Carolyn Jessop was thirty-two years younger than her husband Merril Jessop. On her wedding day, she joined three other women who were already married to Mr. Jessop, a high-ranking leader in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS). FLDS, the polygamous cult that rivals the Taliban in its abuse of women, is currently under the prophetic headship of convicted accomplice-to-rape Warren Jeffs.

As she saw more and more instances of her own children being abused by so-called 'Sister Wives', Mrs. Jessop escaped the cult with her eight children and nothing else in 2003. She established a new life for herself by writing Escape, a book describing her journey.

In 2008, when the FLDS Yearning for Zion Ranch in Texas was raided by officials working on an anonymous tip to prevent an underage forced marriage, Carolyn Jessop shared her knowledge of the cult in an attempt to help others break free. When the children were returned to the cult compound, outsiders were surprised to see mothers greet returning children with handshakes instead of embraces. Mrs. Jessop explains that children were discouraged from bonding with their mothers and mothers were chastised for seeking the interests of their own children. Such activity would have betrayed punishable pride.

This book is a useful look at cultic mind control and religious exploitation. It is not a Christian testimony but a story of survival against great odds. Mrs. Jessop attributes much of the hideous manipulation of FLDS men, women and children to home schooling and condemns the practice. By the end of the book she is involved in a loving relationship with a man. Such a relationship had been forbidden to her as an adherent of the FLDS.

Reviewed by J.David Knepper at Reviews.AhavaBaptist.com