Joined in 2023 
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63 About this deal
None of us can say for sure that we wouldn't fall the same way. Most of us will think we're too smart to be used like that, but this guy is not so unusual. I've also read both of Mary Turner-Thomson's books about her bigamist/psychopath husband and what he did to her. Inevitably, I find myself playing 'compare and contrast' between the two women's books and, whilst I think this is better written, I was oddly more sympathetic to MTT's case.
If you are sleeping with a psychopath (okay, let’s get real, you’re not just sleeping) there is a good chance that you’ve been (1) groomed and (2) courted by the psycho, and depending on where you are at in this psychopathic relationship, either you are (3) head over heels in love, or you were and now you’re (4) wondering what the hell is going on. Or, if the relationship has run its course, it is clear that (5) you’ve been played, you have suffered the effects of this entanglement, and to your psychopath’s amusement, you are in a great deal of pain, and are devasted from the experience. I don’t want to go into detail, about the lengths he went, you should read that yourself. I read so much with a dropped jaw. I liked the quotes at the start of each chapter that related to what had happened. I have to agree with Carolyn that there is something much deeper with this man. I don’t think there is a cure. It is who he is.
Reviews:
You’re right. It is totally extraordinary. My life is like a film; you couldn’t make it up ... But there’s something I have to tell you,’ he confided, as he leaned across the table towards me. ‘I’m not normal.’ The second part of the book focuses on the police investigation of the crime and the court trial. While I was eager to find out whether the police managed to catch the conman and what happenedto him, I found the second half of the book a bit too drawn out with a lot of criticism directed at the police from Carolyn's side, even if justly so.
In fact, some things were so astonishing she began to question her new lover. Was all as it seemed? This was in 2012, when there was already so much publicity about conmen and scammers! Yet she actually believed he worked for M16, was friends with every famous person you can think of, was rich enough to buy several airports and fleets of vintage aeroplanes, one day was in Spain, later that day was in Syria, received phone calls from the king of Spain. Come on! In the beginning, the psychopath befriends you and becomes your most trusted friend. They draw you in by sharing intimate details about themselves and expect you to reveal your intimate secrets in kind. Only the intimate details they are sharing with you are either totally fictitious or greatly exaggerated, and yours are the painful truth. You’ve been longing to find someone you can talk to that you can trust with these details, so you do… Your psychopath is storing this information to be used as a weapon against you later. In the meantime, this sharing of intimate (secret) details draws you closer to the psychopath’s web. 2. You Are Courted by the Psychopath What an incredible story this is! Carolyn Woods was a confident 54-year-old woman, divorced and financially well off until she met the man that nightmares is made from. Mark Conway as he introduced himself to Carolyn, was a confident, charismatic conman that walked into her life one day and ruined her financially and emotionally.I have so much respect for the strength Carolyn has shown in writing and publishing this account. At times I found myself loosing focus whilst I was reading and I found parts a little repetitive. There will be many people who question how she believed such outlandish lies, but her honesty and strength stand out to me. I felt both gripped and haunted by this read, I almost feel like I cannot trust anyone. There are many chilling but important messages within this book. The second part of the book is a monotonous description of the police investigation - really it is just Carolyn complaining about how the police handled the case. I admit it… I am obsessed by psychopaths. I love reading books with narcissistic, psychopathic characters and the more ruthless the better, however this is in the fictional books I read. Reading about psychopaths in a true crime, non-fiction account is absolutely TERRIFYING. This book purports to be a real-life crime thriller; but given that the story has been all over the media, there is nothing new or revelatory here. OMFG so so many alarm bells would have been going off in my head & the behaviour he exhibited in those first 24 hours would have had me running for the hills! Or is it just easy for me to say that having never been in this kinda situation before? I didn't realise this was a true story to start with, so I did a little research & read the news reports...what an absolute uncaring bastard (that's me being polite) he was!
I loved Dirty John when it was on Netflix, so if you too were a fan of that you'll find this book fascinating at the depraved lengths these men will stoop to!I feel so sorry for any woman who finds herself in this situation, thinking she's found 'The one', yet he's just interested in milking her for everything she has, not caring what financial & mental destruction he is causing. The title of this book is a bit misleading in as much as the 'psychopath' of the title never actually spends the night with the author. Forgive me for pointing that out, but it's one of the weird things he does (or rather doesn't do) in a very long list of extremely weird behaviours. She is in love with the 'idea' of the man rather than his reality. I love true crime stories and I often binge watch crime documentaries on Netflix. So naturally, I was drawn to this audiobook.
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