The following are the toxic personalities you will find on the Amazon fora. Some of them are real people. Others act under pseudonyms. All are bullies who live in the fora of Amazon.com and seek out unsuspecting authors to attack and destroy. Our blog reader, G. Faso, described it best:
So, watch out for the following names:
I have another one for you to add. This one calls herself DOODLE GIRL (unless she changed it lately). Look her up on amazon if you need to because she goes around giving only 1 2 or 3 star reviews to indie authors. She has a habit of attacking 5 star indie authors to bring down their ratings and she gives what I think is a phony address as FRANCE. She claims to be an ex-pat and she says its perfectly fine for her to give reviews on the U.S. amazon website. She should not be allowed to post in US site as France has its own amazon site. I reported this to amazon but they did not delete her off US site so that tells me she is lying and is in US using the phony France and ex-pat story. (Probably to prevent getting sued by someone). Usually you will see her as the only negative reviewer on most books. The way she venomously attacks these authors and their work is almost like jealousy. I wonder if she’s an indie author herself using someone else’s account to leave trash reviews. Anyway, I’ve noticed a couple of ebooks I’ve read she left reviews on also and she trashed them but mentioned things that were at the beginning that were so trivial that it made no difference in the story plot. I think she downloads a lot of indie books and just quickly glances through them, pretending to read them so that she can get up in the ranks on amazon’s reviewer list or something. Another troll troublemaker and I’ve seen comments on her reviews where people question why she is personally attacking authors so vehemently. Amazon has let this kind of mess go on too long and they are only hurting their own income when they refuse to do anything to correct it. It only takes one filthy, greasy hair in a perfectly good jar of peanut butter to spoil the whole jar.
Actually you are allowed to post to Amazon US no matter where you are – I’ve asked my non-US fans post their reviews there as well when they write a great review s o it works both ways Yesterday i requested my publisher to remove my bestselling book for sale because I couldn’t cope with one more review claiming my book was abusive and disgusting even though it has a clear disclaimer that it is DD and BDSM. I had more great reviews than bullying ones but the hate was too powerful.
It seems to me that troll list is growing since I last read over it. Some of those jerks on the list are morphing their names. For instance, Anna Karenina uses different names like Anna, no friend of Jeff’s and Anna Aphrodite Karenina. Also, Mahala uses one now in the forums R. Mahala Burlingame, TNBRMB. And this Angie goes by Angie, When will Those Gangster Bullies All Disappear, etc. They act like they think they are celebrities since they got exposed for all the emotional abuse they were conducting. It’s a shame there are people like that in the world, but what is more shameful is that they are proud of being abusers. They are no different than the coward who beats his wife and children. When he is caught and forced to face justice for his actions, he complains that the legal system is “violating his private domestic business”. HA! Those bullies are no different from the domestic abuser. There is not a penny’s worth of difference in physical and emotional abuse. The trolls are emotional abusers. They complain they are “being censored” when they are called down for spewing emotional abuse and making threats online.
To you, you COWARD TROLLS AND BULLIES, you and the wife-beaters and the child-abusers are all one in the same mentality. You get off on creating pain!
I am convinced that they are sociopaths. I’m not a psychologist, and obviously I couldn’t diagnose anybody over the Internet even if I were, but find a book or website on “everyday” sociopaths and see if the description of a personality of a sociopath doesn’t fit a number of these emotional leeches to a T. Probably the most infamous characteristic of a sociopath is an utter lack of empathy — they know right from wrong, but they just don’t care, and they regard anyone who shows weakness or gullibility to be “fair game”. You may also have noticed how incredibly easy it is to say something that ticks them off, and that when they get ticked off, they’ll rip your eyes out if they can. If you say anything to question what they’re doing, no matter how politely, they’ll turn on you like a junkyard dog. Sociopaths are also easily bored and impulsive, they never consider themselves wrong (it’s ALWAYS somebody else’s fault), and they never accept responsibility for their own actions.
Another reason I think that the trolls are sociopaths is that Martha Stout’s book The Sociopath Next Door says that the percentage of people in the U.S. who are sociopaths could be as high as four percent — one in twenty-five. So chances are excellent that anybody reading this has encountered at least one sociopath in his life, and probably several.
Absolutely! They are sociopaths and narcissists, as well. They can dish out abuse but they can’t have one word uttered against them or they moan and grope and bawl and squawl! LOL! Big baby trolls! But the thing that is so bad about those people is that they actually enjoy hurting people. They get a big emotional high from it. It’s the same personality profile as a serial torturer and killer.
Wow, thanks for that list. As I went over it I saw a name that looked very much like the name I use! My heart dropped, I do not belong among such people. I just changed my name there and will always review honestly and try to negate these trolls.
Thank you, Cathy~
Possibly keep an eye on Margaret Rose and Gravedigger. The latter is very rude and sarcastic (at least to me) in all her responses, and the former does nothing but go on off-topic rants.
Is Calamity Jane the same troll as Jane Litte?
Thanks for this list. I note that a great deal of the criticism of STGRB that appears in the Amazon Forums comes from people who are mentioned on this list. —–
I am a self-pub indie writer, and I’ve received two one-star book reviews on Amazon which I know to be fake. The book was not read by the reviewers, and the reviewers both chose an approach that was vague while at the same time attacking me personally. The problem is this:
1.) Neither of those reviewers are on this list
2.) By my count there are four people on this list who publicly defended me and condemned the reviews/reviewers.
3.) One of the people on this list collaborated in helping me potty train my foul-smelling children (unrelated).
So…I’m a bit confused by some of the contenders here, and would like some clarification as to whom to avoid, and why. Thanks.
Who are you referring to on the list? Every person who is on this list has participated in an attack of some form on an author. It could be that the ones you mentioned have changed their ways.
Perhaps they have, as my experiences with them have all been positive. Such a thing can happen, as is evident here:
Emerald Coast has come to my aid in the past as well. Cphe also wrote a review on Goodreads. It was only two stars, but it was eloquent and fair, and there was no spite intended in it.
Hmm, this is very interesting, Nick.
The trolls you mentioned have all been part of attacks on authors in the past. If you have had positive experience with them, then you have been lucky. Especially, since you seem to be rubbing elbows with Anna K who is one of the biggest trolls of the lot. Luckily we now understand who you are and what your intentions are here.
AK has some serious mental problems, Johnny. The first one being her Ammy forum addiction. The second one, her delusions of grandeur, her delusions of being intellectually superior to others. It’s frightening how much time she spends in the forums. You’d almost think she was paid to be there.
Hi Nick,
let me add my two cents worth.
1.) the list is by no means complete. This applies to the Goodreads and Booklikes lists as well. Trolls come and trolls go. There are some names on it that used to be major trolls in the past who have now all but vanished from the forums. And then there are trolls who have recently joined and haven’t made the list yet (I speak mostly of the GR list here). You need to keep your eyes and ears open, and realize that just because a name isn’t on the list doesn’t mean that person can’t be dangerous.
2.)I would really like to see where these people ‘publicly’ defended you and condemned the attacker. Do you have any links? In any case, the reviews are still there, so they weren’t much help were they?
3.)I think the best way to use the lists is as a general guide. Understand that there are gangs of bullies out to destroy authors on all major booksites, and tread carefully. The names are not always the same, but the core members of a group usually hang around for years and are frequent posters, so if you see them on a thread, make a note of who their friends are and avoid them. Don’t try to interact with them, and don’t send them any ARCs or ask them for reviews. Steer clear of them. That’s it: nobody is saying to attack them. Surely authors have a right to keep a list of people to avoid?
Nick Lombardi, I hate to say ‘I told you so,’ but: I told you so.
As I type this, you are in the middle of being attacked on the STGRB thread in the MOA Forum on Amazon. The attack against you has been going on at least since February 23 2015 at 7:38:46 PM, PST (I am timing it from Ginmar’s comment made at that time. There were preliminary skirmishes before that though)
1.) You ignored the first commandment any sane person gives to authors: do not respond. DO NOT RESPOND, Nick. Instead, you commented on a review of a book which wasn’t even your own. And yes, everybody knows Ginmar is crazy. Some people in that STGRB thread even admit they have her on ignore. But you forgot the pecking order: Reviewers are first, and authors are second-class citizens. Therefore when an author responds to a reviewer, YOU ARE ALWAYS WRONG. Even if the reviewer is Ginmar.
2.) To date, 3-4 people have weighed in (Moonlight Reader, Jane, Angie, and I forget who else) have weighed in, and they are all against you. That was totally predictable. If Iwere you, I’d quit before they start to shit all over your books. Do what I was doing when the attack started, and go bake some cookies (don’t laugh. that’s what I was actually doing)
Yes, they are attacking Nick, but they are also fighting among themselves. It’s quite entertaining to watch. It happens though. A lot. It’s only a matter of time before snakes in a confined space will start to eat each other.
Harriet, thanks for the advice. Still, I can’t condemn a whole list of people just for the two or three bad apples who actually deserve to be on there. You have to understand that Ginmar is an excellent liar, and a former military interrogator. So she knows how to lie and convince people.
And if you didn’t know she was lying about me, you’d hate me too right about now. Angie just wanted some clarification, which I gave, and now she’s fine. Angie is a good person, and Moonlight is as well. Try to see this from the point of view of people who think Ginmar is honest, and you’ll understand their reactions better.
Honestly, I think you two factions need to get this nonsense out in the open once and for all and start communicating. France and Germany figured out how to do it; is this so impossible?
The problem is, Nick, there’s no negotiating with terrorists and that’s essentially what these people are. We’re not going to even try, but we’re not here to harass them either. All we do is take evidence of their behavior and document it. That’s why they hate us so much. That’s why they take up so much of Amazon’s server memory with their thousands of rant pages about our site. We publish the truth about them and they don’t like to see their dirty laundry hung out for everyone to see. What we also do is warn others to stay away from them. That’s it. We are here to protect the good people out there who are unaware of the abuse that goes on in the forums. We are not here to negotiate with the bullies. Sorry.
Just thought you should know. Karlyn NCGBT, otherwise known as Karen Peterson of Reno NV, just got done doxxing Athena in the Amazon forums.
We are now on with Mighty-Hypocrite! All of them are hypocrites! It’s mind-boggling that they can’t see their own behavior.
Ah yes, KarlynP. She’s an old troll. She’s been around for a while on Amazon, Goodreads, and now BookLikes. She’s been obsessed with our site and with Athena ever since we started back in 2012. Poor woman. She needs a hobby.
You’re right except for one thing, LJ. She doesn’t live in Reno, Nevada. She lives in Campbell, California.
Really? How do you know?
Scroll down to the bottom.
Hey! Nice to see you guys back. As for the Amazon Fora, don’t bother with it.
I wonder how hard it would be for amazon to implement a system where a writer could personally block these people from purchasing their books therefore eliminating the danger of their stinky troll reviews littering the author’s book site. Ebay has such a system. If a seller has had problems with a particular buyer then the seller has the option of personally blocking that person from ever purchasing from their products again. Therefore, problem solved. I think it would be wonderful if amazon would make it possible or their sellers, authors, etc to be able to do this and that would eliminate so many problems.
That is a good idea! If only Amazon could be persuaded to do that.
I also would like to add that on ebay, sellers are able to personally block out ANY buyers whom other sellers have had problems with also. In other words, you can block basically anyone on ebay who is a troll reviewer or problem buyer. I would love to see amazon give authors, sellers, publishers, etc. this option. And amazon should only allow VERIFIED PURCHASERS to review. That would really update amazon’s antiquated, lame system.
I didn’t know that about Ebay, I’m really warming up to Ebay now.
For writers of books, websites, etc., a few suggestions. I found a website that brought up some interesting points on the growing problems at amazon. When you are looking at reviews on amazon and you see these bully packs attacking authors, when amazon asks if the review is helpful click NO. Sometimes if amazon gets enough NO clicks on troll reviewers, it may catch their attention. For instance, if everyone who reads this site visits amazon and hits the NO button on each and every one of the bully reviews of anyone on that amazon fora troll list above, then that could possibly be helpful in getting them tossed. Also, if you have a favorite author or a friend who is being bullied by a pack then in the comment section get together with several others and defend the book. Trolls can smack back a nasty response to one or two people but they won’t be able to argue with say ten or fifteen people in the defense of the author. It can be at this point that honest readers will also start to learn who the bullies are on amazon and goodreads and they will disregard the troll reviews. There is an old saying about fighting fire with fire. That may sometimes be necessary. Trolls are cowards. Sometimes using their own tactics against them, such as ganging up on them in packs, could render them ineffective and helpless for a change. Just a thought.
It’s true. On my release day, another fantasy author who received my book in a blog tour gave my PNR novel a 2 star rating, citing she couldn’t read beyond 50% because the entire book was filled with rape and sexual assault.
There isn’t a single rape in my book. Not one. There is, however, a demon from hell who makes lewd and insidious threats insinuating he will do this to the heroine. At no point does he succeed, nor have any way of pulling this off. It’s all threat.
My book was selling by the dozens until that review came in. I’d just spent hundreds on promotions. After her review, I sold 5 copies. Sales dries up. I later found out she wasn’t merely a blogger, but also a fantasy author with a ranking so high it became obvious she couldn’t sell any of her own novels.
So, I cried. I cried because my release day had been ruined. I spent money I couldn’t get back on ads. Because one of my 5, whole 5 reviews, was a fat 2 star saying the novel was full of rape and buyers were SEEING this. All of my friends and fellow authors clicked “not helpful.”
At 18 not helpfuls, the review disappeared.
I’d like to add that attacking troll bullies in packs is NOT stooping to their level. It is simply giving them a little taste of their own bitter medicine to let them know how it feels. In other words, beating them at their own game.