Eliana Berlfein was partway through writing a memoir about her six years in a cult when she was given a few weeks to live. Talk about a deadline! Determined to finish telling her story so it could benefit others, she devoted her final days to this last act of service, working closely with her coauthor, Stacey Stern, who finished writing the book after Eliana’s passing.

The Agony of Freedom reveals how Berlfein dropped out of college to spend much of her twenties in Reverend Moon’s cult, was kidnapped and deprogrammed, battled depression, and built a new life.

Through a mix of deeply personal narrative, poems, and short stories-and with her dark sense of humor-Berlfein provides an intimate look at her winding path to self-love and how she approached her death with peace.