Keanu Reeves Is Not In Love With You

'Keanu Reeves Is Not In Love With You' will make you laugh, it will make you sad, and it will make you angry. It is testament to the considerable skill of its author, Becky Holmes, that it can do all of these things and stand out as a valuable, worthwhile commentary and insight into the world of online romance fraud and the people whose lives it devastates.

Becky Holmes joined Twitter - as it was known - in 2020 and soon started to get attention for her humorous approaches to dealing with fake accounts trying to scam her. They are genuinely laugh out loud funny. However, her interest in these individuals and the people they target was piqued and this book shares her thought-provoking research, as well as some fascinating interviews with both those who lost money and those behind the accounts.

From the title and cover, I was expecting a largely humorous take, but 'Keanu Reeves Is Not In Love With You' is an engaging read that strikes the right balance between the humour and the author's wealth of research. The writing is down to earth yet respectful where needed, and sidesteps any jargon. Well worth a read.

With thanks to the publishers and to NetGalley for the advance copy on which this review is based.

This was an absolute hoot to read AND it was incredibly informative on romance scams and the effects both emotionally and financially that they can have on the people who sadly get entangled in them.

The first bit of the book I could not stop laughing at her inclusion of her conversations with these romancers. The celebrity ones were particularly hilarious. Some of the replies and conversation topics made me laugh out loud.

I love books that are both entertaining and informative and this was both. Becky was completely honest about her experiences and her empathy towards the people affected by scammers felt very genuine. One story in particular was gut wrenching. It would be good reading for anyone on social media as a guide to stay as safe as you can. The information she provides is brilliant and I noticed resemblances to messages I myself have gotten on my social media and have some good insight now into how to tackle the scammers and stay safe.

I can’t recommend this book enough! It should be standard reading for everyone! I loved the authors writing style and wit and her honesty and empathy. Would love to read more from her.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I follow this author on Twitter (X) and love reading her quests to weed out all the online romance scammers. The book begins with transcripts of some of her chats with these scammers and they are hilariously funny! I have laughed my way through her replies to them, but as the book moves on the author takes it into the more serious realms when she meets and interviews some of the women who have sadly lost money to the scammers. It's all very easy to say you'd never fall for anything like that, but it's apparent that these scammers are clever and know how to feed on your emotions.

The author gives good examples of different types of scams, what you should be looking out for and advice on how to not be taken in by them. It's so sad that the majority of these women have already gone through the stresses of break-ups and bereavements, and then find themselves having to go through the emotional and financial trauma, upset and shame of these scams as well. The author has done her research well and, as well as being funny, the book is full of detail, facts and figures.

It does make you so much more aware of, not just, online romance fraud, but all the other types of fraud and scam there are around, and let's remember it's not just women who are being caught by these scammers. The author has used her own personal experiences, added in a big dose of humour to tackle what is a really serious topic. This was a great read which I'd definitely recommend.

Take a dive into the world of online romance fraud and hear the stories of people who have gone through it.
Featuring scripts used by scammers and first hand accounts of people who have been a victim.
Beckys own experiences with scammers were a particular highlight, especially the screenshot messages. From Prince Harry to Liam Neeson to (obviously) Keanu Reeves, it seems every celeb has slid in her DM's. Except Greg Davies.
I had tears on several occasions throughout this books, some which were tears of laughter and others pure sadness for the people who have lost so much through these scams.
This was a really interesting read that kept me engaged throughout.

I just had to request this ARC, not only for the title, but for the synopsis and author, who I used to follow on her @deathtospinach Twitter account. (She refuses to call it X and I do too, I left that site when the ownership changed but that’s a whole other story…) Anyway, I knew of her catfishy content and knew that she is hilarious, so I knew this would be great. And it was!

Apparently actor Keanu Reeves is the celebrity most used to try to defraud people online. He doesn’t have social media, he’s handsome and by all accounts a really nice guy, so a lot of scammers use him as a way to get money. After getting so many Keanu Reeves sliding into her DMs with broken English about needing gift cards, she started posting them on her Twitter account, and many went viral.

The DMs are all hilarious, but there are serious issues that the author is bringing to light: romance fraud, celebrity fraud and sextortion. The book contains hilarious takes on the issues, mingled with heartbreaking stories from people who have been victims of this kind of fraud. The book also tells you how to spot scammers, how to recognize deep fake videos, how to report fraud and then what you do when your report goes nowhere because the police don’t have the time or resources to get back the money you sent to someone in Nigeria.

This is a must read book for all women (and men are not immune to this either!). We’ve all received the “hello beautiful how is your day” DMs from the guy who has a picture of a soldier or man working on an oil rig. Apparently those occupations are the ones scammers the most use because psychologically, a lot of women like those things. Unfortunately for them, I’m a pacifist who’d have nothing to do with someone who worked for big oil, so my block button gets a lot of action…

Funny, informative, filled with media and interviews, I can’t think of anything I’d change about this book. It’s a topic that needs more awareness, and this should definitely help with that. 4.5 stars, rounded up.

(Thank you to Unbound, Becky Holmes and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review. This book is slated to be published April 2, 2024.)

What a fantastic, funny, educational and thought provoking book! I am not usually a non-fiction reader, but had had this recommended to me and gave it a try. I am so glad I did! Becky Holmes perfectly blends facts about romance fraud, hilarious examples of her interactions with scammers and really sad stories from people who have been lured in by these scammers. It’s rare to read something like this and laugh out loud, then feel like you want to cry. I have recommended this to all of my friends, it has definitely made me more aware of the issues and feel able to talk to friends if I think this is happening to them. Thank you so much for this arc.

Every single person should read this book, it balances the comedy with the serious topic of romance scams. The title certainly catches the eye and a tone and pace keeps the reader engaged, Holmes delivers a book that blends humour with vital information about a serious issue.

Holmes sets the stage by sharing her own experiences with online scammers, accompanied by witty Twitter message screenshots that had me chuckling throughout. Beyond the laughs, the stories from interviews are both heartbreaking and harrowing, exploring the devastating impact of romance fraud on its victims. The book switches between the real-life stories and insightful analysis, she sheds light on the tactics used by scammers and offers practical advice on how to recognise and avoid falling prey to these schemes. This book tackles a weighty topic with both humour and empathy.

Overall it’s a hilarious yet thought-provoking exploration of romance fraud that will leave readers both laughing and reflecting on the dangers lurking in the digital realm.

I'm slightly obsessed with this book. I cannot wait until its published. I will be buying a copy for everyone I know. I work in a financial institution and feel like this should be mandatory reading for all of our employees. We see quite a bit of romance fraud, and see potential fraud and just don't always see the warning signs. I think the way Becky Holmes writes about this, makes it more tangible to read about and easier to relate to if you feel like you would never fall for one of these schemes.

This book should be required reading for anyone who wants to jump into the world of online dating or is tempted to answer the direct message from a random stranger on social media.

This book is a goldmine or information about romance scams - how to spot them and how to respond when they happen to you....because if you are online they probably will. Becky Holmes is funny, witty and informative in this book, tying all the pieces of these complex scams together in a way that readers can understand. She details how tricky it is to get help from the police, banks or support groups as these are all drastically underfunded. She calls out the use of victim blaming as a deflection technique used to make the victim feels silly for succumbing to these cons. I particularly loved the section where she details the romance scammers handbook and shares excerpts of the scripts that they use to pull people into their webs.

Victims share their stories and these are treated sensitively and with care. The book is also peppered with anecdotes from Becky's social media account where she shares the messages that she has received from fraudsters and also how they don't seem to be taking any notice of her, increasingly hilarious, responses to their messages as they just follow their predefined script.

Charming, witty, informative and perfect.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I already knew a little about the problem of romance fraud, there was a news story recently about one of the big places that criminals traffic people to and then make them carry out these scams and as someone who spends a reasonable amount of time on social media I have been approached by fake celebrities before. Sometimes, like Holmes, I string them along a little but most of the time I just block and report.

Holmes has done an excellent job at raising awareness of the scale of this problem and how it affects people. As she points out, there is a lot of victim blaming when people talk about it but just like any other type of coercive control these criminals don’t start off asking for money straight away, they work on their victims and know exactly which buttons to push. It doesn’t work every time but it’s a numbers game to them, they have multiple scams going at a time and move on when one doesn’t work.

Like any other kind of abuse, this type of fraud works mainly by encouraging secrecy so the victim blaming actually works in the fraudsters’ favour. Victims are scared of saying anything once they have realised what’s happened because they think they’ll be blamed and nobody will believe them.

Holmes’ mixes in some of the funny anecdotes from her experiences with romance fraudsters, which definitely helps lighten what could be a very heavy subject, but in no way is she minimising how serious this is.

I really enjoyed her writing style as a whole. She was sensitive when she needed to be but also able to make a joke and lighten the mood when necessary. It also had a nice flow to it, which helped keep me reading and made for a very quick read.

The stories from some of the women she has spoken to who have been taken advantage of are absolutely heartbreaking. The way these absolute scumbags have manipulated and played with people’s lives is awful.

Even worse, for me, was the lack of any decent amount of help available for people. Holmes herself expressed frustration at the processes involved in reporting cases of romance fraud and it’s so clear that something needs to change.

Hopefully the more awareness gets raised around this issue the less people will be taken advantage of and the criminals will run out of people to victimise. It’s so important to keep an eye on any friends or family members who might be vulnerable to this type of crime and make sure they are aware of this danger.

Overall, a funny and informative book.

Keanu Reeves is Not In Love With You is an investigation into the murky world of online dating fraud. I found this an absolutely fascinating and, at times, shocking read. It was also extremely entertaining due to Becky Holmes’ skill as a comic writer. There were times I actually laughed out loud at some of her exploits with would-be scammers. The material from interviews with both victims and perpetrators was a real eye-opener for me,