"Dinner for Vampires" by Bethany Joy Lenz is a fascinating and atypical celebrity memoir, detailing how the up-and-coming actress fell into the manipulative clutches of a cult in Idaho.

Lenz approaches it with a dark sense of humor and provides a glimpse into how groups like this manipulate vulnerable people and prey on their psychological needs. All along the way, the author sees each turning point from an outsider's view, but she also provides the perspective that allows the reader to see why that trap was so easy to fall into. It was eye-opening and scary to read about how these types of groups operate, knowing that they largely get away with it because their victims are so traumatized that they often do not pursue legal action after escaping. At the end, she tells the story of an acquaintance who insinuates that only weak and stupid people fall into cults. Lenz compares being lured into a cult to being in an abusive relationship and reminds us that society (rightly) does not victim-shame the latter, so why should we treat the former any differently?

The subtitle "Life on a Cult TV Show (While also in an Actual Cult!)" was definitely an attention-grabber. However, fans of "One Tree Hill" might be disappointed that the author doesn't focus much on the tv show, other than brief mentions of how the cast and crew reacted to her behavior and showed their concern. She does have a popular podcast about the show, though, so the focus stays mainly on the abuse she faced at home. I used to watch "One Tree Hill," but wouldn't consider myself among the show's fanbase. I still found the book really interesting due to the author's personal journey and self-reflection.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It's very different from most celebrity memoirs due to the unique subject matter. Anyone who wants to learn more about how cults groom and prey upon impressionable people would probably also find this book a fascinating read, as would fans of the actress.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC.

Bethany Joy Lenz was trying to make it in Hollywood and find her place in the world. She was pretty religious but also looking for a found family. Thru a bible study group, she got sucked into a religious group who lived together in Idaho. Yup, it turned out to be a cult. They sucked up her time, isolated her from others, criticized her, made her not take on roles, and even influenced her to marry the leader's son whom she didn't love. All while stealing all her money. Somehow during this period, she also got cast and did well on a much-loved tv show, One Tree Hill. Her fame and determination finally allowed her to break the cycle, and this is her well-told story.

I love memoirs but not all celebrity memoirs are good or interesting. This one is both. It is crazy but also somewhat understandable how she got sucked in and held to her community deeper than she even realized. Come for the cult story, stay for the human interest one.

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the advance copy for review.

Joy's story is simply heartbreaking. Following her journey through her growing faith, the grief of gaining and losing community, and the anger from having everything you've worked for stolen from you is so inspiring. Her positivity and grace is truly admirable!
This book is a definitely purchase for libraries, and is recommended for anyone that has questioned their faith, or has had to make hard admissions to themselves about the people around them.
Fans of One Tree Hill will be a bit disappointed if they think this is a tell-all about the show. OTH is the setting of Joy's most heartbreaking moments, but doesn't play much role in this story.

I really like the actress and this book made me respect and appreciate her more. I had no idea what was going on behind the scenes and admire her strength.

I wanted to love this but I did not. It’s like she’s the vampire pretending to speak the way she thinks a human should sound like. The tone is so curated it feels fake. It reads like a fiction author’s debut novel, including inconsistencies. The author said she didn’t watch tv growing up, but references iconic shows like I Love Lucy and Bewitched. I’m sorry but this memoir reminds me of Casey Hammer’s memoir. I am a huge One Tree Hill fan so it pains me that I didn’t like it but I received an advanced copy in exchange for my honesty.

The author uses the terms “plus sized” and “crackhead” which are really bizarre for a book published in 2024. Especially for someone on the show that made the term “size is just a number” a common phrase. Gave me the ick.

It was exhausting to hear example after example of abuse spanning 10 years to get to such an unsatisfactory conclusion. What happened to the cult? Where are the other members today? I will admit that her story is interesting and should be told. If she reaches even one person in an abusive relationship and/or cult, then it was worth it. Im happy others found it impactful, I just didn’t. I found her voice and writing style throughout the book to be a barrier. I couldn’t relate to her at all. It was like there was a wall up between the writer and the reader, even with how intimidate the details were.

I absolutely adore Bethany Joy Lenz as an actress so when I saw this book I had to read it!! I went in expecting a lot about OTH since it’s a huge part of her life, however it’s not! So keep that in mind before picking this up. I really enjoyed this though, it was so interesting learning more about her past outside of her just being a great actress!!

Thank you to the publisher for inviting me to read and review this book. I did not watch One Tree Hill and was not familiar with the author - but I was very interested in this story. Things pick up around part 2 for sure. I was rooting for Joy and I am glad things worked out for her and her daughter. This book is important because ANYONE can be roped into a cult.

Riveting story from Joy Lenz! It’s not a “glamorous, name brand” cult but crazy how one gets sucked in so easily! If you’re expecting a OTH tell all, this is not it. Rather, a view of Joy’s unfortunate experience being in the clutches of a cult and not being able to fully experience her potential stardom.

Dinner for Vampires by Bethany Joy Lenz was an interesting story and view into the life Joy led in a cult while on the hit show, One Tree Hill. As a OTH fan, I was immediately excited to have an opportunity to read this book. The author portrayed her life in a cult, and while there were small tidbits of her time on OTH, it mostly focused on the religious nature of her story, which was fine, just not what I expected. The writing itself was good and Joy's story was certainly enlightening, to say the least. Thank you for NetGalley and the publisher for an advance review copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Full disclosure: I’ve never watched a single episode of One Tree Hill.

Regardless of my not previously knowing who the author was, I was immediately pulled into her story. And read over two days with equal parts horror and sadness; it was an eye opening read certainly.

I’ve decided not to rate memoirs any longer, as I don’t feel it’s my place to rate the experience of someone’s life so I will say that this was a compelling read that kept me turning the pages.

In all honesty, I’m probably never going to watch OTH, but I would read more by the author.

I wish Ms Lenz peace and contentedness.



Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the DRC

Thank you to NetGalley, the Publishers, and Mrs. Haley James Scott herself.

I LOVED OTH growing up and I was soexcited to see that Bethany was writing a book. I was so intrigued by the story and the goings on behind the scenes. It's crazy to think that all of this was going on while in the public eye. I highly suggest this book to everyone.

I first heard of Joy through my Guiding Light obsession as a tween, and Michelle was my favorite character. I often find myself thinking about how many cults are out there and how people get involved with cults, so I was highly anticipating this read.

This was a devastating and brave memoir. Joy outlines exactly how, as she puts it, "Bible study went sideways." It could happen to anyone and I think we all need to recognize the signs of someone who seems like a supportive friend actually trying to use and control you for their own ends. It is very similar to domestic violence and I'm glad this book brought it into the open without sensationalizing things or implying that it's the victims' faults for being trusting and loving people.

As she detailed her story, Joy was able to keep a sense of humor and I appreciated the funny stories such as Les mixing meat with his bare hands.

Joy does talk a little about working on One Tree Hill, but it's definitely not the center of the book.

I really enjoyed this! There were a lot of things that Bethany went through that really blew me away! It was interesting to see what was going on behind the scenes in her real life and how she struggled to break free!

It was probably mid-way through the series when I first started watching OTH and then was hooked. I would have never known all that Joy was going through without her writing this book. It’s a testament to “you never know what someone’s going through.”
This telling of her story will make you uncomfortable, and even more so if you’re atheist. But it is so refreshing to hear her find her way out and to rekindle relationships that were jeopardized during her cult years. Also, a great reminder that not all cults are large and have a name.

Dinner for Vampires by Bethany Joy Lenz is a deeply personal and raw memoir that gives readers a glimpse into the hidden struggles she faced while starring on One Tree Hill. While her acting career was taking off, behind the scenes, she was entangled in a cult called The Big House Family. What started as a simple Bible study group with Hollywood creatives turned into a controlling and abusive situation that slowly took over her life. Lenz shares how the cult’s leader manipulated her, draining her finances and even pushing her into marriage. It wasn’t until she became a mother that she found the courage to break free and start healing. Written with a mix of brutal honesty and dark humor, the book is a powerful reflection on identity, faith, and finding the strength to reclaim your life.

I’d give Dinner for Vampires 4 stars. It’s a fascinating read, especially for One Tree Hill fans who would’ve had no idea what Bethany Joy Lenz was going through behind the scenes. Her story of getting trapped in a cult is wild and heartbreaking, and the way she opens up about her experience feels really honest and raw. It’s pretty sad to think about everything she went through, especially when her career was at such a high point. Overall, it's a gripping memoir that makes you realize how little we know about what’s really happening in people’s lives, even when they’re in the spotlight.

I was a HUGE fan of One Tree Hill and still rewatch episodes as of today, so I was thrilled to hear she was making a memoir of her life during this time. Warning, this has nothing to do with One Tree Hill, but I devoured it none the less. This was something I never knew about before and I was shocked at what Joy endured and amazed at her strength to get out. In this memoir, Joy recounts her start in show business as a child, experiencing her parent's divorce, getting her big break on One Tree Hill, and stumbling into a cult that would change the trajectory of her life and career. You see the slow burn of red flags, with just enough positivity (love-bombing) peppered in to keep someone feeling comfortable/loved, and the grooming happening in real time to make sure a victim will always doubt their own inner voice. It's a quick read, and I was appreciative that it was written chronologically and easy to follow. There are a lot of characters to keep track of, but each plays a pretty significant role in the story arc.

I rated this memoir five stars. Her writing felt like I was reading an email from a friend and I had to force myself to put the book down a few times. Such an interesting story and I’m so glad that Joy shared it with the world!

As I type this, I'm literally making my way through One Tree Hill for the first time (I'm on season four if you're curious), so this story was not one I was familiar with. For others who are where I was (or people who need a refresher), while on the show, Bethany Joy Lenz (who played Haley James-Scott) was in a cult. This is her story about how it began, how it went, and how it ended. She shares all the details, and there is a rawness as she details all the ins and outs. She's also telling this story looking back, so she shares her emotional reactions and lessons learned now. It was an interesting read for me, and I can certainly see how much it took for her to share so much about this time in her life. Not a good or bad thing, but I do think this one will "hit different" for One Tree Hills fans versus someone like me who's new to this! Thanks to NetGalley for the early look at this October 2024 release.

It mostly made me sad for Joy. Sad that she was so vulnerable and could be taken advantage of and couldn’t see the flashing red lights of warning in front of her. I’m not sure how else to feel.

I would give this book a solid 4 out of 5 stars. As a fan of OTH I am grateful for the opportunity to read and review this book from Simon & Schuster and Netgalley.

The book is a memoir from Bethany Joy Lenz or known more to me and others as Haley on One Tree Hill. She goes into detail about her life from the lens of her relationship with religion from her father’s early life, her childhood, her acting career, her dive into a cult using religion, and after everything.

I thought that the descriptions of the cult and her perspective of her bio-family was interesting to see how she was convinced and isolated into the cult “family” from originally just bible study. I think that Pam is an awful person from this book, teaming up with Les and isolating women who do not have a stronger mother figure in their lives and using that as a way to mislead and provide that figure only to have them manipulated and verbally abused in the name of spirituality and guidance. Les is also evil regarding all his grandiose and disgusting mannerisms.

As someone who is not deeply religious it was hard to read a lot of the verses that were included and I was considering not going forward but read it still with the consideration of those sections as manipulation verses. I was deeply saddened for her over the Belle loss and wished that was something that she would have stuck up for herself on. I was also disgusted by the treatment by both Les and QB in the form of having to come to them for every little decision and abeyance.

I am glad that she was able to leave the situation with her daughter. I just wish it had happened sooner and/or that she was not sharing custody with QB. I wish it included more about her life on OTH but I understand that it was a lack of life since she was so numb during a lot of that period.

Such a great memoir by Bethany Joy Lenz! Her writing had me totally sucked into her story and there was so much about her life I didn’t know. I had been the headline where she mentioned on her podcast she was part of a cult but like so many others I didn’t know the full story. She was so through with her telling of how the small manipulations from a religious organization you want so badly to believe can turn into something more sinister. I loved her telling of time in acting throughout the years and how it landed her on One Tree Hill. She clearly is such a resilient person to be able to go through everything she did and still find the good in the world and move on with her life.