Beautiful Brutal Bodies, Linda Cheng

Description

A sapphic, skin-crawling fairytale of beauty, horror, and hunger.

From Gorgeous Gruesome Faces author Linda Cheng comes a feral, hypnotic standalone set in the same glittering nightmare world — a gothic descent into obsession, fame, and the monstrous side of love.

Tian is a world-famous singer with a voice that enchants millions — but her ethereal life is a gilded cage. Trapped in isolation by those who profit from her image, Tian’s only solace is Liya, her fiercely loyal bodyguard and childhood friend. Yet Liya hides a chilling secret: her teeth are too sharp, her hunger too deep, and her devotion too consuming.

When a series of Tian’s fans die under gruesome and inexplicable circumstances, Tian, Liya, and Tian’s collaborator Shenyu are sent to a “healing retreat” on a remote island in the South China Seas. But the island hums with dark energy — its forests whisper, its rituals bleed, and its caretakers are not entirely human.

As secrets unravel, Tian must face her reflection — and what stares back is not the girl she thought she was.

Equal parts folk horror, dark romance, and psychological thriller, Beautiful Brutal Bodies is a lush, feverish meditation on fame, love, and transformation. Gorgeous and grotesque, this is Linda Cheng at her most haunting.