Jenn Heater

At thirteen Quinn was taken by a cult, and during a raid 15 years later she is released and put in the custody of Sterling, a therapist that deals with survivors of this type of trauma. At first Quinn is hopeful about this next chapter in her life, she is setup in a quiet, isolated house in the bayou with other women in similar situations.

Slowly, Quinn starts to see that something is wrong in her new life. Sterling doesn't behave in the traditional way a therapist should--giving each woman nicknames like Little One, Honey, Firefly, Little Bird, as a way to infantilize and control them. And she begins to wonder if she has traded on cult for another.

I found the authors writing hard to get into initially. There was a halting quality to the cadence of the sentences that threw me off for the first few chapters. The sentences were short and didn't flow naturally, especially in the dialogue in Sterling's chapters.

Moss and Mirrors does a good job at delving into coercive control and how the recipient may be unaware of what is happening to them. Sterling is a completely unlikable character, but I enjoyed the rest of his family, especially adorable youngest son Remy. All in all an average thriller with a writing style I just didn't like. Not the book for me. 3 stars.

I received this advance copy from the publisher via their PR company and am voluntarily leaving a review.