, bougie references, some great imagery, and feels, in what I think might be part of the point, a little detached from the main events. This mostly works in its favor. You have only as much of an idea as Sophia does.

How far would you go for eternal beauty and youth?

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC!

This was fun! In terms of the trend of beauty being killer in fiction, I thought the writing in this really differentiated it from the pack. It was lyrical, beautiful and haunting, and it really gave a kind of dreamlike quality to the book.

here we go, another entry in the ever-growing pantheon of beauty-related horror books, joining the likes of Rouge, Aesthetica, and so on.

in this story, we have sophia bannion, new employee at a new york-based skin company called HEBE. after meeting the company figurehead tree whitestone, sophia is given a new product to try - youthjuice - a serum that has absolutely incredible impacts.

this story oscillates between two timelines - her current day job at HEBE and hanging out with her ridiculously wealthy addict best friend and beauty influencer roommate dom, then back in 2008 where she and her frenemy? mona discuss boys (a specific line about pete wentz made me side-eye) and try to navigate the world without catching the negative attention of the mean girls in town.

right off the bat, you know that sophia's past is important and something within it contributes to the fact that she's always in gloves; her hands are scarred and replete with self-inflicted wounds. pretty soon into her youthjuice skincare regimen, sophia realizes that the scars on her hands are... healing? no, they're disappearing. what's in that sauce?

you may have heard the name elizabeth bathory referencing this one and if so, you already know where this one is going. (soylent green is people, etc.)

there was some weird, unhinged stuff in this to be sure, especially what's going on with sophia and her roommate in her roommate's bathroom. honestly though, with a comp title like american psycho, i think i was expecting this to go a little bit harder than it did.

i'm a big fan of books like Kill for Love and Boy Parts, both of which felt like they'd have a similar vibe to this book. this book, for me, ended up being just okay, like a thriller author tried to dabble at horror and couldn't quite escape the confines of their original genre. like, don't get me wrong - this is a good book, but i do think that the horror could have been more horrific. i wanted to be surprised. i wanted to be horrified! i was neither of those things and felt like i was calling every reveal before i read them.

let's bright side this, though - if you're not a horror person, this is the book that you need on your radar. you'll get the creeps and it'll work for you. good for me, great for most.

This is a fun horror. It's kind of exactly what I was hoping for when I requested it something where I don't exactly love or relate to the characters but I'm here for the plot and the juice.
Feels like a guilty pleasure horror book!
I say pick this up if you're looking for something kind of fun and grotesque and creepy that'll make you think twice about your skincare regiment.

"youthjuice" by E.K. Sathue offers an intriguing exploration of society's constant obsession with eternal youth. It's body horror and the beauty industry. The concept is engaging, but this just didn't work for me as much as I hoped it would.

Thank you to NetGalley and Soho Press for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Body horror meets the beauty industry in this tense little story about a girl who takes a job at a prestigious beauty company. Quickly pulled into the upper circle of the company, Sophia is let in on the company's secrets, secrets that can stop aging in its tracks, secrets that come at a cost. As her status rises and her long-suffering skin-picking habit quells, Sophia will do anything to stay where she is. It's a slow-growing tense book that exposes the darkness lurking beneath the desperate scrambling to stop the visual aspects of aging before they ever begin.

I really enjoyed Sathue's fresh and unhinged (in the best way!) voice, but the overall story didn't do it for me. This was my first foray into the body horror genre and it's not for me but I can see how the right audience would devour this one right up!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending an ARC.

Like a cross between American Psycho and Mona Awad's Rouge. I loved this horrifying take on the beauty industry. A life-changing skincare routine that will having you seeing red... A gruesome, batshit in all the best ways read.

One of 2024's best horror novels!

I found the characters very hard to connect with. The writing was monotone and the storyline was predictable.

You might call me a connoisseur of unhinged women protagonists. I am lured to their stories like the proverbial moth to a flame. Their wildness, their unhinged-ness, it calls to me and makes me feel light and airy.

Sophia, light and innocence and forced smiles as she may seem, is made almost purely of this wildness. And when an unhinged woman starts working at a company owned and operated by women even MORE unhinged, that's when the real weird shit begins.

You'll likely read many reviews about how this is a critique of the modern beauty and wellness community. How young influencers are devoured for their beauty and easily discarded the second they have a frown line. And on the surface, that is exactly what's happening in this story.

But Sophia's story goes much deeper than that. And we are treated to an additional 2008 timeline, where 16-year-old Sophia first unfurls her own wildness, takes chances, and pushes her own boundaries.

I loved this book from start to finish. I love any story where you know people are doing objectively bad things but you can't help but root for them anyway. Those are my women. Those are my ladies. So get yourself a night cream and an oat milk latte and settle in for this look into the dark and horrible female subconcious.

I was provided a copy of youthjuice through NetGalley in return for my honest review. My thanks to NetGalley and E.K. Sathue.

This was so Glossier coded!!

As someone who works in the beauty industry, for a beauty publication, this book hit too close to home for me, despite it being categorized as horror story. And while I love beauty industry hot takes and exposures, this one fell a little flat and felt like this was a story that’s already been told. I read Natural Beauty late last year, and this book felt eerily similar. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy this story because I did!

It’s dramatic and graphic, and the FMC is trash and her boss is an even bigger dumpster fire. Must love detailed descriptions of blood, biting, peeling, etc., to get through this one.

(Thank you, Soho Press and NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.)

”The blood is the life!”
Poor old Renfield knew it. Dracula stole his sanity but left him with the knowledge that blood has magic properties and it will keep you young.
According to legend the Countess Elisabeth Bathory also knew a lot about the rejuvenating powers of human blood. The story (as you probably already know) tells us that she slaughtered hundreds of servant girls to bathe in their blood and keep herself young forever.
The blurb on this book talks about it being “American psycho meets The devil wears Prada.” The countess is a much more important inspiration than Bret Easton Ellis fames serial killer.
Sophia and the other women at HEBE are monsters but hey are another breed of monster than Patrick Bateman.
I must confess that this book is rooted in a culture I´m not very well versed. I´m a man, 50+, and the only skincare product I use is my son’s moisturizer. I don´t follow influencers and I only have a TikTok account to keep an eye on book trends. This did not in fact hamper my ability to enjoy the book. E. K. Sathue has crafted a novel that works without any deep knowledge about makeup and the wellness industry.
I had actually hoped for a bit more horror in the book. Some parts lean into body horror but to be fair I was expecting worse. It´s well written and the parts that takes place in 2008 helps round out Sophias character and helps the reader understand her motives.
A good debut and I will definitely keep my eye on E. K. Sathue. I see great promise here.

This book was WEIRD, in a wonderful way! I loved the concept and the weirdness throughout. While it won't be a fan favorite at our library, I believe we will be able to find an audience that loved it as much as me!

Beauty company HEBE is working on a new product called youthjuice, which promises to grant someone beauty and youth forever. but at what cost? Sophia spends the novel navigating the cost of beauty while simultaneously remembering her complex relationship with Mona, Her childhood friend.

The novel does a wonderful job alternating between the two timelines, which complement each other well, especially as it relates to themes of youth, beauty, and superficiality. though the novel falls under the horror genre, we don’t see too much horror until the latter half. The criticism of the beauty industry is clear and hints of the faults of late-stage capitalism peak through too.

Here’s a great quote: “in the future, age will be a myth; we will speak of wrinkles and turkey necks the way veterans on the winning side of the war speak”. The beauty industry, according to Sathue, is so intense that the characters feel comfortable comparing it to war. This itself is a great moment of commentary on the beauty industry itself. There is a lot to be said about this novel, especially after some analysis.

I wanted this to take to me places of sinister intent like "Tender is the Flesh". Overall, I enjoyed the book, it was slightly predictable, however, the art of story telling kept me going! Definitely not for everyone, but if the summary of the book hooks you, give it a try!

I enjoyed this one. There's plenty of neat stuff going on -- solid body horror, satirical overtones, plenty of weird scenes. Overall, the quality was good, but it wasn't one I missed when I put it down. That being said, I like the author's style and look forward to their future books.

I need to start this review with the cover. It’s amazing. It’s especially going to stand out among horror titles. I read this as a digital ARC, but I may buy a copy just because I love the cover that much.

As for the story itself, I understand the ‘American Psycho’ comparison. The main character, Sophia, has Patrick Bateman levels of detachment and superficiality, and it works for this kind of book.

The plot is a bit predictable, but I didn’t find that it detracted from my reading experience. If anything, my culture shock fed into the horror more than me wondering about what was next. My only real complaint was wanting the descent into madness to go further, almost like the author was holding back.

Overall, it’s a well-done satirical horror on the wellness culture. Good for fans of dark comedy who can withstand body horror.

I wanted to love youthjuice by E.K. Sathue; the description of it sounded fantastic. I was especially interested in its body horror and was considering it as a possible example for one of my creative writing classes. Unfortunately, the novel fell short, especially on its promise of horror. There were some jaw dropping moments with Sophia and her "decaying" roommate. These scenes were deliciously squirmy and made me wish for more of it. Given other books satirizing or using the wellness and/or beauty industry as a source of pain, youthjuice didn't push hard enough to say anything different. The reveal of the secret ingredient was so expected and not at all shocking. The tension with the police, especially once Sophia ran into the officer on the street, was deflated quite quickly. The fate of the last intern was brushed over - blink and you miss it. And, worst of all, in the final act, Tree was a lump of nothingness, no fight, no anything. For such a formidable character, this was a big miss.

I do look forward to seeing what E.K. Sathue does next. This book had a lot of potential and I believe the writer does, too.

I received exactly what I was sold. American Psycho meets The Devil Wears Prada. This was quick and disturbingly addicting. The idea was clever and relevant to millennial women in a world of TikTok skin-influencers along with youth and health obsessions.

I did, however, find myself occasionally bored while reading. And I hate to say the characters needed more depth, because the irony is not lost on me that they’re supposed to be shallow. But maybe some witty dialogue could have compensated for intentionally bland characters?

I’m not sure what the answer is, but my investment was low. This was simply short and interesting and made me chuckle and cringe a few times. Perhaps someone more involved in this industry would have enjoyed it more.