[4] Media/Culture Reviews noted, "The expose is written in a calm, clear style and the chapters relating to the broken families are deeply moving and respectful.

[5] After discovering that prior to the 2007 election the Exclusive Brethren organisation in Australia had close access to John Howard, Bachelard became interested in writing a book about the group.

[5] Bachelard discusses the Australian branch of the Exclusive Brethren that was formed approximately 200 years ago by John Nelson Darby of Ireland.

[8] He writes that since the organisation's beginnings in Ireland in 1827, it has maintained that the world external to the group is evil, and has kept a "doctrine of separation" from non-members.

[8] The author describes the beliefs and practices and doctrine of the organisation, including its approaches to business and finance, as well as its methodology with respect to charity, Sunday services, and preparing the dead for burial.

[11] According to the book, wives are deemed second-class citizens within the organisation, and cannot hold positions higher than administrative jobs at companies owned by the group.

"[14] Behind the Exclusive Brethren describes how the organisation paid a private detective in New Zealand to put forth information claiming that the husband of politician Helen Clark was homosexual.

[2] The book details methods of social control used by the organisation, including the usage of exclusion from the group as a threat used to police members.

[2] The book reveals that members of the organisation had attempted to donate funds to the 2007 re-election campaign of Prime Minister of Australia John Howard in a way in which information about the financing would not have been available to the general public.

[16] Individuals describing themselves as a "private group" had met with a senior figure within the Liberal Party of Australia in a hotel in Sydney, and offered him a significant amount of money by way of an anonymous donation.

[10] In November 2008, the book hit number 8 on a list compiled by Nielsen BookScan of the top 10 political and social science bestsellers in Australia.

The Daily Telegraph noted that the book investigates, "One of the world's most mysterious religious sects, little is known of the origins, intentions and beliefs of the Brethren, seen as increasingly powerful in Australian politics.

"[2] Shelley McInnis reviewed the book for The Age, and commented, "Michael Bachelard is brave to investigate the Exclusive Brethren sect".

[8] McInnis elaborated, "The Exclusive Brethren is a conservative Christian sect with a scrappy, pit-bull attitude towards the outside world, and Michael Bachelard is courageous for investigating it.

[8] Bruce Elder reviewed the book for The Sydney Morning Herald, and described it as an "exhaustive study of the Exclusive Brethren in Australia".