Scan barcode
babobuca's review
3.0
If you've ever been curious about the inner workings of a cult, but basically avoid them because they're scary enough, this is your comic. Amy Rose shares her personal experiences with the reader, which she had to live through as a child in a cult's "prison". We see her increasingly entrapped mother who also breaks off contact with her husband. We see a life controlled and influenced by the Leader, the appearance of dependency, and the fear mongering. It was frightening to see the effects of manipulation, though fortunately Amy has a huge desire to learn and at one point is placed in good foster care. It was more interesting and informative than likeable. The drawing style was a little empty for me, however, perhaps this was the illustrator's way of giving a sense of the lonely life.
zabcia's review
3.0
75%
This was a very interesting insight into how cults can affect children growing up in them - and how cults control people in general. As fascinating as this perspective was, I am left with so many unanswered questions: why didn't her father take her with him when he left the cult? why didn't the aunt take the younger kids when she took the older one? did no one ever come looking for Amy and try to get her away from the hellhole? why didn't her semi-foster parents fight for her? did her mother ever get out? did she ever reconnect with her sisters? what was it like rejoining her father after so many years? have there been long-term effects of the cult on her? is the cult still around?
Some sort of afterword answering these kinds of questions would bump this up to 4 stars for me.
~Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.~
This was a very interesting insight into how cults can affect children growing up in them - and how cults control people in general. As fascinating as this perspective was, I am left with so many unanswered questions: why didn't her father take her with him when he left the cult? why didn't the aunt take the younger kids when she took the older one? did no one ever come looking for Amy and try to get her away from the hellhole? why didn't her semi-foster parents fight for her? did her mother ever get out? did she ever reconnect with her sisters? what was it like rejoining her father after so many years? have there been long-term effects of the cult on her? is the cult still around?
Some sort of afterword answering these kinds of questions would bump this up to 4 stars for me.
~Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.~
erine's review
4.0
Content warning: child abuse and neglect.
Fascinating and important and hard to read. Shows life from the perspective of a child inside a cult. Desperately needed an afterward to offer some context.
Fascinating and important and hard to read. Shows life from the perspective of a child inside a cult. Desperately needed an afterward to offer some context.
river_alces's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
cschev's review
Began reading during downtime at work. I felt the book came across as stilted and oddly paced. I also was not personally drawn to the art style. Considering I work at a library, I decided to turn my attention to other books more suited to my taste.
off2explore's review
3.0
If you've ever wondered what happens behind the scenes of a cult, this graphic novel is for you. When Amy's family joins this group hoping for a cure for her mother's illness, she becomes part of a strange subculture. The story is powerful and harrowing. My main reason for not rating it higher is confusion about who the audience would be. The marketing mentions "upper middle grade readers" and the main character is 8-12 over the course of the story, but many kids in that age group would find Occulted's depictions of abuse and neglect too upsetting.