By Kristy Kiernan

An open letter to my second novel, Matters of Faith, in which I attempt to right the grievous wrong I’ve committed in neglecting to trumpet its publication far and wide online.

Dearest Matters of Faith,

I am so thrilled that you’re out in the world! No, really, I am. I know that it seems as though I’ve neglected this momentous occasion in the online world that I know you so deeply love, but, look, I’ve been biiiiiizzzy, what with the whirlwind of launch parties, fielding offers from Spielberg and Affleck, and juggling my Oprah and Richard and Judy interviews!

Well, maybe I’ve been more busy with trying to get my next book finished (NOT accomplished, please hold your jealousy in check), taming my e-mail in-box (also NOT accomplished), and attempting to get some of those above things happening. But a late announcement is still an announcement, right? Do you deserve to get punished for my startling lack of organizational skills? Surely not!

So, congratulations, Matters of Faith! Some lovely things have been said about you, including:

“Kristy Kiernan’s Matters of Faith was so good and true and real that I forgot I was reading a book. I felt as though I was standing helplessly beside good people whose ordinary family life is slowly, inexorably tumbling into the darkness of the unknown.”–Jacquelyn Mitchard, New York Times bestselling author

“In this tense, well-paced novel about belief, Kiernan explores what happens when faith and love test the limits of family fealty… [Kiernan] movingly portrays a 20-year-old marriage gone flat and torn apart by crisis, a troubled son, a daughter hovering between life and death, and the hard-to-discern boundaries between true faith and unhealthy fanaticism. She handles her difficult material respectfully. Most interesting is her portrayal of the well-meaning traps parents fall into when encouraging open-ended exploration of faith without context, or choosing to remain silent. The thoughtful themes, interesting characters and page-turning drama of this novel will likely make it a book club favorite.”—Publishers Weekly

Just another day at the Florida beach this is not…It is, however, a great read, structured into the first-person story of Chloe, as she navigates through this family disaster, and the third-person story of Marshall, as he instigates and then attempts to right it.[ ]Kiernan doesn’t flinch at the end; there is no fairy tale happily-ever-after…Yet we are left with hope as the members of the Tobias family come out of a tragic situation with the compassion and desire to work their way back to each other. Which, in the end, is what families, and faith, are about.– Bookreporter

Kiernan’s stunning second novel explores how one family reacts to a devastating tragedy… Unforgettable and moving, Kiernan’s novel is an achingly real portrait of a family in crisis, one readers will react to passionately. –Booklist

Matters of Faith begins as a recognizable family story and transforms into a view of human nature under pressure. How open will minds be when lives are interrupted? Will we believe the same things when loss tests our faith? How do we choose between the two things most precious to us? Kiernan’s portrait of the Tobias family is a study in emotional turmoil that will stay with any reader when their beliefs are, inevitably, called into question. -BookPage

That’s not all Matters of Faith! Let’s peek behind Curtain Number 3, shall we? That’s right, you’ve also been chosen as an IndieBound Notable Title for the month of September! Now, considering how much we both admire independent bookstores you must feel pretty good about that! Come on, come on, ooooh, I see a little crack there in your irritation!

You’ve also proven to be a possible doer of good deeds, helping to inform those whose lives untouched by the difficulty of food allergies of the daily struggle families who are dealing with it have to face. You’ve even been blogged about at Booking Mama, A Year of Books, and Redlady’s Reading Room. You’ve been blogged about elsewhere, but these are particularly special because these women who usually blog about books also happen to be mothers to children who have severe food allergies. So, I hope you appreciate that, Matters of Faith!

The fun’s not over yet, either, my second child, you’ll also be traveling around with me, just so I can talk about you, extolling your virtues, showcasing your beautiful cover, and just generally making sure that my life revolves around you and only you for, heck, I don’t know, the next year or so?! Want to know where you’re going? Go check out my website (don’t go there often, do you? No, but you don’t hear me complaining that you don’t support me! I’m just saying…) and look in the appearances section. If you don’t go to my website, I’m sure you don’t bother with my blog, either, so to make you feel even more loved, check it out and see all the nice things I do for you!

And, in addition to being available in indie bookstores across these United States, you are also available at all the usual online suspects, like Amazon, and Barnes & Noble. And people have even gone on those sites and said nice things about you! I’m not positive we even know all of them!

So, Matters of Faith, know that during your writing, editing, and publication, that you were loved by me. You’ve taught me much and brought me great joy, and I am grateful to you. I apologize profusely for my seemingly light treatment of your big day, and I promise to do better in the future.

Kristy Kiernan is often behind in most things in her life, causing her to have become a real pro in apologizing. She lives, works, and plays in southwest Florida. She also can’t figure out how to resize this photo, and she apologizes profusely for that, too.