I'll Be Gone in the Dark (McNamara) - Book Reviews

Book Reviews
The definitive crime study of one of the most elusive offenders to come out of California—or anywhere, really.… Because sections of McNamara’s manuscript were pieced together from her notes, there’s a disjointed quality to some of the chapters. But the facts remain the facts.
Marilyn Stasio - New York Times Book Review


Both a vivid and meticulous investigation of a twisted predator who terrorized quiet, upper middle-class communities in California for nearly a decade, and a wrenching personal account from a writer who became consumed by her subject.
Alexandra Alter - New York Times


A powerful portrait of the scale of the Golden State Killer’s crimes, of the mechanics of criminal investigations, of the strange particular dread and paranoia in the California in the 1970s, and of McNamara’s own obsession with violent men, and this one violent man.
San Francisco Chronicle


Michelle McNamara was an obsessive. She was also a damn good writer. That combustive mix has produced I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, a dark page-turner.… Scintillating.
USA Today


(Starred review) This posthumous debut recounts the chilling crimes of a serial murderer in California in the 1970s and ’80s…. With its exemplary mix of memoir and reportage, this remarkable book is a modern true crime classic.
Publishers Weekly


[C]hillingly addictive.… A haunting, if somewhat patchy, read for fans of true crime.  —Della Farrell
School Library Journal


(Starred review) Impressive.
Booklist


(Starred review) The last section of the book is written in exactly the style one would expect from an investigative journalist: no nonsense and loaded with facts and relevant observations.… An exemplary true-crime book, and with an HBO adaptation in the works.
Kirkus Reviews