Do you have an uncanny ability to attract toxic partners?

Are you forever finding yourself trapped in confidence-corroding relationships?

After more than a decade tumbling from one controlling partner to another, comedian Maddy Anholt was finally able to break the cycle. Here, she shares everything she's learned about how to spot warning signs, recognize controlling traits and find the strength you need to break free.

Now with a foreword from Maddy's fellow Women's Aid ambassador, bestselling author Holly Bourne, Red Flags will help you to understand why you keep repeating patterns in relationships - romantic or otherwise - and encourage you to explore concepts such as co-dependency, love bombing and gaslighting. Complete with its very own 'Psychometer' and full of the bitesized psychology she learned the hard way, this darkly funny, accessible and practical book has all the resources you need to check out of heartbreak hotel forever.

Maddy Anholt tragically died from a rare form of brain cancer in 2023. This book is her legacy.

Previously published in hardback as How to Leave your Psychopath.

About the Author
Maddy Anholt is a comedian, actor, Women's Aid Ambassador, and the author of Red Flags. She has appeared in sitcoms for BBC Three, BBC One, ITV and Channel 4. She's had four sell-out solo comedies at Underbelly, Gilded Balloon, Latitude Festival Main Stage and the Soho Theatre. Her show, Herselves was nominated 'Best New Show' at the Leicester Comedy Festival. She performed at Underbelly, Edinburgh where she was shortlisted for The Voice's 'Pick of the Fringe'. Maddy also wrote and starred in her own comedy for BBC Radio 4 and has amassed over seven million views online for her sketches.

Reviews
As someone who has experienced coercive control myself, I know that speaking out is brave but so important. Maddy talks about this very serious issue in an extremely human often even funny way which I think is brilliant because it helps remove the fear and shame, and will help so many learn to recognise what an abusive relationship is. -- Mel B, Patron of Women's Aid
Maddy Anholt has written the ultimate guide to identifying the psychopath in your life. Combining scientific analysis with throat-tightening memoir, read this and extradite yourself from the power players. Taut, terrifying, terrific. -- Nichi Hodgson, author of The Curious History of Dating
[Red Flags] is like sitting in a room with your girlfriends comparing relatable, crushing stories about cruel exes whilst cheerleading each other on to leave, heal, and live again. -- Chimene Suleyman, writer and editor of The Good Immigrant USA
I read it all in one sitting, it is brilliant! This book is so relatable, really well written and Maddy's funny and engaging approach starts serious conversations about what a healthy relationship is. -- Teresa Parker, Women's Aid
This book is visceral, candid, and insightful, Maddy Anholt is an exceptional writer, who has crafted a book on relationships that is not only very funny but also extremely heartfelt. -- Giles Paley-Phillips, author of One Hundred and Fifty-Two Days and Blank: Why It's Fine to Falter and Fail, and How to Pick Yourself Up Again
A humorous take on a serious subject: the insidious and dangerous effect of the controlling men who destroy the physical and mental well being of the women they seek to diminish. -- Cherie Blair QC, Patron of Refuge
A groundbreaking self-help guide -- Daily Mail * Daily Mail online *



Book Information
ISBN 9781529075977
Author Maddy Anholt
Format Paperback
Page Count 384
Imprint Bluebird
Publisher Pan Macmillan