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My Friend Anna
My Friend Anna: The True Story of a Fake Heiress | Rachel DeLoache Williams
137 posts | 94 read | 1 reading | 47 to read
Sex and the City meets Catch Me if You Can in the astonishing true story of Anna Delvey, a young con artist posing as a German heiress in New York Cityas told by the former Vanity Fair photo editor who got seduced by her friendship and then scammed out of more than $62,000. Vanity Fair photo editor Rachel DeLoache Williamss new friend Anna Delvey, a self-proclaimed German heiress, was worldly and ambitious. She was also generouspicking up the tab for lavish dinners at Le Coucou, infrared sauna sessions at HigherDOSE, drinks at the 11 Howard Library bar, and regular workout sessions with a celebrity personal trainer. When Anna proposed an all-expenses-paid trip to Marrakech at the five-star La Mamounia hotel, Rachel jumped at the chance. But when Annas credit cards mysteriously stopped working, the dream vacation quickly took a dark turn. Anna asked Rachel to begin fronting costsfirst for flights, then meals and shopping, and, finally, for their $7,500-per-night private villa. Before Rachel knew it, more than $62,000 had been charged to her credit cards. Anna swore she would reimburse Rachel the moment they returned to New York. Back in Manhattan, the repayment never materialized, and a shocking pattern of deception emerged. Rachel learned that Anna had left a trail of deceitand unpaid billswherever shed been. Mortified, Rachel contacted the district attorney, and in a stunning turn of events, found herself helping to bring down one of the citys most notorious con artists. With breathless pacing and in-depth reporting from the person who experienced it firsthand, My Friend Anna is an unforgettable true story of money, power, greed, and female friendship.
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review
JenReadsAlot
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Pickpick

This was like a bad train wreck I couldn't look away from! #NFNovember @Bookwormjillk

Bookwormjillk 🎉🎉🎉 1mo
47 likes1 comment
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Sargar114
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This is wild if it‘s true. I don‘t watch this show anyway, but feels a bit wrong #sundaybuddyread

TheBookHippie Apparently she danced and lost night one 😂😅😵‍💫😫 I don‘t watch it either! 3mo
TheBookHippie @Librarybelle posted something about her doing this too 😵‍💫😫SO WRONG. 3mo
Karisa 🤣🤣🤣 Her life‘s stranger than fiction! 🫣💃🏻 3mo
See All 9 Comments
Librarybelle I felt slightly satisfied she did not make it last night one, @TheBookHippie . I do not watch it either, but it seemed a small bit of justice was served! 3mo
Sargar114 @TheBookHippie @Librarybelle shows how out of the loop I am, lol. What a wild ride her life is. I suppose not making it past the first round is something 3mo
Librarybelle Wild indeed! 3mo
TheBookHippie @Sargar114 I had no clue but then my friend mentioned that she lasted one day and then I remembered @Librarybelle mentioning it. I guess she was really rude when she left 😝the contest too … good grief. 3mo
Read4life @Sargar114 I didn‘t know either. Or I blocked her out completely. I don‘t watch it but my daughter told me there are watch parties for it on campus after seasons of not watching. When I asked why she told me people want to see US men‘s Olympic gymnast Stephen Nedoroscik. I loved him at the Games but not enough to watch the show. 😆 3mo
15 likes9 comments
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Librarybelle

Those who read My Friend Anna, especially the #SundayBuddyRead crew, may be interested or horrified to know that Anna Delvey will be on the USA Network reality game show The Anonymous. I swear, I was only doomscrolling on FB when I saw this!

My skin actually crawled when I saw this! Link to more info in comments.

TheBookHippie OMG 😱 4mo
TheBookHippie That makes me SICK 🤢😡 4mo
See All 16 Comments
LiteraryinPA What?? Wowwwww. 4mo
Librarybelle I know, @LiteraryinLawrence ! I saw briefly that her ban from social media is soon up or is up, so she is free to post and do things like this. So scary! 4mo
Deblovestoread Unbelievable!! 4mo
Bookwomble That sounds like a horrendous TV show. What is it about reality shows featuring awful people? I don't get the appeal 🤷‍♂️ 4mo
Librarybelle @Bookwomble Neither do I! 4mo
Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick @TheBookHippie @LiteraryinLawrence @Deblovestoread @Bookwomble It gets worse! Dancing with the "Stars" just announced the new cast and Anna Delvey is one of 13 contestants. ? 4mo
Deblovestoread Isn‘t her 15 minutes of fame up? Why does our society want to feed the monster? 4mo
Librarybelle OMG, @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick ! I‘m of the same opinion, @Deblovestoread ! 4mo
TheBookHippie @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick OMG 😵‍💫🥴😝😮🤢 4mo
Sargar114 @Librarybelle totally missed this 🙈 3mo
47 likes16 comments
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LittlebearReads
Mehso-so

It‘s alright…while I have a lot of sympathy for what the author endured, I also wish she would acknowledge more clearly throughout (rather than just in the epilogue) that her lifestyle is/was one of inherent privilege and discuss how that made her a target in this specific case.

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Victoriahoperose
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Pickpick

There were parts that were a little bit repetitive, but after watching the show, hearing the truer story from Rachel‘s point of you was really interesting. There is much more to sympathize with in this book when it comes to Rachel. The show did not portray the situation in the same way as the book. Really interesting story and interesting perspective.

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Patchshank
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Mehso-so

Finished this while doing chores. I don't know what I hoping to learn from this book, but I don't feel like I learned much. I found it kinda dull. I do feel awful that Rachel had to go through that though. I'm glad she was able to get through it.

On an unrelated note, I'll have to store some of my books in a storage unit. It wont be climate controlled. Any advice on keeping them from getting damaged?

tpixie No, but this site says store with silica packets!https://www.google.com/search?q=how+to+store+books+in+an+un-climate+controlled+environment&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari 11mo
Patchshank @tpixie Yeah i was thinking about that. Thank you for the link. 11mo
tpixie @Patchshank good luck!! 🍀 11mo
46 likes3 comments
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Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick
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Mehso-so

Kicked off the #24in4 by finishing the final 60 pages of this book. The overall story of Anna is compelling. However, this book, written by a one-time (for a short time) former friend of Anna's, is drawn out. Anna conned Williams into using personal & business credit cards to pay for a trip. I don't feel much sympathy for Williams as a victim. She mentioned friends and a support system, a good job, NYC life, but she seems desperate for Anna's

Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick friendship and approval. I was hoping for some more inside information about how Anna pulled off her long game con, but I got a lot of Annie Liebowitz name dropping. Oh well. The sky is dark, the twinkle lights are on, and Watson is warming my legs. @Andrew65 #sundaybuddyread @TheBookHippie 13mo
Andrew65 Well done on finishing it. 👏👏👏 13mo
TheBookHippie Right?! Such a disappointment! 13mo
43 likes3 comments
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julieclair
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Mehso-so

A true story, written by the victim of a con artist. Unfortunately, the con artist and the victim were both a hot mess. I really wanted to like the victim/author, but as I turned the pages, I liked her less and less. She made so many naive, poor decisions, I found it almost hard to believe.

But, reading it with the #SundayBuddyRead crew was, as always, lots of fun! Thanks, @TheBookHippie for shepherding us through all the #OyToTheVey moments!

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Bluebird
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Pickpick

Had to rate this a pick! I don‘t think I‘ve ever had such a visceral reaction to a book!
I wanted to throw this across the room several times. I was screaming in my head for Rachel to get a clue, STFU, get real! This was a train wreck..and I couldn‘t look away! Initially felt sorry for Rachel…by the end of the book I felt she & Anna deserved each other. Cannot believe she wrote this, especially as her cc charges were reversed. ⬇️

Bluebird Attention seeking…in all the wrong ways. Keep me far away from her! Thanks to @TheBookHippie for a great buddy read! Sooo glad to share this wild ride with the group! 13mo
TheBookHippie 🍌🍌🍌🍌🍌🍌🍌🍌🍌 13mo
23 likes2 comments
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5feet.of.fury
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Mehso-so

I‘m not going to hate on Rachel (too much), it took guts to be honest about this (ridiculous) situation. I‘ve been around people who are a vortex, one can‘t help but get caught up in their insanity. Anna could have been a cult leader if she didn‘t care more about shoes & instagram pics.

The book itself; mostly it is just Rachel relaying text messages or rehashing disputes with credit card companies. &No one comes off as particularly bright.

Sargar114 I think my biggest issue with Rachel is her lack of accountability. I do agree she got taken advantaged of but she was complacent in a lot of it. This story feels a lot like her trying to make herself look better in light of everything that happened. I agree with you that even with this version, it was probably incredibly difficult to do. And this is such a wild story that I ultimately interested in reading her perspective. 13mo
5feet.of.fury @Sargar114 I couldn‘t believe how long it took her to really confront Anna, or even file the fraud charge… & there were red flags before she got stiffed with the bill. I think it could have benefitted from extrapolating more on their friendship or what drew her to Anna because “I thought she was neat even though she was mean to everyone & we went to the sauna a few times” doesn‘t really explain why you ended up in Marrakech 13mo
53 likes2 comments
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DebinHawaii
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Mehso-so

#Rushathon #NovelNovember #Readathon

I had hoped that after watching the Netflix series when it came out & disliking Rachel so much, this book explaining her “truth” would improve my perception of her. It did not. The whole book is basically her justification for her actions & why she fell for Anna Delvey‘s con, but she ends up making herself look even worse. She just tries WAY too hard to be likable & relatable & she‘s just NOT. And after ⬇️

DebinHawaii … years with various corporate credit cards, the fact that betrayed by Anna or not, she used her company card to pay for a personal trip (that every 🚩 signaled she shouldn‘t have gone on) then covered it up until she couldn‘t makes me steam. 😤 That all being said, this was an entertaining selection for #SundayBuddyRead just 🍌👖enough & like a train wreck you can‘t look away from. 🫣 13mo
vlwelser I would have ditched this partway through the first chapter except reading with the group is the best. 13mo
TheBookHippie @vlwelser @DebinHawaii I still CANNOT FATHOM she was her own narrator of this… 😳🍌🍌🍌 I could not have guessed this in a million years… and so so many 🚩🚩🚩 13mo
See All 7 Comments
AmyG As Rachel tries to convice people she is not such a fool, we find that she fails miserably. 🤣 13mo
DieAReader 🥳🥳🥳 13mo
Read4life Every time I thought I couldn‘t dislike Rachel more or that she couldn‘t make another horrible decision there was another chapter to read! 😄 13mo
Andrew65 Well done 👏👏👏 13mo
67 likes7 comments
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mcctrish
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Pickpick

I was in Toronto this weekend living a much fancier version of my life while I finished this book for #sundaybuddyread we went out for dinner twice ( once with our son who‘s there going to uni), we went to the Art Gallery of Ontario AGO to see Keith Haring and KAWS shows, fantastic weather made walking around a joy and I don‘t even care we broke the bank on the high end meals

5feet.of.fury Those drinks look delish! 13mo
mcctrish @5feet.of.fury they were ( hard not to drink fast 🤣🤣) 13mo
Tamra Good for you!! 13mo
47 likes3 comments
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Librarybelle
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Mehso-so

Wow…just wow. Dumpster fire, meet banana pants crazy! Without assessing blame or even guessing at psychotic diagnoses, this account is just one hot mess. There are decisions made that I would not make…I lost any naivety of humanity a really long time ago.

There is a part of me that feels sympathy for the author, but my cold, sarcastic heart isn‘t quite as sympathetic.

What a wild ride, and I am eager for the #SundayBuddyRead discussion!

CaramelLunacy I tried to feel sympathy, but the whole thing felt disingenuous. She didn't get caught up because she was just so good natured, she got caught up being greedy for the VIP life. Totally understandable, but she didn't acknowledge that so I was left largely unmoved. 13mo
Librarybelle @CaramelLunacy Really good analysis! 13mo
See All 6 Comments
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks I feel like she should have seen the red flags at the very beginning! This was nuts! 13mo
kspenmoll Agree with you. @CaramelLunacy! Both characters were a mess, greedy, vile will do anything for the VIP life as you said! If not for #sundaybuddyread I would have stopped reading it!!! (edited) 13mo
LibrarianRyan Nice! 13mo
24 likes6 comments
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vlwelser
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Pickpick
TheBookHippie OY TO THE VEY!!! 13mo
TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 13mo
41 likes3 comments
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vonnie862
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Pickpick

This was an absurd tale! And it's based on a true story! What the?!?!?!

I completely felt sympathy for and frustration towards the author.

I am mostly shocked of Anna's behavior and the fact that she is still allowed to stay in the US. I feel conflicted if I should see the Netflix series since I feel that it will be supporting Anna.

Overall, I give this book 3.5⭐️.

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5feet.of.fury
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Starting this 1, probably too late for #sundaybuddyread but everyone was talking about it and got me interested

TheBookHippie Never too late feel free to answer as you read along! Several peeps are about 2 weeks behind as a rule. It‘s fairly open. Sunday is the last talk on the book in the schedule and the next week is the Netflix talk -but chime in anytime .. 🙂 you‘ll see people taking on it a while yet. 13mo
5feet.of.fury @TheBookHippie yay! Thank you!! I definitely will. I watched the Netflix series already & i really enjoyed it, I‘m excited to see what everyone thinks! 13mo
32 likes2 comments
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Read4life
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Mehso-so

Wow. This book was just 😳🍌😵‍💫🍌🤯🍌🤪
Parts really gave me anxiety and I wanted to shake the author more than once. Ok. A LOT more than once. If this was fiction, I would have bailed thinking it was too ridiculous & the characters were so annoying. But it‘s NOT fiction 😖🤦🏼‍♀️. Looking forward to our #SUNDAYBUDDYREAD discussion.

TheBookHippie 😵‍💫🍌🤦🏻‍♀️ 13mo
DieAReader 🥳🥳🥳 13mo
AmyG Bananas, indeed! 13mo
TheAromaofBooks I've been seeing some crazy reviews for this one!! 13mo
66 likes4 comments
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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“Conflict is inevitable if your every action is founded on self obsession.”

Wow! What a ride!! Hard to believe that this craziness really happened! 😳🫣 blows my mind!!

#SundayBuddyRead
#HumbleHarvest
#Berries

🫐🍓

Eggs What a con!!! 13mo
TheBookHippie 🍌🍌🍌🍌🍌 13mo
64 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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IndoorDame
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Pickpick

This month‘s #bookspin and #sundaybuddyread was way out of my comfort zone and aside from trailers for the Netflix show I had no idea what to expect. I hated and loved this and continually found it mind boggling and unbelievable. I can‘t wait for Sunday‘s discussion! The cognitive dissonance of knowing it‘s all true is definitely going to send me down an internet rabbit hole now that I‘m done, and off to watch the screen version.

TheBookHippie 🍌🍌🍌🍌🍌🍌 13mo
TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 13mo
53 likes2 comments
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Deblovestoread
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Low pick for this nonfiction story of Anna Sorokin Delvey written by one of the scammed. I have mixed feelings about labeling the author as a victim or attaching any mental health label to Anna. Looking forward to our final #SundayBuddyRead discussion and watching Inventing Anna on Netflix. This book did send me down a rabbit hole on Google, instagram, etc.

TheBookHippie Cannot wait til SUNDAY! 13mo
55 likes1 comment
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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So much to say!!! Finishing this one hopefully tonight! I looked her up on Instagram and found the exact pictures on Instagram that Rachel is describing 😳

#SundayBuddyRead

AmyG Ha…I looked her up on IG, too. Author is also on IG. (edited) 13mo
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @AmyG I was surprised to see the exact pics she was referring to! Have you started watching the Netflix series yet? 13mo
AmyG I‘ve seen the series. I saw it when it came out. Very good. 13mo
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @AmyG awesome! I‘ve started watching it. 13mo
AmyG You‘ll enjoy it! 13mo
70 likes5 comments
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Librarybelle
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I just finished Part II. There‘s so much I want to say…

I did almost throw the book across the room once, if that helps voice my feelings!

Looking forward to Sunday‘s #SundayBuddyRead discussion!

TheBookHippie Right?! 🤐 13mo
Bluebird Only once? 13mo
Librarybelle @Bluebird I did not comment on my exclamations throughout the book! 😂 13mo
AmyG Hahahahaha! (Me, too) 13mo
CaramelLunacy Same! 13mo
72 likes5 comments
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mcctrish
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Getting ready for #subdaybuddyread honestly I can not handle the stress of this book

Tamra But the wine and chips might help. 😁😁 13mo
mcctrish @Tamra a bit 😝 13mo
39 likes2 comments
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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Tux is trying to tell me that it‘s bedtime!! It‘s almost to the point where I don‘t feel bad for Rachel anymore… come on girl! Get a backbone and set some boundaries!! 😫😫

#Adayinthelifeoftux
#Catsoflitsy

AnnCrystal 💕😻💝. 13mo
80 likes1 comment