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A review by kamrynkoble
There Is No Ethan: How Three Women Caught America's Biggest Catfish by Anna Akbari
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Whew! I forgot I’d checked this out from the library and binge-listened to it in ~24 hours. And it was a WILD ride.
This really could’ve been a true crime podcast—it reminded me of early seasons of Something Was Wrong. Even though I always found Ethan cringey at best, this was still a fascinating account.
The audiobook starts with a HORRID amount of repetitive, verbalized details that your eye would skim over in a book (email, to whom, from whom, the date, the time, the time zone). Push through because it’s literally just the first chapter. The multiple voice actors make it easy to follow later.
I don’t want to say anything more, but if you love Catfished or scammy, true-crime-adjacent, toxic relationship stories, this one is for you. And if your mother ever told you that your online friend probably isn’t who they say they are—this is most definitely for you.
This really could’ve been a true crime podcast—it reminded me of early seasons of Something Was Wrong. Even though I always found Ethan cringey at best, this was still a fascinating account.
The audiobook starts with a HORRID amount of repetitive, verbalized details that your eye would skim over in a book (email, to whom, from whom, the date, the time, the time zone). Push through because it’s literally just the first chapter. The multiple voice actors make it easy to follow later.
I don’t want to say anything more, but if you love Catfished or scammy, true-crime-adjacent, toxic relationship stories, this one is for you. And if your mother ever told you that your online friend probably isn’t who they say they are—this is most definitely for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Cancer