Review - It’s Not A Cult by Lauren Danhof
I received a review copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
I requested Lauren Danhof’s new book It’s Not a Cult because I think cults and high-demand religions are very interesting. I went into this book not exactly sure what to expect.
It tells the story of Glinda Glass, a single, late 20’s woman who is down on her luck, living at home with her mother and younger sister. She is estranged from her twin sister for reasons that become clear as the novel progresses. Glinda’s mother is a member of a cult, though of course, everyone insists it’s not a cult.
This book is split between present-day narration and Glinda’s memories as she works to try and free her mother from this organization and figure out her own life.
The Glass family has a lot going on—Dorothy and her partner have severed most contact and moved to Oklahoma to look for Bigfoot; North is just trying to finish high school and get away from her family, Glinda is working at a dunk tank at a Renaissance fair (but keeping it from her family), and their mom is heavily involved in her church and its leader Arlon.
The one thing all these people have in common (besides being family) is their incredible inability to communicate clearly with each other.
I enjoyed the characters and felt that Danhof did a great job building believable characters with fairly believable problems. But the communication breakdowns between characters was sometimes maddening. I kept feeling that much of the conflict in the book could have been solved with a good conversation.
I also liked the premise of this book. It does a good job showing the ability that a particularly charismatic (and narcissistic) person can have to persuade normal people to believe things that at first seemed unbelievable. It shows the power of a cult leader, and how hard it can be to break away. And for most of the novel, this is done somewhat lightheartedly, but everything comes to a head near the end, and we see the true evil behind Arlon’s machinations.
My overall impression of this book is that it was entertaining, though frustrating at times. It highlights important things about high-control religions and family communication. It could be triggering for people who have suffered physical and emotional abuse.
