"The couple who slays together stays together."

LOL! Going into Lights Out, I fully expected to have to suspend my disbelief hard. The synopsis sounded like the kind of story that would be fun but completely detached from reality. Surprisingly, that was not my experience at all. What impressed me most about Allen’s writing was how self-aware it felt. Rather than ignoring the parasocial relationship and obsession that often comes with insta-love, the characters confront them. & yes, the characters end up in situations that are objectively insane, but Allen writes them in a way that somehow still feels realistic. More than once, I caught myself thinking, okay... but I can't blame them for acting as they were.

That said, I would have been demanding that man take the mask off IMMEDIATELY because the not knowing would have driven me absolutely insane. Like… sir, before I emotionally commit to this bit, I need to know what’s going on under there. Though honestly, I probably wouldn’t have cared about the mask in the first place. But I don’t need to agree with every character choice to enjoy a story, and that was definitely true here.

I was genuinely impressed by Allen’s writing and had such a good time with this book. The dual-narrated audiobook absolutely elevated the experience too. Also, the fact that I only got the ick once during this entire book is honestly kind of impressive for this genre.

“and resting upon the foundation of the illiteracy of most of its parishioners.”

I enjoyed Cave Mountain: A Disappearance and a Reckoning in the Ozarks quite a bit, though I do think it’s important to go into it understanding what kind of book it actually is. Based on the premise, I expected more of a deep investigative dive into the disappearance at the center of the story and its eerie connections to the cult murder that happened in the same area years earlier. Instead, Benjamin Hale gives more of an overview of the events while spending a lot of time reflecting on the people involved and offering his own commentary and opinions about them and religion.

Personally, I didn’t mind that at all. I’m nosy by nature, so the sections where Hale discussed the personalities, histories, and dynamics of the people tied to both cases were honestly still interesting to me. He has a very clear perspective on many of the individuals he writes about, and while I didn’t always fully align with his conclusions (especially regarding the innocence of certain people mentioned and some of the religious commentary), I still appreciated how personal and candid the writing felt.

That said, I can absolutely see this being a frustrating read for people expecting a more straightforward true crime narrative. This reads much more like a reflective memoir or long-form personal essay than a tightly structured investigative nonfiction book, which makes sense given Hale’s familiarity and relationships with so many of the people involved. Once I adjusted my expectations and settled into the kind of story being told, I found myself consistently interested in hearing what he had to say next.

My main, personal criticism of the book is that it can become repetitive at times. Hale frequently revisits the same circumstances and opinions in a way that occasionally feels circular, almost like he’s thinking through the events in real time rather than building toward a clear narrative progression. Still, even with that repetition, I enjoyed my time with it overall.

I especially recommend the audiobook, which is narrated by Hale himself. I think hearing the story in his own voice adds a layer of intimacy that works really well for this particular style of nonfiction and honestly made me appreciate the book more.