This book starts with Glinda at a job interview, dripping wet because she ran to her interview straight from her job as the dunk tank 'drench the wench' at a Medieval festival. Right away I knew I'd enjoy the book. With all the lighthearted quirkiness that this book had, it also had some serious family-related struggles and trying to rescue her mother from a cult that is moving into their family home. Glinda definitely had her issues and was over-the-top, but I warmed to her as the book went on and uncovered the reasons why she behaved the way she did. This had great character development and struck a perfect balance between humor and deep seated issues.

Glinda is an absolutely insufferable main character. This book is narrated by her in first person, which makes the reading experience equally insufferable.

The mother is ridiculous, but not in a way that made me laugh.

I just couldn't go on.

DNF at 18%.

It was fine, but it felt claustrophobic and it like others of its ilk. The main character's zaniness and mess quickly grew stale and the mysteries weren't compelling enough to propel the reader forward. I don't think this is necessarily a slight on the book or the author; the market just feels saturated with cult- and cult-adjacent satire.

This was requested when I first found out about NetGalley and I had requested so many ARCs that I could not get to all of them before they were archived. I really wanted to get to this one, as it seemed interesting. If I can find this somewhere for a reasonable price, I will try to get it! I am giving this book three stars, as I don't want to give it a good or bad rating, since I did not get to it.

DNF at 15% I just couldnt follow this at all unfortunately.

Thank you netgalley for the earc in exchange for an honest review.

A darkly funny take on cults, this book is for fans of true crime and not; it's accessible, comedic, and emotional in a way one might not expect from the premise. A wonderful debut novel from an author who has a fantastic career ahead of her!

3.5 stars

I enjoyed this book and the characters, but the build up was a bit slow. It was also an arc that was a bit predictable.

Glinda’s mother joins a cult called the Starlight Pioneer Society and has fallen under the spell of their leader, Arlon. It doesn’t take long before Arlon is proposing to her mother and allowing the other members to use her home as their commune. Glinda’s worries don’t stop there, though. She wants to repair her relationship with her sisters, Dorothy and West, and she needs their help to protect their mother before it’s too late. But Glinda has to come to terms with her past trauma and grief first if she going to have any chance at bringing her family back together.

Overall, I thought it was an okay story. Glinda could be a bit emotionally clumsy but you could tell that her heart was in the right place. Troy was one of my favorite characters, and I felt like Glinda was a bit obtuse at times because it was clear he had feelings for her, but with him being her only friend, maybe she didn’t want to risk crossing that line. The story itself was pretty good, but I felt the premise was a bit too cliche as far as cults go.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for providing a copy of this book to review.*

With a main character that's wonderfully complex- making questionable decisions while still fighting tooth and nail for her family- this culty story is entertaining and interesting in its consideration of the vulnerability and complexity of grief.

Glinda is not in the best situation at the moment, having dropped out of her graduate program and returned home to a job she views as undesirable, all while trying to talk her mom out of joining a cult and marrying its leader, Arlon. Her mom is enamored with Arlon and refuses to listen to Glinda and her sister West's concern over marrying him and signing over their family home to become the cult's commune. Glinda must reunite with her estranged twin sister and make amends with her family if she hopes to save her mom. Overall, a quirky story that at times veers into the unbelievable. Glinda's actions are almost always misinterpreted and she often goes about things the worst way possible. In the second half of the book, more of Glinda's past is revealed which helps the reader understand some of her actions, even if she still isn't particularly relatable. Readers who like unreliable narrators will like this one.

The main storyline in this book is three daughters trying to save their mother from a cult. While I think Danhof does a great job with the idea, the execution could have been better. There was so much happening and the family held so much disbelief towards Glinda that it felt unbelievable at times. I really started to fall in love with the characters throughout the last half of the story, and Danhof really seemed to pick up the pace and voice of the story. I think it was a fantastic first novel and I will definitely be keeping my eye on this author in the future.

Lauren Danhof’s “It’s Not a Cult” takes readers on a quirky, sometimes humorous, and often poignant journey into the tumultuous life of Glinda Glass. After dropping out of graduate school and returning home, Glinda finds herself in a complex web of family issues, cults, and personal struggles. The story revolves around the dysfunctional Glass family, with Glinda at the center of it all. Her mother has joined a cult called the Starlight Pioneer Society, led by the charismatic yet menacing Arlon. As Glinda grapples with her own issues and the recent return of her twin sister, Dorothy, the cult’s influence on her family escalates. Glinda decides to take matters into her own hands, infiltrating the cult to rescue her mother.

One of the strengths of the novel is its portrayal of realistic, flawed characters. Glinda’s struggles and her often clumsy attempts to mend relationships resonate with readers who have experienced family dysfunction. Her grief, addiction recovery, and the strains on her family relationships are explored with depth and authenticity. Despite the story’s dark undertones, the narrative maintains a humorous and lighthearted tone. While the Glass family’s communication issues and misunderstandings may be frustrating at times, they contribute to the book’s comedic elements. Glinda’s friend Troy, a lovable character, adds charm and humor to the story. The novel deftly addresses themes of trauma, forgiveness, and the complexities of family dynamics. Readers will find moments of hope and redemption as the characters navigate their shared history of pain.

While the story excels in portraying the flawed yet relatable characters and their emotional journey, some readers may find Glinda’s character development uneven. Her redemption arc could have been more pronounced to create a more satisfying character transformation. Lauren Danhof’s “It’s Not a Cult” is an engaging and quirky exploration of a dysfunctional family’s struggle to confront their past, rescue their mother from the clutches of a cult, and repair their relationships. The blend of humor and heartfelt moments makes this novel an enjoyable and relatable read for those who have experienced family drama or are interested in stories of redemption and forgiveness.

Interesting premise but the execution was not what I wanted. Glinda was so unlikeable and didn’t seem to be learning from her mistakes. I made it about halfway through and couldn’t do it anymore. There were some funny lines, mostly from Troy, but not enough to keep me reading. There seems to be a trend with books recently where you’re supposed to be able to forgive the extremely selfish and obnoxious main characters but I can’t get through the book to their eventual change (if there is one). This one just wasn’t for me.

Such a great read! The main character's voice was so strong and the humour and kookiness really speaks through. I love a cult book, so I was excited to dive in but all of the other threads to the narrative were a welcome and happy surprise. I really recommend it!

I like the concept of this one, but it wasn't for me. I thought it was a really interesting view of the family and the different personalities within it, as well as new friendships (and awful cult leaders). There was some great humor throughout as well.
I just didn't vibe with Glinda. I really couldn't get on board with how she dealt with and reacted to things--particularly in the beginning.

Cults are such an interesting phenomenon to me, if I'm being completely honest. The title of this book was honestly the main/sole draw as to why I requested it off NG. That said, while not my favorite read of the year, I definitely did not find it to be terrible either. I enjoyed the dark humor aspects woven in (especially because some heavy topics like grief, drug abuse, complex family dynamics, and more are discussed), but found Glinda's personality to be grating and insufferable at times. Genuinely I felt like she was The Worst™ so many times! And while the family drama/trauma and overall quirkiness of the book was intriguing enough for me to continue, it all somehow still managed to feel a bit forced, bloated, and a tad rushed (toward the end) to me. But again, I digress— while this book wasn't necessarily for me, I'm sure others will have a rollicking good time with it because the characters are truly larger than life and the story itself is honestly very compelling.

Brilliant, satire and gripping. It was very well written, and hard to believe it's the authors first novel! Stunning!

I am a sucker for a cult book. Well, I am a sucker for cult anything. I was super jazzed when I got approved for this book from netgalley. The only downside to this book was how big of a B**** the main character was. I couldn't STAND her. the book itself was great, but oh my god the insufferability of Glinda.. Nothing justifies treating people like garbage lady! but oh my god that cult leader guy was on a tirade, and for as big of an idiot as he is, he still got his nonsense accomplished.

Sadly I decided not to finish this one. I think it may have been categorized in the wrong genre as I don't think this fits into comedy. Additionally, the main character is absolutely insufferable and I'm guessing that was intentional but it's painful to read.

I have a mild obsession with cults. Not where I want to go join one or start one but I want to know WHY people start them, WHY people join them. So as soon as I saw this title I knew it would be something that I would definitely pick up on a shelf anywhere I saw it.

The character was definitely entertaining through most of this book. Was it the best thing I ever read? No BUT it was an easy read, that kept my interest the whole time and I would definitely tell people to try it out.

I was really excited to start this but I did fall a bit short for me.
I really struggled with the characters, the main character Glinda was very unlikeable and really immature at times but she was also treated so badly by her family, yet I just could not relate to her.
What I did like was the mixture between funny lighthearted moments to the darker more serious ones intertwined with the quirky very unique characters and their family drama.