I don't wanna join your cult
Books where cults are a significant part of the narrative. Some fiction, some non-fiction.
created by kathytrithardt
last updated May, 2026
Comments
Give me your recs, especially fiction (I found so many non-fic titles), so I can add them!
I'd say Into the Light by Mark Oshiro. It has a cult, i'm just not 100% sure of how much of the book is about the cult because I don't remember it that well tbh. I'd still say it's a big part of it and when it's not specifically about the cult it's still about the aftermath of being in one if I remember correctly.
I do adore Mark Oshiro so their books is going on the list!
would highly recommend The True Happiness Company, it's a memoir about how an intelligent young woman gets coerced from a young age to join a cult/Mormonism by means of suicide prevention. extremely interesting read (and narrated by the author as an audiobook!)
Oh, that does sounds like an interesting read. Thanks for the rec; adding it now.
I haven't read it myself (but these are surely in my TBR), but I would recommend The Mirror House Girls by Faith Gardner and The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett. just a little somethin somethin for my mystery-thriller babes 🕵️♀️
Adding both now; thanks so much!
if I could add one more suggestion, Crafting for Sinners by Jenny Kiefer looks like a fun campy horror one!
Mariette Lindstein's Fog Island trilogy! Swedish writer who herself was in the church of scientology :)
Adding The Cult on Fog Island now!
I'm not sure if this could be spoiler-ish or not, but Bad Blood by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, which is the fourth book in a series.
The Goldens by Lauren Wilson?
Yuuuup, just read the synopsis and that fits. Adding now.
A couple fiction recommendations:
Sensor by Juno ito (graphic novel) Please join us by Cathrine McKenzie The harrowing by Kristen kiesling (graphic novel, if another user could verify before it’s added because I don’t fully remember if the boarding school is called a cult or not)
I'll add the first two now, and I just placed a hold on the third one from my library to confirm/because it sounds interesting.
Sounds good! And I appreciate the verification on the third! It’s been a bit since I read it and I don’t recall all the details
So I just read The Harrowing and it has very culty vibes, so even though I imagine Rosewood is a little too underground para-police organization to be a cult, I'm gonna add it.
That’s also how I was picturing it but the immense vibes where making me question if it was or wasn’t a cult. I appreciate the double checking!!
I appreciate the recommendation!
Devils Within by S.F. Henson is a white supremacist/neo-n@z! cult fictional novel I liked! I thought the story was really well-developed and had good pacing
Adding now!
the poison garden by alex marlow! camp damascus by chuck tingle has a very culty vibe as well. for stepford wives-esque vibes, there's 'we came to welcome you' and 'one of our kind.' maybe someone can confirm, but i've heard 'hell followed with us', 'the farm' by joanne ramos, and the 2025 release 'the compound' may have cults.
for non-fic, i found jenna miscavage hill's memoir 'beyond belief' illuminating, and i'd like to read mike rinder's on his time in scientology. there's also 'scarred' by sarah edmondson on nxivm. 'slonim woods 9' is a memoir about a sort of micro-cult that formed around the father of a university student and the student's roommates. 'talking to strangers' is a memoir in graphic novel format, which was kind of interesting. it's a bit academic, but i'm also attempting to read 'heaven's gate: america's ufo religion' by benjamin zeller, which tells the story of heaven's gate, but i think takes more of a position in exploring it as a new age religion.
I can't believe I missed the Chuck Tingle and AJW books! Added those, but everything else I will look up in the morning. Thanks for the recs!
Okay, update - I've added everything except The Farm and The Compound, only because I can't quite tell is those are cults, persay, without further reading (for instance, one indicates you can leave after the 9 months, which wouldn't be very cult-like, but if it turns out that they are just saying that... you get my drift? As for The Compound, the name sounds very cult-like, but it seems to be the setting for a dangerous reality tv show, which doesn't mean it isn't a cult, but I'd like some more definitive knowledge before adding it).
awesome! im glad i was able to contribute (-: there’s lots here I’ll be checking out in the future. Thanks for collecting this list!
You were never meant to be Human by Andrew Joseph White?
Yuuuuup, that synopsis tracks (I've read his other books but haven't gotten around to this one yet).
Hi your list is fantastic! I would recommend How Bad Things Can Get by Darcy Coates. It deals with a hidden cult on an island as well as the secret cult that is reality TV. Main lesson is that is a rich white man invites you to an island all for "entertainment" you should just decline.
Seems like a good rule to follow. Adding now!
Two queer and trans fiction recs: • Herculine by Grace Byron 😈 • Moonflow by Bitter Karella 🍄
Adding!
The Abby Mullen series by Mike Omer
- 1 A Deadly Influence
- 2 Damaged Intentions
- 3 A Burning Obsession
I don't remember what's in the books' blurbs but I have read the series and I know cults are a big part of it, especially the first and third book.
Adding the first one!
omg the unworthy also fits this theme !!!
I remembered a video by Plant-based bride on a similar theme and have been searching through all of her videos to find out that it was the unworthy! I haven't read it yet but am planning on it !
Adding now!
a different style but a comedy memoir called sure i’ll join your cult also fits ☺️
lol added!
Whenever I read about cults in books or irl, it always makes me anxious. They are so terrifying! I think it’s the thought that they can start so easily and they could be everywhere. Ugh, chills. 😂
All of these feels are so relatable.
City of Nightmares by Rebecca Schaeffer has a main character who is in (and then gets out of) a cult but it's a little more on the humorous side so I don't know if that fits your list vibe. The subject matter of the cult is taken seriously though, once the main character realises how bad it is.
Thanks for the rec! I'll add it now.
Cults fascinate me too, especially because people underestimate how effective indoctrination actually is. Brainwashing is real and well-documented. intelligent, rational people can absolutely become victims. Even if they encounter it later in life rather than growing up in it. I think survivors get judged harshly because it sounds unbelievable from the outside, but manipulation works precisely because it’s gradual and normalized. Especially in today’s political and social climate… I’m seeing manipulation happening on a large scale in real time. I want to read every single book in this list, thank you.
You are very welcome! And yes, I am also fascinated and horrified by this topic.
stop. this is such a fun concept! I love books with cults!
Can't stop, won't stop 🤣
Would Catherine House count? It isn't ever really acknowledged as a cult but is totally one imo
I read this one four years ago so details are fuzzy, but from what I can remember, it definitely fits the cult vibes. Thanks for the reminder; I'll add it now.
ooh little one by olivia muenter, minor prophets by blair hurley, and the children of red peak by craig di louie fit here!
and little heaven by nick cutter!
Added both - thanks so much!!
