Reviews with content warning for Death - I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer

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I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara

121 reviews

hongstoes's review against another edition

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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carriebp's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

3.75

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teganbeesebooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

4.5

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notlikethebeer's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

3.25

This is a really hard book to review. Part of that comes from the book being pieced together post-humously: there are several sections that were written based on McNamara's notes, rather than anything else. Given that it's complicated enough as it is - spanning decades, with a vast number of names to remember, and an ever-merging number of horrific crimes - the somewhat disjointed writing doesn't help! But equally, it is to be expected. I do think that there were better ways of arranging this, I felt very confused and the jumping between time and events didn't happen. As well, there were some threads that were begun and then just... lost.

Something I've heard about this book, and part of the reason I wanted to read it, is that it's meant to be very victim-centric, in a way that true crime often is not. There definitely was a lot of space given to the victims, including narratives of their life before they became victims. However, I don't know whether I'd describe the victims as being centered as such. McNamara was definitely eager to talk about gory details. And that has made me question, even more, whether victims CAN be centered within the true crime genre.

I think, as well, I would have liked some more reflexivity. McNamara was so caught up in this "mystery", and at times she talked a little about the desire to know, the urge to solve a puzzle. I also appreciated that she thought a little about her own experiences, and their relevance. However I never really understood why this "story" in particular, or why to such an intensity.

On that note, it's hard not to read IBGITD and wonder a little about McNamara's life, and the others in her life. I wonder what her daughter's autobiography might read like: whether she feels she even got to share her mother with this obsession. It IS an obsession, that clearly infiltrated every part of her life. Of course, I'm an outsider, but it does seem that it wasn't to a healthy degree. I'm struck by the knowledge that McNamara is believed to have died from an accidental overdose from various drugs. I wonder how much of her obsessive drive to solve a mystery she initially had no stake in lead to that. It's easy, in reading IBGITD, to wonder whether there is any harm in 'civilians' becoming involved in investigations, if they have the skills and can genuinely provide a benefit. Thinking about McNamara's lack of boundaries is just one example of the harms this can bring (note, just one!).

I will allow that we don't know whether this was the book McNamara wanted to write. We can hope, and trust, that it was. But we don't know. And that makes it difficult to critique. However, I came to this hoping for something that might humanize the true crime genre a little more: that might provide me with some of the understanding I seek in myself, as well as more broadly. I came away largely empty-handed.

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laestaci's review against another edition

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dark informative mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

3.0

Solid storytelling and tons of detail, very relatable style that got me intrigued into the case. But true crime is not my jam.

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alexandramcgrew's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

4.0

the book is good, but i didn’t feel like i learned anything i didn’t already know—which says more about my interest in true crime than it does about the book. the book is well researched and thorough; it’s amazing how dedicated mcnamara was to solving this. admittedly, what i’m most interested in about true crime is when the perp is caught and the legal process, so the fact that that was not in this book (because it was written and released before he was caught) irked me. i didn’t know that before i read it, which again is more on me than it is the book.

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laura_cat's review against another edition

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dark informative medium-paced

2.75

Eh. The last few sections probably lowered my rating. Also, there are some disturbing and problematic uses of language related assault and mental health that should never have made it to print.

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kittyj21's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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winifred_k22's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative medium-paced

3.5

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