Blog Tour: Scars Like Wings by Erin Stewart – Review and Giveaway!

Scars Like Wings

Author: Erin Stewart

Publication Date: October 1st, 2109

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Formats: Hardcover, ebook, audiobook

Pages: 352

Book Links: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, Audible, B&N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD

Synopsis: Relatable, heartbreaking, and real, this is a story of resilience–the perfect novel for readers of powerful contemporary fiction like Girl in Pieces and Every Last Word.

Before, I was a million things. Now I’m only one. The Burned Girl.

Ava Lee has lost everything there is to lose: Her parents. Her best friend. Her home. Even her face. She doesn’t need a mirror to know what she looks like–she can see her reflection in the eyes of everyone around her.

A year after the fire that destroyed her world, her aunt and uncle have decided she should go back to high school. Be “normal” again. Whatever that is. Ava knows better. There is no normal for someone like her. And forget making friends–no one wants to be seen with the Burned Girl, now or ever.

But when Ava meets a fellow survivor named Piper, she begins to feel like maybe she doesn’t have to face the nightmare alone. Sarcastic and blunt, Piper isn’t afraid to push Ava out of her comfort zone. Piper introduces Ava to Asad, a boy who loves theater just as much as she does, and slowly, Ava tries to create a life again. Yet Piper is fighting her own battle, and soon Ava must decide if she’s going to fade back into her scars . . . or let the people by her side help her fly.

“A heartfelt and unflinching look at the reality of being a burn survivor and at the scars we all carry. This book is for everyone, burned or not, who has ever searched for a light in the darkness.” –Stephanie Nielson, New York Times bestselling author of Heaven Is Here and a burn survivor

Scars Like Wings was not a book I was expecting.

I’ve been reading a lot of lighter contemporary novels lately, the kind that make me laugh and smile and roll my eyes at how ridiculous things seem. So I guess when I picked up Scars Like Wings, let’s just say I was not at all prepared for it.

A year ago, Ava lost everything in a fire – and that same fire burned her, giving her scars that make people stare and whisper. Now, the aunt and uncle who have been taking care of her since the fire have decided that she needs to go back to school and resume a normal life. Ava, however, doesn’t find anything about herself or her life normal, not anymore. She doesn’t want to go back to regular school, where people will stare at her and whisper behind her back. But she has to.

First of all, let me talk about Ava.

Ava is a strong young woman who has dealt with more than her fair share of trauma and sorrow. She lost her parents, her best friend, and is faced with spending her life with burn scars, which cause her to be an introvert and not make friends very easily at all. But as the story continues, she grows. She becomes stronger, and her character goes through a lot of development to become who she is by the end of the book. I loved that the author put so much into her character – it’s phenomenal. I love Ava’s character so, so much.

Scars Like Wings is the kind of beautiful, heartwrenching, inspirational story that the world needs. The writing is lovely; the author does an incredible job forming her words and giving not only the characters, but the story itself, a voice.

This isn’t your average light-hearted contemporary novel. There is so much depth here, a lot of heaviness. I don’t say this in a bad way; in fact, I absolutely adored this book and reading it was such a wonderful experience. I really felt with Ava; if she was happy, I was happy. If she was sad or angry, I was those things, too. And this, my friends, is one of the signs of an amazing and talented author.

If you like books that will make you feel so many different emotions, please do not miss this book. It is an incredible roller coaster of a book, and one that will stick with you long after you turn the last page.

Note: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

Erin Stewart is the author of SCARS LIKE WINGS, her debut novel. Erin is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern and a BYU undergraduate who works as a freelance writer and editor, as well as a weekly columnist in Salt Lake City.

Erin lives in Utah with her husband and three children. She is represented by the amazing Brianne Johnson of Writers House.