Buy my book: Charlatans is out today!

25 shocking stories that show how the worst people in the world weaponize your beliefs against you

There are bad people out there. People with a special knack for connecting with you, getting you to trust them, then burrowing into your life and turning it upside down. Charlatans: How Grifters, Swindlers and Hucksters Bamboozle the Media, the Markets and the Masses —out today from Basic Books!— tells the story of 25 of the most successful ones.

Back before I spent all my time thinking about the climate, I was obsessed with this stuff. Together with Moisés Naím, we spent years going through amazing stories of 21st century grift. We worked hard to get a very wide cross section of charlatans — charlatans targetting the poor, the middle class and the rich. Charlatans in the U.S. and Europe and Asia and Latin America. Across spirituality, business, wellness, therapy, nationalism, politics and true love, there’s a charlatan waiting for you no matter what it is that matters most to you.

We analyze the whys and wherefores, of course, but let’s get one thing straight: this isn’t about theory. This is about recognizing the common patterns across a shocking array of barely believable but absolutely true stories. We hope reading it will help protect you, or help you connect with loved ones who’ve fallen for a charlatan. But really, we just want to keep you turning pages — so do check it out!