If you’re a fan of books about cults then this book is for you. This was a straight-forward read and more of a YA to me and a coming-of-age story at it's core.

I like how Lucien’s narrative voice ages as we go along. There is great character development with Lucien, but we don't really get as much from other characters. Definitely disturbing content that is maddeningly frustrating, as you would expect from any cult read. While the book is strong, I felt it was lacking another level of depth that would take it from a three rating to a four rating.

This was hard to read at times. Slow paced and thought provoking. Overall the story was fine.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. This is my honest review.

An interesting premise about a difficult subject. A bit slow paced for me but managed to finish to the end.

This bored me since the beginning and I wasn't interested in anything. It's a pity because the idea seemed worth it.

Couldn't stop reading this fascinating and disturbing account of a young life growing up under the care of a mother and group in thrall to a madman

I really wanted to like this book but occasionally reading about cults just doesnt work for me. i was hoping that Lucien would receive some type of counseling once he left but that does not seem like it happened, so many ways this book could have been better for myself only, but i did try it and it was not what i was looking for in a a great story. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

An interesting premise about a difficult subject. A bit slow paced but it picked up at the end.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this digital arc in exchange for my honest review which is not affiliated with any brand.

Super interesting and eye opening premise! Lucien's story was hard to read at times, but overall a good, thought-provoking novel.

Lucien is raised by a single mother and he goes to school at the House of Earth. Basically it is a cult who feels the world is a threat. He has access to a town and library for a while and makes a friend in Gabrielle. Eventually he and his mother move to the compound and stay in a dormitory but he still sneaks away to see Gabrielle. I had a lot of problems with this story. There was child abuse like the time Lucien was severely punished for painting a birdhouse black because it was a negative color. Another time he is forced to stay locked in a shed overnight with no light or heat because he was a couple of minutes late for dinner. Of course they were all vegetarians but the meals didn't seem nutritious or appetizing at all consisting of some steamed carrots or string beans. Where was the protein? The chapters were way too long taking over an hour to read each one and I didn't feel like any of the multitude of characters were really developed.

It was a good premise and the writing was beautiful but I found my times just skimming because it took so long to get to a point. At about 3/4 of the way in it started to come together but it was like falling down a hill with everything happening so fast and I just wasn't satisfied with the end. My rating is more a 2.5 but round up to 3 more for the writing than anything else.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Lake Union for providing me with a digital copy.

Thanks to Netgalley for sending me the ARC! I liked this story and its scary to think there are probably many "families" like this out in the world. I definitely cheered on Lucien throughout the book. I rate this book a 4.1

Thank you for the advanced copy of this book! I will be posting my review on social media, to include Instagram, Amazon, Goodreads, and Instagram!

I was looking forward to this. The concept was okay but I just didn't enjoy it. I was frustrated through most of the book and finished with so many questions unanswered

This book was a little predictable for me but I loved seeing through the eyes of a 12 year old boy. Children are what they learn..until they see differently. Interesting tale.
Many thanks to Lake Union Publishing and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

In this coming-of-age thriller, a twelve-year-old boy’s spark of courage to question the harmonious wooded commune he calls home may burn down more than just his own illusions. The author wrote a story that was interesting and moved at a pace that kept me engaged. The characters were easy to invest in. Atmospheric, haunting and superbly plotted.

The hype around this books was huge and I will say for a debut novel it was good but at the same time it left me feeling a little bored at times waiting for a bit of action. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Night Burns Bright tells the story of Lucien. He is raised in a group who focus on nature and the simple things in life. Which we soon learn is a cult. Lucien is only 12 and I felt so bad for him seeing the story through his eyes. He grows to realize that the people that were there to protect him and his single mother are not what they seem to be at all.

Author Ross Barkan takes readers on an emotional ride in "The Night Burns Bright," a story of a young boy caught in a tangled web of conspiracy theories, an isolated commune and personal survival. For as long as he can remember, the House of Earth has been Lucien's home. What he once happily accepted as normal is now becoming a snare, trapping its residents in isolation, end-of-the-world theories and unexplained disappearances.in the aftermath of 9/1.

The writer draws us in as Lucien questions the commune's increasing isolationism, censorship and violent acts. When Lucien loses touch with his one friend outside the House of Earth, he begins to lose faith in his elders, even his own mother. In the end, all Lucien can count on is himself.

This is a tense novel with timely issues such as climate change, ideology and group dynamics. Kudos to the author for an intriguing novel.


In this coming-of-age thriller, a twelve-year-old boy’s spark of courage to question the harmonious wooded commune he calls home may burn down more than just his own illusions.

Lucien has everything he needs: a loving mama, a library full of books, and House of Earth, a private school nestled safely in the woods of upstate New York. It’s where Lucien is taught the importance of living in harmony with nature and building a peaceful and sustainable future. But when his youthful curiosity draws him into town and to Gabrielle, a public-school student living a life wholly different from his own, Lucien’s inquisitiveness about life beyond the commune and questions regarding the events of 9/11 threaten to unbalance everything he thought he knew.

Slowly, things begin to change at House of Earth. The outside world is off limits. Security measures tighten. New rules are put in place, and anyone who violates them is asked to leave and never spoken of again.

As forbidden questions pile up, Lucien’s willingness to obey weakens. Continuing to meet Gabrielle in secret only reinforces his gnawing fear that something about his world is terribly wrong. Unable to remain silent any longer, Lucien will soon discover that looking for answers at House of Earth may be the most dangerous rule he can break.

2.5/5

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

This book is about a young boy named Lucien and his experiences at House of Earth-- an alternative school with some.... questionable teaching methods. He and his mother are incredibly involved at House of Earth, but things change for the whole community when the 9/11 attacks occur. The leader of the community, O. C. Leroux, is a man Lucien is taught to look up to and follow at all costs. The question Lucien ends up asking himself is what cost is too high?

The slow burn of what is actually going on in the House of Earth was really interesting. I was intrigued by this weird community and what was going on behind the scenes. That being said, this was a literary fiction title written from the perspective of a child. That is SUCH a risky creative move that can really pay off (a la Room by Emma Donoghue), or it could come across as weird and pretentious. Unfortunately, this title fell prey to the latter.

The other big downer for me with this title was the last chapter of "Ever After." We cut to about 20 years after the previous chapter and it felt super abrupt, unexpected (in a bad way), and unnecessary.

This title would have been significantly better for me (3.5-4/5 stars) if it had been about 50 pages shorter and hadn't used the over-tired trope of an epilogue set 20 years in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review. I ended up buying the ebook version.

This was an engrossing read. I read it in two days.

Told from the perspective of Lucien as he comes of age, you watch as his life is increasingly absorbed into a cult. A place where he once felt safe ultimately is not so innocuous. The author does a good job of portraying events through the lens of a young boy who has been raised within the confines of a restricted environment. How Lucien begins to understand and question things grows as he gets older and is exposed to more.

What defines your perception of normal? Is it your school, the neighborhood you live in, or maybe it's the friends you surround yourself with? Well, Ross Barkan's The Night Burns Bright asks that question. How do we perceive the world around us and define our reality?

The Night Burns Bright is a deft novel depicting the life of a young boy named Lucian. Growing up in an "alternate nature-based private school" known as House of Earth, Lucian knows little of the outside world, abiding to believe that what mama and Jack, his mentor, said was right and good for not only him but the planet as well.

Ross Barkan conveyed Lucian's emotional and physical feelings flawlessly during his time at House of Earth. You'll find yourself not being able to put this book down, wondering what's going to happen next! As with any gripping story, there are triggers to be known beforehand. These include ones such as, death, cultism, 9-11, and child abuse.

I thoroughly enjoyed Barkan's The Night Burns Bright, following the rise and fall of the cult, House of Earth. A wonderfully established perfect illusion for a sustainable future, one that many frightened and lost could find solace in. In the beginning, I even thought that it was a wonderful place to live! Just as described in the book, House of Earth was a beautiful and terrible place all in one.

Although I truly loved most of the book, I didn't care too much for the ending. There seemed to be a discord between the main storyline and the book's finale. I would have much more enjoyed the continuation of Lucian's current life than jumping forward into time.

Overall, Ross Barkan's The Night Burns Bright is a must-read! It's skillfully written, hooking you till the very end! Bravo, Mr. Barkan, and thank you for such a great read!