Holy moly was I in for a ride with this book. The narrator hooked me within the first 5 mins of listening and then I just couldn't stop. I love a good cult story and this one didn't disappoint. I was so curious to hear about Avery's experiences in the cult and after she left. Never once was I bored. I will definitely be looking forward to more works by this author.

A highly impressive KNOCK OUT debut psychological thriller by Brooke Beyfuss— AFTER WE WERE STOLEN. Abducted as a child, a woman must confront her past—and untangle the truth of what happened to her.

A powerful, emotional, coming-of-age tale with a strong protagonist you will root for to the end. The author expertly delivers a harrowing story of a world where little is what it first appears to be

Avery, a young girl, is abused in a cult and led to believe something by its evil leaders, which she thinks are her parents. When forced to have sex to contribute to the cult and bear children, she knows she must find a way to escape the only life she has ever known. They lock her outside to survive, and now this. How can her flesh and blood do this to her?

The story follows Avery and her family, living in a remote compound in rural Kansas. They think they are the "chosen ones." Started by her grandfather, Avery and her ten siblings live under a controlling father. They are led to believe the outside world is evil. The mother cranks out the babies since they do not want to bring in outsiders. They must recruit from within their family.

However, as the novel opens, the mother has another dead baby, and Avery has to bury it. They are survivalists. Shortly thereafter, there is a deadly fire, and Avery is locked in. Who set the fire? Will anyone get out alive?

She manages to escape after multiple burns and wants her brother, Cole (they are close), to go with her. This is their only way to escape. However, if the leaders survive, they will kill them for leaving. In the past, there was never a thought of escape since their every move was monitored. However, in light of the recent events, she knows she cannot remain.

Cole is a little reluctant about leaving since he has been brainwashed to believe in their cause. He knows no different. However, he agrees since he cares for Avery and she is his best friend. They are on the run. They both have been taught to live off the grid. They have no money, clothes, transportation, or food.

In addition, Avery is sick. She has been drugged and raped by some man her parents forced upon her to bear children for them. She needs a pregnancy test. With no money, she steals one, and they both are arrested.

Being arrested may be the best thing ever for both of them. They are in jail. With social services called in, an investigation gets underway. Which ultimately reveals that they are not brother and sister and the leaders are not their parents. They were stolen.

They find Cole's parents, who have been missing since he was a little boy. They still are searching for Avery's parents.

From here is a heartbreaking scene between Avery and Cole. They care deeply for one another in ways that now make sense since they are not indeed brother and sister. But they have now separated, living hundreds of miles apart, and both still trying to deal with past trauma and feelings. Cole's family is wealthy and wants him to cut all ties with this life. Avery is left alone to try and make sense of her life.

They must question everything they have ever known about the people and family that is not their family and the brainwashing and beliefs, the falsehoods, abuse, and torment they suffered.

Beautifully written, gritty, haunting, dark, and chilling. Best of all, a leading protagonist you will fall in love with and root for until the explosive final page is turned. From grief, loss, forgiveness, and hope.

For fans of Laura McHugh's What's Done in Darkness and Kimi Cunningham Grant's These Silent Woods. (both 5 STARS).

Distributing and traumatic. The minute the book begins, you sense the sinister atmosphere leading to deadly menace and secrets. It is difficult to read in some places; however, there is hope and compassion. I highly recommend the audiobook!

A sensitive exploration of trauma and its harmful lasting effects. The author dives deep into the minds of her characters. Emotionally charged and thought-provoking— an ideal pick for book clubs and further discussions.

Firstly I was drawn in by the creepy cover and description. Secondly, I listened to the audiobook narrated by Jesse Vilinsky (a perfect voice for all characters), and it was RIVETING! I was utterly glued to the audio at home and in the car. Thirdly, was excited to discover a newfound author with a winner out of the gate! I cannot wait to see what she comes up with next. Brooke Beyfuss is an author to follow!

A special thank you to #DreamscapeMedia and #NetGalley for an advanced audiobook copy to listen to, enjoy and review in exchange for an honest review.

Blog Review Posted @
www.JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: July 19, 2022
My Rating: 4 Stars ✨✨✨✨
July 2022 Must-Read Books

Fantastical, tragic... horrifying.

These were the thoughts that weighed down my heart and my mind as I sat down to write this review. I cried right along with Avery and Cole as they each recalled that fateful night - no spoilers here. I went into this story blind, and the impact was that much greater.

Oh, the horrors that humanity inflicts on itself. I can honestly say that I am down in the dumps after having read this very well written novel. This story just about broke my heart: I'm sure atrocities like this happen on the regular. Why are we humans so vicious and inhumane? Makes you lose all hope for us.

During the first months of COVID, I switched off from television, the news and exposure to too much media. Previous to COVID, I had already become disenchanted with hyped up newscasts and television programming in general. Therefore, I identified a fair bit with how Avery and Cole must felt once they became inundated with the repetitive and strident news flashes from the many forms of media during the "after" phase of their lives. Usually, when I am forced to watch news feeds while sitting in a waiting room, I can't wait to get back home to relative peace and quiet and switch off again.

I listened to this audiobook while I walked on the Humber Trail. I have to say that I am glad I did this because this is a very dark, often violent story. My face was a veritable thundercloud at times, so dire was Avery's predicament.

I tend to bounce back from these types of negative moods - eventually, so not to worry, but I am going to pace myself with these types of soul-destroying story lines. My heart can only take so much of man's inhumanity to man. I prefer to stay hopeful, to believe that there are plenty of good people left in this world. Avery was able to find a few of those good people to help her on her journey to healing, but will she ever find true peace? The reader is left hopeful for her, and for that I was grateful.

I'm rating this one a 4.3 out of 5 stars. My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

𝙰𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚆𝚎 𝚆𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚂𝚝𝚘𝚕𝚎𝚗 𝚋𝚢 𝙱𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚔𝚎 𝙱𝚎𝚢𝚏𝚞𝚜𝚜
@𝙱𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚔𝚎𝙱𝚎𝚢𝚏𝚞𝚜𝚜
𝙿𝚞𝚋 𝙳𝚊𝚝𝚎: 𝙹𝚞𝚕𝚢 𝟷𝟿, 𝟸𝟶𝟸𝟸
𝙽𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗: 𝙹𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚎 𝚅𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚔𝚢
𝙳𝚞𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗: 𝟷𝟶𝙷 𝟷𝟶𝙼

This book is one of my great July surprises. The main character, Avery, lives on a survivalist compound with her parents and siblings. As a member of the Clovelite commune, they are trained in the harshest ways to survive doomsday. One night, there’s a fire and this will lead to more revelations than Avery could ever imagine.

What a well written and emotionally raw story. Ms. Beyfuss takes the reader through compound life, the abuse – both emotional and physical – and the sheer madness of the leaders responsible for it all. There are two big takeaways for me: the grooming of children in a cultlike setting -how they are pitted against one another and taught to fear the outside world and also, the full-on trauma they face when they’re out. I think the author does an amazing job showing sheer survival instincts while in the cult/compound and then the full emotional toll it took on their psyche once they’re out.

Narration: This is read by Jesse Vilinsky and she nailed this character’s emotional roller coaster!

I think it’s important to note the content warnings in this one: sexual abuse, rape, physical abuse

My thanks to @Dreamscape_Media for this gifted ALC and to @BookMarked for this gifted physical copy!

Stay bookish, my friends

“They are collecting us, not protecting us.”

💭 Thoughts:
First, congrats to @brookebeyfuss on her debut novel! This book covers deeply disturbing topics. The author includes a note about trigger warnings at the beginning of the book. It is a very emotional book, that had me feeling so many different things. I have always been fascinated by cults and how people become involved with them.

The story follows Avery and her family as they live on their compound, Clovelite in rural Kansas. The compound was started by her grandfather who believes they were the chosen ones. Avery and her ten siblings live under the rule of their controlling, survivalist father. One night there is a fire and Avery is forced to flee with her brother Cole. What transpires after they flee that night is truly heartbreaking and will leave them questioning everything!

This book will keep you guessing until the last page! I don’t want to give to much away because I think this is a great book to go into blind! Don’t read the synopsis on the book! It gives everything away!

The narration for the audiobook was fantastic. The narrator did a great job covering the different emotions and characters.

Overall, I highly recommend this book if you like reading about cults, psychological trauma, and deep family turmoil.

Thank you to @netgalley, @dreamscape_media, and @brookebeyfuss for the advanced audiobook!

It takes a devastating fire to free Avery and her brother Cole from their brutal survivalist father. On their own in world they know nothing about, they live a hand to mouth existence until they are arrested for shoplifting. And it’s then that they discover their “mother and father” actually kidnapped them from their real parents. Cole is returned to his real family, but Avery isn’t so lucky. When she discovers there were survivors from the compound fire, Avery decides to uncover the truth about the fire and her real family

This book was incredible and hard to believe this is a debut novel. The material, though emotionally fraught, was incredibly moving. It was fast paced and I devoured it quickly. I thought the narration was also brilliant. It was performed with so much emotion. Great job on this new novel!

After their compound is set on fire, teenagers Avery and Cole are the only manners to make it out alive. Weary of the outside world, they try to stay incognito and survive by themselves. They are eventually found out after struggling in many ways. Deep down they know they were abused and horribly mistreated, yet this isn’t enough to make for an easy transition back into the real world. While one of them is reunited with their family, the other is floating around with little direction and big feelings.
This was a very sad and dark book. It was well written with some very interesting characters. While I didn’t feel the ending sufficed, I did enjoy the book.
***huge thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

“Humanity wasn’t dying. It was already dead.”

This was an amazing story. It was heartbreaking, moving, emotional, and infuriating. This is a unique take on a cult story and its aftermath.

We meet Avery as she’s living on a survivalist commune with her family. They think the world is ending and they’re the chosen ones. Her grandfather started the cult but after he died, her father took over. Seems like dad runs a tighter and less happy ship.

Avery is mostly alone other than Cole, her brother and best friend. She was made to live outside to toughen up but after their mother loses a baby, Great Value David Koresch let Avery inside and gave her a nice room with lots of food and rest. What’s the catch?

A fire breaks out and Avery is lucky to escape with her life.. and Cole. They live on their own for a while scavenging but finally get picked up and revealed to be missing children. Their whole lives have been a lie. Will they get to end up together or will they be separated? Do either of them have a chance of making it in this big world after what they’ve gone through?

This was hard to hear at times but always meaningful, well-thought out, and it felt like the honest feelings of a young woman under these circumstances. This story will stick with me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the chance to listen and review! The narration was wonderful.

Avery and Cole are siblings in a survivalist cult along with their ten siblings and parents. Physical and emotional abuse is rampant and when it’s Avery’s turn step up to a task she isn’t prepared for, things don’t go the way the parents predicted. When a devastating fire breaks out burning the compound, Cole and Avery escape with a few belongings and their lives. Not knowing the outside world they face many fears. Did anyone else survive the fire? Are they safe? When picked up for shoplifting they are in for another shock! Trying to navigate all of the changes, Avery is lost without Cole. What really happened on that disastrous night? Will Avery be able to overcome the past and finally have a future? They all died that day, but will they be able to pick up the pieces and come back to life? Filled with hardships that were difficult to listen to at times. Beyfuss writes a story of indomitable human strength and spirit. A story of true survival and breaking the chains that bind. Beyfuss takes us on such a compelling journey that it’s difficult to believe that this is a debut novel. Jesse Vilinsky grips the listener with her emotion packed narration, keeping the listener riveted throughout.

If I could give After We Were Stolen 10 stars, I would! I could not believe it’s a debut novel. Mind blown.

I’ll be honest, I didn’t think I was going to like the narrator at the beginning. I felt like her voice was a little too high pitched for me, but after the first chapter I really enjoyed her. Jesse Vilinsky did an amazing job portraying Avery’s character. She brought the story to life!

I downloaded the audiobook around 10 pm on Monday and I stayed up until around 2 am listening to it. I couldn’t turn it off. If I weren’t an honest person, I would have called into work “sick” so I could finish it lol!

There are several parts in the book that are emotional tear jerkers! I actually cried during a few scenes and that’s not something I typically do when reading. I felt the pain and fear Avery and Cole were going through in the narrators voice and I just couldn’t stop myself! I wanted to embrace them with a big hug!

I don’t want to give anything away, so I’ll just leave it at this…go pre-order this book! You will thank me and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I’m looking forward to more novels by Brooke! This book will for sure be one of my top favorite books of 2022!

Gutting. Impossible to imagine a life so dark but I’m sure it happens. This book has triumph and heartbreak and it’s one of my new favorite novels.

I was really excited to get approved for this one because I had been seeing it on my Instagram feed. It was good, but I feel like it had a bit more potential.

Nineteen-year-old, Avery and her sixteen-year-old brother, Cole are the survivors when their family's remote compound burned to the ground. They had been living there while preparing for the end. Their father was preparing them for survival using harsh treatment, control, threats, abuse, and fear.

Although Avery and Cole have been groomed for "survival" by their father, they are not prepared to survive once they flee from the flames. When they are arrested for shoplifting, the revelations come in - they had both been kidnapped fifteen years earlier! Avery is left alone after Cole's family comes to take him 'home'.

What does it really mean to survive? What makes a family?

This book explores trauma and cults and how they control. Cults are fascinating to me as was this story. I appreciated how the Author explored what happens when one leaves/escapes a cult. What happens when confronted with the truth. Cole and Avery were both very young and raised by "father" and this was all that they knew. Their reactions to learning the truth, felt authentic and realistic. I felt for both and their plight both while on the compound and after.

This book was not an easy read. There are things in the book which are upsetting. But there is also hope for the two characters.

This was a very well thought out and executed book. I listened to the audiobook and thought the narrator did a very good job.

Well written and thought provoking.


#AfterWeWereStolen #NetGalley.

Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book was incredible! Thank you to NetGalley and Dream Scape media for the advanced copy of the audiobook. I’ll be honest, had this not popped up on NetGalley I probably would’ve never heard about it or read it, and that would’ve been an unknown disappointment because everyone should read this.

The story gave me Where the Crawdads Sing vibes in that our main character is a young lady (Avery) brought up in a less than perfect way and she has to figure out how to survive and move forward. There’s also a crime like there was in WTCS but think more cult-vibes than a straight-up murder.

I just really loved this book. It hurt my feelings on multiple occasions but that didn’t stop me from being hooked the whole time. Not to mention Jesse Vilinsky was a phenomenal narrator and gave such depth to story.

After We Were Stolen drops on July 19 and you HAVE to read it!

Avery lives in a compound with her parents and many brothers and sisters. Their father is the leader of their group, the Chosen. They know they will be the only survivors after the world around them dies. Avery works hard every day, growing crops, honing survival skills, and sometimes burying babies. Then she is forced to sacrifice even more, and the house is set afire. After escaping with her brother Cole, they eventually make a startling discovery. They were both kidnapped as children. Cole goes to live with his family while Avery struggles to survive on her own and flees from the shadows of her past.

This is the story of a murderous cult and the ones who escaped, but it's also about trying to make sense of a traumatic past and learning to live again. The description of life in the cult is horrifying but very well done. Avery's struggles to recover are imperfect and very real to life. We explore the ideas of post-traumatic stress and blocking out painful memories. The characters, love them or hate them, are all so vivid. As in real life, everything is not tied up and perfectly resolved. There are tattered strings left behind, because life is not perfect.

The audiobook was narrated by Jesse Vilinsky, who did a wonderful job of conveying the terror, confusion, desperation, determination, and pain so prevalent in this story.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from Dreamscape Media via Netgalley. My review is voluntary and my opinions are my own.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

Well this is going to sound weird, but I love cults. They’re so interesting. The culture surrounding each individual cult is so different yet the same that I can’t help but be drawn in to see what’s going on - how do they do it?

Then we have this book - it’s about those that got out of a cult. Children of cults generally don’t even know they’re in a cult. It takes adjustment to realize what has happened to them. We follow a young girl and her brother that escaped a fire at their compound. When they get caught shoplifting it’s discovered they are both missing presumed dead children. The boys family comes to get him and takes him home, while the girl has no family and ends up in a women’s shelter. This story is told from the voice of the girl.

It’s so interesting to get this look into the aftermath of a cult - even if it is just fictional. This book is gripping and I absolutely loved it.

Definitely recommend this to anyone that finds cults fascinating.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫