Let’s be honest. 99.5% of all the criminal spam you receive comes to your inbox via gmail. The other truth is that almost no supposedly good spam filter service like spamrl bulk blocks gmail. Yes, you have a few small business owners that will use gmail and wonder why nobody takes them seriously but no corporation will use gmail. If they do they pay google to have it say MyRipp-off.com or some other business name. Most every other small business will automatically get an email domain when they purchase a domain name via a domain hosting service. Even if they have the hokiest landing page in the world they will have an email address ending in mybusiness.com or .net or .-something else.
Before you call foul!
Here are a few criminal spam emails that showed up in the past few days. Two on the same day. Note they all have a gmail address.
Nigerian Prince
Subject: Invitation to Feature Your Book in Our Monthly Reading Challenge
Date: 2026-08-18 21:46
From: Katherine Laurie <katherinemlaurine@gmail.com>
To: roland@johnsmith-book.com
Hi there,
I hope you're having a wonderful week.
My name is Katherine Laurie, and I work alongside the moderator of the
BookTok reading community, a large and active community of more than
150,000 Goodreads members who enjoy discovering new books, sharing
recommendations, discussing stories, and connecting with fellow readers.
I recently came across your work and wanted to reach out because we are
currently preparing an upcoming Monthly Reading Challenge featuring
books that we believe would be interesting for our reading community to
discover.
The Monthly Reading Challenge is designed to connect authors and their
books with an active community of readers who enjoy discovering new
stories. It creates a space where readers can explore featured books,
exchange thoughts, and engage with the stories in a natural and
meaningful way.
Your book would be introduced to participating readers through:
- A dedicated Monthly Reading Challenge feature
- An introduction to your book and its story
- Reader conversations surrounding the book
- Opportunities for readers to share their thoughts and impressions
- An optional author Q&A, allowing readers to learn more about your
inspiration, writing journey, and the story behind your book
- Increased visibility among readers who are actively interested in
discovering new authors
We believe that one of the best ways for a book to find new readers is
through genuine discovery and conversation. When readers have the
opportunity to come across a new author, explore their work, and connect
with the story, it can create an experience that goes beyond simply
seeing a book advertised.
I’d be delighted to share more information about the Monthly Reading
Challenge, how the feature works, and what participation would look like
for you and your book.
If you’re interested, simply let me know and I’ll be happy to send
you the full details.
Warm regards,
Katherine Laurie
Community Outreach Partner
Booktok Community
📚 Book Advocate
🌐
Community:https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1103665-booktok-x1f4da
📖
Goodreads:https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/195694700?ref=nav_profile_l✉️
Email: katherinemlaurine@gmail.com
Any author who has recently published a book knows these AI generated scams. I got two on the same day.
Subject: Invitation to Feature TWENTY OF TWO THE INFAMOUS THEY: Five Nuclear Wars You Can Win in the The Underground Knowledge Book Club 2026-2027 Challenge
Date: 2026-08-18 21:23
From: James Webler <jameswebler.alexander@gmail.com>
To: roland@johnsmith-book.com
Dear Roland Hughes,
My name is James Webler, and I’m reaching out on behalf of The
Underground Knowledge Book Club, an engaged readers community of over
25,000 readers who value unusual fiction, strong atmosphere, and books
that give readers plenty to unpack and discuss.
We’re currently preparing for The Underground Knowledge Book Club 2026
to 2027 Challenge, which will officially commence on 1 September 2026
and run through 30 September 2027. The challenge encourages readers to
engage thoughtfully with selected books, particularly those that explore
distinctive ideas, complex characters, and subjects capable of
generating genuine conversation.
The description of _TWENTY OF TWO THE INFAMOUS THEY: Five Nuclear Wars
You Can Win_ presents a rather unusual protagonist in Old Timer, a world
weary assassin working for an organisation whose identity remains
deliberately obscure. The combination of new identities, covert
assignments, stolen industrial secrets, and a speculative world that
still feels recognisable gives the novel an intriguing mixture of
espionage, danger, and dark humour.
One aspect that particularly caught my attention is the breadth of
subjects woven into Old Timer’s world, from cybersecurity and nuclear
geopolitics to counterfeiting and everyday observations about modern
life. The noir atmosphere and flashes of dry humour also appear to give
the story a distinctive character of its own. There’s something quite
interesting about placing such weighty subjects alongside the ordinary,
sometimes absurd details of a man's life, rather than keeping the
narrative entirely within the usual boundaries of an action thriller.
What makes our reading challenge especially valuable for authors is the
continued engagement that selected titles can receive throughout the
year. Instead of a short promotional opportunity, featured books become
part of structured discussions, reader reflections, and ongoing
interaction within the community. At the end of the challenge, the 10
books that attract the strongest levels of discussion and engagement
will be formally recognised during an official award presentation hosted
by The Underground Knowledge Book Club. Books that gain particularly
strong engagement during the earlier stages may also receive special
spotlight recognition within the group.
We feel _TWENTY OF TWO THE INFAMOUS THEY: Five Nuclear Wars You Can Win_
could give our readers a great deal to talk about, especially through
its combination of espionage, nuclear politics, technology, moral
ambiguity, and the unusual perspective of an assassin whose work places
him in situations where the personal and geopolitical can collide.
It would be an honour to feature _TWENTY OF TWO THE INFAMOUS THEY: Five
Nuclear Wars You Can Win_ in The Underground Knowledge Book Club 2026 to
2027 Challenge. Please let me know if you’d like to move forward, and
I’ll gladly provide the next steps.
Kind regards,
James Webler
The Underground Knowledge Book Club
Please note once again the gmail return address. These are variations of the same AI generated Nigerian Prince book marketing scam.
Combination Scams
Here is one that is a combination of the Nigerian Prince and Republishing Scams. Please note the gmail address of this criminal spam.
Subject: A Techno-Thriller We'd Love to Consider for Our 2026–2027 Reading Challenge
Date: 2026-08-04 02:14
From: Luigi Calloway <luigicalloway.co@gmail.com>
To: roland@johnsmith-book.com, mail@rolandhughes.news
Dear Roland Hughes,
I hope you're doing well.
My name is Luigi Calloway, and I help coordinate the Mount TBR Reading
Challenge, a community where readers discover books that inspire
engaging discussions and unforgettable reading experiences.
While exploring techno-thrillers, I came across _Infinite Exposure_. I
was intrigued by its blend of technology, suspense, and high-stakes
storytelling. The novel's exploration of modern technological
challenges, combined with its fast-paced thriller elements, makes it the
kind of thought-provoking fiction that I believe would appeal to readers
who enjoy intelligent, suspense-driven stories.
We're currently selecting titles for our 2026–2027 Mount TBR Reading
Challenge, and I would be delighted to consider _Infinite Exposure_ for
inclusion. Books featured in the challenge are introduced to an engaged
community of readers who participate through thoughtful discussions,
comments, ratings, reader votes, and ongoing engagement, helping authors
connect with new audiences and increase their book's visibility.
If this opportunity interests you, I'd be happy to share more about how
the challenge works and what participation involves.
Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to hearing
from you.
Warm regards,
Luigi Calloway
Mount TBR Reading Challenge
Pay us to publish your book scam
Hey, this one wasn’t a Nigerian Prince, it’s the you pay us to publish your book scam. Gotta love just how far they reached with the “business name.”
Subject: Re: ROLAND HUGHES, E-book Publishing, Writing & Marketing
Date: 2026-08-14 15:20
From: Todd Peterson <todd@stephenkingspublications.com>
To: roland@johnsmith-book.com
Hello ROLAND HUGHES,
Do you have a story worth telling? An idea worth sharing? An expertise
the world needs to hear?.
At Stephen Kings Publications we turn powerful visions into published
realities. Our services include Professional Book Writing, Book
Publishing, Children Book Illustration, Book Editing- Formatting,
Marketing, & Audiobook [1] services. Everything you need under one roof.
Whether you have a full manuscript or just a spark of an idea, we are
ready to bring it to life. Thousands of authors have trusted us with
their dream. Now it's your turn.
What would it mean to finally hold YOUR book in your hands? [1]
If you've always wanted to write and publish a book but never found the
time, now is your chance. You have the vision. We have the expertise.
Together, we will create something extraordinary. Don't let another day
pass with your story untold.
Ready to see your name on a book cover? Reply this email, schedule a
quick, 10-minute call with me today or later this week to explore how we
can launch your message to the world.
Looking forward to hearing from you!
Best Regards,
Todd Peterson
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Head of Publishing & Book Development
Stephen Kings Publications [1]
Tel: +1 (332) 258-8984
2815 Broadway, New York, NY 10025, USA
Stephen Kings Publications, gotta home Mr. King or his lawyer reads my blog! At least they set up a URL that should be easy to crush.
The Book Club Nigerian Prince Response
Assuming you can actually reply to one of these book club Nigerian prince scams, here is what you send.
Here are my speaking fees:
100% remote text only non-live answers to questions: $5000 for up to 3 hours of my time
100% remote live text chat: $2000 for no more than one hour
Video chat: $10,000 for one hour
In-person speaking is $100,000 minimum plus travel expenses.
If you are interested, I will connect you with my office manager who can make arrangements.
All fees must be paid in advance.
Make certain you deposit any “fees” they send a full 8 business days before doing anything. After 8 business days there is no claw back. Same state checks are required to clear within 24 hours. Out of state checks no more than 8 business days.
How do you avoid this circle jerk?
Never write a book or write a “book” that is only available on Amazon. Everyone knows that is an un-edited blog post that won’t sell five copies even if you make it available to that Kindle rental list program. For the rest of us, those who actually publish, pay for professional editing, and do a bit of marketing, we need to have a web hosting company that uses SpamExperts.
First you want to go to your “Sender block List”
That’s right. You block all of gmail.com. No legitimate company is going to message you from gmail.com.
Once you do that you go back to the “Protection Settings” buttons and choose “Sender allow list.” This is where you add in the hopefully very short list of gmail.com addresses you want to hear from.
If you think it is too much work to cut and paste all of those, ask yourself this question, just how many of those people do I need to keep in my contact list? People who use Thunderbird or the much improved Betterbird, tend to have a Collected Addresses list that is full of one time junk contacts. Now is a good time to nuke them.
Summary
Criminal spam comes profusely from gmail. Supposedly legitimate spam filters refuse to bulk block gmail, so you have to. If you write a book that gets professional editing and publishing services, you will be relentlessly spammed with AI generated criminal spam having a gmail.com return address. Just block it now!