Book:  Losing Faith
Author:  Denise Jaden
Published:  September 7, 2010 from Simon Pulse
My edition/number of pages:  ARC/377

Age group:  Young adult
Source:  Publisher
Series?:  Nope.

A terrible secret. A terrible fate.

When Brie’s sister, Faith, dies suddenly, Brie’s world falls apart. As she goes through the bizarre and devastating process of mourning the sister she never understood and barely even liked, everything in her life seems to spiral farther and farther off course. Her parents are a mess, her friends don’t know how to treat her, and her perfect boyfriend suddenly seems anything but.

As Brie settles into her new normal, she encounters more questions than closure: Certain facts about the way Faith died just don’t line up. Brie soon uncovers a dark and twisted secret about Faith’s final night…a secret that puts her own life in danger.

Denise Jaden’s debut novel is a fascinating story about what happens when you get in too deep with the wrong crowd and in this case it was not the crowd that automatically comes to mind.  It was an enjoyable book that stands out as unique in todays paranormal infested market.

Brie Jenkins has always been the problem child.  Her sister, Faith, on the other hand, is the perfect child.  All that changes the night Faith falls off a cliff.  Now Brie is the only child left and her world is crumbling around her.  Her parents can’t keep it together, her friends don’t want anything to do with her, and her boyfriend is hiding something from her.  When rumors start spreading that Faith’s death was a suicide Brie can’t take it anymore.  With the help of some unlikely allies Brie finds out more about her sister than she ever expected.  What was Faith involved in that caused her death?

At first I had some trouble getting into Losing Faith but I am very glad that I didn’t give up on it because it was great!  My problem in the beginning was that I didn’t particularly like Brie but it didn’t take long for her to change.  She also had Tessa to help with that and she was awesome.  She brought out a different side of Brie and she was so fun.  I loved her spying methods.  They cracked me up.  She brought a much needed break in tension.  =]

The plot didn’t take any time to take off.  Faith’s death happened very early in the book and from there everything got started.  That was the best thing about Losing Faith.  I hate when a book is slow to pick up and this one wasn’t.  I loved finding out more about what happened the night Faith died and it kept me reading.  I had a hard time putting this one down when it was time for bed.

Overall, Losing Faith is a spectacular debut from Denise Jaden.  If you are big into contemporary fiction this is one to add to your list.  I’m so excited for whatever Denise has planned next!

First line:  The statue has got to go.

Writing:  5

Characters:  4

Plot:  5

Ending:  5

Originality:  5

Overall:  24=A

Cover:  4=B-