The Ultimate Religion is an exploration of a fundamentalist church, its members and their interpretation of the bible, via the story of one woman. This book will resonate in particular with those who have experience of such ‘churches’ or who wish to understand the mentality of people who lead and join such organisations. This is a fairly lengthy novel, inspired by real-life events, recounting … true sentiments and experiences. The story follows the child, Megan, through a tumultuous upbringing and early religious experiences, into adulthood and the point when she falls into the company of a fundamentalist Christian group and becomes embroiled in their contradictory world of genuine miracles, fun and love; coupled with religious fanaticism, gross sexism and social control. With an open approach to some difficult topics, such as abuse, terminal illness and gender roles, some content may be contentious or painful to read. Eye-opening biblical scriptures are quoted to illustrate the basis for some of the characters’ beliefs. This is a story of the making and breaking of precious friendships, of one woman’s desire to find and understand her place in the world, healing for her past and a sense of self and purpose; and the price of that quest. Megan finds faith, loses it and rediscovers it, while experiencing the duality of others and eventually discovering the true source of miracles.
‘Though the public is aware of isolated cult religions such as Jim Jones’ People Temple and the Kool-Aid suicides of 918 people in Guyana in 1978, few other religious cults have gained such notoriety. Author Gillian Dance offers a story told in the first person so convincingly that the reader feels drawn into the lead character Megan’s life, making the book seem a memoir! Her story opens a portal to the machinations and passionate followers of one such fundamentalist Christian cult, and in writing and in this manner she offers a staggeringly real sense of how these cults thrive.’ Grady Harp Top 100 Hall of Fame Amazon Reviewer
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The Ultimate Religion: Taken in by a Cult, Finding the Real Truth by Gillian Dance is a fictional novel based on actual events. This book takes a girl, Megan, who has a horrible home life; and shows her searching for truth, acceptance, and hope. She joins a religion that stresses obedience, but she doesn’t see the danger while she is growing in her faith and making good friends. Making a break can be difficult when you have so much invested. She fears she will all when she is commanded to marry.
Though the character, Megan benefited from the structure and guidance found in The Ultimate Religion, the church clearly pulled Bible verses out of context. Gillian Dance does a brilliant job bringing the dangers of a cultist church to light. It is sad that churches like The Revival Nations give Christians and fundamental churches a bad name and cause many to turn away when they are searching for truth.
The Ultimate Religion is based on real life events and the realities of what happens when people find themselves faced with abuse, neglect, and torn down to believe they are not worthy… then find themselves faced with a way “out” using religion.
Megan has had a difficult and complicated life. She grew up in the foster care system and suffered abuse by many hands. Feeling lost within herself, she finds herself being attracted to a fundamentalist Christian group that offers her answers and a place to belong.
Once she finds herself immersed in their beliefs, she is introduced to a new level of violence and abuse.
This book may be full of triggers for some people. It deals with topics on abuse, sexual violence, religious cults, and mind control. For others, this could be a difficult, but powerful story to read. I give this book 3.5 stars, but have rounded up to 4 stars because of its impact.
This was an incredible and moving read, and it surprised me by how strongly I felt for Megan as I read it. There is a profound reality that runs along with the story that only adds to the emotion behind it all, and I’d struggle to understand anyone who couldn’t empathize with Megan, no matter what their own personal faith. The first person telling of the story heightens the experience further and, I felt, placed me in amongst Megan’s journey rather than watching from afar. A very well-written debut, and I’ll seek out everything else written by Dance in the future.
A brave story based on real-life events, ‘The Ultimate Religion’ by Gillian Dance will resonate with so many young men and women, who have found themselves struggling with their identity and their place in the world. This is what happens to Megan. She has had a hard time in the foster care system, which leaves her so unsure of herself, lonely, and most of all, wanting to find a place to call home. There was never another person so vulnerable and susceptible to a fundamental religion. Her need to be accepted made her easy prey and the cult-like group Radical Nations took advantage of that.
Megan herself even recognised that the Christian group she had joined was leaning towards fundamentalism, but her need for a community and love was so great, she was so easily manipulated. By the time she realised what was happening to her, it was hard for Megan to find a way out.
It was such an interesting read and is so relevant to today. It shows how easy it is for vulnerable young people to be drawn in by fundamental teaching. The book is well written and despite dark themes, there is still plenty of hope.
Megan’s harsh upbringing in and out of foster care set in the UK made her a difficult child to associate with. The other children fought with her and she with them. It’s the order of foster care that no one truly feels loved and accepted. Abused and shamed even by her own sister, Tessa. The dynamic between the sisters distant yet protective. They helped each other from personal demons and personality traits that came from their parents (genes) or by the way the sisters were forced to grow up. But a nurturing relationship is not found here. Pockets of kindness maybe but not nurturing.
Tessa seeks understanding and refuge from her fearful and anxious life. Pastor of an Evangelical church soon realized Tessa’s struggles and sought to teach her how to be a wholesome Christian.
From here the description and the lives led become dark and at times fearful. Goes into massive dialogue about cults and some unspeakable actions.
The book needs a particular interest of the reader to be open to learning about the world – culture, family, geography, laws about foster care, protections for kids and how life can literally turn right side up with the right influence. While parts of the book so take some strength to muddle through, I clearly see how Megan and Tess have lived and the pain they’ve faced. In real life, I know from a few friend’s of the heartache for birth parents and kids being put in an unforgiving system that nor loves or protects unless a unique family really truly cares.
Following Megan through her experiences of being an orphan and how she came to choose her religion in The Ultimate Religion is a great way to spend a weekend. You see her experience many of the trials people go through today and the way she survives. This book is an excellent inspiration to all trying to find their place in the world. Gillian does an amazing job describing the areas she visit and you can almost see them and experience it all with her. She even gives accurate description of addiction, anxiety, and depression, and how it effects everyone in the suffering person’s life.
The Ultimate Religion: Taken in by a Cult, Finding the Real Truth, by author Gillian Dance, follows Megan, first through her early religious experiences and then as an adult when she falls into the company of a fundamentalist Christian group. The books underlying goal is to open a conversation up around religions and look at it from an objective perspective. Dance is using this story to explore Christianity without judgment. She uses passages from the bible as well as real-life experiences from the author and the people in her life. The story follows Megan through numerous circumstances from religious miracles to religious fanaticism. This book also deals with some heavy topics like sexism, terminal illness, and sexism. The beginning of the story is both intense and tragic, which builds throughout the story. Megan’s journey is full of pain, growth, and trying to find herself. Megan is easy to sympathize with, and I quickly became attached to watching where her story would lead her. Dance’s writing is descriptive and brought the world of the book to life for me. My favorite element of the book is the connections between the characters. They are complex, like the toxic relationship she had with her sister, and well-developed. This book is a fascinating, mesmerizing read that explores the truly intriguing and important concept of duality and faith. I would highly recommend this book to those interesting in exploring religion.
The Ultimate Religion is a brilliantly crafted story that is inspired by real life. The book explores the Bible and Christianity in depth. The author talks about church, its leaders, and the people who join such organizations. The book covers themes such as illness, abuse, religion, and miracles.
The main character, Megan, experiences a turbulent childhood but has a religious experience at a young age. She finds herself at the center of two worlds with real miracles and love on one side and social control, sexism, and religion fanaticism on the other. She has to deal with the past, her place in the world, and faith.
The Ultimate Religion is an eye-opening book that makes one reflect, especially on the nature of belief. It helps one to look at things objectively. I loved the fact that the book emphasizes miracles and that they happen to people who seek divine power. If you are a Christian or you understand Christianity, you will find it easy to resonate with.
The Ultimate Religion by Gillian Dance is based on the true story of a young girl who gets sucked in unwittingly to a cult- like church. This book details her upbringing, the way the church influenced her, and everything that happened in between. This is a rather heart wrenching tale, as you learn of the abuse that Megan endured during her childhood, how she ultimately grew up in foster homes, and finally escaped those trying times. First homeless, then finding a job, and trying to move on with her life is all she wants to do. Megan is exposed to church and religion in all of its various incarnations, permutations that affect her deeply. The resulting experiences in a fundamentalist church have far reaching effects on her life, good and bad. At times this is a difficult story to read, but ultimately, Megan does discover her place in the world, finds her way, and re-imagines her life. Compelling writing, an interesting lead character, and real life situations make this an intriguing book and one that is highly recommended.
British author Gillian Dance studied English Literature and Linguistics and works from home as a copy editor and ghostwriter. THE ULTIMATE RELIGION is her debut novel. She lives in Devon, England.
Though the public is aware of isolated cult religions such as Jim Jones’ People Temple and the Kool-Aid suicides of 918 people in Guyana in 1978, few other religious cults have gained such notoriety. Author Gillian Dance offers a story told in the first person so convincingly that the reader feels drawn into the lead character Megan’s life, making the book seem a memoir! Her story opens a portal to the machinations and passionate followers of one such fundamentalist Christian cult, and in writing and in this manner she offers a staggeringly real sense of how these cults thrive.
Early on in this novel the abused character of Megan relates her family life, allowing us to identify with the experiences the novel shares: ‘Tessa {Megan’s sister], had a forceful and dominant personality, what started with her being my protector grew into controlling possession. Watching me all the time, preventing strangers getting close to me, speaking for me when I was addressed. Though I didn’t realise that as a small girl, or the impact of that on me until many years later, I developed a form of social phobia. Whenever there were more than one or two people around me, especially people whom I didn’t know, I would clam up and find myself unable to speak, crippled with awkwardness. Tessa always knew what to say, she had a natural cool, knew instinctively how to be. She was a lovely person in many ways, but she also cast a shadow over my life. I first understood that when the pastor of an Evangelical church, that Tessa got us involved in in our teens, pointed it out to me. When we were almost grown she was beautiful, I was too, but I didn’t have the confidence and ease with myself that she did. In particular, I didn’t understand sexuality, the power of it, the purpose of it. I don’t think I was even aware of it, in my teenage years I continued playing sports and loving books the way I always had as a child. I lived in jeans and cosmetics were foreign to me…’
This manner of relating the story of a girl who grew into that conundrum of reality of love versus miracles of promise, and the manner in which she navigates her life in a world of religious fanaticism with the rather unexpected sexism, social control, gender issues, abuse, and borderline mental behavior is both startling and compassionate in nature. The sentinel issues is belief – what is it, how far from reality can it be, how safe is the investment, and what are the consequences. It all comes together in Gillian’s masterful writing, and the result is a book that is more than just a fine piece of writing: this is a book that is enlightening and alerting of sub rosa challenging themes. A fascinating novel!
This book was really entertaining, thought provoking, and in all, quite enlightening it has fresh ideas and interesting interpretations of the Holy Bible. The protagonist, Megan, goes from a child with a tumultuous childhood who does not get the same kind of affection from foster homes than her older sister who got adopted and lived a decent life, to a grown woman who becomes a member of a Christian cult where she at first gets special, kind treatment then later feels animosity towards it and forces herself to leave it by the end of the book. The story is fictional but is said by author Dance to be inspired by actual events. The cult (or church as she believed it to be) Revival Nations has branches in England, Wales, and Scotland than on to Australia where the founder, Melvyn resides and preaches. Megan at first was recruited by a very hospitable and kind friend who invites her over to Revival Nations’ meetings where she meets some of the most endearing characters in her life. She becomes one of them, she enjoys their meetings, their meal sessions, and outings. The turning point of the book started when she went to Australia as part of a retreat for Revival Nations and is harshly treated by the cult’s members down there, including Melvyn.
I don’t want to spoil the rest of this book but if you are like me, who is a Catholic and a spiritual person, you will find this book to be quite an eye-opening experience. The way Megan and this Revival Nations cult interpreted the Bible, it was so remarkable how they cited passages from the Bible to prove the existence of dinosaurs (and probably dragons) to a patriarchal God who only perceives women as servants instead of enabling them to see their worth and their power. I was amazed at the Biblical knowledge of the author herself and how she provides both the cons and the pros of God and the Holy Bible. I also must give credit to Dance for the way she tries to be neutral through it all and how she writes in such a compassionate way for Christians’ sake as well as for the Atheists and the Feminists’ sake. This book I must say is truly a work of meritorious means. I do came across from hurtful and doubtful thoughts from the main character but what really made me enjoy it is the tone she uses and the neutrality she keeps through it all. This book will not turn my thoughts away from Catholicism or from God but it has enlightened me on some perceptions therefore making this book in my personal opinion to be a great Theological source. That there is no one way to paradise and/or enlightenment, that there are tons of other views and other heavens out there that there is really no right faith or religion in all. But since Catholicism was founded by Christ himself, therefore, I will stick to it with my all.
I recommend this book to all who are in search of a one true faith or religion. It has some fresh thoughts and ideas that are notable and worthy of examination. I also recommend this book to all Christians who are questioning their faith. That as Dance inferred it through her character Megan, it is not a church that is at fault but those who are in it that have twisted its teachings and ultimately the Bible itself to suit their egos and who knows, their devil-driven motives. To all who wish to read this book, be prepared for an enlightening ride!
This is a weighty book, covering a wealth of ideologies surrounding a fundamentalist church system, along with it’s fanatical followers. A well-written and compelling coming-of-age story, sees protagonist Megan make a difficult journey from a very harsh childhood, to trying to find her place as an adult. I found the subject to be shocking and controversial, particularly as it covers, in depth, difficult subjects that may be a bit close to the bone for some readers (depression, illness, abuse to mention a few). It does feel though, that there are a lot of truths and experiences in Gillian’s words. The story is somewhat of an education into how fundamentalists are created, and what makes them tick. An interesting read, and an eye-opener into a world I can’t say that I’d delved into before, I’m curious to read more from this author.
I am fascinated by ‘extreme’ religions, having read many books on Scientology and watched a number of documentaries on the infamous Westboro Baptist Church. It seems that there is such a fine line between genuine faith and religion, and the more extreme ‘churches’ that tip into cult territory. So many men and women who have spent time in these organisations have such important stories to tell, but fear for their safety, the safety of those they love, or from being cut off from the only family and community they have known.
This is what makes ‘The Ultimate Religion’ by Gillian Dance such an important book. So many young women will relate to Megan’s difficult upbringing, her need to be accepted, and a deep loneliness. All of which eventually led her into the arms of a fundamentalist Christian group. Little would she know that a chance meeting on a park bench and a strange coincidence with her close friend would impact her life forever. She slowly finds herself enveloped into the Radical Nations, even though she is telling herself that they are fundamentalists. That’s how skilled the manipulation and control was, and when things started to click for Megan, she was already in deep.
Inspired by real-life events, ‘The Ultimate Religion’ was fascinating, authentic, heart-breaking, hopeful, and eye-opening.’ Beautifully written and engrossing from start to finish.
Dance does a great job of maintaining a strong voice throughout the story. The protagonist (Megan) is hesitant, as we all are in doing something fairly foreign and new, and concerned as she slowly dips her toes in the water of this new group and their beliefs. However, also as we all do, we get enamored with the people and tend to open up. Though the beliefs don’t suit my own, I found myself liking the characters and wishing I knew them in real life (even though I do see reflections of these characters in part in people I’ve met in life). The story here is great, feels real, and has a lot to offer people who think on beliefs vs. Religion and the roles Religious groups, faith, and congregations impact society.
My only gripe with this story is that I felt like in some parts the writing was much stronger than others, in terms of editing/style (for example, the beginning of the book mentions Megan’s discomfort and actions “contrary to the norm” quite a bit). This often coincided with lulls in the pacing, but the message here is strong and it was interesting to read a piece of fiction that is so well-rooted in truth and obvious personal experience in regard to religion and extreme/intense religious organizations.
The Ultimate Religion by Gillian Dance
Starts out with the girls and their mother has just walked out the door and their lives. Their father does not even seem to realize they are there still.
They are put into foster homes and Megan ends up at the grandparents. After they die she’s moved back to her father’s care til she is old enough to move, get a job and her own place.
She has come into contact with others who discuss religion. Her older sister used to take her to church and also to parties but she’s now married with children of her own-too busy for her any longer.
She finds companionship with the new church, they don’t have sermons but a meeting at others houses.
Like the quotes from the bible, scriptures and passages as they relate to things going on, really helps explain things that they are thinking and acting on. My problem is there are way too many quotes from the Bible, just wanted the story.
Love all the travel locations and how they are welcomed.
Amazing just one event leads others to leave the revival and Megan thinks twice about marriage into the religion…
I received this review copy from the author via the publisher and this is my honest opinion.