Review: Butterface by Gwen Hayes

There is this saying that "Beauty is skin deep." and that "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder". What you see on the outside isn't the same as what is on the inside. Physical beauty is superficial. But really, is it like that? Ask Beth.

Beth was born with a condition called hemifacial microsamia, a congenital disorder where the lower half of the face is deformed. She's got countless scars on her face from surgeries and much more of them inside that just wouldn't heal.

Title: Butterface (Short Story)
Author: Gwen Hayes
Pages: 19

Summary:

When love isn't lucky...or pretty.

The scars on Beth's face aren't nearly as deep as the ones she nurses on the inside. She was born with hemifacial microsamia and was supposed to feel "lucky" that she wasn't as disfigured as some people.

One boy, Lucky O'Leary starts to find the cracks in her hard shell and finds himself falling for her. Only Lucky has a secret--he needs to bring Beth to a "dog dinner" or lose his spot on the team. She can't find out that the guy who brings the ugliest date wins a prize.

I have to ask, what can you do with a 19-paged short story? (17 really, minus the cover and About the Author pages). I absolutely love the way the prose was written. Those 17 pages were worth it. Yes it was short, but it doesn't feel like it. It wasn't rushed, and it didn't feel like everything was crammed into those 17 pages.

Lucas O’Leary didn’t often question why his life always seemed to fall into place just right. He was satisfied with the outcome, after all, and it wasn’t like he didn’t work hard and give it everything he had. Just because everyone called him Lucky, didn’t mean luck really handed him everything.

I was hooked after reading the first paragraph.

Lucas "Lucky" O'Leary isn't the type of guy you'd hate. I guess he does live up to his nickname, "Lucky", seeing that he's almost perfect, extremely good-looking, talented and studious. But more than being lucky, he's also naturally nice and humble.

In reality, I don't think its possible to find a guy like him, or if it is, his type is rare.

Beth, on the other hand, is a girl with a lot of insecurities to deal with, both inside and out. She was considered "lucky" for a totally different reason. People born with a condition such as hers had it worse than her, but I guess when you live in a society where beauty is what matters, its hard for people like Beth to survive.

I was very impressed with the way Gwen Hayes wrote this short story. She was able to bring out Lucky and Beth's character out in those short 17 pages, and she did it wonderfully. They were great characters. You can feel how complete the story was. You won't help but love them both. I love it how she was able to bring into completion Beth's journey of self-discovery and finally accepting herself, and Lucky helped her see herself for what she really is, beyond the scars, beyond the deformity, she was Beth, and she was loved.

I got this for free when Gwen tweeted that this was available for free read, but I would gladly pay those 99 cents to read this again. Now that I've read and sampled her writing, I think my expectation for her upcoming book, Falling Under, just shot up so high. I have a feeling I won't be disappointed though.

This definitely deserves a 5 star rating!

Rating: ★★★★★ : AWESOMENESS! MORE! MORE! - I can't believe such a book exists!