My Favorite Scar is a dark, gangster, crime, coming of age story of Ambar. I wasn’t sure what to expect when it came to this book and I’ve sat on this review for a long time because it is so different than any book I’ve ever read. Did I enjoy it? Yes! Who would I recommend this to? I have no idea. I still am very unsure about my thoughts when I think about this book..

Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media for the audio-arc!

For some reason this book was not something I personally enjoy reading so I did not finish it. It is definitely an YA book.

My Favorite Scar, written by Nicholas Ferraro, is a crime mystery book that is good for young adult readers. Ámbar Is a fifteen year old young girl who lives with her father, and they live a hard life. When her father’s best friend is killed they go on a road trip visiting different friends and enemies to see if they can find out more information.

I enjoyed this book, I felt a lot of sympathy for Ámbar and the life she lives, but also appreciate how she can find happiness in some of the things that she does. Thank you to NetGalley and to the author and publisher of this book for an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I was really impressed by "My Favourite Scar" by Nicolas Ferraro. It offers a fresh perspective on the coming-of-age genre, unfolding against the backdrop of the Argentina-Paraguay border.

The story delves into the gritty life of fifteen-year-old Ambar and her father, Victor, who is deeply entangled in criminal activities. It's a raw narrative that captures the struggles of Ambar as she constantly moves to evade the consequences of her father's actions, leading to a palpable tension between them.

One of the aspects I appreciated most was the morally ambiguous characters. No one is purely "bad" or "good," adding layers of complexity to the story. Ambar's internal conflict, torn between loyalty to her family and her desire for stability and openness with her peers, felt incredibly real.

The book doesn't shy away from tough themes like violence and trauma, but I found that these elements added depth and authenticity to the narrative, making it all the more impactful.

What stood out to me was the author's ability to handle emotional and surprising themes with ease. The writing is engaging without being overly embellished, allowing the story to flow naturally. It was a captivating read that I've recommended to others.

I enjoyed the audiobook version, narrated by Stacy Gonzalez, whose exceptional voice acting brought the characters to life with sincerity and conviction.

This book wasn't my jam and I think that is a me problem and not an author or writing issue. I will definitely give Nicolás Ferraro another chance.

#MyFavoriteScar
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For me this was a tough book to get through due to the dark nature of the story. It's well written and moves well but is quite bleak, as if there is no hope for any of the characters to escape the violence of their existence. Ambar is a fifteen year old girl whose father Vicktor is a gangster. When Vicktor's best friend is murdered Vicktor vows vengeance and takes off with Amber in tow across Argentina on a merciless and violent journey. Ambar desperately wants a stable home with a chance to be a regular teenager who can go to parties and have a boyfriend. As long as she stays with her father, stitching up his wounds and wiping up his blood this can never happen. Ambar is street smart and savvy and so there is hope for her in the end. She is a good person despite her terrible circumstances. So I'm not really sure if I enjoyed this book or not, it was a difficult subject matter for me. I would recommend it to those not too squeamish as it does contain much violence. The narrator was excellent. 3.5 stars.

Thank you to Net Galley for the opportunity to read/listen to this ARC audio book.

This was a really good coming of age story! I really enjoyed going through life with the main character, seeing people and things for what they are and learning along the way. The way her relationship with her father changes over the course of the story was really moving. I found the pace slowing down a little bit towards the middle of the book, but the ending picked up the pace. All in all, it was something new and I enjoyed it. Thank you for a copy of the audiobook.

Format: audiobook ~ Narrator: Stacy Gonzalez
Content: 4 stars ~ Narration: 5 stars

My Favorite Scar is quite a dark novel, crime, and a coming-of-age story of fifteen-year-old Ámbar, who is on the road from one city to the next with her gangster father, Víctor Mondragón. A guy with a snake tattoo kills her father's best friend, and they set off on a ride across Argentina to avenge his friend. Meanwhile, Ámbar wants to be like an average teenager and not patch up Víctor’s bullet holes in motels.

This is not a usual coming-of-age novel. It is pretty violent, so it's appropriate for adults only.

Thanks to Recorded Books for the advance copy and this opportunity! This is a voluntary review and all opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was very well written and my heart broke for these characters. I wished for Ambar to get a stable home as she deserved it and hoped she would have been able to have parents who took care of her. This book was gripping and I wanted so badly for both characters to give up on crime and get out of the situation they were in.

I love this performance! I love this narrator in general but she really nailed it with this one! My son and I recently met a man who grew up with a mobster father and turned his dad in. His story made me cry and I never cry when men speak! So I had to read this one!
I love the entire thing all the way through! What a journey. Thank you!

I just finished listening to this audio book and it was a fast paced whirl wind of a mystery. Ambar and her gangster father hit the road after his best friend is murdered. Let's start with the few things I didn't like- the first half of the book is slow and plodding, which is weird because it starts with an action scene. I could not get into it at first and the nature of dad's job means everyone has a different name/fake names, tough to keep track of.
The last half of the story is a different story, pure action and wondering what is going on. How many lies has dad told and why, does he even care about Ambar, always leaving her alone or putting her in danger. The story is told all from Ambar's POV and the musings she shares in the second half are almost lyrical, one quote I really loved is "I'm tired of being what other people leave behind." This really paints the picture of Ambar and the things she's had to live through, always pretending to be someone else and never allowed to have friends or plant roots. The ending had a few surprises and I really hate her dad- but Ambar's ending is surprisingly perfect. If the beginning had captured my attention this would be a 4 star for me.

15 year old Ámbar has never known stability or comfort. She's never been in one place long enough to even have friends.
Her father Víctor is always moving them from place to place for "work" He's a gangster, that happens to be a single dad.
Her dad taught her all kinds of important things.. like how to hotwire a car, shoot her shotgun, & how to remove bullets.
He says things like tattoos make you identifiable, and scars are useful when you need assistance.
She wants a tattoo, she wants her own scars. but she wants to choose the shape of her scars.
Ámbar is her fathers favorite scar, but she doesn't want to be anymore.

Thanks to NetGalley for this advanced listen of My Favorite Scar! It was a beautiful journey.

My Favorite Scar
By: Nicolás Ferraro, Mallory Craig-Kuhn - translator
Narrated by: Stacy Gonzalez
Publisher: Recorded Books
Release date: 01-23-24

I love the rough edges of the characters in this book. It is a strange juxtaposition when a 15 year old girl matter-of-factly describes her life with her gangster father. Ambar is trying to balance the life she knows, medic to her father when he gets shot, with the life she sees other teenagers living. But she is so connected to the life she has and her father. Can she escape the violence and vengeance? Will she want to in the end? I can see why this book is so highly praised. The story is gripping but very violent. Know that going in.

Nicolas Ferraro's "My Favorite Scar" is a translation of the Spanish work, which was originally published in 2023. Despite the translation, the story remains just as gripping.

The story begins with Ambar traveling the open road with her father. Just when she thought things were going to settle down, as promised by her father, Victor, he comes home with his dead partner in the trunk. He is battered and bloodied, and Ambar is forced to patch him up. The frightening part is that she learned how to do this when she was just twelve years young.

Victor and Ambar lead an unconventional life, in which Victor is constantly on the run. But from whom? With her father's dead partner in tow, they once again uproot their lives and travel the road, meeting questionable people from his life and learning more about him. Time is working against them as Victor has to find the man with the tattoo before that man and his bosses find Victor and his daughter first. Kill or be killed is all they know.

Should Ambar scream and run away, or stay with her father as she has been taught to? Will she find the courage to seek out the answers to her never-ending questions, such as "what happened to her mother?" At the age of fifteen, she decides she can make the shape of her own scars.

This is a gripping story that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The narrator does an excellent job of conveying Ambar's mixed feelings, and the author brilliantly conveys the struggles and complexity of the father.

Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media, Recorded Books for this e-audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

A noir Argentina tale of crime that took me a while to wrap up and get attached to it. Is a violent thriller I truly enjoy in the end. Give me a good thriller about revenge and I will love it. Narrator 5 stars for you and Thank you Netgalley, Nicolas Ferraro and RB media for the audio Arc of My favourite scar. Narrated by Stacy Gonzalez

Fifteen-year-old Ambar lives in Argentina with her gangster dad, Victor, and while other girls her age attend school and go to concerts, her life has consisted of learning to shoot and patch up her dad's many wounds. But when it finally seems like Victor is setting down and she will get to do those normal kid things, he comes home with another gunshot wound and his best friend has been killed. The only thing he knows about the man responsible is that he has a tattoo of a snake on his srm. Now, Ambar and Victor are on a cross country drive as he hunts up old friends and enemies, searching for the man with the snake tattoo.

My Favorite Scar by Nicolas Ferraro and translated by Mallory Craig-Kuhn is an Argentinian noir tale with all that implies as well as a coming-of-age story. This is one gritty, violent, and gripping thriller. It’s told in the first person by Ambar and she makes for a very smart, very strong protagonist. The story is made even more compelling by contrasting the violence of the gangster lifestyle of her father with Ambar’s loyalty for her dad while desiring a normal life. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Stacy Gonzales who does an amazing job of bringing Ambar to life.

Thanks to Netgalley and RB Media for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review

This book does have some of these type things in it especially mental reviews it was a good book had some surprising systemic that were easy to follow and I would recommend this book to anyone who does enjoy a good mystery with the trigger warning on the abuse

A coming-of-age and gritty revenge thriller. Ambar is 15 and joins her gangster father on a road trip to find a retribution for a death of his friend.
We learn about Ambar and her love for video games (hello Mortal Kombat!), and need to be a normal teenager. A quick read, but I was not much invested in the whole plot.

Thank you Netgalley, Nicolas Ferraro and RB media for the audio Arc of My favourite scar. Narrated by Stacy Gonzalez

I really enjoyed this gritty come of age thriller. Amber and Victor who is travelling across the country on a revenge trip. The relationship between them both is raw and gritty, the 2 of them trying to balance their own needs all the while trying to protect each other,

Stacy has a really engaging voice which makes this story brilliantly narrated.

Teen Ambar has only ever known the fast paced bullet catching lifestyle her only parent, her father, Victor. But when something goes wrong and his best friend is killed Victor makes the decision for them to set out on a quest for retribution.

This was a great coming of age story that entwined with the need to love and respect your parent, even when you know they are choosing wrong. Gritty and raw thriller. Definitely worth picking up.