#Review: Scamlands by Snigdha Poonam

Scamlands is one of those books that grabs you by the collar right from the prologue and whispers, “Welcome to the underbelly—hold on tight.” Snigdha Poonam’s reportage has that rare mix of sharpness and empathy; she doesn’t just describe the world of global fraud, she steps inside it, sits with the people powering it, and tries to understand what drives them. For me, that’s what makes this book far more than a crime exposé—it’s a portrait of an entire ecosystem built on desperation, ambition, and the collapse of trust.

The narrative moves briskly—from small towns in India to glittering hubs across Asia—revealing how scam networks function like full-fledged corporations. At times, the density of detail can feel overwhelming, especially when the book dives into the mechanics of digital fraud. But even those heavier sections underline how disturbingly organised and far-reaching these operations are.

What stayed with me most was the human angle: the foot soldiers, the victims, and the unsettling sense that we’re all a little closer to this world than we’d like to admit. Scamlands is fast-paced, alarming, and incredibly relevant—a must-read if you want to understand the new face of global crime.

Find the book here.