Amanda Eyre Ward is an Austin writer and author of 13 novels—three of which are set in Texas and the rest scattered all over the world. Her latest book, Arrivals and Departures, out June 16, delves deep into the dark world of international romance scammers and how they masquerade as lovers by employing deepfake videos, rom-com scripts, and high-pressure sales pitches. Some even have scammer handbooks, scam universities, and how-to rap songs.
Ward recently spoke with the Texas Observer about her book, what she learned about the scammers who live everywhere from Lagos to Austin, and about how some Texas-based fraud detectors are exposing them.
