I admit it. I’ve been bitten by the podcast bug. Not only can they be informative, they’re a good way to kill time. I like to jokingly call them conversations I don’t need to participate in (#introvert). Finding a good podcast can be hit or miss, but there is something for everyone. It can be interesting to find polarising podcasts where people love or hate them – I’m usually in the latter category and have quit podcasts after five minutes (hey, life is too short!).

I last shared five science-related podcasts and I’m back again with more recommendations!

Each of these podcasts have one thing in common – I was completely mystified by the circumstances! Plus, I think the level of deception and obsessive behaviour is something that can affect any of us at any one time. Each situation comes with red flags that are ignored at some point (and that’s definitely a post for another time)!

1. Twin Flames (Wondery)

We all want love, that happily-ever-after feeling of finding your soulmate. What if someone not only claimed they could help you find that perfect partner, they guaranteed it?

My jaw dropped during certain parts of this (short) podcast. People being preyed on during their most vulnerable moments is nothing new but it seems to be happening more and more (particularly online).

If anything, this was a simplistic and, at times, biased overview of what really happened, but I found it a good case study on how easily people can be manipulated in their darkest hour.

2. Sympathy Pains (iHeartPodcasts)

Hosted by Laura Beil (Dr. Death, Bad Batch), Sympathy Pains is a six-part series from Neon Hum Media and iHeartRadio. For 20 years, Sarah Delashmit told people around her that she had cancer, muscular dystrophy, and other illnesses. She used a wheelchair and posted selfies from a hospital bed. She told friends and coworkers she was trapped in abusive relationships, or that she was the mother of children who had died. It was all a con. Sympathy was both her great need and her powerful weapon. But unlike most scams, she didn’t want people’s money. She was after something far more valuable.

This. This podcast right here. It’s disturbing (yet morbidly interesting) to see the lengths people are willing to go to for attention. Yet, somehow…I find myself feeling the same sympathy for this woman that she coveted from the people she fooled. Bizarre story (but the best ones often are, right?)

3. Sweet Bobby (Tortoise)

Kirat is a successful radio presenter. On Facebook she meets Bobby, a handsome cardiologist. He’s a catch. Soon, they get tangled up in a love affair full of lies and manipulation. Then… Kirat discovers a deception of almost unimaginable proportions.

From the makers of Finding Q, this is Sweet Bobby. A live investigation, in six parts, in search of one of the world’s most sophisticated catfishers.

THIS. PODCAST. This is the even more bizarre then the previous podcasts in this list. Jaw-dropping sounds like an exaggeration, but even I was shocked (and I’m rarely ever shocked). This is a story that makes even less sense when the lies unravel, and while you’re left with more questions than answers, I think it shows us great insight into the depths that people can sink to and also how the internet has made it so easy for people to deceive others.