Uncover the patterns of people who want to hurt you—and protect yourself for good.

MANIPULATE, GASLIGHT, EXPLOIT, LIE:
How Toxic People Steal Your Power—and How to Take It Back
by Dr. Tamara McClintock Greenberg
Sourcebooks, May 2027

We’ve all found ourselves in toxic relationships—the boss who takes credit for your work, the in-law who ignores boundaries, the friend who betrays your trust, the partner who says all the right things but does all the wrong ones.

It would be nice to believe we can simply avoid people who hurt us. But the truth is, manipulative and exploitative individuals are everywhere. And for many of us, our own histories—old wounds, unmet needs, unresolved trauma—can make us especially vulnerable to their tactics.

The real question isn’t, How do I avoid toxic people?

It’s, How do I recognize the tools they use—and protect myself before the damage is done?

In MANIPULATE, GASLIGHT, EXPLOIT, LIE, psychologist Dr. Tamara McClintock Greenberg exposes the common tactics destructive people rely on to control, destabilize, and use others. She reveals:

• The most common personality patterns behind manipulative behavior
• The psychological tools toxic individuals use to gain power
• Why certain traits and past experiences can make us more susceptible
• The subtle warning signs most people miss
• How to set and enforce boundaries that actually work
• When to repair a relationship—and when to walk away

But this book isn’t just about identifying harmful people. It’s about understanding yourself—why you may be drawn toward certain dynamics, how to interrupt destructive cycles, and how to become more confident, assertive, and grounded in your needs.

With practical tools and psychological insight, MANIPULATE, GASLIGHT, EXPLOIT, LIE will help you protect yourself from toxic relationships—and build healthier, more secure connections instead.

Tamara McClintock Greenberg, PsyD, MS is a licensed clinical psychologist (PSY16206) in private practice in San Francisco. She has been working to help people impacted by trauma since the late 1980s, when she worked for Child Protective Services. Her writing has focused on care taking, health psychology, psychodynamic psychology, women’s issues and trauma, with the aim of helping people navigate complex physical and/or psychological issues. Tamara is the author of six books and numerous contributed chapters. She is a champion of combining multiple approaches to treating the nuances and intricacies of psychological problems and has advocated for integration of psychotherapy methods, as dogmatic adherence to just 1-2 approaches can limit the help we can provide to clients. She has also written for multiple publications, including The Huffington Post, Psych Central, Psychology Today, The Good Men Project, Maria Shriver’s website, The San Francisco Chronicle, and has been quoted as an expert in Forbes, USA Today, Newsweek, Next Avenue (PBS), The Washington Post, and more. She has been interviewed by numerous radio stations, including several NPR stations and affiliates. She lives in San Francisco with her husband and two pugs, Rufus and Otis.