In Pursuit of Beauty centers around a plastic surgeon who has fallen from grace and the writer who is interviewing her. Her rise and fall is detailed in cutting prose, interspersed with the writer's narrative as he fact checks her account and interviews her family. The premise is oddly ridiculous - a plastic surgeon who views herself as a Robin Hood figure, committing medical fraud to bring the gift of plastic surgery to the masses.

I really enjoyed this story, though I can't stand Roya. Her views on plastic surgery as a wholly positive and transformative experience that should be freely available to all is fascinating if somewhat delusional and I wasn't a fan of how sexualized she was. Baum excels at developing his characters and Roya is a testament to this - the layers of her character are fascinating. I find myself not liking Roya as a person rather than as a character which is always a mark of a well written character.

Overall, this was a wonderful read that I would recommend to anyone interested in challenging characters and unconventional storytelling. Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone for the ARC!

I truly enjoyed this book. Well-written and wonderfully developed characters

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a stunning book. I feel like it really reflects our times and our pursuit of beauty. Dr. Roya and Wes Easton were both well developed characters that I wanted to read about. This book was fascinating and really a great look at power and obsession. This book really delivers.

An excellent read for any and all readers! Author comes at you with both barrels and knocks you out of your shoes! Great job fleshing out all the characters. I give this book FIVE stars! Definitely recommend!

This novel is a mesmerizing dive into the world of vanity, ambition, and the high cost of reinvention. Dr. Roya Delshad is a fascinating protagonist—brilliant, enigmatic, and utterly self-made, both in her career as a top Beverly Hills plastic surgeon and in the literal sense, having sculpted herself into her own ideal. But when her generosity earns her notoriety instead of praise, she finds herself behind bars, desperate to reclaim control of her story.

Enter Wes Easton, a struggling journalist-turned-ghostwriter, who quickly learns that unraveling Roya’s truth is far more dangerous than expected. Their cat-and-mouse dynamic is electric, filled with razor-sharp dialogue and psychological tension as Wes separates fact from Roya’s carefully curated fiction.

With writing as sleek and cutting as its protagonist’s scalpel, this novel is a gripping exploration of obsession, power, and the illusions we create—about ourselves and for others.

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.