I was not able to finish this book since I just could not get into it. Perhaps the reporting was too deep and too investigative for me as a casual reader. I thought it would read like a compelling fiction piece, but it left me wanting more.

~*~ Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. ~*~

I would give this 4.5 stars if I could.

I went into this book knowing the Cliffnotes of the NXIVM cult, namely the outcome and some of the celebrity relations. This book does a good job of laying it all out in a way that is very easy to consume and kind of reads like a long form blog. It is articulate and handles some of the ore sensitive topics gracefully. I believe it suffers from a lack of organization that I cannot say is completely the books fault. It seems hard to wrangle the mind of Raniere in a linear way, as he did not appear to be a linear guy. I would have liked the stories broken up into categories maybe since there is so much overlap between the women that experienced them. Also, this book might have benefited from a timeline at the beginning since these crimes were committed over the course of multiple decades.

Lastly, I would suggest anyone who is reading this to watch the docu series, The Vow on HBO. These two properties have differing intentions (with the book doing a much better job of laying out the facts), but I found it easier to piece together the people once I was able to put a face to a name.

Don’t Call It a Cult is the story of the NXIVM cult and the ordeals endured by its participants and members. Award winning investigative journalist Bergman takes us on a journey of learning the horrors bestowed onto these members by the leader Ranier and his chosen connectors/traffickers... You will be amazed to learn some of the participants of this group. It is a true to life story, that will remind of what you have only seen in movies!

Don’t Call it a Cult by Sarah Berman was an intense and in depth exploration into NXIVM. Going into this book I only knew a small part of this group from what I had previously read or saw on TV. I had no idea where the roots of this cult like group began. Berman did a fantastic job in researching this topic so thoroughly, while maintaining factual events and holding back any bias.

At times I felt slightly overwhelmed by the amount of people discussed that were involved in NXIVM. Thankfully the author included an index of who each person was and how they were involved in the cult. I enjoy reading about cults, I find the concept of someone being drawn into a cult so unbelievable. However, I feel like I can understand this a bit more after reading this,

I definitely suggest this book to others who also have an interest in cults, or other similar groups.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy for review.

"They draw you in with the promise of empowerment, self-discovery, women helping women. The more secretive those connections are, the more exclusive you feel. Little did you know, you just joined a cult."
In Don’t Call It A Cult, Sarah Berman provides readers with a fascinating yet frightening and sometimes unimaginable account of NXIVM. Before reading this book, I had read a brief news article or two about NXIVM but nothing that would prepare me for what I learned by reading this book. I was completely blown away by the levels of manipulation and coercion as it seemed to permeate the entire organization. The fact that Raniere’s strategy was getting women in the organization, making them ‘his’ and then when he had complete control over them, he was able to have them perpetuate the abuse on other women – is sickening and psychologically damaging to all of the women. Don't Call it a Cult is an easy read but not necessarily a light read. Well-written and thoroughly researched. Highly recommended if you enjoy cults or true crime. #DontCallitaCult #NetGalley

An interesting book about the NXIVM organization and how they 'ran' things - how women could have fallen prey to Keith Raniere and his scams was hard for me to read but the more I read the more I came to understand what kind of predator he was.

Thanks to Steerforth Press, Netgalley and Edelweiss for providing this ARC. This is a great companion to the HBO series about NXVIM. This book is well reported and provides more in depth explanations for the willingness of the women involved and gives much greater insight into the methods of control used by Keith Rainere and his closest associates. Recommended for anyone interested in this story.

Wow. Just wow. I was aware of NXIVM, but this situation is considerably deeper than I thought. Sarah Berman does a wonderful job of weaving the story in a way that isn't overwhelming. If you were to look at the history of Keith Raniere, it would not be what would be called linear. He was weaving lies on top of lies and building a very large web. In this Berman compares him to a spider luring prey in and trapping it. That couldn't be more accurate. I'm glad that the author did such a good job representing the victims and their many stories. There's a consistent theme between the victims but she makes sure to make all the victims people. This was very well written and put together. There is ample information and resources cited. I loved reading this, honestly. It gives off the true crime/cult vibes but has considerably less murder.

I have a long standing fascination with cults and this is the first time I have taken the time to read a non fiction book on one. I had not expected such richness in examination of the patterns, behaviors, and relationships that were a part of this cult and as I read I felt I had a strong understanding of the years of events that lead to the much more recent media attention to Nxivm. I think most astonishing (or not), or at least what I reflected on the most with friends, was how many women were involved in recruitment of other women, their involvement in emotional and other abuse towards other women and victims/slaves; the capacity of people to hurt others is a theme I was left to ponder as I stepped back from what was uncovered in this investigation and in other legal proceedings.

I found the in depth investigative examination of Nxivm to be highly engaging and to have the depth, and external analysis, I thought was lacking in documentaries and long form reporting on this cult. As a lecturer in psychology I also found the examination of underlying themes with cults, the "Mega Society IQ test, and recruiting/gaslighting and manipulation to be a really necessary and useful aspect of the book; I can see myself perhaps even using some of the material on the IQ test to explain a concept or two in a class I teach on measurement issues (nerdy but true statement). Though academically I valued this aspect to the writing, as I reader I also appreciated the inclusion of more than just interviews as it allowed the reader to also step back from just participants and victims, to see how to place these people and this group as a whole in a larger context of pathological and harmful behavior and to appreciate that research and theory can also help understand, intervene, and assess cults. As I finished reading the book I found myself wondering, in response to how long Raniere got away with his harmful behaviors, what is happening now, who is the next person I will be reading about in another investigative piece in five or ten years? Who right now is being victimized?

Absolutely solid and captivating investigative journalism here. Berman has so clearly done incredible research and sticks to the points she has been able to substantiate and delve into. The number of layers to this scheme was such a huge rabbit hole for me and it makes me so intrigued to learn more.

I had heard bits and pieces about NXIVM in the news and through cult documentaries and such, but there was so much here I had absolutely no idea about. The layers of coercion and manipulation far exceeded the complexity I had anticipated. The treatment of women described in this book is mindblowing sadistic--both physically and especially psychologically--and yet there is much that is also glossed over.

The biggest thing about this book that stood out to me is that Berman's descriptions of cult members are respectful and dignified. Berman talked to women involved in NXIVM, not to further exploit them for the a story, but to truly understand what they experienced and tell the whole truth. She talked about how they were duped and always at a disadvantage, rather than portraying them as gullible or desperate, as is often the case in discussing members of cults. She also did highlight how young a lot of these women were and how vulnerable that made them.

Don't Call it a Cult is also not a profile of Raniere (although he is obviously discussed at length throughout). He is not the main character and it's not about trying to understand him; it's about understanding what these women went through and how sickening this abuse was. In a world where Raniere has constructed himself at the center, Berman disrupts that dynamic in a really refreshing way as she recounts the horrors he imposed on these women. She focuses on how women got sucked into participating in and perpetuating this abuse on other women, and how damaging that was to everyone involved. She also doesn't focus at length on white celebrities like Allison Mack, and instead dives at length into atrocities against undocumented Latina immigrants like "Daniela" and her family.

The second-biggest thing that I appreciated about Don't Call it a Cult is the way Berman situates her story in the broader social context. She discusses NXIVM in the context of #MeToo and the way Raniere could get away with crimes like these for so long because of bias in our justice system (although I think the latter was practically a throwaway comment and should have been explored in more depth). She makes a point of highlighting the discretion of the judge during Raniere's trial to interrupt misogynistic and sadistic dynamics in his courtroom that were employed in the name of giving Raniere a fair trial. There is one reference to the Milgram experiment (which I guess is kind of a requirement for discussing a cult), but the rest of the book is situated in a very contemporary way, which to me seemed very important because these are such recent events.

My only complaints are that there were moments where I was really left wanting more information, and that it was chronologically difficult to follow at times. By the end, I understood a lot better what had happened and when, but as I was going through I was constantly confused about what year it was and which woman's perspective I was getting. And it just leaves me with an overall feeling that there is so much more to this story.

Much thanks to NetGalley and Steerforth Press for the eARC!

I went into this book not knowing much about NXIVM, and I think that wasn't the expectation because I had a hard time following the timeline and remembering who was who. It was organized more as a deep dive rather than a primer. It was still fascinating but I'd probably have enjoyed it more if I'd listened to the podcast about NXIVM first.

This book is an in depth look at cults, and how they are able to present themselves to people as positive forces in the world. I was hooked on each page, and completely aghast at the actions of human beings. Overall this has been added to my list of favorite nonfictions.

It is made up of interviews, personal accounts, and factual reports. I have previously not read anything on this particular cult, and was completely taken aback at the extremity of a cult that had penetrated the rich and famous. This novel was written with taste and sensitivity, and did not victim blame or hold any obvious opinions. It is a factual account, and a complex one at that. I would recommend this book highly!

I want to sincerely thank Netgalley and the publisher for giving me chance to review this ARC. I will be purchasing it!

Don’t Call it a Cult by Sarah Berman is a superb and engrossing read which will keep you reading until the end. Well worth the read!

I am fascinated by books about cults and true crime, because I love trying to find the humanity in it all, where it all went wrong. I devoured both The Vow and Seduced, the television documentaries about NXIVM, and I was so excited to read this book. It is so thorough and well-researched, and the inclusion of first-person perspectives gives it a sense of authority about the subject. I think Sarah Berman did a phenomenal job with this book, taking a topic so broad, so complicated, and so easily misunderstood, and laying it out in a way that completely consumes the reader. This is a fantastic deep dive into NXIVM that I think many readers will enjoy.

This book turned out to be very thorough on the subject, which has been bouncing around the news for quite a few years now. It seemed that no matter how much I tried to ignore it at first, it still managed to capture my attention with the more and more bizarre stories that kept coming out. I thought I knew quite a bit for an interested reader, but I found that there was much more to it as I got further into it.

I think most are fairly familiar with the Executive Success Program, which later became NXIUM. When stories started coming out at long last, they were almost afraid to go after the story too hard and make them angry because of the money and power that had been amassed. They were known for suing those who didn’t please them, or running a campaign of harassment. But the more that was found out and then confirmed, about rumors of cult-like behaviors behind the secrecy, and worse, drove it to become a huge story. After a couple of insiders left the group and compared notes, it became clear that there was a serious problem.

For anyone with an interest in this group and what happened, this is an excellent source of information to learn about it. It’s amazing, the amount of details that seemed to have come out at the trial, and all of the craziness that was going on. Advance electronic review copy was provided by NetGalley, author Sarah Berman, and the publisher.

5 stars

Don't Call it a Cult
by Sarah Berman

This is an incredibly well-written and remarkably in-depth researched look at the horror of what was NXIVM. The insidiousness of Keith Raniere and even Mack is hard to fathom.
Is Allison Mack really sorry or just sorry she got caught? Why and how are people still following this man? The atrociously horrific things he got parents to do to their own children and women to other women is mind-boggling.
This is a book that I will not soon forget. If you ever wanted a look at the inner workings of a cult then, this is the book for you. Berman has written an incredible, readable and utterly unputdownable book.
Perhaps the most amazing aspect of the NXIVM story is Raniere is how he made himself out to be some sort of all-powerful guru yet this is not a religious cult in any way.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley.

Straight from the headlines comes a true crime book written by journalist Sarah Berman detailing her story on the NXIVM group and the eventual court cases of its high-ranking officials, including Keith Raniere, the head of it. Berman walks through the beginnings of Raniere's businesses and involvement with several women who believed he was the smartest man alive and followed with his multi-level marketing schemes that lead to an international self-help group that netted a lot of money and followers, including actors and powerful people. Berman explores many of the women involved in the group, and the charges of blackmail, sex trafficking, enslavement and other abuses and the women who escaped.

This is a very thought provoking book about a subject that many may have glanced at the headlines and not known much about. From empowerment to manipulation, it should serve as a warning to be careful about how you trust and with how much.

Don’t Call It A Cult is the sickening, sordid story of the NXIVM organization and its leader Keith Raniere. The book is apparently well researched and meticulously detailed, although it can get a little bogged down with the voluminous amount of information. The author does a good job as she walks you through the founding of the organization and its hierarchy, as well as the uncomfortable and despicable crimes committed by the defendants. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I had seen a little bit about this group on a documentary and was interested to learn more. This book was clearly well researched and had a lot of information about this cult. This isn't my typical genre, so sometimes it felt a little slow for me. It was interesting though and I learned a lot about this group and how people can be conditioned into cult members. I received a free copy of this book from netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.