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Cults: Inside the World's Most Notorious Groups and Understanding the People Who Joined Them
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About This Book
Mystery. Manipulation. Murder. Cults are associated with all of these. But what really goes on inside them? More specifically, what goes on inside the minds of cult leaders and the people who join them? Based on the hit podcast Cults, this is essential reading for any true crime fan. Cults prey on the very attributes that make us human: our desire to belong; to find a deeper meaning in life; to live everyday with divine purpose. Their existence creates a sense that any one of us, at any time, could step off the cliff's edge and fall into that daunting abyss of manipulation and unhinged dedication to a misplaced cause. Perhaps it's this mindset that keeps us so utterly obsessed and desperate to learn more, or it's that the stories are so bizarre and unsettling that we are simply in awe of the mechanics that make these infamous groups tick. The premier storytelling podcast studio Parcast has been focusing on unearthing these mechanics—the cult leaders and followers, and the world and culture that gave birth to both. Parcast's work in analyzing dozens of case studies has revealed patterns: distinct ways that cult leaders from different generations resemble one another. What links the ten notorious figures profiled in Cults are as disturbing as they are stunning—from Manson to Applewhite, Koresh to Raël, the stories woven here are both spellbinding and disturbing. Cults is more than just a compilation of grisly biographies, however. In these pages, Parcast's founder Max Cutler and national bestselling author Kevin Conley look closely at the lives of some of the most disreputable cult figures and tell the stories of their rise to power and fall from grace, sanity, and decency. Beyond that, it is a study of humanity, an unflinching look at what happens when the most vulnerable recesses of the mind are manipulated and how the things we hold most sacred can be twisted into the lowest form of malevolence.
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Reviews
"Ten chapters cover 10 cults chosen for their impacts on the world's imagination, beginning (naturally) with Charles Manson and his 'family'...Cutler's focus is both narrative, detailing the story of the leader's upbringing and the cult's rise and fall, and also probing: Cults is interested in motivations and, to the extent possible, diagnoses...Cults are labeled in the table of contents by the root cause Cutler has identified for each leader's actions...Manipulative, self-aggrandizing, compelling and lacking in empathy, these characters (in every sense) are by turns laughable, inexplicably strange and chillingly, brutally cruel...Not for the faint of heart but absolutely for the true-crime junkie, Cults is packed with details and unafraid to posit theories to explain these superlatively weird and scary stories."
"history...Among lesser known cult leaders is Canadian Roch Thériault, who used charisma and religion to keep his followers under his sway as he abused them, going so far as to amputate his wife's arm...Cutler insightfully explores what attracts people to cults and the psychology of their leaders, but much of this won't be news to true crime buffs...This works best as a companion volume to the author's podcasts."
"...so begins Cutler, founder of Parcast Studios, writing with the assistance of former New Yorker editor Conley...Though 'this appetite for belief' often leads to 'great things,' it can also be used by charismatic leaders to exploit others for their own desires and delusions...In a book based on the popular eponymous podcast, Cutler offers an introduction into the fascinating world of cult leaders, ranging from notorious masterminds like Charles Manson, Jim Jones, David Koresh, and Marshall Applewhite to lesser-known figures such as Credonia Mwerinde, a high priestess in Uganda who was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people in the name of her cult, the Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God...The author seeks to understand the psychology of these leaders, how they wielded their manipulation tactics, and how the landscape of their particular sociopolitical milieu played a role in their crimes...The book is well researched and well organized...a tantalizing read for true-crime neophytes but a slog for well-established readers of the genre...True-crime fans should stick to the podcast."
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