Jill Duggar Dillard Announces The Tell-All Book Fans Have Been Waiting For

The Amazon Prime docuseries "Shiny Happy People: Duggar Family Secrets" is a much-anticipated look at the darker side of the Institute in Basic Life Principles, the "cult-like" church whose practices viewers saw in the series "19 Kids & Counting." One of the people interviewed for the series is Jill Duggar Dillard, one of the siblings raised in the church by parents Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. Among other revelations from the docuseries, Jill exposes the "damage control" she had to do in a 2015 interview with Megyn Kelly. After the scandal about her brother Josh broke, Jill said she was pressured to go on air and defend him; not only was she unhappy doing it, this also made public the fact that she was one of Josh's abuse victims. 

Now, Jill is speaking up again in an even more shocking way. In an unexpected Instagram post on May 31 — just two days before "Shiny Happy People" is set to stream — she announced a project she and husband Derick have been quietly working on. "[W]e have written a book, 'Counting the Cost,' which details our painful journey as part of the reality-show-filming Duggar family," she wrote. 

Jinger Duggar Vuolo similarly made headlines earlier in 2023 with her memoir "Becoming Free Indeed." However, unlike her sister's book, Jill's promises to expose more than just the church. 

Due in January 2024 from Gallery Books, Jill Duggar Dillard's memoir "Counting the Cost" features a cover photo of her and her husband, Derick Dillard. Jill looks wistful as she holds a picture of her famous mega-family; Derick puts a protective arm around her. "As the picture on the cover conveys, the book is meant to reflect a story that has been difficult, yet hopeful," Jill wrote in her Instagram announcement. "The challenges we have faced, including lack of respect for boundaries, greed, manipulation, and betrayal, are not that much different than what many people in our audience have faced. However, 15+ years of reality television, undergirded by secrecy and lies, is tantamount to pouring gasoline on the fire of our struggle."

It's likely the "secrecy and lies" are related to Jill's relationship with her father, Jim Bob Duggar. The Dillards have been at odds with him for years over their TLC salary earnings, and Jill has called him "verbally abusive" and "controlling" in court documents, per the Daily Mail. Jill's announcement concludes, "Though we would have never chosen this path, and it has cost us dearly, we want to use our voice to show others that there is hope beyond the pain."

Not surprisingly, none of Jill's siblings has commented on or liked the post as of this writing. It proves once again that Jill Dillard is bravely risking everything to tell her truth.