DNF @ 30% no rating

I loved DiLouie's Suffer the Children but sadly this one just didn't do it for me. Most of that 30% I spent skimming or distracted by everything around me so it's time to call it quits.

Thank you for the opportunity to read The Children of Red Peak by Craig Dilouie. I grew up in the Christian faith and have been exposed to various different denominations along the way, some healthier than others, but I’ve never encountered religion like the five characters in this story did. I can fully imagine how easy it would be for a young teenager to become completely immersed in a cult following their parents. What I can’t understand is how adults can fall to that same kind of predatory manipulation. This book made me feel icky and inquisitive all while scaring me with peeks at how easy it is to fall prey to cult-like thinking and mob mentality when people are vulnerable and hurting. I won’t lie, I didn’t like it. However, I am always thankful for fiction that makes me think about the world in a new way and question why I believe the things I believe. I’m glad for the push to evaluate and defend my faith. This is an interesting story and I was intrigued but also left wanting a less obscure ending.

Fifteen years have passed since David, Deacon, Beth, Angela, and Emily escaped the Family of the Living Spirit. Just five children, out of a group of over 100, survived what happened at Red Peak on that final day. And they've never told anyone about it.

But now Emily is dead, bringing the group—minus Angela—together once more to mourn her loss. As David, Deacon, and Beth recount their final days, it becomes clear that they should return to Red Peak and face those final hours once again. But each of them has a different recollection of the events of that last day. And each of them has been haunted by it ever since. Emily was just the first to succumb.

This latest by Craig DiLouie is a little hard to sum up. It's also one I'm still mulling over how I feel about.

There seem to be an absolute bevy of cult books on the market of late. Given DiLouie's backlist, I went into this one expecting a horror novel about a cult. And it is that, but only in part.

David and Angela, siblings whose mother joined the Family of the Living Spirit when they were children, have grown up to be a counselor focused on cult extractions and a cop, respectively. Deacon, whose mother was in love with their leader, is trying to make it as the lead in a band. And Beth, whose parents also found solace in the group when she was young, is a therapist.

All of them are struggling with the fallout of their time with the Family. In fact, all of them share their own POV, with the exception of Angela (who I found to be quite interesting, maybe because we never really get her story).

The Family of the Living Spirit was, as they can all agree, a safe and trusting environment to grow up in for a time. Led by a charismatic, if narcissistic, man who believed joy in life was just as important as faith, it was more a commune than a cult at the start. And the story unfolds with each character telling their piece of the tale as it led to its tragic end.

As each of them examines their internal struggles and their memories of the final days with the Family, they each have their own revelations about those days. I don't want to spoil anything by giving too much away, but I thought the book took a turn that didn't feel as satisfying as I had hoped. And I really think that it's because beyond David and the build up to what really happened at Red Peak, I wasn't as interested in Deacon and Beth. I wanted Angela's story (which we don't get).

Ultimately, I wanted more resolution. And more horror.

The Children of Red Peak is a weird book that will inevitably appeal to different readers for different reasons. Those who come at it with the mindset that I did are likely to have the same take away that I did. But those who are a little more open to gray endings are probably going to get more out of the read.

It is a book that sticks with you because it asks the reader, as well as the characters, to draw their own conclusions. I admit, though, that I'm not always the best audience for those stories. (Or, a better way to say it is, it depends what mood I'm in when I read it. Given the things going on this year, I've certainly been gravitating towards easier reads.)

The Children of Red Peak is a horror novel about the survivors of a doomsday cult. When one of the survivors dies by suicide, the remaining survivors set out of discover what truly happen the last night everyone was still alive.

The Children of Red Peak is told from three of the survivors’ perspectives, David, Beth, and Deacon, and jumps from the present to the past. I enjoyed David and Beth’s perspectives as they both offered two different viewpoints on the trauma. Though they all suffer from psychological damage, David seems to have suffered the least. He was focused on his family and career as an exit counsellor. Beth is a psychologist so her perspective offered a more clinical look at the characters and what happened to them. Finally, Deacon is a rock star. His chapters were unbearable. DiLouie often got lost in the nuances of music and music making that I found myself skimming through multiple pages in hopes of getting back to the story.

I ended up rating the novel 3.5 stars for two reasons. First, the horror elements do not come into play until later in the novel. DiLouie takes his time situating the characters and setting making the novel feel long at times and not all that spooky. Secondly, the ending didn’t work for me. This is a purely subjective observation. It didn’t work for me, but it may work for me.

Though most of my review is negative, I did enjoy my time reading The Children of Red Peak. It’s an interesting story with enjoyable character dynamics. I especially enjoyed Beth’s more clinical perspective contrasted with David’s more human perspective.

Overall, The Children of Red Peak is an interesting enough horror novel centered around a mysterious doomsday cult. The horror scenes are brutal and not for the faint of heart.

I managed to read up to 25% and try as I might, just could not maintain my attention to the story. I found it to be a tad drawn out and too long in its introductory stage.

Thank you so much for sending it to me. Perhaps later, in a different frame of mind, I will continue with this story.

*I received an advanced copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

When three of the five survivors of The Family of Life doomsday cult, meet up at the funeral of another survivor, almost 15 years after escaping the massacre/mass suicide of the entire cult. The fifth survivor chooses to keep her distance from the group, refusing to go to the funeral. The three find themselves exploring their time as children together in the Family, going over the events that led up to their final days in the cult.

Told from three perspectives, we get a chance to see how David, Beth, and Deacon has tried to move on with lives, while still dealing with their personal and shared pain, and some not so great coping mechanisms. With the 15th anniversary looming they each struggle with their knowledge or lack of knowledge on what really happened that last day in The Family.

I'm not going to lie, I am fascinated with all things cult, so this book hooked me right away. While I was expecting more about the immediate time before the suicide, I was expecting to learn about the early idyllic days in the cult which just added another interesting layer to the story. The way that this book jumped perspectives and timelines really worked for me and kept me interested until the very end. I would definitely recommend this to anyone interested in cults or anyone who likes their stories a little bit spooky.

A small community led by a charismatic leader turned from a loving group who was seeking family and a safe place for their families into something much darker and more cult like. There are just five survivors of the night the cults mass suicide and disappearance in Red Peak, Angela and her brother, David, Beth, Deacon and Emily. Three of the survivors come together at the funeral of Emily who committed suicide and shortly before her death mailed messages they cannot decipher. As the 15th anniversary of the is approaching and more memories surface they decide they need to revisit that night and Red Peak.
I did not care for the ending of this book and the alternating timelines could be a little confusing. As a reader, I wanted more of the life inside the cult and how a group of peaceful Christian families so quickly went mad leading to acts of self mutilation, murder and mass suicide.
I am looking forward to reading more by this author and have started one of his previous novels “ One of Us”.
Thank you to #netgalley and Cemetary Dance fit the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.


This book deals with mental trauma and how each tries to cope or escape.
The books description of how a loving farm community gradually became under the spell of mass delusion was very well told and gripping story telling. I did not care for the ending

Beth, David, Deacon, Emily and Angela are survivors.
They survived the Family
They survived the Medford mystery at Red Peak
They survived the foster care system
They moved on
They survived

After 15 years everyone just wants to understand what actually happened at Red Peak. To do that they will have to remember. To remember they will have to go back.

This book was phenomenal. I have always been fascinated by religious cults and the stories of the survivors and this one exceeded all my expectations.

The characters struggle as they explore faith, self sacrifice and their personal search for redemption. The story moves from past and present following the Family as they prepare for the apocalypse. What starts as a compassionate community filled with hard working people searching for spiritual fulfilment ends in self-immolation and death. The author describes the Family with kindness, acknowledging that for some, their intentions were pure.

I was immediately drawn into this psychological mystery. I was filled with questions, trying to understand what would drive people to this extreme. Religious belief? Something else? The author described just enough horror, just enough trauma, just enough doubt about what really happened on Red Peak to keep me on the edge of my seat. I wanted Deacon to make his big break through album, I wanted Beth to find a partner, I wanted David and Angela to reconcile, I wanted a happy ending. I didn’t get it. But I didn’t mind. It fit. It fit with the story, and the characters and it felt right.

Highly recommend this read

Unfortunately, this book just wasn't for me. I wasn't a fan of the all-white cast (in 2020, really?) and felt the dialogue was a bit unrealistic. Normally I like cult stories, but this just didn't grab me.

This is my third book from author Craig DiLouie - the previous ones being One of Us and Our War - and it will certainly not be my last: in The Children of Red Peak he once again takes us on the hard but compelling path of betrayed innocence and damaged youth, and does so with clarity and empathy while not sparing any kind of emotional punch.

Siblings Angela and David, and their friends Deacon, Beth and Emily are the only survivors of a terrible event that occurred fifteen years ago: they were part of the religious group called Family of the Living Spirit, and on that fateful night, as the group committed mass suicide in the belief that the end of the world was near, they barely escaped from the Californian retreat at Red Peak, from which - incomprehensibly - no bodies were ever recovered once the alerted authorities reached the area. Now grown up and separated by their different life choices, they meet after a long time for Emily’s funeral: their friend ended her life quite unexpectedly and this event forces them to connect again with a past they would rather forget.

The story alternates between the present and flashbacks to the past, where we see how the community, secluded from the world as it was, was a place of peace and comfort, of hard, honest labor and shared kindness - that is, until something changed drastically and the relocation to Red Peak brought on a downward shift that culminated in that horrific night.

The remaining four survivors have not escaped unscathed, of course: Angela is a hardened police officer in Las Vegas; her brother David is married and has two children, but he keeps apart from them preferring to drown himself in his work; Deacon is now a musician pouring all his anguish and pain into the songs he writes; and Beth has become a psychologist, but is clearly suffering from PTSD, no matter how much she denies it. Emily’s suicide convinces them that they must go back to Red Peak, where it all happened and where something dreadfully mysterious both seemed to influence the adults and to cause their disappearance in such a fashion that no one could believe possible, not the authorities who interrogated them, nor the five youngsters themselves. Facing once again the place where it all happened (and where, by the way, similar uncanny occurrences were recorded in the past) might bring the four of them the closure they need, and maybe offer the answers to the questions that still plague them after fifteen harrowing years.

The news have offered us examples of the tragic consequences of extreme religious beliefs carried beyond their intended original purpose - what happened in Guyana with Jim Jones’ community being a most dramatic one and an appropriate comparison with the events described in this novel - and The Children of Red Peak tries to analyze the issues that could lead a well-intentioned congregation toward a self-immolating path. True, there is an unknown, unfathomable element added here, but some of the dynamics explored before the fateful move to Red Peak are completely human, and the author shows a notable degree of compassion when he examines the adults’ behavior, particularly that of the leader Reverend Peale, a man driven by honest beliefs, and the will to establish a community where strong faith and the desire to create a safe environment far from the hurts and the dangers of the outside world, are the foundation of the Family.

As I read I often wondered if that kind of separation from the rest of the world, combined with the strong belief that the end times were at hand and that the members of the Family had to be prepared for them, did not act as a catalyst for the appalling developments after the move to Red Peak, where punishing climate, exhausting labor and poor nutrition brought everyone to a state of extreme susceptibility to Peale’s instructions and to the mysterious force dwelling in the mountain. As the children observe:

Their home had changed from a lush valley to a desert mountain, their parents had traded contentment for a forced cheerfulness […]

There is no condemnation for the adults’ actions as they prepare for the afterlife through gruesome acts of “purification” (and I can assure you I recoiled at some descriptions), but only the compassion of an observer who tries to understand how the best teachings, and the best intentions, can be led so dramatically astray and how - and this is my own consideration - a too-tight focus on the goal based solely on dogma, and not a healthy dose of reason, can make people blind to consequences.

This lack of condemnation walks hand in hand with a lack of answers to the many questions the story lays down, leaving the ending open to interpretation, as it’s only right considering the complex issues at the core of the novel, and as I’ve come to expect from Craig DiLouie’s works, where thought-provoking ideas are posed to the readers so they can draw their own conclusions.

The Children of Red Peak has been DiLouie’s most traumatic work for me so far, but it’s also one that will instigate many considerations for a long, long time.

I'd never read anything by this author and I was pleased at how quickly I was sucked into the story. Sometimes with new authors, it can take a bit.

The story is compelling, I found it a different take on the typical "revist the cult" books that I've read in the past. I felt most of the characters were reasonably well developed, the pacing moves quickly, and I liked the perspective from all the characters. I would have liked more from Angela, but that omission was clearly by design.

I didn't love the ending but enjoyed all but the last 10% and I read this book in one day. I would recommend giving it a read.

I received an advance readers copy from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

a very tense and atmospheric cult thriller. dilouie writes cleanly but with heart, attentive to the plot and the details; multiple points of view merge nicely over the years they're explored, from childhood to adulthood, as we journey through the family's shift from peaceful-if-a-little-creepy to certifiable cult. i enjoy the care with each dilouie depicts trauma, both when it's inflicted and as his characters begin to heal; it really feels as if he cares about a proper portrayal of mental health, rather than weaponizing it for the horror, as is so common in the genre.

while for me, personally, the ending is a little flat (too cliched; though predictability isn't a bad thing, especially if you have the style to make it feel fresh) i wanted something more.

my main issue stems not from the conclusion, however, and rather from the presentation of the women within the narrative; there's definitely an attempt for them to be more than just love interests, with beth especially, but even she falls victim to being primarily characterized by her relative attractiveness and romance with deacon. david's wife is so unmemorable i can't even recall her name, existing solely as his wife and nothing more - while emily also only serves as a lover, even in the flashback chapters, rarely given personality beyond that of a childhood romance for david. it drags down the work and makes it difficult to appreciate the story when the story feels to obviously favor the men.

had the characterization been more balanced, even with such a lackluster ending, this could've easily been a 4 star read; but it serves as a nice introduction to dilouie, and i am interested in exploring more of his work.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of The Children of Red Peak by Craig DiLouie.

Emily has died, she took her own life, and the story begins at her funeral. Long lost childhood friends David, Deacon, and Beth all attend her funeral, knowing exactly why Emily is gone. Having endured the same childhood trauma of belonging to the same fanatical religious cult (see, I'm reading so many cult books, it's not on purpose!) they understand the pain of existing when so many loved ones are gone, having died on Red Peak.

The three friends are now all living the best they can despite their experiences as children. Deacon immerses himself in his music, Beth is a therapist, and David actually helps people escape from cults. But after being brought together, they each begin to agree that in order to fully heal, they need to return to Red Peak.

Through the memories of these three adults, and their ventures as adults, we learn the gruesome story of Red Peak, and how damaging group think and fanaticism can be. The most horrifying part of the story is the fact that it's not based entirely on fiction. Violent and destructive cults have and do exist, and they are fueled by members who are so deeply entrenched in their beliefs and devotion to the leader, who they often view as God. It's hard not to let it make me SUPER mad, for so many reasons.

I really enjoyed? (is that the right word?) this book. It's not easy to read. I had to put it down a few times, especially right before bed, I didn't need that stuff visiting my dreams. The ending was...not what I expected, but given what these adults went through, I'm not going to judge anything.

Craig DiLouie’s THE CHILDREN OF RED PEAK is a terrifying look into life in a religious cult where the children are the innocent victims. From memories suppressed to memories that are continual nightmares four adults attempt to cope with their pasts and one take the final escape and then there were three who will come together to finally put the ghosts of the past to rest.

Thought-provoking and frightening, one leader will use abuse, fear and religion to control his flock. Years later, will delving into the mysteries of Red Peak free three souls to heal and move forward?

The element of horror and mystery is excellent, the atmosphere is dark and heavy as long buried secrets come to the surface. My only issue: the characters fell rather flat for me as adults although the reliving of their pasts was very well done. A little horror, a lot of veiled mystery and pain in this intense read.

I received a complimentary ARC edition from Redhook Books! This is my honest and voluntary review.

It doesn’t happen often, and I get really excited when it does—and that’s when I get to add an author to my ALWAYS-BUY-EVERYTHING-HE-OR-SHE-WRITES list. I’d made the decision to add Craig DiLouie to the list after reading his novel One of Us. Well, Craig solidified my decision of this inclusion after I read The Children of Red Peak. With both books, I feel as though Craig has somehow hacked into my brain to discover my biggest fears, the emotional triggers I have, and the utilization of characters that will reach me faster and more deeply . . . and then he uses this information so I will experience the story as it should always be experienced: personally, emotionally, viscerally. The Children of Red Peak is my favorite read this year by far . . . and that doesn’t surprise me in the least.

Intense and character-driven, The Children of Red Peak is not a horror story in the classic sense as I expected, it is more of a psychological thriller with horrific events with a bit of paranormal. It explores the meaning, and existence, of God. It’s a slow burn that does finally catch fire.

Three survivors of the religious doomsday cult, The Family of Life, meet as adults at the funeral of one of the remaining members after she commits suicide. A fifth survivor has refused to come, leaving the others to face each other, their memories of their life in the Family, and the final days before the mass murder/suicide of the entire cult.

The narrative focuses on David, Beth, and Deacon. It recounts their lives together and explores how their personal experiences have shaped them into the adults they are now. It is Angela, David’s older sister, who has remained physically and emotionally distant since their rescue and refused to attend the funeral. Each carries their pain in different ways. David is an exit counselor for victims of cults but has never told his wife his own experience. Beth is a psychiatrist with attachment issues and a vast wine collection. Deacon is a struggling musician covered in tattoos with Latin phrases and still questions his belief in God. We only know that Angela is a police detective.

Knowing the Family ended their lives in the desert in the mass murder/suicide, I expected the survivors’ memories to be focused on the last days of torture and religious zealotry. But the Family lived a happy life of simplicity and religious devotion waiting for Jesus to call them home. I expected their leader, Reverend Peale, to be a megalomaniac like Jim Jones or David Koresh of the Branch Davidians, and was surprised to find not only was he charismatic, but he is also kind and truly believed in the Family, and God.

So, what happened those final days? Why would a happy community end so horrifically that the five survivors are burdened with anger and self-doubt? And, why were none of the bodies ever found?

The narrative takes place in three different time frames-2002, 2015, and 2019-and is told through the voices of the David, Beth and Deacon. There are flashbacks to them as children. It takes a while to build the background and reach the present day, all the while hinting at what happened in the desert.

David and Beth, while both devoted to helping those in psychological need are ironically the most dysfunctional of the group. Maybe that is why I liked their characters. I felt I learned too much about Deacon’s musical career. The man is not the songwriter he is made out to be and the scenes with him planning a show, his idea for a concept album, and his club performance were the weakest parts of the book. I wanted to know more about Angela, we see her as a teenager and she shows up at the end as an adult, but I wanted her story too.

The Children of Red Peak goes into great depth exploring the phenomenon of fanatic cults versus religious-based groups. The author has done his research and does a great job incorporating it into his story. It’s well written and I recommend it for those who those who like cult novels, psychothrillers, and anything character-driven.

Thanks to Netgalley for supplying me with an advanced reader copy. My opinions and review are my own.

My thanks to Redhook books, Craig DeLouie and Netgalley.
I finished this book 7 to 19 days ago, and it still weighs in my mind. Not in a bad way. I couldn't sweat to it, but I may be confounded by the darn thing! I'm my opinion, this isn't a bad thing at all! Hell, each and every time I think of that ending, I'm bamboozled! I'm of two minds about it!
Funny, but I do believe I'm down with that!
As for the first part.if the book. It's not a cult.
The Family are like minded, Christians who form a collective. Their spiritual leader is a good man! He guides. Quite honestly. Reading about these people and the way they lived struck a tone in me. Not the religious part, but the family.
So, it was quite the shock to see how easily this was torn asunder!
I'm still at odds ever the ending. It was so harsh on The Family, that it seems like it would be something this God would require.
You get to the end. Is it God? A trickster? Does it matter?
I guess the thing that bothers me most.is that I'll probably have to read this book again!
Yeah, I can honestly recommend this book. It does have a few layers...

Digital copy provided for review by NetGalley and Redhook Books.

In summary:
This character-driven horror story follows David, Deacon, Beth, Angela, and Emily. As children, they were part of a religious cult, and in its early days, when the commune centered itself around more gentle notions, the children felt safe, loved, and at home, but things take a dark, twisted turn after the cult's leader, Reverand Jeremiah Peale, tells The Family that God is ready for them to begin their ascent to Heaven - a journey in which they may not make it whole.

As adults and the only survivors of the "Medford Mystery", each has found their own way of coping with the horror from their shared past, but none have truly healed. To heal, they would need answers. Answers to questions like: What really happened on that final day at Red Peak? If it was all a shared hallucination, then where did all of the bodies go? In their search for answers, it becomes clear that they will have to return to the place they fear most: Red Peak.

In review:
I love anything horror-filled, and the premise of this story which plays with the line between religion and cult positioned this as a promising read, but I found the overall execution somewhat lacking.

The horror elements were well done, satisfyingly eerie or horrid, and the need to uncover the mysteries of Red Peak will likely keep you turning page after page, but for a character-driven novel, I found the characters and dialogue to fall rather flat.

The male characters felt more fleshed out than the female characters, though all needed more living-in to feel real and as to not lean towards becoming caricatures of themselves. David's wife only played a small side role, but the description of her as "beautiful and trim, even after two kids" (not a direct quote, but certainly the gist), and another female side character who is introduced as "show[ing] off her boobs", is more or less a good summation of what lackluster depictions and lenses you can expect to view all of the female characters with - yes, even Beth, who we spend considerably more time with. Deacon, the "emo" lead singer of his band who is portrayed as a masterful lyricist (he is not), gave the impression of an early 2000's alt/punk rocker and felt unintentionally out of place in his given timeline, present-day 2020. David was certainly the stand out among DiLouie's cast.

Aside from the characters, the parallels drawn between religion and cult and the examinations therein were well executed. Craig DiLouie masterfully balances the darker elements of Christianity and blind faith with the beautiful and reverential aspects, a rare and praiseworthy feat. As with most character-driven horror novels, the scary bits take a while to creep in. When they do, they are horrifying and worthwhile, and you'll find yourself wishing for more. Overall, it may be said that while Red Peak's summit and characters left something to be desired, there is definitely something there that makes this a page-turner, and perhaps most horror fans will enjoy.

I thought this book would be sooo good! It started quickly then died out to a slow read with no big events to keep you interested. When i finally finished it, it was okay. I rate this book a 3.2

This book was definitely psychological in nature, but it had both religious and paranormal aspects as well.

The children of Red Peak were five survivors of a religious group who took their own lives in order to be “saved”. The trauma of what they experienced followed them into adulthood, and they are reunited when one of them takes her own life. Forced to revisit the horrors they experienced, the survivors make a pact to revisit Red Peak, but it doesn’t come without its challenges.

I was so enthralled with this book! I especially loved reading the scenes from the children’s POVs because it painted a picture of what they really went through and why. I found Deacon’s POV as an adult didn’t flow as well as the rest of the book, though. I understood why he wanted to include his experiences through his music, but the scenes with his band mates didn’t seem as cohesive as the other characters adult experiences.

The end of the book had my feelings all over the place as well because while I knew this was about a religious cult, it came across as almost paranormal. I grew up Catholic, and I think because of the fact that I no longer hold those beliefs, it is difficult for me to take certain religious beliefs and “experiences” seriously.

Overall, I really enjoyed the story and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in reading about religious cults.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3501742693