Reviews with content warning for Murder - I'll Be Gone in the Dark: The #1 New York Times Bestseller

Reviews tagging 'Murder'

I'll Be Gone in the Dark: The #1 New York Times Bestseller by Michelle McNamara

236 reviews

kaiyakaiyo's review against another edition

dark informative mysterious sad medium-paced

1.0

did not like this! I can simultaneously think this woman was very intelligent, determined, did helpful things in the pursuit of deranged killers and rapists, and still think she is exactly the sort of icky true crime writer that drove me from this genre very early on.

she was self-aware about her fucked up motivations, I’ll give her that, but frankly she was still treating investigating serial murder and rape like a profitable pastime, and her ideas about using ancestry dot com for finding him (which ended up actually working, small kudos I guess) are frankly terrifying.

my problem with this relatively well written book is the same I have with all true crime swill: where do privacy and ethics come in when some entitled white lady with a laptop is sticking her nose into family traumas? haunting crime scenes? trying to force her way into private dna databases? suggesting things like “letting readers play detective” ? I said in my first update that I probs wouldn’t like this book, but I did give it an honest try for a few chapters. No dice, but my heart is with the authors family for her untimely passing

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hongstoes's review against another edition

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adventurous dark inspiring mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

4.5

I absolutely loved this read and would recommend it to anyone interested in true crime or not. It is so immersive and well-written. My only complaint is that it gets a little slower toward the end of part 2, but I thoroughly enjoyed this read.

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beccaand's review against another edition

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dark informative mysterious medium-paced

4.0

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hidemybook's review against another edition

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dark informative mysterious medium-paced

3.5

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lorettalucia's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

This book was excellently written, but it has made me conclude that being this obsessed with a serial killer can be incredibly harmful to your mental health. More fascinating for me than the story of the killer was the impact the case had on Michelle McNamara. I’m honestly sorry it caught her attention—it feels like she was the Golden State Killer’s final victim.

I’m very glad I read it but this particular type of true crime is not for me. I ended up having nightmares and yeah, I just don’t wanna do this to my brain again.

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carriebp's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

3.75

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megbert21's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative mysterious tense fast-paced

5.0

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jennifersmind's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative mysterious medium-paced

3.5

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zias's review against another edition

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dark emotional medium-paced

5.0

Michelle McNamara’s writing is easy to read, weaving harrowing accounts with facts and research. I enjoyed the memoir portions of this book in addition to the coverage of the GSK’s crimes and her research. I got chills several times while reading this book. Michelle has a way with words while reporting on research.

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emzconklin's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

4.0

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