Best known for her critically-acclaimed young adult novels, Amy Reed teams up with Danielle Mestyanek Young for their new adult nonfiction book, The Culting of America: What Makes a Cult and Why We Love Them (Otterpine; January 20, 2026)—available for pre-order now!
You’re probably in a cult. You just don’t know it yet.
Most of us think we’d never fall for a cult. We picture robes, chanting, and remote compounds. But toxic groups don’t just exist on the fringe. They thrive in boardrooms, group chats, fitness classes, political rallies, religious groups, and corporate retreats—anywhere we seek identity, purpose, and belonging. The Culting of America reveals how cultish behavior isn’t just thriving in modern life—it’s hiding in plain sight, woven deep into the fabric of American identity.
In The Culting of America, cult survivor, scholar, and former Army intelligence officer Daniella Mestyanek Young—author of the bestselling memoir Uncultured—teams up with award-winning writer Amy Reed to dismantle the illusion that cults are rare or easy to spot. Blending gripping personal narrative, cultural critique, and deep research, they introduce the cultiness spectrum: a ten-part framework that reveals how coercive group behavior shows up across all kinds of groups—from extremist movements to our most trusted institutions—exploring the fine line between community and control, devotion and exploitation, and leadership and manipulation.
Whether you’re part of a church, company, fandom, or political movement, the question isn’t if you’re in a cult. It’s how much of yourself you’ve already lost.
Pre-Order
Pre-order from the publisher now using the promo code CULTY10 for 10% off
Available for pre-order wherever books are sold
