#exquisite things

It’s Banned Books Week, and in honor of those titles, we’re digging into a recent release to highlight it and share some poignant passages. Today we’re looking at Exquisite Things by Abdi Nazemian: Shahriar believes he was born in the wrong time. All he’s ever wanted is to love and be loved, but 1895 London doesn’t offer him the freedom to be his true self, and Oscar Wilde’s trial for gross…

In this Upcoming Book Spotlight series, I aim to draw attention to upcoming books that I think readers should be excited about. All these are queer books, and many are books that aren’t getting much press or attention yet.

This week, I'm highlighting a book that releases next month:

From Stonewall Award–winning author Abdi Nazemian (Only This Beautiful Moment) comes the epic queer love story of a lifetime. Perfect for fans of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and The Picture of Dorian Gray. Shahriar believes he was born in the wrong time. All he’s ever wanted is to love and be loved, but 1895 London doesn’t offer him the freedom to be his true self, and Oscar Wilde’s trial for gross indecency has only reaffirmed that. But one night—and one writer—will grant Shahriar what he’s always wished for: the opportunity to live in a time and place where he can love freely. Rechristened as Shams and then as Bram, he finds what feels like eternal happiness. But can anything truly be eternal? Oliver doesn’t feel that 1920s Boston gives him a lot of options to be his full self. He knows he could only ever love another boy, but that would break his beloved mother’s heart. Oliver finds freedom and acceptance in the secret queer community at Harvard that his cousin introduces him to. When he meets a mysterious boy with eyes as warm as a flame, his life is irrevocably changed, forever. Spanning one hundred and thirty years of love and longing, this tale of immortal beloveds searching for their perfect place and time is a vibrant hymn to the beauty of being alive, a celebration of queer love and community, and a reminder that behind every tragic thing that ever existed, there is something exquisite.

Add on: Storygraph | Goodreads | Pagebound

📸 Stars in Your Eyes (Kacen Callender): 5/5⭐️

UMM!!!! UMMM!!??? respectfully. Holy fuck

Gorgeous exploration of mental health & character & love. GORGEOUS.

If you liked this, you might like: The Future Was Color (Patrick Nathan), You Had Me at Happy Hour (Timothy Janovsky)

🎹 Exquisite Things (Abdi Nazemian): 3/5⭐️

Very sweet and fun!

Oscar Wilde enthusiasts are QUAKING

Official Summary:

From Stonewall Award–winning author Abdi Nazemian (Only This Beautiful Moment) comes the epic queer love story of a lifetime. Perfect for fans of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and The Picture of Dorian Gray. Shahriar believes he was born in the wrong time. All he’s ever wanted is to love and be loved, but 1895 London doesn’t offer him the freedom to be his true self, and Oscar Wilde’s trial for gross indecency has only reaffirmed that. But one night—and one writer—will grant Shahriar what he’s always wished for: the opportunity to live in a time and place where he can love freely. Rechristened as Shams and then as Bram, he finds what feels like eternal happiness. But can anything truly be eternal? Oliver doesn’t feel that 1920s Boston gives him a lot of options to be his full self. He knows he could only ever love another boy, but that would break his beloved mother’s heart. Oliver finds freedom and acceptance in the secret queer community at Harvard that his cousin introduces him to. When he meets a mysterious boy with eyes as warm as a flame, his life is irrevocably changed, forever. Spanning one hundred and thirty years of love and longing, this tale of immortal beloveds searching for their perfect place and time is a vibrant hymn to the beauty of being alive, a celebration of queer love and community, and a reminder that behind every tragic thing that ever existed, there is something exquisite.

My Thoughts:

Exquisite Things is one of those books that I know I'm going to be thinking about for months to come. It's a beautiful journey through queer history that has some powerful messages. 

There's so much to love about this book, and I don't want to share too much and spoil the story, so I'll stick to just a few highlights: 

There are four main timelines: three different historical eras and the present day. The 2025 storyline doesn't delve into politics or current events, but the previous storylines do. In each of the past timelines, we see the challenges that queer people faced and the communities that rose to support and protect them. There's a truly moving theme of how queer and other marginalized people are stronger together that echoes throughout the book.

This could be a very educational read, especially for younger readers.

There's a heavy focus on art and how stories and music have both served as a refuge and an act of defiance by queer people. Oscar Wilde's works, especially The Picture of Dorian Grey, get a lot of focus, but so do many other poets, musicians, and music genres. I had a lot of fun listening to some of the music mentioned as I read!

The romance is on-again-off-again with a lot of heavy baggage at times. Still, I ended up rooting for them through all their difficulties.

Besides romantic love, there's also a theme of familial love, especially maternal love. Oliver and his mother's closeness is a key part of one timeline, and we later meet a trans woman who takes on a motherly role. Both moms are delightful characters, and I found their love for their children (and the love their children have for them) to be so beautiful.

Many of the themes of this book feel timely. If the current state of the world has you feeling hopeless, this might be just the book for you. I read this as I've been struggling with increasing anxiety about the state of my country, and somehow this made me feel more optimistic.

Exquisite Things is ultimately a beautiful, hopeful, and powerful story that treks through some of the worst and most dangerous times for LGBTQIAP+ people. There's a romance that drives the story, but the most interesting aspect of this book is the history it explores and the lessons we can take from it. 

My Rating: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌖 (4.75/5 stars)

Pages: 384 (Kindle Edition)

Tropes/Tags: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Queer, Romance, Magical Realism

Contains Depictions Of: Homophobia (including slurs), Suicide, Mental Illness, Racism, Transphobia, Classism, Mentions of police brutality/corruption, conversion therapy, the AIDS epidemic, murders, and child abuse.

Links: Storygraph | GoodReads | Pagebound | AbdiNazemian.com

Exquisite Things will be released on September 23, 2025, and is available for pre-order!

I received an advanced copy of this book for free, thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins. The above are my honest feelings about the book provided. I don’t have any affiliate links in this post, and I do not make any money from my reviews. I review books simply because I love to read.