Thank you to Libro FM for an audio version of Max Cutler’s Cults: Inside the World’s Most Notorious Groups and Understanding the People Who Joined Them.

I was attracted to the theme of the book and had not previously realized that the stories were culled from Cutler’s podcast. The audio version has different narrators for each chapter, which I thought worked well. I believe all of the narrators are part of the podcast and possibly co-writers or researchers for the material. Each chapter details a different cult leader and each one is in-depth and well researched. The chapters start with the childhoods of the cult leaders, showing their rise to prominence and the eventual outcome of their situation. Cult leaders are often referred to as being charismatic and that concept is shown here, but also coupled with a sense of their own ultimate authority. Their ego and self-importance seems boundless, to the point where it draws others into their circle.

I had heard of many of the cult leaders detailed, but each chapter had insights that I had not known. I was surprised by the background of Jim Jones, who I had not realized had been involved in the civil rights movement prior to his cult activities. When someone commits murder or other heinous crimes, it’s hard to disassociate them from their actions. However, it is interesting to consider the person prior to their notoriety and to this aspect, I found Jim Jones’ early life to be fascinating. It’s incredible to think how some people manage to leverage their charisma to gain not only a following, but to lead people to kill themselves or others.

Cutler looks at Cults from around the world, operating in different time periods. One leader I had not previously heard of was Adolfo Constanzo, head of the narcosatanists in Mexico during the late 80’s As their name implies, the narcosatanists were involved in both drug trafficking and satanism. This section was quite shocking, rife with animal and human sacrifices. It’s horrific, creepy, and downright disgusting. Cutler details how Constanzo and his followers lived in dirty apartments with bones and other body parts strewn about, decaying flesh creating a stench.

Cults is not for the faint of heart, but it is an intriguing look at a world that a majority of us will successfully avoid. Cutler explains that cult followers come from a variety of backgrounds and some are even highly intelligent and/or educated. The commonality seems to be people who are lacking a sense of belonging or a way to make sense of their world, which attracts them to the message that the cult leader is selling. Cults is a great pick for anyone interested in this dark aspect of humanity. It’s well written and engaging.