Beautiful and Terrible Things is a contemporary ensemble drama centered on Charley, a reserved bookstore manager haunted by personal loss, whose life shifts when activist Xander introduces her to a diverse friend group. What begins as a supportive community soon reveals complex undercurrents of betrayal, trust, and mental health struggles—especially as Charley is pushed into activism and romance in equal measure .

The novel shines in its depiction of friendship dynamics—each character brings distinct voice, background, and emotional baggage, making the group feel alive and unpredictable . Stevens leans heavily into themes we’re reckoning with today: gender fluidity, racial equity, mental health, environmental activism, and systemic injustice. She avoids preaching, instead letting characters embody these tensions authentically .

However, this thematic ambition is a double-edged sword. The narrative sometimes buckles under the weight of its own social complexity, with occasional detours into underdeveloped side stories that sideline emotional arcs . Some characters, like the they/them–identified Sunny, illustrate important representation but can momentarily disrupt narrative flow for readers unfamiliar with nonbinary pronoun usage .

That said, some of the novel’s most resonant scenes—ranging from bookstore solace to heated protest—hit with a visceral quality. Stevens’s prose can be lyrical and immersive, especially when characters grapple with grief or solidarity .

Beautiful and Terrible Things may sputter under the load of its expansive themes and cast, but its core remains compelling: friendship as lifeline, betrayal as catalyst, hope as survival. For readers drawn to socially conscious fiction sparkled with emotional realism, Steiner offers something that feels both current and heartfelt. It's messy, it's loud, but it's real—and that’s worth reading.

Great read! First read from this author. This book makes me want to read more from this author. Kept my attention and interest until the end.

This felt like watching a movie drama. I could picture all the well written characters and envision the settings. It takes you through the ups and downs as they experience it. I wish I could have read it a little slower to take it all in. I will be re reading this again but I feel everyone should give this story a chance. It is so real and the situations complex and diverse. I am glad I was given the chance to try this one.

Initially whilst reading through the early pages of this book, I’m not sure what it’s supposed to be about and although part one is mainly an introduction to the characters in this book, although Charley is the main character I’m quite drawn to Xander who is so quirky and full of life.

During part two, Xander and his friends get together for the weekend and include Charley for the ride. It’s just lots of bonding of friendship a lot of talking about current affairs and past histories and communicating just what friends are supposed to do I suppose. It’s revealed that the company just works for is possibly going to tear down the bookstore where Charley works and lives and turn them into condos. But until this decision is made permanent, she has to hold it herself but shares it with Terrance.

This book does talk about immigration, race and sexuality a lot and the resentment and issues experienced that are raised from these demographics in society. There is an incident that shows how black men feel and are treated after being pulled over for no apparent reason, the racism that’s shown towards them just for the colour of their skin. That particular incident bought tears to my eyes, because of the pain and anguish and the relief at him coming away alive. But it also showed his anger to be treated so badly so degradingly by the police just for being black.

It’s also goes onto describe illegal immigration and the issues surrounding it within American corporate businesses. The action of one of the group members was to find somewhere that a corporation could purchase cheap, so that it could be razed to the ground and then build condos in its place. The only trouble is they became friends with Charley, who lives there. So to try to make amends, she reports the companies practices, regarding the workforce and the non-payment of taxes to a reporter, in the hopes that it would stop their practices but her actions has consequences which affect her personal life.

This book once it picks up, is so beautifully written, so powerful and touching there are times when you feel as though you are actually there, experiencing all the hardship and pain and circumstances that the cast and their families have endured, you feel it all and I loved every second of it. I highly recommend that you read this book, it’s full of emotions and tears and there’s even some laughter. But it shows how the group deals with loss, companionships and societal issues that can have a negative effect on the character’s wellbeing. I also think that this book would be excellent for book clubs everywhere.

The only criticism I have of this book is that every time “Sunny” is having a conversation with “Charley”, the author keeps using they or their or them instead of her or she. So it gets very confusing as to whether there are other people with them or it’s just the couple having a conversation between themselves.