Blazing Eye Sees All

Love Has Won, False Prophets, and the Fever Dream of the American New Age

De: Leah Sottile

Narrado por: Leah Sottile

In this "unflinching and wildly entertaining" investigation of the modern New Age movement in America, a journalist aims to understand how women like Amy Carlson (the leader of Love Has Won) and others become devoutly invested in their beliefs (Talia Lavin, author of Culture Warlords).

Today, tarot cards, astrology and crystals are everywhere — on Instagram and TikTok, and sold at upscale boutiques and pricey wellness retreats. Journalist Leah Sottile turns her investigative eye toward the recent surge of New Age influencing American Culture. She looks at self-professed gurus like Love Has Won's Mother God and the mysterious channeler Ramtha, who have built devout followings based on their teachings. For more than a century, this pastel-colored world of love, light and enlightenment has been built upon a foundation of conspiracies, antisemitism, nationalism and a rejection of science.

In Blazing Eye Sees All, Sottile seeks to understand the quest for New Age spirituality in an era of fear that has made us open to anything that claims to bring relief from war, the climate crisis, COVID 19, and the myriad of other issues we face. At the same time, she attempts to draw a line between truly helpful, healing ideas and snake oil—helping us sort through the crystals to find true clarity.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"I have never read a better - or more entertaining - analysis of so-called New Age Spirituality and its self-anointed prophets than Lisa Sottile's Blazing Eye Sees All. In this book, even the infamous Love Has Won cult doesn't win, but readers do. See for yourself."—Jeff Guinn, author of Manson, The Road to Jonestown, and Waco

“BLAZING EYE SEES ALL is a sweeping, well-researched account of the lineage of American New Age thought, from the Pre-American myths and superstitions that thrive in this country’s peculiar psyche to the waves of spiritual charlatans who have repackaged this language and peddled religion –– and prejudice – as product. Sottile excels at unpacking the historical link between the conspiracy theories, bigotry, and New Age spiritualism that are the foundation of today’s toxic political soup.”
—Becky Cooper, bestselling author of We Keep the Dead Close

"Leah Sottile's writing crackles off the page, in a characteristically rigorous yet enthralling glimpse into the nation's fringes. Unflinching and wildly entertaining, Blazing Eye Sees All is a must-read to understand the way genuine world crises generate an effluence of grift, like pus on a wound. This book is a bandage on that wound."—Talia Lavin, author of Culture Warlords and Wild Faith

“Leah Sottile is one of our foremost chroniclers of American extremism, and in Blazing Eye Sees All she reveals the conspiracism, fakery, and abuses of power embedded in New Age culture. A fascinating, unsettling, and, yes, enlightening investigation of an extremist movement operating in plain sight.”
—Michelle Nijhuis, author of Beloved Beasts

"I first heard about Love Has Won at the end of the story, when the mummified, glitter-covered body of the cult’s leader was discovered in Colorado. Leah Sottile explores how we got there, and it’s a stranger, sadder, and more fascinating journey than I ever expected. Blazing Eye Sees All situates Love Has Won within the context of other mostly female-led esoteric groups over the past century, digging into alternative spirituality, conspiracies, and feminism. A must-read for anyone interested in the many strange corners of the human psyche."—Rachel Monroe, author of Savage Appetites

PRAISE FOR WHEN THE MOON TURNS TO BLOOD

"WHEN THE MOON TURNS TO BLOOD is a harrowing and fascinating tale of apocalyptic obsession and murder. Leah Sottile leads us down every head-shaking twist and turn of the case, an expert guide to the dark tributaries of religious extremism that run closer to the American mainstream than we’d ever like to believe."—Jess Walter, American author of seven novels, including #1 New York Times bestseller Beautiful Ruins

Brilliant Narrative of a Strange Human Condition

The author does a great job narrating and providing insights into a timeless problem, a timeless human behavior, that most of us know about but don’t really understand. Insightful, humane and also, unsparing.

Excellent perspective and research

Leah Sottile tells the story of Love Has Won through the lens American cultural and religious movements rather than just an isolated blue-skinned-mummy-worshipping cult. Sottile vividly embeds the tragic story of Amy Carlson into the milieu of the millenarian American west featured in her other works (When the Moon Turns to Blood, Bundyville, Burn Wild) while also telling the story of the family Amy left behind. This is an excellent book.

Lemurs and cults? Yes!

The writer has pulled off a really clever trick: weaving evolutionary biology, American history, and cultural observation into a very compelling story.

Connecting the Far Left and Far Right to Complete The Circle

I have read Leah’s previous book and was looking forward to this one. It did not disappoint. It opened my eyes to see the similarities to where certain cultish behavior is coming from, and how these seem to be the connection between the current Far Left and Far Right in political theories and how it closes the circle. I also enjoy the fact that it was read by the author …

Positively Etheric!

I loved this deep dive into the origins of the beliefs of our favorite cult leader, Amy Carlson. The book takes a fairly objective view, but doesn't hesitate to draw clean lines between the white supremacist origins of New Age thought, or highlight the hypocrisy of its practitioners. It's fascinating to listen to and keeps a good pace, switching between background on the New Age, and tales of Love Has Won. If you're interested in cults, this book is a treat!