REVIEW: After the Fire

After the Fire
Author: Will Hill

Moonbeam was a member of the Lord's Legion cult until a fire destroyed the cult compound. She, and the other members, had lived totally controlled by cult leader Father John. As the fire is investigated, facts about the cult, its leader and members, and daily life in the compound are revealed.

Although this book is a little confusing at first, as Moonbeam reveals more and more about the compound and cult before and after the fire, the story becomes more clear. She is a strange and disturbing main character because all she knows is the Lord's Legion. She distrusts anyone who isn't a cult member and displays some strange behaviors. Her strangeness just adds to the suspense and slow reveal of facts, making this book disturbing, emotional and mesmerizing. The author does a great job of depicting the story of a controlling cult and its long-lasting effects on members. The tale is not without hope though....which made it easier for me to read.

When I was a child back in the 80s, there was a cult compound raided by the feds near where I lived. The cult leader murdered a man and a 5-year old boy on a rural farm. The trial and all the mess that followed completely shocked everyone in the area. It was mind-numblingly awful. Even as a child, I remember being so surprised that people would follow such a nasty (and crazy) person, and even more shocked that parents brought their children to this weird rural compound led by a nut in overalls ranting strange racist, pseudo-religious crapola. So, this book really hit home with me and made me see things from the other side.  As an adult, I live in a town 1200 miles away from where I grew up.....and a local cult (disguised as a church) is being investigated for fraud, abuse, and other crimes. Again, I am shocked that people actually follow the craziness taught by this cult (they scream at people to release demons from them, require people to give all their possessions to the church, control members' finances, etc) and its leader -- an old woman who is just completely disgusting. How do people like this gain control over so many?? It still boggles my mind. I kept thinking about this local cult the entire time I was reading this book. It really hit home with me. Groups like this are more commonplace than anyone would like to admit. I've personally encountered three such groups in my lifetime and heard about so many more.

Definitely an emotional, hard-hitting book! I'm definitely going to read more by this author!

*I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Sourcebooks via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**