Never Saw Me Coming

"So, as a Black woman, I'm incapable of being smart?" ~ pg. 129

Never Saw Me Coming is a true crime story of a young Black woman who created a scheme to manipulate the banking system out of millions. Tanya Smith was a computer-savvy wiz. As a young girl, she used technology to acquire the phone numbers to celebrities such as Michael Jackson. She gradually worked her skills and deposited money into her grandmother's bank account. Seeing how unsuspecting and easy it was, she took bigger risks. By the age of 18, she had stolen millions in cash. Eventually she is caught, sentenced and released thanks to her own brilliant defense.

I struggled through reading Never Saw Me Coming. I questioned the credibility of the narrator within the first few pages. In fact, I was tempted to stop reading but I wanted to see just how outlandish the story would get. Simply put, it was not believable. It was contradicting. It was not factual—and I base this on my own personal knowledge of working in financial institutions from the teller line to a Banker and management position to back office operations. 

I am in disbelief that parts of the story and name drops were approved in the editing process. Nonetheless, this is not what bothered me most about Never Saw Me Coming. It was the author's lack of remorse and pride of her financial crimes. She was bragging about defrauding banks pocketing millions of dollars, writing about an extravagant lifestyle while complaining about her and her family being harassed by the FBI as if it were unwarranted. 

I could have tolerated this memoir if Tanya's story ended with using her smarts for greater good. But nope, it ended with more selfish pride and an unforgiving air of "look what I got away with." All I can say is wow unbelievable!

Happy Early Pub Day, Tanya Smith! Never Saw Me Coming will be available Tuesday, August 13.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~LiteraryMarie

Title: Never Saw Me Coming
Author: Tanya Smith
Published: August 2024
Pages: 431
Edition: Galley
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 🖤