Review Detail

After Brie's sister, Faith, dies, Brie's world crumbles. Her parents are in denial, her friends don't know how to treat her, and her boyfriend shows his true colors. Brie is numb with disbelief her sister died so suddenly. She also has questions about what really happened.

After Brie gets back into her normal schedule, she encounters someone who might have the answer to some of her unanswered questions. Should Brie continue on this path, even if it means her own life is in danger?

Losing Faith is a story of loss, searching for faith and answers. Brie's character's reaction to the death of her older sister is very realistic. So are the reactions of her friends and parents. Brie struggles with how to belong again after the funeral. The awkwardness of classmates and friends rings true. I mean, what exactly do you say to someone who rumor has it had a sister died by her own hand? And how do you deal with gossip and avoidance because your friends feel awkward around you? This is shown in vivid and very believable detail.

Religion does play an important part of this story. Brie's sister was with a religious youth group and her family is actively involved with church. So the whole questioning aspect felt right on the mark.

One of the things I did have trouble with was the one character who was homeschooled. I homeschool my own son through a charter school. No way are we over the top religious. Also the whole fanatic religious group was a tad bit extreme.

What I really liked about Losing Faith was how the author showed a character dealing with a tragedy in her family and how she struggles with her own grieve through questioning and also wondering about her own faith. Brie shows lots of inner strength as she tries to solve the truth of what really happened to Faith. Brie's courage will resonate with readers.