Cults have always fascinated me. How could anyone let themselves get so brainwashed that they commit atrocities on someone else’s orders? It is of course far more complicated than that. ‘Cults’ is an encyclopedic overview of some of the most notorious cults of the past century, ranging from the more well known ones like The Peoples Temple and Charles Manson to the lesser known Roch Thériault. I liked the way each chapter was divided into subsections, it made it easier to take in the information and felt like listening to the podcast.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Cults reads like an encyclopedia about cults. It feels strange to say this given the topic, but I found it boring at times. Maybe the topic is better for podcasts because reading about one cult leader after another became numbing over time. I didn’t think the book lived up to its premise of telling us: “what goes on inside the minds of cult leaders and the people who join them?” I did learn about some cult leaders I was not familiar with, but I learned nothing new in the sections about cult leaders I had heard of. Still, the book will probably be popular with readers fascinated by cults or who like the podcast.

I read an advance reader copy of Cults from Netgalley.