Cynthia Gray

Insightful and fascinating

Revisado: 02-15-25

There’s so much more to this mystery than most. Surrounding the death and legal battle are observations about life and human beings that ring true.

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Authentic, sympathetic and well done

Revisado: 12-12-24

I'm writing this review when the author is nearly done with high school. I have several hours to go, but I'm so impressed with the book that I'm motivated to recommend it as soon as possible. The author narrates her own story, which lends authenticity and atmosphere to the telling. People often wonder why spouses and children in the orbits of such appalling characters as the author's father don't run away sooner than they do. But the fine details of this family's predicament reveal the attachments and conditioning which immobilize them, along with the extreme danger of leaving such a vicious and vengeful person. This is not a hard book to hear because we can hear in the author's voice that she was adaptable, strong and courageous in ways that allowed her to survive. I believe her siblings and mother were too. There's no gratuitous description of the father's crimes. It's well-worth reading.

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Amazing and educational

Revisado: 07-15-23

I only had a simplistic notion of this episode in history. I’ve learned so much.

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So informative

Revisado: 07-07-23

I so appreciate this detailed history of events that I have viewed in such a simplistic way before.

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A fun and satisfying story

Revisado: 07-05-23

We love a good sci-fi book but sometimes they flounder. This had the science and the characters and a great story that was entertaining at all times.

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Good enough to finish

Revisado: 06-08-23

I’ve decided that I don’t care about multiverses. The narrator is very good. The story wasn’t interesting.

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esto le resultó útil a 4 personas

Lots of fun

Revisado: 01-20-23

My husband and I listened to this book whenever we were in the car. It’s a long and enjoyable book that takes it’s time setting up sympathetic characters with a vague mystery in the background. Then the mystery is revealed and the real adventure begins. We highly recommend going on this ride. The narrator is perfect and does a great job of evoking many personalities.

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An education in toxic belief

Revisado: 11-20-22

I’ve been following the Scientology story for some time and could even say I knew most of the stories the author tells about his life from other sources. But following a life in detail shows how strongly we can stay loyal to a destructive group or relationship. It’s amazing what it takes to break out of a prison of belief.

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Just the facts

Revisado: 10-24-22

This is a life story told in the matter-of-fact voice of the author who lived it. None of it seems embellished or dramatized, just an unfortunate tale of a childhood lost to the entertainment industry. But that industry only had its opportunity to harm because of a misguided and self-focused stage mom. I heard of the book from an article about ambivalent grief. The author strikes me as fair and loving in spite of how she was treated. Her story provides insight about toxic relationships and the irresponsible way that children are exploited in entertainment. I wish her the best.

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Deliverance from a truly ghastly cult

Revisado: 04-25-22

I haven’t read the news accounts of the trial. I was just a general consumer of cult stories. So the beginning of the book seemed strange. I wondered how a guy would be sentenced to 120 years in prison because women got awful brands on their stomachs. And self-help ideas are so available everywhere that they seem mind-numbingly benign. Unfortunately what was going on behind the curtain was hideous. The story is told with great insight and compassion. I’ve believed in harmful things. It wasn’t as controlling as this. But we can all find ourselves continuing to walk down a path in spite of our discomfort and sadness. Getting out is life’s great mission. We’ll done.

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