Blog Tour: Losing Faith - Denise Jaden - Interview

I'd like to welcome Denise Jaden here today. Denise is the author of Losing Faith, which is a pretty amazing book. It's chock full of intrigue, religious fanaticism, love, and loss. If you haven't read it yet, I urge you to pick it up. 

Denise is here courtesy of the Teen Book Scene blog tour. If you want to follow along with the tour, please follow the link here. If you want to know more about Denise, you can find her at her website linked here. 

If you were faced with the same circumstances that Brie was, would you do anything differently? How would you react?

I think Brie found herself in a crazy-hard situation, losing her sister in strange and confusing circumstances, and honestly, I think she did pretty well with it. She was probably a little caught up in her feelings and grief and maybe didn’t figure things out as quickly as she could have, but I don’t think I could expect any more from myself or anyone else in the wake of something so traumatic. So, no, I don’t think I’d do anything differently, and would be happy if I handled myself and my circumstances as well as Brie.

Do any of the characters have theme songs, if so, what are they?

I’m not the type of writer who associates songs strongly with my stories or characters. I love music and I love stories, but in my brain I have trouble connecting the two. I would, however, love to hear from readers who have songs in mind that go with Losing Faith!

What books would Brie identify with or love?

Brie loves a good love story. Even though she has more realistic expectations now about guys, she still likes to let her heart expand a little with the idea of romance. She loves deep and quiet guys (like Alis) so I think she’d love one of my favorites, THE TRUTH ABOUT FOREVER by Sarah Dessen.

What would the front page headline of a newspaper say about you?

From Mushroom Farmer to Polynesian Dancer to Young Adult Author.

If you could be any building in the world, which building would you be, and why?

Well, first of all, I have no desire to be an inanimate object of any kind! LOL. But if I HAD to choose a building, I guess I’d choose something like The Pentagon. There's a lot going on inside there, and I definitely don’t think it would be boring!

Love those answers, Denise! Thank you for being here. I agree, I don't think the Pentagon would be a boring place at all! :) I find it neat that "Losing Faith" was a NaNoWriMo novel! That is awesome! 

Losing Faith - Denise Jaden - Blog Tour Review

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 further and further 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. 

Title: Losing Faith

Author: Denise Jaden

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Publication Date: September 7, 2010

Source: Own. Purchased as the review is part of the Teen Book Scene blog tour for Losing Faith.

My rating: 4/5

Losing Faith starts out with Brie wanting to sneak out with her boyfriend. She asks her sister, Faith, for a ride; not realizing that she is never going to see her sister again. Life falls apart for both Brie, and her parents later that night. Her parents are dwelling in their grief, leaving Brie on her own. She tries the best she can, but all she wants is closure. When she finds out that some things don't add up properly on the night of Faith's death, she can't help but investigate Faith's supposed suicide herself. 

Brie is a sad, and empathic character. She feels guilt over her sister's death, as she wanted to go out, and ultimately blames herself for Faith's death. She can't grow accustomed to the zombie-like state of her parents. It seems like they are giving up on life, and each other. They would rather stay in their dream-like state rather than face reality. When Brie finds out that her sister had secrets, she realizes that knowing what exactly happened that night, and who Faith was with, might bring her some closure. Her investigative methods may endanger her more than she realizes what was really going on.

It really hits home, how horrible it is to lose a child, regardless of age. The sorrow felt, was palpable, and realistic. Brie's guilt is also realistic, especially given the fact that she thinks her sister was going to stay in that night, and the only reason she didn't was because Brie needed a ride. Her friends abandon her, as they don't know what to say. Her saving grace though, is the new friends she makes. Friends who know what it's like to lose someone close to them. 

Losing Faith starts off slowly, opening up and letting a bit of information out at a time. The last section of the book gives way to more action though as things come to a head for Brie.

All in all, a vividly drawn portrait of a family in the midst of turmoil, having to learn how to move on after a family member's sudden death. The religious undercurrent included in Losing Faith works well for this novel. How far is too far? An exceptional and moving debut, well worth the read.

A few winners, and NaNoWriMo.

First off, I'll announce the winners for two contests that ended over the weekend. The Jumpstart the World contest ended October 29th. I've been in contact with the winner, and will be sending the book out later this week. The winner is:

Meredith

Congratulations, Meredith! I hope you enjoy the book once you receive it! 

The second contest to end was for Pies & Prejudice. It also ended on October the 29th. I've been in contact with the winner for this book as well. Herr information has been passed along to the author. The winner is: 

Jan

Congratulations, Jan! I hope you enjoy the book once it arrives! 

Thank you to everyone who entered the giveaways. I still have some ongoing, and keep checking back as I should have a few more posted within the next couple of weeks. 

NaNoWriMo

I decided to participate in the festivites this year. It's my first time, and I'm flying by the seat of my pants joining in this year. I've got a vague idea for a storyline so far. It's forming well, but I'm not quite sure where it's going to end up. We shall see. I figure this is the incentive I need to get back into writing seriously. I'm not aiming to have the book finished in 50,000 words, but I'm hoping to have a good chunk of it done by the end of the month. We shall see how it goes. I will update everyone here on how I'm faring throughout the month. Feel free to add me as a buddy if you are participating. My nickname is CorLostForWords. 

Good luck to everyone who is participating! :)