4.5 stars

It is so frustrating to read about women not being believed and Valerie Clark Miller’s experience is no different. This novel follows Valerie’s troubled life and the generational trauma that spans from her assaults. The second part of the story is focused more on justice.

This was really well done and powerful. It felt caring towards Valerie and not exploitative. It is clear the author and Miller family care about Valerie and having her claims be validated. I recommend this to readers of true crime.

Thank you to NetGalley and Greenleaf Audiobooks for access to this audiobook. All opinions are my own.

This book was so informative. An interesting look into the underbelly of what seems to be a wholesome community. Brings to light the suffering that so many women quietly endure, and touches on MANY topics, including how, even now, people in this community are asking themselves if a 13 year old could have "asked for" what happened to them. Disturbing, but important material.

This story was very important and a difficult read. I think Emily Benedek did a great job of telling Valarie's story in an honest and powerful way. It did feel that in the second part of the book, there were so many names and people's stories being told that it was hard to follow. Of course, these stories are also important, but the way they were laid out made them hard to fully recognize in the way they deserved. This story gave me a similar feeling to watching a true crime documentary, so I'd recommend it to fans of true crime after checking the content warning. In a town that kept so many secrets, it's very profound for the truth to finally be shared in such a substantial way as this book.

Thank you Netgalley for this audio edition of Hometown Betrayal by Emily Benedek.

TRIGGER OF TRIGGERIEST WARNINGS: I would say that this counts double if you grew up in the LDS church, by why would it? Abuse is abuse and its terrible and angering no matter the who's and where's of it. But for real, enter this book duly cautioned.

This is a whole host of stories, told through the lens of one woman who suffered deeply at the hands of men, leaders, friends, and even law enforcement that she should have been able to trust. But deeper then that, it addresses the systematic issue of abuse in fundamentalist religious areas, how it is swept under the rug, and how the victims continue to be victimized by the very systems that are meant to protect them. It's a really upsetting read, but it's books like this that might prevent further harm, especially in insulated communities like this one.

I just finished listening to the audiobook "Hometown Betrayal," and it left a profound impact on me. The story delves into the life of Valerie, a mother navigating the complex, often challenging environment of Utah’s Mormon community. It’s a deeply poignant account of her struggles, illustrating the internal battles she faces as she tries to raise her children in a setting that can be both beautiful and confining.

Valerie’s journey is not an easy one. The audiobook captures her relentless fight against societal expectations and personal convictions, and my heart went out to her as she grappled with her own beliefs while trying to provide a sense of normalcy for her children. Growing up in such a challenging atmosphere must have been incredibly difficult for them, and the way the story portrays their experiences is both heartbreaking and inspiring.

The narrator did an exceptional job bringing this poignant story to life. With sensitivity and grace, she navigated the heavier themes while also capturing the moments of lightness that Valerie finds amidst her struggles. It couldn’t have been easy to communicate the weight of these circumstances, but the narrator’s skillful delivery made the emotions resonate deeply within me.

"Hometown Betrayal" is a powerful exploration of resilience, faith, and the unbreakable bond of motherhood. It’s a story that will stay with you long after the final chapter, shedding light on the complexities of life in a tightly-knit community. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a thought-provoking and deeply moving audiobook experience.

Hometown Betrayal
By Emily Benedek
Narrated by Maria Mcann

Published April 1,2025

TRIGGER WARNINGS for SA This was a hard book to rate because this was real and there were real survivors and it had such long term consequences on them and their families. I never realized just how bad things were regarding this, I knew that this went on but the details were so alarming. I had to keep putting this down because I was sick to my stomach that people could do these things. It felt journalistic not so much a book.

Thank you NetGalley and Greenleaf Audiobooks for the ALC audiobook. All opinions are my own.

This is a tragic story and I’m not sure how I feel about it. I thought it was going to be more of a story like Educated but it was not. It did reference that book in it though. Sad to see this is a reality in life.

This was such a sad story. I can not imagine how Valarie would have felt not to be believed when she had told her story. For the entire town to not believe her and to hide what vile men they had in their town. Hopefully with this book more people will see that it's important to believe the victims.

Thank you, NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this book. As an ex-Mormon, I was drawn to the premise of Hometown Betrayal. It's awful what the author had to endure at the hands of people who cared for her. This book fell a bit short for me. I'm unsure if it's because I've been watching and listening to so many awful renditions of atrocities done by religious leaders. But this one didn't grip me the way other stories have.
I'm still thankful for the chance I had to read it.

this was absolutely so well written, but also so completely heartbreaking. I think a lot of us live in a sense that ‘it couldn’t happen to me’ or if we don’t know anyone it’s happened to directly then we turn a blind eye.

BUT this is happening and it’s happening in our neighborhoods and to people we know and people we don’t know.

This story was handled with so much care, and the way that Valerie’s story was told was done in such a caring way while also shining light on how childhood sexual abuse could impact not only the individual but also entire generational line up.

I listened to this as an audiobook, and it was absolutely so captivating. My heart broke for the entire family and i was so fuming at the officers that allowed this to happen.

We need to be putting more light onto this. We need to make people uncomfortable to help stop this.

Hometown Betrayal was genuinely one of the hardest listens I’ve picked up in a good long while. Ever since I had my daughter 2 years ago, I’ve significantly cut back on listening/watching/reading true crime. This book made reminded me why! It was wonderfully written and a fascinating, heartbreaking story, but it was so hard to finish!

A powerful, devastating read that will leave you wondering how a community could fail its people – and especially it’s children – so deeply.

Side note: I did have to fast forward in one particular chapter because I just couldn’t listen. (There is fair warning at the beginning of that specific chapter.)

Thank you to NetGalley, Greenleaf Audiobooks, and Emily Benedek for the free ARC in exchange for my review!

I find it challenging to review true stories and true crime because I find the material important but not enjoyable in the suffering of others, making it difficult to assign a star rating.

This deeply painful book delves into Valerie’s horrific abuse, lifelong trauma, and its impact on her community and loved ones. Well-researched with firsthand interview accounts, it respectfully handles Valerie’s story.

However, the book spends too much time detailing Valerie and her family’s suffering and not enough on the mishandled investigation. I also wish it had emphasized broader structural issues that led to her abuse and its coverup.

This is a deep dive into Mormonism, the history and culture, as well as the ways that isolation has impacted this religious community through today. It also discusses, in graphic detail, physical and sexual abuse. I was so saddened to hear of the suffering that Valarie, then her family endured from the generational trauma. There were parts that were too graphic for me to read, but the book is a well-researched, thoroughly investigated and important work. This is something that victims may find solace in, knowing that they are not alone and should be believed. My hope is that it changes peoples' view of victims of abuse.

I highly recommend this book, and the audiobook version (the narrator did a great job reflecting Valarie's wispy voice vs. some of the men's gruff voices). I also really appreciated Elizabeth Smart's foreward, and her poignant words on the matter.

This book is tough to read/listen to, but is important for changing the way we help people.

The 4 star is for the writing quality and level of research not for the contents of the book!!!

This is one of the most insane non-fiction books I have ever read I would put this up there with Educated in terms of memoir esque books about the Mormon experience in specifically the more side-ways sub communities and the culture that comes from it that makes these things possible. In terms of the true crime part of this the shock I felt in regards to the things that happened would be up there with I Have Life.

Thank you NetGalley and Greenleaf Book Group Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is as a very heartbreaking story to listen to. It could have been fleshed out more I believe. Seems to be more posthumous focused on retribution. Would have liked to hear more about Valerie and her personal experiences versus the harm she inflicted upon others.

If you’ve experienced sexual abuse in your life and hearing about sexual abuse is a trigger for you then I wouldn’t recommend this book. Do some more research before reading!

This was incredibly heartbreaking. A very interesting look into the individual and generational trauma that occurs after repeated childhood sexual abuse. As a victim of CSA myself, this book was incredibly difficult to read at times, and I really appreciated the individual chapters having their own trigger warnings if necessary.

The origin of this book is a little bit odd, from my understanding the author was asked by Valarie's former husband to write this book after law enforcement failed to hold her abusers accountable. Because of that, I think that the one thing glaringly lacking in this book was a frank and in depth discussion about how Mormonism and many organized religions perpetrate abuse and victim blame. However, I do think that there was enough subtext in there for you to reach your own conclusions.

Overall, I think that Valarie's story is incredibly important and unfortunately not as uncommon as we all wish to think. I hope that the men responsible for what happened to her rot in hell. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book, and please check trigger warnings before picking this one up.

Thank you NetGalley and Greenleaf Book Group Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. This was such a heartbreaking and difficult story to listen to. It was very written and you could feel the care the author put in to tell Valarie’s tragic story. It is very shocking to see the traumatic reach one horrible act can have on a family and community. It’s scary how some very evil people hid behind their religion and twist it in a way to make the victims feel like they are the ones that have done wrong.

Going into this book, I thought it could be helpful to anyone going through something similar, or who may think they know someone going through something similar. However, once I realized the woman the book is about was dead, and also did not want to share her story when she was alive, I felt bad for even reading it in the first place.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an e-arc of this book.

Thank you to Netgalley for the audio version of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Valarie Clark Miller seemed to have it all. Smart, beautiful, and athletic, with a wealthy, successful husband and growing family, Valarie appeared to be the picture-perfect Mormon wife. But it was all a façade. Inside, she was crumbling from the pressures of long-repressed memories of a childhood plagued with sexual and physical abuse.

In Hometown Betrayal, author Emily Benedek brings you behind the closed doors of the remote Mormon community of Clarkston, Utah. With the help of hundreds of individual stories, she pieces together not only what happened to Valarie, but also the conditions and culture that allowed it. Hometown Betrayal culminates in an account of the Miller family’s fight to hold accountable the men—including the local cop-- who abused Valarie and controlled the systems designed to look the other way.

It feels wrong to critique such a horrible situation but this is book review, so hear it goes. Valarie's story is sad and atrocious but I found it hard to follow and a little dismissive of what she endured and more about retribution posthumously. While it's important to highlight the effects her abuse had on her mothering and her ability to love, I wanted to hear more about Valarie and how others felt about her as a victim. The book felt journalistic in nature but lacked the defendants side of the story.

Format Audible Audio
Published April 1, 2025 by Greenleaf Book Group
⭐⭐.5

Very disturbing content. I can’t understand how things with Valerie were so mishandled. I also hate that it seems the doctors couldn’t figure out what was wrong with her and just treated her with painkillers making her addicted to those.
The story itself is ok, but I wish it read more as a story than a report. At times it was hard to listen to just because of this. It needs more of a storytelling to it. The narrator was fine, nothing memorable but overall ok.

The story really sheds a light on how women aren’t believed and also how generational trauma is a real thing and can affect everyone around the victim.

Overall very interesting and heartbreaking

Thank you NetGalley for the read