So horrible that the Catholic chursch allowed the Nuns to use these poor young women as slave and sold their babies.
596026
Very sad depressing. The writer did fantastic research on this horrible time in the the '50's of Ireland and the horror unmarried pregnant girls went through. And kept it secret  and young mothers were never to see their babies.
2063177
I do admit I borrowed this book from the library, I do not believe in  adding a penny to murder suspects' pockets. These people are disgusting and  it is obvious they are just trying to pollute a future jury pool with this  book. It is all about them and pointing fingers at the media and everyone  else, they were never wrong . (they just wasted millions of tax payers  dollars by NOT cooperating fully with the police and NOT providing all the  necessary information the police needed) What is even more offesive is the  guise of religion, and Patsy proclaiming her "miracle cure" from  cancer, as if she is a saint. Shame on these people, and shame on these  publishers for publishing this book.
861086
Paretsky's blatant hatred for the Catholic religion killed my enjoyment. I was so disgusted that I won't donate the book to my local library. I put it in the garbage where it belongs.
182250
This book gives a terribly tarnished picture of the Vatican, even if the author is wrong and there was no murder or active murder (they could have let Pope John Paul I die, by not administering him his medicine).
A Vatican controlled by a bunch of corrupt, merciless, avid for power, 'holy' cardinals (Villot, Cody, Marcinkus, Baggio), implicated in a web of depraved banking, masonic and Mafia figures, like Calvi, Gelli and Sindona. (I recommend for the 'banking' part the book of Richard Hammer 'The Vatican Connection').
What is also intriguing, or should I say 'demonic', is the fact that the next pope didn't remove anybody entangled in these murky affairs from his office.
The author also gives very plausible hints why, besides personal career interests, there were moral (the issue of birth control, for instance) and financial (money laundering to help friendly unions and parties) motives.
A devastating book.
2496512
I'd seen this story on Frontline (CNN) and was appalled. Knowing what's happening in the church (I've been raised Catholic) has been upsetting; I wasn't aware of how deep things were. The 'inside' cover up is more sad to me than the abuse itself. It is blatant abuse of power in the hierarchy of the church which is most maddening.
828328
The nubs pushed into my feet and hurt. When I tried to take them out, two of the nuns ripped off.
1446602
This was really awful! They took the life of one of the most interesting people in history & turned it into a poor soap opera.
841537
what an awful book. I read this because it was recommended by our social worker. I am the adoptive mother of a 5 year old. If I had read this when we first started to think about adoption it would have scared me to death. This book is mainly the authors opinion and sad story. There are millions of happy well adjusted adoptees in the world. THIS BOOK IS SCARY AND UNTRUE. If I could give it 0 stars I would. There are many wonderful books about the adoption experience. Do NOT READ THIS ONE!
1038100
If I could,I would give this book ZERO stars.  Although it is a well written and researched historical novel, I kept asking myself "WHAT is WRONG with this author!?". It seems she has a perverse delight in all the ugliness she describes in utter detail (without a shred of redemption or hope). It is unnecessarily macabre to the extreme and describes utter and complete ugliness, depravity, perversion, cruelty, and despair WITH ENTHUSIASM AND RELISH.  ALL ugliness, ALL the time.  It's unrealistic.

After reading this novel, the most abject horrors described by Charles Dickens, would seem like paradise in comparison. Holman REALLY "gets into" the grotesque and disgusting. Sick Sick Sick.
395046
Horrible horrible books. Elsie's father isnemotionally abusive, and the poor sensitive child; desperate to earn his love and live up to her legalistic views of Christianity, spends every moment trying to be perfect, hating herself for not being perfect, and sobbing while her father ruthlessly punishes her for such evil acts as freeing a hummingbird that had been trapped. Every moment of this literally broke my heart for the little child who sees herself as worthless while her father humiliates her, deprives her of the food and treats the other children around her get, and demands that at the age of eight she be absolutely perfect in every respect. I have never hated a book more. This book is like an instruction manuel for misusing Christian ideals and giving a child a nervous breakdown. How this can be a story for children is beyond me.
2028301
I chose this rating because this is more of the same bigotry and hatred against the Roman Catholic Church and the Popes.  Even against modern Popes who practically have lived in a fish bowl of scrutiny yet these producers have managed to continue their fabricated lies and unfounded quotes!

Basically more of the same here folks nothing new.  Anti-Roman Catholic bashing in its fullest and finest. The producers couldn't even wait 5 minutes before the same rant started all over again.  If you enjoy hatred and unfounded lies based on sources that are as flimsy as quick sand than this documentary sequel might be right up your alley!

Don't waste your time with this documentary's 16th Century propaganda of evil!

As a matter of fact if you google Dr. Ronald Cooke, Truth International Ministries.  You will get a list of links, one of them is the website for Adullamfilms.com.  There you will see these heretics trying to sell you 10 DVDs - 5 Lamp in the Dark & 5 Tares Among the Wheat for $100.

As you can see they ONLY sell by the bulk, since they are only interested in making a profit, that has been there agenda all along!

Proof that these people are money grubbing phonies!
694692
This is an extremely disturbing film about post war Bosnia and the human trafficking that prevails in that country.  The inhumane, savage treatment of young women is so painful to watch.  Young girls in their early teens are forced to engage in sexual acts.  If they resist in any way, they are tortured in such ways that are unspeakable.  The Bosnian men, on the whole, are crude, brutal, insensitive clods.

Kathy Bolkovac, a Nebraskan Police Officer, goes to Bosnia as a Peacekeeper and is confronted with the horrors of human trafficking which she desperately tries to do something about.  To compound the issue many of her fellow American Peacekeepers are involved in the sex trafficking and are receiving payoffs from the brothels, and are in cahoots with the corrupt police. And the U.N. refuses to do anything to protect these young women.

Ms. Bolkovac is summarily escorted out of Bosnia because of her investigation into the sex trafficking.  However, she does get to eventually report what she has learned to the BBC.  Yet, the sex trafficking still goes on in Bosnia.

This story is based on actual events.  Rachel Weisz as Kathy Bolkovac is outstanding.

I was on the edge of my seat watching the horrific events in this film.
2819268
This book is just cruel and sickening and people who who treat their children like this need to be in jail!!! You should have children to love and teach them right from wrong not to scare them so bad or shame them for something like having an accident while potty training some of the world just makes me sick! Jesus would not like this cult like material one bit! Parents who would use these methods deserve to burn in hell!!
1195659
I cannot imagine the hardships those women faced. Seems their life revolved around having babies. Yuk. I guess they needed the help.
459388
Ever heard about the Catholics who were hunted down and murdered during the Spanish Civil war?  From 1936 through 1939 Spanish communists imprisoned or beat priests and nuns, looted and pillaged churches, and shot and killed thousands, all in the name of atheism and Marxism.

This book relates one horrifying instance of murder after another.  One that remains with me is the history of Father Martin Garcia.  He was young, only 27 years old,  when he was martyred.  Father Garcia had been called to give absolution to a dying man.

Communists broke into the house, and shot the ailing man.  They attacked Father Martin and then dragged him to prison.  He managed to write one last letter to his parents, in which he wrote, "I forgive all who have wronged me" (p 68).

A few days later the communists gave the priest a terrible beating, and then they crucified him.  It took him an hour to die, in great agony.

Some of the other terrifying stories:  "In Santander, hundreds of victims were condemned to be thrown from the cliffs.  On the way to their place of sacrifice ...(they) sang Viva Cristo Rey!  So the assassins decided to sew up their mouths with wire" (p 19).

The history of the martyrs truly moved me.  But so did the photographs.  Pictures of churches desecrated, communists who dressed up mockingly in church vestments to perform mock Masses, and mummies from a Salesian convents dragged into the street "to try and intimidate loyal Catholics into submission" (picture 10).

A disturbing and fascinating book.
123229
Any book that recommends abuse of a child (and that is all this book does) must go.  It is not Christ's intent to have His name used in conjunction with a book this pathetic and just plain evil.  I can not believe that Amazon sells this book and allows the Pearl's to profit from  this abomination.  Parenting requires unconditional love and NOT abuse of innocent children.
2615928
This horrific book has directly lead to the death of at least 4 children so far and a miserable maladjusted life for countless others.  Beating infants with pipe piecing and tree branches?!?  Pulling their hair, withholding food, attention, physical and emotional warmth?  This is not Biblical or Godly, it is plain and simple child abuse.  It damages children and it may lead to outward obedience, but it is hurting their hearts and turning them away from their parents and from a loving God.  And for the children who can't perform the parlor tricks (as is typical for children with Reactive Attachment Disorder, common in adopted children), Pearl's methods lead to death.  Yet Michael Pearl has the audacity to post a callous, arrogant, laughing response to the death of innocent children at the hands of their misguided parents who thought they were following Godly child raising techniques.  He will pay for what he has done when he meets his Maker, as will the foolish parents who follow his advice into murdering their children.