Wow, this book is the kind of story that sticks with you for a long time. I read this in July, and it has continued to be a story that I think about! It’s emotional, heartbreaking, and surprising. It’s a page-turner, and you won’t be able to put it down!

After a fire breaks out on her family’s compound, Avery and her brother Cole escape. When they are captured by the police they learn that they were in a family who was part of a cult. As Avery tries to come to terms with who she is and who her family was, we watch her emotional, heartbreaking, and revealing discoveries.

This was written with such impactful choices, I found myself completely invested in the characters. I loved learning about Avery. About her life in the cult and how she navigates the world outside of that compound. This book ripped my heart out a bit, and I fully expect it to hurt you a bit too. The story is so well-written, and it grabs at all those emotions.

This is the author’s debut book, and I fully intend to read what comes next! The writing was captivating, moving, and fantastic! I highly recommend this to readers who are looking for character driven stories with a mystery aspect!

FYI: Cult trigger warning.

I'm not going to repeat the synopsis or give spoilers.

This is a story centered around a familial cult. There is abuse implied more than graphically described. The father is the dominant leader and children of varying ages his flock.

Following a series of events, the story focuses on a couple of people and there engagement with people outside of the cult, how they are perceived as well as what truths are told and their reactions. There are quite a few sad, gut wrenching moments.

The narrator was okay.

This was definitely a book that I thought about and has stayed with me.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for accepting my request to read and review After We Were Stolen.

I really wanted to listen to this, but I was finishing up a different audiobook and this was unavailable by August 10th when I was ready to download it. I requested it July 29th. So it was approved sometime in August and it's only August 12th. Would love a second chance.

I'm sure that in the right frame of mind, this would be a thrilling and intense read. However, I couldn't stomach the cult aspects, or the child abuse. As a result, I had to DNF this read at 16%. I've rated it reflecting what I have read, and to be honest the writing style is very lovely and immersive.
I think because of Beyfuss's skills at the keyboard, the book was just too intense for me at this time. I couldn't stomach the rape (be aware, there is at least 1 off screen rape potentially more, or the implication at 16% is the parents intend to have the Main Character raped ore often) let alone the intense depiction of isolation and terror.
However, 16% is just not enough to give an accurate rating.

I thought this book was weird and first but it was good at the end. I started listening to it and thought it was written really well. The narrator did a great job

This one, oh boy. I stayed up til 3am to finish it.

I have a morbid fascination with cults and anything like it. Real of fictional. This one was a ride.
The "adults" in this story upset me so much. Every cop and professional had no tact, no compassion or empathy. It was too real.

Cole's fricken parents! Such an awful way to treat Avery. They went through the same trauma! ahhh! Have some empathy! gah. So frustrating.

Honestly wasn't expecting the one reveal. This book stressed me out. I enjoyed it.

Thank you NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, and Brooke Beyfuss for this advance reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book broke my heart so many times. I haven't felt this emotional about a book since I read It Ends with Us a few months ago. The things that these children had to experience and endure just broke me. I was angry and heartbroken and disgusted. So many feelings. Brooke's writing was phenomenal and the details she put into the story and the character development was chef's kiss!

I would highly recommend listening to the audiobook because the narrator, Jesse Vilinsky, did such an exceptional job voicing these characters and helping bring them to life. The raw emotion behind each characters dialogue during the highly intense scenes was.... I can't even describe it. I felt every emotion the characters experienced. I was there with them because of the narration. I cannot wait to listen to more audiobooks narrated by Jesse.

TW: abuse of all kinds Cults

This is a powerful and tough read but oh so good. Avery and her brother Cole have been raised in the cult but when a fire runs through their compound they escape and go as far away as they can get on foot. But when they are picked up and events of their past comes to light what will Avery do? Who else survived and how did the fire start? Are they even who they think they are?

I don't want to give anything away, so will say I highly recommend this one.

Jesse Vilinsky's narration was excellent she truly brought the emotions Avery was feeling!

4 Stars

I received this book from the publisher Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for a fair and honest review

I am into true crime and this book reminds me of the cults that I have listened about in the true crime podcasts. I was really surprised how things turned out. I thought things would have turned out better and happier however when reaching the end I was disappointed at how harsh they made out the public to be. I am not sure if this is really what it would be like but I hoped the author had a happier ending to parts of it.

This debut story about an off grid family that turns out to be a cult started off really strong for me but lost steam towards the middle. Avery manages to escape captivity with one of her younger brothers when there's a house fire only to find her life thrown into even more turmoil.

Jesse Vilinsky is starting to be one of my favorite narrators but I found the second half of this book got really slow and I almost DNF. I managed to power through but things never really got back to the same level of suspense the book started off with. Recommended for fans of Girl A by Abigail Dean. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NETGALLEY for the audio advance copy of this book. The narrator was easy to understand and used different tones with ease. The story was fabulous. A perfect mix of cult life and post cult life with a bit of a mystery wove in. 5 stars.

She escaped, but is she truly free?

Avery hardly has time to think when she wakes up to find her family's compound burning around her. She escapes the fire with her brother, Cole, leaving cruel punishments, survival training, and strict rules behind with the burning compound. After months of sleeping wherever they can and eating when the can, Avery and Cole are arrested for shoplifting. When the police run their prints, they are shocked to find that Avery and Cole are both victims of child abduction by the cult leaders they thought were their parents. When Cole is reunited with his family, Avery is devastated to be separated from him. Without knowing if anyone else escaped the fire that night, Avery is on edge, scared that her "parents" could be alive, searching for her. Her own memory of the fire is murky at best, so she sets out to learn what really happened that night, so she can move on with her life.
This book was heartbreaking, but also beautifully written. The narrator for this book was amazing and gave probably the best performance I've ever heard in an audiobook. Her use of raw emotion was perfect in every chapter. I could feel the sadness and grief as if I was experiencing it myself. I would absolutely recommend this novel to anyone!

Please note this novel can be triggering to survivors of sexual assault.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an advanced audio book in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars

Nineteen year old Avery lives with her parents and nine siblings on a remote compound where they are fanatical survivalists. A fire breaks out in the house and only Avery and her brother Cole escape.

The children on the compound endured horrible training and punishments. After the two of them left, they realize they were kidnapped as young children.

After We Were Stolen was a well done book that kept me engaged. I really enjoyed the parts after Avery and Cole re-entered the world and they tried to figure things out. It is like if a time traveler from a hundred years ago came into the modern world.

Jesse Vilinsky did a great job narrating the book.

After I read the blurb on this book, I thought it was a thriller but didn't realize it was more of a domestic story with some heavy triggers like SA. Not my type of book and the first 25% of the book goes into great detail about the surroundings on the commune and mundane day to day reading, it was a bit tedious. I couldn't get too far into the book for this reason.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this audiobook arc in exchange for my honest feedback.

How would you feel if your entire life had been a lie? Add to this growing up in a cult, abuse, brainwashing and rape, and you have After We Were Stolen, by Brooke Beyfuss. In her debut novel, Beyfuss weaves together heavy subject matter, beautiful writing and an emotional journey that will leave no one unaffected.

Nineteen-year-old Avery and her younger brother, Cole, live in a remote compound with their family, who their father deems The Chosen. Their days are filled with survivalist training, psychological manipulation and hard labor. As circumstances are becoming unbearable for Avery, a fire wipes out the whole compound, and she escapes with Cole. They live on the road for a few months, afraid of what they’ve been told about the outside world. After they get caught shoplifting, their fingerprints reveal they are victims of kidnapping when they were very young. Cole is immediately picked up by his parents, and Avery goes to a women’s shelter. Here, she tries to make sense of the past and the night of the fire, knowing she can’t step into a new identity if she doesn’t understand who she was.

Filled with raw, emotional scenes, this bravely written story focuses on family, loyalty and trust. The fact that Avery grew up in a cult offers an up-close look at what can happen when your life is completely upended and offers not only an escape but a rebirth. The end of the story is poignant, but could have been explored a bit more; it felt like there were still a few loose ends. Overall, it is a difficult but immersive read that you won’t want to put down.

I listened to the audio version, narrated by Jesse Vilinsky, who gives an emotional, flawless performance. This is one of those books that lends itself to the creative interpretation of the narrator to deliver extra depth and Vilinsky is the perfect choice for the role.

A very abrupt ending and the story was not always believable. There are a few trigger topics rape, still birth, death, abuse and others, so be prepared if you are squeamish. Unfortunately, this just wasn't the book for me and to be honest, the highest I can rate it is 2.5 stars.
Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to listen to and review the book. Honestly, if I would have been reading a hard copy I probably wouldn't have finished it.

I found myself immediately sucked into this storyline and could not stop listening. It was well-written and an overall fascinating story. I will be recommending this audiobook often.

I have always be fascinated by cults and extreme beliefs. When the opportunity to listen to and review “After We Were Stolen” was presented I was excited.
Avery and Cole are two of twelve people (10 children and 2 adults) living on the remote compound of a survivalist cult, Clovelight. Avery has a difficult life on the compound, but it is all she knows. She has been forced to live in a tent and do the most unpleasant tasks. Avery and Cole are quite close and do their best protect each other. Avery is brought back to live inside the compound, but living inside comes at a great cost to her. Cole visits Avery’s room and he vows to save her. Later Avery awakes to the compound on fire. She manages to escape, find Cole, and make it to her tent. They watch as the buildings burn to the ground. They seem to be the only survivors. Avery and Cole then set off into the woods doing what they can to survive. Eventually they are arrested and separated. The truth about them begins to unravel. Will they find each other again and will they learn what really happened the night of the fire?

It took a bit to get into the audio version of this book. The narration at times was not enjoyable and almost irritating. I enjoyed the storyline for part one and getting to know the characters and their lives living in a cult. Part two fell flat and didn't add anything new to the story. Overall, a disappointment. Thank you netgalley and the publisher for this advanced audio copy.

This was an excellent book. I loved the cult aspect and it drew me into the book very easily. I love the quickness of the story. You did not have to wait to see what was going to happen next!