Review by Suppafreak98 -- The Cult Next Door
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Suppafreak98
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- Joined: 02 May 2019, 19:00
- Currently Reading: The Cult Next Door
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Review by Suppafreak98 -- The Cult Next Door
[Following is a volunteer review of "The Cult Next Door" by Elizabeth R. Burchard, Judith L. Carlone.]
3 out of 4 stars
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I just finished reading The Cult Next Door A Manhattan Memoir by Elizabeth R. Burchard LSW, and Judith L. Carlone, and all I can say is wow! This is my first memoir and it caught my attention right from the start. Elizabeth Burchard and Judith Carlone do a fantastic job telling their story.
The story starts out in May of 1996 in New York, but Elizabeth actually takes you back to when she was young and when the first traumatic experience happened in her life. That was when her parents got divorced. After that, her mom became very cold toward Elizabeth and made Elizabeth feel not worthy of anything. She was also yearning for that attention from her father. Of course as the story progresses her mother and she seek counseling, and that is when she meets George Sharkman. He said he was a licensed biofeedback technician, whatever that means. Next thing you know and many visits later, her mother Rachel and her are under his spell. As the years go on, Elizabeth gets her friends and colleagues involved with him as well and things start happening.
There are series of events that take place in this book that really made me sick to my stomach. I won't get into detail and spoil it, but all I can say is the poor dog, Ben. I can't believe some of the things that people really believe in these cults and not even realize how crazy it sounds. Robbing people of their life savings and telling them to believe in the "energy" and they will be healed and all the stupid people that don't believe, according to George Sharkman, are asking to die. Never mind what he does sexual with these women. And of course his knowledge is not free.
When Judith comes into the story she can't believe everything that is happening with this group of people Elizabeth was with. After 20 years of listening to George and going broke, Elizabeth finally starts to doubt some of what George has been telling everyone including her own mother Rachel. This book is full of an emotional rollercoaster and was also a semi-quick read. It is a total of 345 pages and she does tell you what the final outcome is with George, Rachel, all her friends, and of course herself. Does Elizabeth finally realize that George is crazy and everything she believed in was a lie? I'm not going to tell you, you have to read the book to find out.
Overall, I give this book a 3 out of 4 stars. I didn't find any errors or spelling mistakes in the book and for the most part it was very interesting. I would definitely recommend this title to anyone that likes to read true stories. I really liked how when Judith entered into the book, Elizabeth made it known that it was Judith speaking. Also I like as she moved through the story, and went through chapters, she was also giving dates in the upper right hand corner. Made it nice and easy to follow along.
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The Cult Next Door
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3 out of 4 stars
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I just finished reading The Cult Next Door A Manhattan Memoir by Elizabeth R. Burchard LSW, and Judith L. Carlone, and all I can say is wow! This is my first memoir and it caught my attention right from the start. Elizabeth Burchard and Judith Carlone do a fantastic job telling their story.
The story starts out in May of 1996 in New York, but Elizabeth actually takes you back to when she was young and when the first traumatic experience happened in her life. That was when her parents got divorced. After that, her mom became very cold toward Elizabeth and made Elizabeth feel not worthy of anything. She was also yearning for that attention from her father. Of course as the story progresses her mother and she seek counseling, and that is when she meets George Sharkman. He said he was a licensed biofeedback technician, whatever that means. Next thing you know and many visits later, her mother Rachel and her are under his spell. As the years go on, Elizabeth gets her friends and colleagues involved with him as well and things start happening.
There are series of events that take place in this book that really made me sick to my stomach. I won't get into detail and spoil it, but all I can say is the poor dog, Ben. I can't believe some of the things that people really believe in these cults and not even realize how crazy it sounds. Robbing people of their life savings and telling them to believe in the "energy" and they will be healed and all the stupid people that don't believe, according to George Sharkman, are asking to die. Never mind what he does sexual with these women. And of course his knowledge is not free.
When Judith comes into the story she can't believe everything that is happening with this group of people Elizabeth was with. After 20 years of listening to George and going broke, Elizabeth finally starts to doubt some of what George has been telling everyone including her own mother Rachel. This book is full of an emotional rollercoaster and was also a semi-quick read. It is a total of 345 pages and she does tell you what the final outcome is with George, Rachel, all her friends, and of course herself. Does Elizabeth finally realize that George is crazy and everything she believed in was a lie? I'm not going to tell you, you have to read the book to find out.
Overall, I give this book a 3 out of 4 stars. I didn't find any errors or spelling mistakes in the book and for the most part it was very interesting. I would definitely recommend this title to anyone that likes to read true stories. I really liked how when Judith entered into the book, Elizabeth made it known that it was Judith speaking. Also I like as she moved through the story, and went through chapters, she was also giving dates in the upper right hand corner. Made it nice and easy to follow along.
******
The Cult Next Door
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like Suppafreak98's review? Post a comment saying so!
Latest Review: Wellness Toolbox by Don Roberts
