Customer Reviews
Will not work on real men - By: Karim, 12 Oct 2008 
Although I am a man, I have bought this book out of sheer curiosity. The purpose of the book is to drive a man's interestin a woman through the roof by using different 'tricks' (called rules) & I believe these tricks are good if they indeed increases a man's interestin a woman. After all, do we not want people to bein love with each other? The Rules gives indeed some good advice. For example, "rule 4: Don't (...) go dutch on a date", "rule 21: Don't tell him what to do" or "rule 23: don't expect a man to change or try to change him" are gold. Some would say it is common sense, as nagging a man diminishes his interestin you very quickly. In the real world, many classy women have already figured this out but many more are clueless on how to treat men properly & some of these rules hit the nail on the head.
Why do I give this book two stars? Because some of these rules make me cringe & one bad rule is enough to negate ten good ones. (yes, they are that bad!) That's the reason why I would never offer this book to my sister or a female friend. For example: "rule 2: don't talk to a man first (and don't ask him to dance)", "rule 5: don't call him & rarely return his calls" are likely to backfire on you. If you go to a dance event where there are fewer men than women & where some women may be very good looking, you may have to wait a very long time before the man you are interestedin approaches you & shows some interest. But even if you arein a biker bar where the ratio men/women is much higher, the one you are interestedin might be hidden by the crowd of drunken men who want to speak to you! I believe it is a good policyin life to be proactive when you want something & showing some sort of interest without going overboard will help you a long way. Moreover, a man with self-respect will never ask the telephone number of a woman who acts cold no matter how attractive he thinks she is. A man of character won't beg for a date over an answering machine. And once he gets her on the phone, if she says she's busy on the day he's proposing for a date & doesn't counter-offer with another day (as the book suggests) then tell me how this man will ever differentiate a rules girl from a woman who is just not interestedin him? Believe me, there are plenty of women who give their telephone number without being interested (they just can't say 'no') & we, men, have to learn how to recognise the sweethearts from the time wasters! Sure, the rules will certainly work on men without backbones, men who beg for a date on the phone by suggesting every day of the week, or men who are so blind as to ask for the phone number of a woman who "treat men you are interestedin like you would any other client, or patient, or co-worker".
The book is entertaining & gives 'some' good advice but if you want to date a self-reliant, confident man, someone you can respect, you'd better separate the wheat from the chaff & completely ignore some of these rules & the authors' recommendation to follow 'The Rules' religiously.
Amazing for the right type.... - By: Mr. K. V. Unalkat, 05 Oct 2008 
What an amazing book!... If you are a middle ages woman, who is wanting a relationship where you have tricked a man into loving you, & therefore can never be your true self - then this is for you :-)
I purchased this book as part of a study i am doing, & to be honest with you it made me sick! I am not going to lie, some of the techniques will work - but i find it sickening that there are people out there that have given this 5*, even though it is manipulative & takes into no account for others feelings.
Here is a book i wrote... be yourself. Not at first as i do belive you do have to play games for the INITIAL attraction. Butin the longrun, you should feel 100% at ease with who you are & your partner. BELIVE ME - YOU STICK WITH THIS STUFF MEN WILL HATE YOU. And so will alot of other people. But hey, if you are desperate - go for it ;-)
A male dating coach's perspective on 'The Rules' - By: Matthew S. Hussey, 19 Aug 2008 I believe this book comes from a good placein its intention to empower women, & indeed the advice may work, but not as claimed. As a professional dating coach for GetTheGuy.co.ukin London many women quote me `The Rules'. It appears to be game playing at its extreme, telling women to maintain a facade of being busy, interesting & mysterious. Why the authors have such low expectations of their readers that they assume they have to fake these things is slightly bemusing. Basically it is about appearing `Hard to Get'. Of course there's nothing wrong with being a little bit unavailable, so the author's advice - don't talk to a man first, end calls first, never accept last minute dates etc. - is by no means unfounded, but contains some fatal flaws:
1. For every girl playing games there's a guy:
Like attracts like. Such tactics are likely to land you someone who employs similar tactics. You could turn those straight up guys you desire into a game players themselves if they feel the need to resort to such tactics to compete. Guys are much quicker to recognise game playing than you think. Who wins?
2. Is this a sustainable set of tools for getting the guy?
This is a quick fix mentality which says - keep pretending long enough & he'll ask you to marry him (Yes, the authors also stereotype every woman on the planet as marriage hungry). When you stop playing hard to get, will he be left wondering whether the REAL you is enough. Playing hard to get requires no charisma or personality; it takes courage to be yourself. This book is only quick fixes, illustrated by: "If you have a bad nose, GET A NOSE JOB."
3. Would you be attracted to a guy if you knew he was manipulating you?
If the answer is no, then DONT DO IT. If you want great relationships, don't be a hypocrite.
4. Apparently shy guys don't exist, & never have
Their message is: "If a man doesn't walk across the room to seek you out...then he's obviously not interested". Having coached men as well as women I know that a guy may think your a goddess, but that doesn't mean he'll have the confidence to approach you.
5. "You have to wait for someone to notice you"
Is this really the face of empowerment for women? Women deserve better, especially from their own. They say women who are forward "always end up heart broken when their forwardness is rebuffed". What are the chances of every guy you are interestedin making the move you want? We teach not how to avoid rejection, but how to make things happenin spite of rejection. Would you rather be alone with no rejections, or with the man of your choice with a few healthy rejections under your belt?
Conclusion
If you want some light entertainment, or you just plain dislike the very men you are trying to be with, read this book. If you want genuinely practical & proven advice about being more attractive to men, steer clear.
The book states that "It's better to stay at home & read The Rules than go out & break them". I put to you that it is better to go out & meet new & interesting people than to sit at home & read a book telling you to wait to be noticed.
FANTASTIC ADVICE!! - By: Name Withheld, 20 Feb 2008 
Exactly the same advice your mother or grandmother might have given you to survive the "dating game" with your heart intact & Mr. Right beside you at the altar. I read & reread the book, then did it allin my very next relationship. Result?? One wonderful man & a proposal of marriage! We'll be celebrating 5 years of an extremely happy marriage next month! I'd heartily recommend this book to every woman who's tired of wasting time on commitment-shy losers waiting to movein & be supported by "liberated" ladies. Guys - if you're reading it & are "shocked", I suggest you straighten up your act if you want to catch (and hold onto) a REAL woman!
Some great advice, classic, but remember not to take 100% of instructions way too seriously. - By: truthbetold, 07 Feb 2008 
In short this book is about meeting & keeping the right stalker!! I don't think you can apply all of the advices. But the old game of manipulation works miracles & not onlyin relationship with men, with freinds & anybody for that matter. It is a MUST-READ nevertheless!!!!!
