{"product_id":"9780735237896","title":"Don't Call It a Cult","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eAN INSTANT NATIONAL BESTSELLER\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSHORTLISTED\u003c\/i\u003e for the 2022 Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eFINALIST\u003c\/i\u003e for 2022 Crime Writers of Canada Brass Knuckles Award for Best Nonfiction Crime Book\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eDon't Call It A Cult \u003c\/i\u003eis the most detailed, well-reported, and nuanced look at NXIVM's history, its supporters, and those left destroyed in its wake. If you want to understand NXIVM--and other groups like it--reading Sarah Berman's account is essential.\"\u003cbr\u003e--Scaachi Koul, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eOne Day We'll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThey draw you in with the promise of empowerment, self-discovery, women helping women. The more secretive those connections are, the more exclusive you feel. Little did you know, you just joined a cult.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSex trafficking. Self-help coaching. Forced labour. Mentorship. Multi-level marketing. Gaslighting. Investigative journalist Sarah Berman explores the shocking practices of NXIVM, an organization run by Keith Raniere and his high-profile enablers (Seagram heir Clare Bronfman; \u003ci\u003eSmallville\u003c\/i\u003e actor Allison Mack; \u003ci\u003eBattlestar Galactica\u003c\/i\u003e actor Nicki Clyne). In her deeply researched account, Berman unravels how young women seeking creative coaching and networking opportunities found themselves blackmailed, literally branded, near-starved, and enslaved. With the help of the Bronfman fortune Raniere built a wall of silence around these abuses, leveraging the legal system to go after enemies and whistleblowers.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eDon't Call It a Cult\u003c\/i\u003e shows that these abuses looked very different from the inside, where young women initially received mentorship and protection. \u003ci\u003eDon't Call It a Cult\u003c\/i\u003e is a riveting account of NXIVM's rise to power, its ability to evade prosecution for decades, and the investigation that finally revealed its dark secrets to the world. It explores why so many were drawn to its message of empowerment yet could not recognize its manipulative and harmful leader for what he was--a criminal.","brand":"Sarah Berman (CA)","offers":[{"title":"Penguin Canada |  Paperback \/ softback | Trade paperback (US) |  2021-04-20","offer_id":44152032723199,"sku":"9780735237896","price":24.95,"currency_code":"CAD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0329\/9075\/7001\/products\/BNCImageAPI_a736a973-fe79-4eb5-b8e3-16d64c2988e4.jpg?v=1626924728","url":"https:\/\/riverbookshop.com\/products\/9780735237896","provider":"River Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}