Home by Cailean Steed

Someone has broken into Zoe's flat. A man she thought she'd never have to see again.

They call him the Hand of God.

He knows about her job in the cafe, her life in Dublin, her ex-girlfriend, even the knife she's hidden under the mattress.

She thought she'd left him far behind, along with the cult of the Children and their isolated compound Home – but now he's found her, and she knows she must go back to rescue the sister who helped her escape all those years before.

But returning to Home means going back to the enforced worship and strict gender roles Zoe has long since moved beyond; back to the abuse and indoctrination she's fought desperately to overcome.

Going back will make her question everything she believed about her past – but could also risk her hard-won freedom. Can she break free a second time?

One – My name is Zoe

Two – I am here to rescue my sister Amy

Three – Nothing anyone says here is true

Four –

Four –

What is my fourth true thing?

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I love a good cult read. They're endlessly fascinating to me. This one is set in two time periods, Then covering the protagonist's childhood up to about five years before Now. (She is known as Catherine, later Acolyte, Then and Zoe, later Catherine again, Now.) Catherine was born into the cult and knows nothing else, which makes for an interesting contrast between the two time periods; the abuse and conditioning she suffers and accepts as normal Then, and her understanding of the same issues Now, are fascinating.

Cult stories are often quite difficult to read, and there are sections of this, in both time streams, that are very hard to get through. From an outsider's perspective, it's very obvious what's going on, but of course Catherine has no idea. (In a way that will be very irritating for some readers, she's also prone to blacking out at important times, so it's not always clear exactly what's happening. It didn't bother me, but it is a factor.)

We never have any sense of how old Catherine/Zoe is - she starts her period at one point, but being malnourished and driven through physical training could easily delay it for several years. She's clearly old enough to date, but that could cover a multitude of ages. It makes everything creepier, considering the things the Hand makes her do.

This is a great look at what cults can do, and a very creepy read. I recommend it. (Although that ending is very annoying!)

Home publishes on the 19th of January, 2023. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.