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

Michelle McNamara

Feb 2018 · HarperAudio · Narrated by Gabra Zackman, Gillian Flynn, and Patton Oswalt

About this audiobook

THE BASIS FOR THE MAJOR 6-PART HBO® DOCUMENTARY SERIES

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR:

Washington Post | Maureen Corrigan, NPR | Paste | Seattle Times | Entertainment Weekly | Esquire | Slate | Buzzfeed | Jezebel | Philadelphia Inquirer | Publishers Weekly | Kirkus Reviews | Library Journal | Bustle 

Winner of the Goodreads Choice Awards for Nonfiction | Anthony Award Winner | SCIBA Book Award Winner | Finalist for the Edgar Award for Best Fact Crime | Longlisted for the Carnegie Medal for Excellence

The haunting true story of the elusive serial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California during the 70s and 80s, and of the gifted journalist who died tragically while investigating the case—which was solved in April 2018.

 The haunting true story of the elusive serial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California for over a decade—and of the gifted journalist who died tragically while investigating the case.

Introduction by Gillian Flynn • Afterword by Patton Oswalt

“A brilliant genre-buster.... Propulsive, can’t-stop-now reading.”   —Stephen King

For more than ten years, a mysterious and violent predator committed fifty sexual assaults in Northern California before moving south, where he perpetrated ten sadistic murders. Then he disappeared, eluding capture by multiple police forces and some of the best detectives in the area.

Three decades later, Michelle McNamara, a true crime journalist who created the popular website TrueCrimeDiary.com, was determined to find the violent psychopath she called ""the Golden State Killer."" Michelle pored over police reports, interviewed victims, and embedded herself in the online communities that were as obsessed with the case as she was.

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark—the masterpiece McNamara was writing at the time of her sudden death—offers an atmospheric snapshot of a moment in American history and a chilling account of a criminal mastermind and the wreckage he left behind. It is also a portrait of a woman’s obsession and her unflagging pursuit of the truth. Utterly original and compelling, it is destined to become a true crime classic—and may at last unmask the Golden State Killer.

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Ratings and reviews

Amazing story, especially if you have been following the case. Michelle was truly inspiring, as evident in the continued investigation, and subsequent arrest of the killer. The only reason I did not give it a 5 star rating is that the way in which the editors have pieced together the story, it bounces around a lot, and can be a bit confusing. This book was put together after Michelle's untimely, unexpected death. It is compiled with pieces of articles, and journal entries, and some chapters written by her research partners, so its not super cohesive - but read the whole thing, it gets easier. I also highly recommend "Chase Darkness with Me" which is by her "research partner" (its flow is much better).

Hard to follow with stories bouncing from one decade to another. Someone with no knowledge of the subject matter would be totally lost. The first chapter should have set up the history of the Golden State Killer.

I listened to this before the arrest of DeAnjelo. With this amazingly well written book along with the details of DeAnjelos life, it all fits together. Scary true, makes Michelle's message at the end so much more amazing!

About the author

Michelle McNamara (1970–2016) was the author of the website True Crime Diary. She earned an MFA in fiction writing from the University of Minnesota, and had sold television pilots to ABC and Fox and a screenplay to Paramount. She also worked as a consultant for Dateline NBC. She lived in Los Angeles and is survived by her husband, Patton Oswalt, and their daughter, Alice.