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Church of Lies cover art

Church of Lies

Written by: Flora Jessop, Paul T. Brown
Narrated by: Eve Bianco
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Publisher's Summary

From the Preface:

"My name is Flora Jessop. I've been called apostate, vigilante, and crazy bitch, and maybe I am. But some people call me a hero, and I'd like to think they're right too. If I am a hero, maybe it's because every time I can play a part in saving a child or a woman from a life of servitude and degradation, I'm saving a little piece of me, too.

I was one of 28 children born to my dad and his three wives. Indoctrinated to believe that the outside world was evil, and that I resided among the righteous, I was destined to marry a man chosen for me by the Prophet. I would then live in harmony with my sister-wives, bear many children, and obey and serve my future husband in this life and throughout eternity. But my innocence didn't last long. While still a child, I understood that the church of the righteous was nothing but a church of lies.

When I was eight years old my father sexually molested me for the first time, raping me when I was 12. I tried to kill myself. Beaten, molested, taunted, and abused by family members alleging they only wanted to save my soul became a daily routine, I ran from this abuse more than once in my early teens - even attempting to cross the desert on foot. My family hunted me down. I thought government agencies would provide me safety if I reported my father. Instead, police and social services colluded with the FLDS to return me to my family and I ended up back inside polygamy, right where I started."

Flora goes on from there to tell the dramatic true story of how she ultimately escaped and has been fighting against frustrating obstacles with hard-fought successes in rescuing women and children from the FLDS. It's a story you can't put down.

©2009 Flora Jessop and Paul T. Brown (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

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powerful

thank you for the work that you have done to help innocent children and women.

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Unintentionally Funny

I actually felt pretty guilty when chortling while listening to this narrative. Anti-polygamy crusader Flora "Jessie" Jessop's story is harrowing and horrifying - involving child sexual abuse, attempted suicide, institutional misogyny, and the systematic denial of ongoing injustices by authorities afraid of inappropriately condemning "alternative religious practices". Many of the events in this indomitable woman's life are infuriating & call for condemnation.. but described in such a way that I caught myself frequently laughing out loud. Surely professional co-author Paul T. Brown recognized that deficiency - but apparently strove to simply do his job & make the book readable.. which he did. It won't win any awards, but 'Church Of Lies' isn't a terrible read. It's just too bad that the content and phraseology had me alternately guffawing and groaning while rolling my eyes.

I have little doubt that the deadpan delivery from narrator Eve Bianco contributes to the hilarity too, however - reading the most ridiculous descriptions with an incongruous matter-of-fact tone and a level of gravitas that *should* have been appropriate given the subject matter. I hold Bianco in esteem for not bursting into giggles while reading text like "My father pulled out his floppy thing - stroking it and then beating it hard until some white stuff came out".

If you can get this oddly chuckleworthy exposé as a "free" selection, do so. It's a great diversion for a couple of quiet afternoons. If Audible asks for a Credit, however, you can do much better than this 3.5/10-star offering.



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