She knows what's expected of her. She knows what to do to please her elders, and how to make sure life in the community remains happy and calm. That is, until a new young girl joins the group. She isn't fitting in; she doesn't want to stay. What happens next will turn life as Amy knows it on its head. Freya has gone to great lengths to feel like a 'normal person'. In fact, if you saw her go about her day with her young son, you'd think she was an everyday mum. That is, until a young girl goes missing and someone from her past, someone she hasn't seen for a very long time, arrives in town. As Amy and Freya's story intertwines the secrets of the past bubble up to the surface. This rural Aussie town's dark underbelly is about to be exposed and lives will be destroyed.

    He relies on phrases like, “fake news,” “build the wall,” and continues to spread the divisive mentality of us-vs.-them. He lies constantly, has no conscience, never admits when he is wrong, and projects all of his shortcomings on to others. He has become more authoritarian, more outrageous, and yet many of his followers remain blindly devoted. Scott Adams, the creator of Dilbert and a major Trump supporter, calls him one of the most persuasive people living. His need to squash alternate information and his insistence of constant ego stroking are all characteristics of other famous leaders—cult leaders. In The Cult of Trump, mind-control and licensed mental health expert Steven Hassan draws parallels between our current president and people like Jim Jones, David Koresh, Ron Hubbard and Sun Myung Moon, arguing that this presidency is in many ways like a destructive cult. He specifically details the ways in which people are influenced through an array of social psychology methods and how they become fiercely loyal and obedient. Hassan was a former “Moonie” himself, and he draws on his forty years of personal and professional experience studying hypnosis and destructive cults, working as a deprogrammer, and a strategic communications interventionist. He emphasizes why it’s crucial that we recognize ways to identify and protect ourselves and our loved ones. The Cult of Trump is an accessible and in-depth analysis of the president, showing that under the right circumstances, even sane, rational, well-adjusted people can be persuaded to believe the most outrageous ideas. Hassan’s book is essential reading for anyone wanting to understand the Trump phenomenon and looking for a way forward.

    An eighteen-year-old-girl who has never danced—and this in the 1960s. It is in Cambridge, Massachusetts where Leonard Feeney, a controversial (soon to be excommunicated) Catholic priest, has founded a religious community called the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The Center's members—many of them educated at Harvard and Radcliffe—surrender all earthly possessions and aspects of their life, including their children, to him. Patricia Chadwick was one of those children, and Little Sister is her account of growing up in the Feeney sect. Separated from her parents and forbidden to speak to them, Patricia bristles against the community’s draconian rules, yearning for another life. When, at seventeen, she is banished from the Center, her home, she faces the world alone, without skills, family, or money but empowered with faith and a fierce determination to succeed on her own, which she does, rising eventually to the upper echelons of the world of finance and investing.  A tale of resilience and grace, Little Sister chronicles, in riveting prose, a surreal childhood and does so without rancor or self-pity.

     Seventeen-year-old Piper knows that Father is a Prophet. Infallible. The chosen one.She would do anything for Father. That's why she takes care of all her little sisters. That's why she runs end-of-the-world drills. That's why she never asks questions. Because Father knows best.Until the day he doesn't. Until the day the government raids the compound and separates Piper from her siblings, from Mother, from the Aunts, from all of Father's followers--even from Caspian, the boy she loves.Now Piper is living Outside. Among Them.With a woman They claim is her real mother--a woman They say Father stole her from.But Piper knows better. And Piper is going to escape.

    Not in my world. My name is Elizabeth Hyde. Actually, no. It’s Grant. In the real world, I’m Elizabeth Grant.My husband’s name is Hyde, and he has three other wives. No one can know that. Obviously.In the strict religious community I was born into, women have clearly defined roles. They’re homemakers and caregivers. They rear children. But I don’t have any children, which means I have something of a ticket to the outside. Big families need money, and it’s time for me to get a job.And I’m loving this job. Being a medical assistant might not sound impressive to most people, but it’s a lot more exciting than making dinner for a family of twenty.I have to admit, the job isn’t the only thing that excites me.Lately, I’ve been getting close to Evan Adgate, the doctor who runs the medical center. He’s my opposite in every way: funny, smart, wealthy, educated. It’s no wonder the man turns heads. Heaven help me, he turns mine.But Evan and I can never be together. We can never be anything. No matter how many talks or dinners we have, my secrets will always be a barrier between us. It’s better if we keep things professional.Now I just have to keep telling myself that.

    Lying there completely naked, I am at my most vulnerable but determined to prove my strength. I try to keep my legs closed as my body wills itself to protect my most private area. . . . I tell myself: I am a warrior. I birthed a human. I can handle pain. But nothing could have ever prepared me for the feel of this fire on my skin."The shocking and subersive memoir of a 12-year-NXIVM-member-turned-whistleblower, and her inspiring true story of abuse, escape, and redemption.In 2005, Sarah Edmondson was a young actress starting out in Vancouver and hungry for purpose when she first heard about NXIVM, a personal and professional development company founded by Keith Raniere. Intrigued by the organization's promise to provide the tools, community, and insight to help her reach her potential, Sarah would go on to become one of NXIVM 's most faithful devotees, running a company center and enrolling more than 2,000 members.In this tell-all memoir, Sarah shares her true story from the moment she takes her first NXIVM seminar, to the moment she begins to question why those members who ask questions promptly leave or disappear, to the invitation she accepts from her best friend, Lauren Salzman, to the initiation ceremony for DOS - a "secret sisterhood" within NXIVM. Thanks to Sarah's fearlessness as she put her life on the line, that ceremony would mark the beginning of the cult's end.Complete with personal photographs, Scarred is an eye-opening story about abuses of power, the role female friendships play in cults, and how sometimes the search to be "better" can override everything else.

    Her father was the deluded and cruel leader of a cult based in South London who brainwashed those around him.Her father's paranoia and his need to completely control others led to Katy being imprisoned indoors and denied any kind of love or friendship. From a young age, Katy's father subjected her to violence and mental abuse. She was not permitted contact with anyone outside the house and on the rare occasions she did have to go out, she was always chaperoned. Katy never gave up hope of one day breaking free from her father's cruel clutches and finally found her freedom. This is her true story of endurance and survival.

    Or maybe they just want to give themselves the best possible chance of having sex with aliens.Whatever the reason, once people are in, it's usually very difficult for them to leave. Cults have ways of making their followers do loopy, dangerous stuff to prove their loyalty, and in return they get a chance to feel secure within the cult's embrace, with an added bonus of being utterly terrified of the outside world. From the tragic JONESTOWN Kool-Aid drinkers to the Australian cult THE FAMILY to the fiery Waco climax of THE BRANCH DAVIDIANS, this book is a wide-sweeping look at cults around the world, from the host of the popular podcast ZEALOT.

    Within the gates of New Jerusalem, and under the eye of its founder and leader, Daniel, Miriam knows she is safe. Cared for. Even if she’s forced, as a girl, to quiet her tongue when she has thoughts she wants to share, Miriam knows that New Jerusalem is a far better life than any alternative. So when God calls for a Matrimony, she’s thrilled; she knows that Caleb, the boy she loves, will choose her to be his wife and they can finally start their life together. But when the ceremony goes wrong and Miriam winds up with someone else, she can no longer keep quiet. For the first time, Miriam begins to question not only the rules that Daniel has set in place, but also what it is she believes in, and where she truly belongs. Alongside unexpected allies, Miriam fights to learn–and challenge–the truth behind the only way of life she’s ever known, even if it means straying from the path of Righteousness.

    One third of all sales of this chapbook went to support the Dakin Humane Society where Matthew and his wife adopted their lovely cat, Peachpie!A toe-tapping track from way back spreads like a virus through Leeds, Massachusetts, heralding a new era of unspeakable evil. WXXT - the slithering tongue in the ear of the Pioneer Valley. Are you ready to rock?

    She volunteered to take the message to China, where the preaching she did was illegal and could result in her expulsion or worse. Here, she had some distance from her community for the first time. Immersion in a foreign language and culture--and a whole new way of thinking--turned her world upside down, and eventually led her to lose all that she had been sure was true.As a proselytizer in Shanghai, using fake names and secret codes to evade the authorities' notice, Scorah discreetly looked for targets in public parks and stores. To support herself, she found work at a Chinese language learning podcast, hiding her real purpose from her coworkers. Now with a creative outlet, getting to know worldly people for the first time, she began to understand that there were other ways of seeing the world and living a fulfilling life. When one of these relationships became an "escape hatch," Scorah's loss of faith culminated in her own personal apocalypse, the only kind of ending possible for a Jehovah's Witness.Shunned by family and friends as an apostate, Scorah was alone in Shanghai and thrown into a world she had only known from the periphery--with no education or support system. A coming of age story of a woman already in her thirties, this unforgettable memoir examines what it's like to start one's life over again with an entirely new identity. It follows Scorah to New York City, where a personal tragedy forces her to look for new ways to find meaning in the absence of religion. With compelling, spare prose, Leaving the Witness traces the bittersweet process of starting over, when everything one's life was built around is gone.

    

    Totally gripping" Ten people. Twelve days. One killer. Ten people meet for a reunion at a remote castle, organised by a preacher who once held them in a Christian cult. One by one, the old friends are brutally murdered, and yet their killer remains hidden in their very midst.Rafe attends the reunion at the castle for one reason only: to settle once and for all how he really feels about his childhood obsession, Suzanne. Rivalry reignites at the outset as the men who all loved and fought over Suzanne are brought together once more.Is Suzanne the reason for these serial killings?Is the murderer a jealous unrequited lover?Or is she the femme fatale with a bloody agenda? As tension mounts, Rafe must play this deadly game in order to identify and neutralise the hidden serial killer before he himself becomes the next victim… Twelve Days is a twisty, gripping and claustrophobic crime thriller which you won't be able to put down. It will appeal to fans of authors like Mark Edwards, John Marrs and Caroline Mitchell.

    Three gruesome, blood-spattered crime scenes in the Hollywood Hills… Ten innocent people slaughtered by drug-crazed hippies during the tumultuous Woodstock Era… A psychopath who convinced a cult of runaways and dropouts that they could start the Apocalypse and rule the world… A spellbinding trial and a motive beyond comprehension… Fifty years later, you’ll be shocked to discover that when it came to Charles Manson, the Manson Family and the Helter Skelter murders - there was more to the story than we were told.

    Joined by a psychology professor, an amateur record producer, and Angie’s twin sister, Shawna, Mike will need to act quickly to stop the murders from spreading. Because Angie’s coming home to Salem, Massachusetts for the concert of a lifetime on Halloween night. And her fans are quite rabid.

    Written from the heart with candor, deep sincerity, as well as frequent splashes of irony, "Full of Beans" is a discussion of Fundamentalist Mormon identity, faith and faithfulness, religious intolerance, human rights, contradictions of law, and the cheesiness of the moon. I was born and raised FLDS Mormon and lived forty-seven years among my people. Married twenty years, raised eight children, had many remarkable experiences, including a terrifying government raid on the YFZ Ranch in 2008 when hundreds of our children were stolen by the state of Texas. In 2012 circumstances caused me to leave my home and community and face the world, alone. As I lived and worked in mainstream society, wherever I went, people asked strange questions. Did you escape from that awful religious cult in Southern Utah with the horrible men? Did your husband beat you and force you to have lots of kids? You poor thing! You must be so happy to finally be free. Huh? Poor me? Free? When I replied NO, NO, and NO to such questions, I got strange reactions. Silence. Eye rolls. Head shakes. Cold shoulders. Retreating backs. Smiles of pity, and downright angry accusations. Whaaaat? Abusive men, stomped on women, illiterate children. Busted bones, broken hearts, darkness and dungeons. Violence, crime, fraud, fear, and deception. Exposure, escape, heroes and heroines. Seriously? The moon is made of cheese; the sunset is orange soda. Chocolate with caviar is the best cure for cancer, and a daily Heineken will reverse hair loss. Brett Kavanaugh attacked Christine Ford, and Darth Vader is everybody’s hero. Nancy Pelosi is a pro-life activist, and Donald Trump is actually Santa Clause. The earth is flat, and all men are Christians. The stock market is stable, and my name is Bathsheba. Somebody is full of beans. Proceeds from the sale of this book contribute to creating employment opportunities for displaced women with children.

    Teenager Lucas Leonard made shocking admissions in front of the altar―he'd practiced witchcraft, conspired to murder his parents, and committed unspeakable crimes. The confessions earned him a brutal beating by a gang of angry church members, including his parents and sister. Lucas was brought to the hospital dead, awakening the sleepy community of Chadwicks, New York, to the horror that had been lurking next door.Nine members of Lucas' church would eventually find themselves facing murder-related charges. But how did they get to that point? And what made Lucas confess? The full story has never been told―until now.Emmy-nominated journalist Susan Ashline delves deep into the Leonard family history, the darkness within the Word of Life Christian Church, and what led Lucas, his family, and his community to that fateful night.

    As a young couple we entered into what we thought was a Christian church only to find out there were rules and stipulations that spiraled down into cultish practises.Our three children have been held captive for ten years. One child and her family, husband and three children have escaped but we still have two children and seven grandchildren, we have never met, imprisoned there.In a cult up becomes down and light becomes dark. God becomes man and the followers have no choice but to hear and obey what that man says. Direction as far as education, livlihood, hopes, dreams, spouses even wardrobe are no longer your decision. The "man" chooses for you and you obey or enter "outer darekness" when you leave this world.