Short description
The bestselling, devastating account of three sisters, torn apart and forced to suffer abuse and exploitation at the hands of a community that robbed them of their childhood. They reveal three lives, separate but entwined, that have experienced unspeakable horror, unrelenting loyalty and unforgettable courage.
Long description
The bestselling, devastating account of three sisters, torn apart and forced to suffer abuse and exploitation at the hands of a community that robbed them of their childhood. They reveal three lives, separate but entwined, that have experienced unspeakable horror, unrelenting loyalty and unforgettable courage. From as early as 3 years old, Julianna, Celeste and Kristina were treated by their 'guardians' as sexual beings. They were made to watch and mimic orgies, received love letters and sexual advances from men old enough to be their grandfather, and were forced into abusive relationships that barely went unhidden. They were denied access to formal schooling, forced to wander the streets begging for money, and were mercilessly beaten for 'crimes' as unpredictable as reading an encyclopaedia. Finally, unable to live with the guilt of what had happened to her children, their mother escaped with Kristina, cutting herself off from her remaining children in a bid to save at least one child. Desperate to free her remaining sisters, Kristina eventually returned to the place of her torture to free Celeste and, after many years, Julianna, who was only able to break free with the knowledge that the child she was carrying would be subjected to the same fate if she could not find the courage to escape. Now the three sisters have finally come together to reveal in full and horrific detail their existence within a group that has destroyed the lives of so many. Their stories intertwine throughout the years, revealing a community spread throughout the world whose legacy of anorexia, depression, drug abuse, suicide and even murder are impossible to erase. Lives that follow parallel paths are ripped apart and painstakingly mended with a shared strength that finally enabled the sisters to free themselves from the shadows of their past.
Review
'A chilling account of life in the grip of a sinister madness.' Daily Mail.