I think fans of Salley Rooney will love this book! Unfortunately, it wasn’t for me. There wasn’t much of a plot and the majority of the characters were unlikeable. I do think many people will enjoy it though!

What a wonderful debut! Enough plot to make things juicy and fantastic exploration of so many interesting themes about art: the relationship between a model and the artist, art and money, and art and politics. Would highly recommend and can't wait to see where Angress goes next! Many thanks for Ballantine Books (Penguin Random House) for the early copy!

- SIRENS AND MUSES is atmospheric, enveloping the reader in the characters' art world bubble.
- It's got a touch of Donna Tartt to it, with the wealthy college students getting wrapped up in each other and their studies, and I think anyone who has ever been in an art program (hi, me) will find some aspects of the story highly, maybe uncomfortably, relatable.
- This book gets really deep into questions about what and who is art for, and while the fine art vs the internet throughline could have been trite, I think it was pretty well done. Additionally, the bits about how so much art has simply become items for wealthy billionaires to trade around...whew.

a striking debut that's left me very eager for future works from the author.

opening on three students and one visiting artist at wrynn, a fictional art school, sirens & muses follows the four over the next year of their lives. half campus novel and half musing on the NYC art scene, angress navigates an abrupt mid-book shift in environment with impressive deftness. the writing is mature, emotionally compelling throughout, and largely incisive in its commentary on class and the commodification of art. angress is clearly very knowledgeable about the contemporary art world and even from my distinctly outsider perspective, it was easy to feel drawn into the setting.

the novel is indulgently ambling, focused more on the interplay of characters and their creative processes over any particular plot. while the four POV characters are treated to fairly equal attention, louisa and karina felt vastly more developed than preston and robert (granted, i was inevitably going to be drawn more to the plot of young sapphic artists and the intimacy of it all—portrait de la jeune fille on feu was not far from my mind at times).

set in the early 2010s, sirens & muses manages to dodge the social and political atmosphere that would follow in short time. preston runs a photography tumblr full of loud and provocative photoshop jobs, the occupy movement is building steam, social media is a very limited part of how the characters interact with the world. in short, the world of sirens & muses feels very much on a precipice the characters aren't aware they're facing down.

there was fat to be trimmed in parts and certain aspects of its commentary that i'd have liked to see expanded more upon, especially in regards to robert's past, but on the whole everything comes to a satisfying if open-ended conclusion. perfect for those looking for art novels and different spins on the dark academia niche. an earnest recommendations from me!

thank you to netgalley and ballantine books for providing this digital review copy in exchange for an honest review

This impeccably crafted debut novel takes place at an elite art college and in New York City's art studios and galleries. Roommates Karina and Louisa navigate creative ambition, academic competition, envy, and sexual exploration in a contemporary high-stakes drama. Secondary characters challenge Luisa and Karina in all the best and worst ways. The pulse of prose and details--sometimes hilarious and always cinematic--draw readers in from the first splash of paint. SIRENS & MUSES is character-driven literary fiction that will appeal to fans of Sally Rooney and Stephanie Danler. Reflects coming of age themes and tension explored in SWEETBITTER, but in the art world. A most anticipated novel of 2022. Ideal summer reading for those looking for an escape into the realm of art, love, and places in between.

“𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗸𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗱𝗿𝗮𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲,” 𝗥𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱, “𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗽𝘂𝘁. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘄𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗳𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆.”

The real shift and changes are in the people on the pages of this novel. In Sirens & Muses, art students attending the ‘elite’ Wrynn College of Art, haven’t all sprung from fountains of wealth. Louisa Arceneaux is a scholarship student, a Cajun who feels out of her element. Her roommate, the talented and beautiful Karina Piontek, whose natural confidence and grace seem effortless for the daughter of wealthy art collectors, intimidates her. Louisa is hungry to draw her, even dreams about her but Karina isn’t exactly inviting. Naked under the eye of fellow art students, it isn’t long before the work she loves no longer measures up. Karina’s art is bold, taking up space with a bravery Louisa wishes she had. Eager to befriend her, Louisa is surprised to learn that Robert Berger, a professor whose new exhibit is in the Wrynn Museum, is someone Karina knows through her mother. Karina never imagined she would like someone like Louisa, but she reminds her of an image that anchored her since childhood. Louisa doesn’t feel entitled to her position, unlike Karina, she is lucky to be there at all.

Karina’s life isn’t as charmed as other’s imagine and her parent’s partnership not exactly tender nor equal. She is thrilled to be away from their drama. Robert’s work isn’t as provocative she hoped, either yet she is hurt when he rebuffs her. He is a political artist, who the reader soon sees, has lost his bite. Art hasn’t moved the earth for him, and he fell into his ‘brand’ years ago, so much has changed since his burning youth, how is it possible to stretch beyond boundaries set in the past? How to get back that hunger? Now he has a student named Preston Utley crawling under his skin, challenging him, humiliating him even. Karina is attracted to Preston’s controversial reputation, his sharp, witty humor and the fact that her parents would hate him. They stand for exactly the thing he is against, owning art pieces that only the affluent can enjoy, hanging on their bedroom walls for their own pleasure. Preston’s disgust with the corporatization of the art world is a driving force, is well documented on his popular blog, witnessed through his antics, his own daring work drawing attention of powerful people. His is the art Robert misses and resents, the kind that has the potential to change the world. There is a grudging respect and envy going on between them, jealousy. Robert joins the Occupy Wall Street movement, it gets him away from the problems his Artforum essay caused, a piece that puts Preston on the defense, making a mockery of the student’s passions. It is the perfect movement, one that demands more funding for the art education, jobs and the return of looted artifacts but Robert’s heart isn’t fully invested. Still, when he returns to New York he creates designs for the group. Nothing is working out, his depression is growing in size and a bigger challenge to his life comes from Preston’s retaliation, attacking Robert’s retrospective. Preston’s past looms, there seems to be a sense of self-hate considering he is part of the class system he mocks, rages against. Where does this hatred stem?

Karina and Louisa are becoming much more intimate, spending nights together in the studio, forming passionate secrets. Despite the sordid rumors she catches about Karina, she becomes Louisa’s muse, but the deeper their relationship goes, problems arise in her life. Louisa doesn’t have the comfort of wealth to keep her dreams afloat, she doesn’t want to return home and staying in New York is beyond her means without a job. Her mind is occupied by what her financial difficulties will mean for her future with Karina and reality is, she must factor Preston in. It’s all falling apart, her fears do hold her back, but Karina isn’t as open and free as she pretends to be either. Louisa has been intimidated by Karina’s wealth, her grace and the ease she moves through the world, as if it’s her rightful place but she is beginning to see her more clearly. The truth has a way of killing passion, and desire. Can you truly love someone if you haven’t chipped away at their façade? It is more than their class differences that could tear them apart, each have their own limits to scale, social and psychological.

Is New York really the only place an artist can go? Home doesn’t feel like enough, even if Louisa’s art is Cajun, she is hungry for more than what her own mother settled for. She struggles with loyalty to family and her own vision for her future. Karina is breaking down again and it is Preston she turns to, he is much easier to control, doesn’t bring the heightened emotions Louisa does. Together, they can be something big in the art industry, it is a ride to somewhere great, to contracts. He is preoccupied with ‘dismantling the system’ and his big plan is going to disrupt all of their lives. Robert just wants to feel the way he did in his youth, when his work flowed freely, alive and full of meaning. In this new age of internet presence, he just can’t seem to find solid footing, but Preston is on his way to going viral.

This is about the cost of ambition, the struggle for self-fulfillment, disillusionment, talent vs the times, class, and self-discovery. There is love and betrayal, because what story about artists would be without that? Through Robert we have a maturing artist butting heads with the hunger of youth and through Karina and Louisa, a chance to conquer timidity that is expected of the have nots. There is quite a bit going on in this novel. It begs the question, what is good art and who decides? Is it cultivated from the heart or aimed at the publicity it generates?

Publication Date: July 12, 2022 Available Today

Random House

Ballantine

A stunning debut novel about art and queerness and the limits of commercial appeal. I loved following each of these characters and had no idea where this book was going next. I can't wait to see what's next for Angress! Her prose is electric.

The writing is beautiful and the relationships complex. I enjoyed reading the e-galley and appreciate the way it combines art with the characters' lives.

3.5 stars (rounded up). Lyric and dark debut novel about the art world. I enjoyed the peek into the art world (and art academia), and I liked the characters. This would've received 4 actual stars from me if there had been more of a plot. More a study on what it means to create art, own art, the dichotomy between poor artist and rich collectors, than a story with a definitive plot (beginning, middle and end), it was still an interesting read, and I did enjoy it.

It’s 2011: America is in a deep recession and Occupy Wall Street is escalating. But at the elite Wrynn College of Art, students paint and sculpt in a rarified bubble. Louisa Arceneaux is a thoughtful, observant nineteen-year-old when she transfers to Wrynn as a scholarship student, but she soon finds herself adrift in an environment that prizes novelty over beauty. Complicating matters is Louisa’s unexpected attraction to her charismatic roommate, Karina Piontek, the preternaturally gifted but mercurial daughter of wealthy art collectors. Gradually, Louisa and Karina are drawn into an intense sensual and artistic relationship, one that forces them to confront their deepest desires and fears. But Karina also can’t shake her fascination with Preston Utley, a senior and anti-capitalist Internet provocateur, who is publicly feuding with visiting professor and political painter Robert Berger—a once-controversial figurehead seeking to regain relevance.

When Preston concocts an explosive hoax, the fates of all four artists are upended as each is unexpectedly thrust into the cutthroat New York art world. Now, all must struggle to find new identities in art, in society, and amongst each other. In the process, they must either find their most authentic terms of life—of success, failure, and joy—or risk losing themselves altogether.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed herein are my own.

Sirens and Muses by Antonia Angress is a novel that explores being a young adult in college and being confronted with the realness of adulthood and finding your own way, while discussing politics and the culture surrounding art.
Our main characters are Karina and Lousia. They are both roommates at their university. They both have talent although their art styles are quite different. While exploring their feelings for each other, they have to decide whether college is the best choice for them and how to pursue their art into the world that comes after school is over. The two other POV characters are not as primary, but have no less interesting perspectives. Preston is a photoshop artist that likes to pull pranks, some that place him in a lot of trouble with his school and the art world in general. He is not a likable character, but his POV is still enjoyable and brings a perspective of how difficult it is to be against the system while still using it to your advantage. The last POV character is Robert, a teacher at the university who has passed his prime in the art world, but is still struggling to remain relevant and influential.
I enjoyed the perspectives that all of these characters provided. Their perspectives flowed easily and believing them to be real people was effortless. I was invested in all of their lives and the choices that they made, no matter how good, bad, or human they were. It at first reads as a bit of a pretentious dark academia book, but it truly has a lot more to it than just that. It doesn't make any definitive statements necessarily, but certainly asks a lot of questions. It also seems relevant considering the parallels between its setting in 2011 and our own current economy, and while I'm definitely not a student of art, it definitely seemed to know what it was talking about.

Interesting book but hard to review. It’s not that I particularly disliked anything, but there wasn’t anything I particularly liked, either. The descriptions of the art were fascinating and educational, revealing just what varied forms art can take and something of the thought and physical process of the artist creating it, and I wish I could see some of that art actually created. The history and movements and protests that have taken place in the name of art were also interesting and at times eye-opening.

But even though Sirens & Muses has lots of big words, big dramatic words, and lots of big personalities and drama to go with the big words, the story just kind of goes round and round and at the end everyone is more or less where and who they were to begin with. Life in the art world, even in art school, seems to be totally devoid of joy. Instead it’s competitive, cutthroat, pretentious, snobbish and money- and class-conscious. Those who “get” art “deserve” it and everyone else is beneath notice. There’s a hierarchy, a community with high walls and unwritten rules and lines that must not be crossed. As presented, an artist’s life is stressful and uncertain from beginning to end and you must be dedicated and driven to put yourself into it and stay there.

The characters are of course all artists and connections criss-cross in their small world: students, educators, past successes, current failures, family histories. All but a couple of them have something in their past that contributes to their current, often reprehensible, behavior, but their issues are mostly stereotypical and these surface-only characters don’t elicit much sympathy or sense of understanding from the reader.

The narrative moves from person to person and place to place telling everyone’s story and ends somewhat vaguely hopeful for some of them. I didn’t need complete closure or happy endings for all, but I do wish I could have been more engaged in the characters’ lives so that I would care. Thanks to Penguin Random House for providing an advance copy via NetGalley for my honest review. I believe I was sent the ARC because I enjoyed Ghosts of Harvard. Sirens & Muses does have a little of the college vibe and the undercurrent of what goes on, but the art world is much different, and although it is well-written Sirens & Muses lacks the strong character depth and exciting plot of Ghosts of Harvard. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine for the opportunity to read an advance copy. All opinions are my own.

This is hard to rate because I actually did really enjoy reading this, it’s just that, well, nothing happens. I spent the entire book wondering what the point of the story was, where it was going, if it was going anywhere.

There’s no forward motion for half the main characters—Louisa ends up moving backwards, Preston finds success but never becomes a better person or less of a hypocrite. Karina’s arc moves forward, but glosses over so many details and major events. Robert’s ends positively, but with him too there wasn’t much progression until the last quarter. Because of this, the lack of a real plot can’t even be excused by calling the book character driven, although this is at least more true.

I liked that the stories of the four main characters all branched out from the same nexus, and that they had cameos in each other’s lives at the end. But, at the same time, having four POVs didn’t work as well when we didn’t get a really deep dive into any of them. Personally, I didn’t care about either of the men, but either way I think focusing on only one or two of the four stories would’ve been beneficial.

The choice to have this book set in 2011 gives me mixed feelings. I guess the idea was to include the Occupy movement as a backdrop? But setting it more contemporaneously would’ve left plenty of options for movements that could serve a same or similar plot purpose. In a weird way, by setting the story a decade in the past, it kept the story from feeling dated; the references to 2011 culture are all references to what is remembered a decade later, whereas references to current culture wouldn’t have that factor. Mainly, though, I just didn’t see the point of it. Setting the book in 2011 didn’t add anything to the story or really effect anything in any way.

A story about four artists struggling in their own ways and their deep-rooted connection with one another through money, power, sex, and art. Karina, Louisa, Preston, and Robert are showing the meaning between capitalism and art in their own interpretation. Robert is an older man who is teaching at the institute, he is depressed with the overarching issues he has with her own personal and professional life not revolving. Preston is a senior who is seemingly disconnected from the real world, using his family's money to run away from his trauma. Louisa is a small-town girl attending this school for a better chance at making it as an artist in New York. She is haunted by her mother's attempts at the same goal. making her imposter syndrome worse and worse. Lastly is Karina, a gifted yet troubled artist living in the shadows of her parents' success in the art selling business.

I found Karina and Louisa to be the most compelling. They start off as strangers, roommates but living totally separate lives from each other. After they form more of a bond and Louisa asks to paint Karina nude for a project, their feelings for each other and the intimacy grows. I found Robert and Preston to be boring a lot of the time. While Preston is a big part of the story and Karina's character, I almost felt Rober was not needed in my opinion. I would have actually enjoyed this book more if it was about Karina and Louisa figuring out their relationship with the addition of the side characters. Other than that though, I did really enjoy the intention of this story. The art imagery and character development were strong and engaging.

I knew I'd love this book as soon as I looked at the cover.

Sirens & Muses is about the lives of four artists from when they attend art school to a time when they're all trying to make it in the art world of NYC.

All four characters were incredibly well developed and it's clear that the author has a passion for art. A lot of the themes of the book are moody and brooding, but there are tender moments as well. Antonia Angress writes beautifully and I can't wait to pick up anything else by the author.

A character driven story about art, meaning, and the making of them both. Set in 2011, this is a perfect screenshot of its era’s snobbery (tumblr art!) despite the characters’ earnestness. The novel gives 4 perspectives, each character connected to an elite art school, and uses these perspectives to illustrate (or outright state) opinions on the relationship between art and politics.

Karina and Louisa’s relationship is wrought with attraction, respect, rivalry, and intimidation. Katina is a rich Manhattanite with raw artistic talent, a detached manor, and messed up family life. Louisa is a shy, creative scholarship student, deeply connected to her home in Louisiana. The two are roommates at an their art school, where they eventually work together and become romantically involved. Their relationship is sweet and loving, but ill-fated and full of ennui.

Surprisingly, I found myself looking forward to political-artist-turned-visiting-prof Robert’s point of view most of all. It’s interesting to watch a man redefine failure, reckoning with the selfish decisions he made in moments of grief. He’s a clear villan at the beginning, but shifts into something else- because this book doesn’t have villains (although Preston makes a good case for himself). There are not good people or bad people, just people acting with varying degrees of love and selfishness. Angress beautifully sets up Preston and Robert as foils; the humanity a reader can see in them after all that they’ve done speaks to the author’s impressive writing. When Robert waves to Preston at the end of the book, it’s one man waving at another, recognizing each other’s personhood.

Clever, too, is how the economic and political change of the time affects (or does not affect) each of the 4 main characters. Robert is hurt only when his reputation is tarnished. Katrina is untouchable financially, but victimized by men. Preston struggles financially, but is also able to use his privilege to manipulate movements, swerving in and out of capitalism as it benefits him. Louisa, an outsider with no capital, bears the brunt of the turmoil. There’s no one-to-one comparison, but it’s a clever move that speaks to each character’s privilege. It situated the book in the anti-capitalist rhetoric of the featured Occupy movement. My one ding for this book is that it participated in one of my pet peeves- saying nothing about race until a white main character, in a bad place and confronted with the experience of a person of color, thinks or says something like “this must be so much harder for you.” It’s not wrong- it just feels forced, a heavy-handed way to make sure all bases are covered. I wanted more for Ines.

Both thought-provoking and exposé-like in its depiction of the art world, this is a great read for anyone who loves dark academia, sapphic romance, art theory, or the kind of rumors that buzz around upper-crust circles. Thank you to Random House, Ballantine Books, and NetGalley for the ARC in return for an honest review.

Louisa Arceneaux, Karina Piontek, and Preston Utley are all students at New England's Wrynn College of Art, where Robert Berger teaches. Among them there is a love triangle, psychological drama, and epic feuds. Antonia Angress is a wonderful writer, I love all the fraught relationships between students and their parents, instructors, mentors, and muses. I feel like I got an in-depth look at the art world in 2011, from the Wrynn Painting Department to NYC studio work and Manhattan gallery openings.

I loved everything about this book except the way addiction is normalized, that people litter even if they feel bad about it, drink punch even though they know it's spiked, drink and drive, drink on an empty stomach, and worst of all was the way smoking is glamourised. Evenso, this book was a thrill to read.

Sigh. Art students Karina, Louisa, and Preston and their professor Robert tell this character driven novel of privilege (even when there isn't a lot of money) colliding with a bit of reality in 2008-2011. There are some bright spots in the writing but there is a fair amount of pretentious immaturity on everyone's part (including Robert who should know better). Granted, it's very much a coming of age novel set in part at an art school so arguably this fits. I suspect there's a small amount of write what you know here. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Wasn't for me but fans of literary fiction might give it a try.

Thank you so much to the publisher for sending me an arc of this in exchange for an honest review.

I just finished this a few minutes ago and I feel like nothing happened. That there was no actual plot, there was just too much going on.

In 2011, Louisa Arceneaux is a scholarship student at the prestigious Wrynn College of Art, having transferred from a community college in Louisiana. Unlike many of her classmates, including her roommates Karina, Louisa is neither wealthy or from a well-connected family -- and she struggles to find her place at the school. Soon, Karina, who had been keeping to herself, opens up to Louisa, and the two fall into an intense relationship -- all while Karina continues her relationship with senior Preston Utley, who often seems more interesting in provoking his professor and the school than in art. On the verge of graduation, Preston undertakes his greatest provocation to date -- and inadvertently sets his life and those of Louisa and Karina on a new course through the various dimensions of the New York art scene. From the remote college to the big city, the book charts the experiences of Louisa, Karina, and Preston as they learn about the opportunities and limits of talent, class, and a creative career.

This is a compelling and well-written story, full of vivid and complex characters and raising interesting questions.

Highly recommended!

A beautifully readable art-world novel that weaves satire, lust, and critique into a neat little package. My only complaint? I wasn’t ready for the book to be over!