She also blames the church "for her inability to enjoy marital intercourse, for her three failed marriages, for her attempted suicide, and for the two months she spent in a psychiatric institution".
[3] The book was a commercial success; it spent 15 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list and over 500,000 copies were printed.
[4] Writing in Religion News Service, Jana Riess characterizes Secret Ceremonies as a "go-for-the-jugular exposé" typical of the ex-Mormon memoirs of her era.
[5] Shortly after the book's publication Laake was excommunicated for apostasy because of her criticisms and also for her "detailed revelation of top-secret Mormon temple ceremonies".
[1] Also in 1983, the Columbia School of Journalism gave Laake a special award for her short story "Wormboys".