LitPick Review
This was a powerful tale about Esperanza, the daughter of a rebel father and her journey to truth. Conflicted with being true to the Branch of Thomas, the cult in which she is a part of, she must come to terms with her beliefs. This cult is lead by the Reverant Father who has imparted his own beliefs on the community. Her own sister Xochi joins a resistance group against the cult and opens Esperanza’s eyes to some of the questionable actions happening inside the community where she resides. When her boyfriend, Mason’s, building gets bombed, she gets blamed and sent out of the compound where she had been living with her family. Her mission was to find Xochi and the chemical weapons available to those outside of their cult. Shortly after being sent out, she is shot and cared for by a group on the outside. Here she learns the truth, and here she meets Phoenix, who will help open her eyes to the world around her.
Opinion:
Wow. This book was a thrilling read. Esperanza was a complicated character with anger and a searching for the real truth. Her upbringing in a cult and discovery of the truth provide a lot of personal conflict. I like the way her character was developed through the story. She begins blindly following leadership in the cult she belongs and ends up finding her own voice. The pace of the story was well done. It was a hard book to put down since there was so much action. From buildings being bombed, characters getting shot, and fights occurring, there is never a dull moment of the story. The main theme I took away from this book was truth. When in a cult, the truth appears through the teachings of the leader, in this case Reverent Father. Blinded by this upbringing, learning the truth outside of the cult provides insight to the lie that had been lived. The cult has a darker past than originally portrayed. Esperanza finds the truth, and this ends up leading the way in her decisions.
