Craves The Angst: REVIEW - MAKING FACES by Amy Harmon:

TITLE: Making Faces
AUTHOR: Amy Harmon
AGE GROUP: YA/NA
GENRE: Contemporary Romance
RELEASE DATE: Oct. 12, 2013
PUBLISHER: SPA
FORMAT: eBook and Paperback
PAGES: Approx. 405

MY GOODREADS REVIEW LINK
RATING: ★★★★★
CLIFFHANGER: No
HEA: Yes

BOOK BLURB:
Ambrose Young was beautiful. He was tall and muscular, with hair that touched his shoulders and eyes that burned right through you. The kind of beautiful that graced the covers of romance novels, and Fern Taylor would know. She'd been reading them since she was thirteen. But maybe because he was so beautiful he was never someone Fern thought she could have...until he wasn't beautiful anymore.

Making Faces is the story of a small town where five young men go off to war, and only one comes back. It is the story of loss. Collective loss, individual loss, loss of beauty, loss of life, loss of identity. It is the tale of one girl's love for a broken boy, and a wounded warrior's love for an unremarkable girl. This is a story of friendship that overcomes heartache, heroism that defies the common definitions, and a modern tale of Beauty and the Beast, where we discover that there is a little beauty and a little beast in all of us.

5 Beautiful, Soul Searing Stars!

Heartbreaking. Awe-Inspiring. All-Consuming. Just Perfect In Every Way!

The Review:

Grab a tissue box! Que the ugly cry! Prepare to be astounded. This book is like no other.

There are some books that just blow your mind so profoundly, you know it will stick with you forever. Those books can take you on a poignant journey so brilliant that you never want it to end. This was one of those books.

Poetically written, this story and it’s characters will burrow deep into your heart and completely wreck you while also instilling a inspiring sense of hope.

Story/Characters...

Fern Taylor was an unexpected gift for her aging mother and father who didn’t think they could have children. She came along at a time that was perfect for her to be best friends with her cousin, Bailey, who was ravished with a disease that would see him to his death bed sooner rather than later. They grew up together, both spirited and remarkable in their own way but also somewhat unseen. Bailey wanted to be a superhero, Fern wanted to be beautiful.

Fern has loved Ambrose from afar since they were kids. Problem is, he hardly knows she exists. Fern believes herself to be homely and has “ugly girl syndrome” but her soul shines bright, just not bright enough to attract the most handsome guy in school. Bailey has loved one girl since the day they met. Rita is gorgeous and admired and loved by all, but maybe because of her beauty, doesn't know herself as well as she should and though she loves Bailey, she can never see herself with him.

Ambrose Young is the town hero. He’s athletic, good looking and has a college future with a wrestling scholarship. But he wants something different and after the nine-eleven strike, he’s found his calling. He persuades his four best friends to enlist with him and help him become the hero he wants to be. But tragedy strikes and the hero comes home in shame and darkness, hiding from the world he was once such a huge part of.

Fern finds Ambrose in the dark and together, along with Bailey, these three form an unlikely friendship where love blooms and souls connect.

This story spans over several years with lots of flashbacks that give you an incredible sense of character development and story. Each of these characters are unique and dramatically written. They play a pivotal role in one another's lives all intersecting with themes of unrequited love, beauty, self-worth and tragedy. I loved every one of them, for different reasons, however, my favorites were the main’s, Bailey, Fern and Ambrose, who were heartbreaking and remarkable all at the same time and who displayed a sense of hope in the face of adversity.

Fern grew up knowing she wasn’t special, that she was less than ordinary, with red curly hair and buck teeth, a plain face and a boyish body. Bailey knew he’d never physically be the hero he craved to be with sick and dying muscles. Ambrose knew he was something special but wanted the obscurity in case he failed. All three of these characters were destined to be something they didn’t want and in the end, became something so much more spectacular than they ever imagined. Fern’s inner beauty was brighter than she could have ever believed possible and was truly something to behold. Bailey’s was gifted with a quick and intelligent mind and his bravery and courage was majestic in the face of misfortune. And Ambrose's shame became his greatest strength.

I loved this book! I can’t suggest it enough. The writing is phenomenal. The story is magnificent and the characters are unparalleled. I laughed, I cried and I mourned in a way I never have over a book before. These characters felt lifelike and my heart still aches for the events in this book.

The Wrap Up:

What is beauty? Is it really in the packaging or in eye of the beholder or is it something that shines so bright from inside that it doesn’t matter what the packaging is. This small town held three shining stars that were incandescent. Ambose, Fern and Bailey will steal your heart in this breathtaking story of love and loss, of sacrifices and second chances, of friendships and heroism. It will devastate and uplift while holding a true beauty and the beast feel. Now go forth, read it, devour it in one sitting as I did and know you will be a changed person when the last page is read.