Cult is a thriller with a chilling climax that shows how the power of sinister forces using mind control techniques can turn innocent people into weapons of destruction. Barney Harrigan, a successful computer entrepreneur, discovers that his young and impressionable wife has been lured by her fanatical sister into the "Glory Cult", a ruthless and powerful group in Oregon run by a charismatic "Guru". Finally able to make contact with her, he learns just how much control the cult and its members now exert over her. Determined to free his wife from the cult's grasp and return her to him and their four year old son, he prevails upon an old lover in Washington DC, Naomi Forman - a human rights activist - to use her political connections to help him.

After her initial reluctance to become involved, Naomi eventually enlists in his cause, despite her own conviction that people make their own choices and that "brainwashing" is a myth. She will soon come to realize how wrong she is. Barney and Naomi travel to Oregon and team up with a pair of tough, cunning deprogrammers. They plan to kidnap Barney's wife from the cult. However, they soon find themselves in a deadly cat and mouse game with Jeremiah, the "David Koresh" like leader of the Glories. Their rescue attempt triggers a surprising and horrific climax that will keep the listener absorbed and on edge throughout this novel.