"Were they really doing candlelit massages in my bedroom?"— Ruby Franke and Jodi Hilderbrandt relationship explored amid daughter's memoir revelations

Ruby Franke's daughter Shari's memoir The House of My Mother: A Daughter's Quest for Freedom was released on January 7, 2025. Notably, the new book addressed Ruby's relationship with the family therapist, Jodi Hilderbrandt. According to AP News, Jodi was also charged with aggravated child abuse alongside Ruby in 2023.

Shari claimed in the book that Jodi had once allegedly asked her to sleep on the living room couch and the therapist herself sleep in Shari's room, as per Page Six. However, Jodi began having some visions due to which Ruby shifted into the same room and they started spending more time together at the same spot.

Shari recalled that she had once entered the room when Ruby Franke and Jodi Hilderbrandt were not at home and discovered that it was "bathed in the soft glow of candles." She further stated:

"The air was heavy with the scent of lavender and vanilla wafting form the massage oils on the dresser."

Shari claimed that she felt like she had entered someone's "honeymoon suite" and immediately came out of the room after taking her things. According to Page Six, Shari also alleged that she had once witnessed her mother coming out of the room with a different look on her face during the early morning hours and also had a weird smile. Shari addressed the same by saying:

"What the hell was going on? Why was Ruby sneaking around in the middle of the night like a teenager trying not to get caught by her parents? Were they really doing candlelit massages in my bedroom?"

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Ruby Franke's daughter opens up on the bond between her mother and Jodi Hilderbrandt

Apart from Shari Franke's book, the author also discussed her mother's relationship with Jodi Hilderbrandt while appearing on Good Morning America on January 7, 2025.

Speaking to Eva Pilgrim on the show, Shari said that she always felt "weird vibes" from Ruby Franke and Jodi Hilderbrandt. She claimed that her mother never shared anything about the bond she shared with Jodi and added:

"I don't think it's normal at all that a therapist would move in to your client's home … I was moving out to college, I hadn't even left the house yet, and she is in my room and in my bed."

According to ABC News, Shari alleged in the book that she read her mother's messages on her laptop where Ruby expressed her anger for having to fulfill Jodi's physical needs without getting anything in exchange. Apart from this, Shari addressed how she was reportedly abused by Ruby Franke at the time when she was around five or six years old.

"Whether it was like a slap to the lip or – a slap to the cheek…when I would practice the piano, her hand would slam and it was really scary."

Jodi's LinkedIn profile states that she has been serving as a therapist and educator at ConneXions Classroom since January 2007. She completed her higher studies at Brigham Young University and the University of Utah. Before coming to ConneXions, she served as a program director for Cirque Lodge.

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Ruby Franke and her legal issues explained in brief

Ruby Franke used to operate a YouTube channel called 8 Passengers, sharing everything related to her family life. She was married to Kevin Franke at the time and things took a different turn in 2020 when people started expressing concerns about the strictness maintained in the entire family.

People magazine stated that Ruby discontinued posting videos on the channel and came to a parenting advice podcast called ConneXions in 2022, appearing alongside Jodi. However, the duo's opinions on the channel landed them in controversy and they were taken into custody the following year on charges of child abuse.

The legal problem emerged when a neighbor of Hilderbrandt got in touch with the authorities, saying that Ruby's 12-year-old son had reportedly approached him for help and the kid allegedly had various marks on his body. When the cops arrived at Jodi's residence, they also rescued Ruby's 10-year-old daughter in the same condition, as per People magazine.

As per the same media outlet, following the arrest of Ruby Franke and Jodi Hilderbrant, their channels were removed from YouTube, and the former's husband Kevin applied for divorce. In December 2023, Ruby and Jodi pleaded guilty to four charges of child abuse and were sentenced to 1 to 15 years for each charge.