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3 Works 3,376 Members 164 Reviews

About the Author

Includes the name: Michelle McNamara

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Works by Michelle McNamara

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Common Knowledge

Canonical name
McNamara, Michelle
Legal name
McNamara, Michelle Eileen
Birthdate
1970-04-14
Date of death
2016-04-21
Burial location
Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA
Gender
female
Nationality
USA
Birthplace
Oak Park, Illinois, USA
Place of death
Los Angeles, California, USA
Cause of death
accidental drug overdose and heart disease
Places of residence
Los Angeles, California, USA
Education
University of Notre Dame (BA|1992)
University of Minnesota (MFA|Creative writing)
Occupations
author
Relationships
Oswalt, Patton (husband)
Short biography
Michelle Eileen McNamara (April 14, 1970 – April 21, 2016) was an American true crime author. She was the author of I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer, a true crime book based on the Golden State Killer, and helped coin the name "Golden State Killer". The book was released posthumously in February 2018 and later adapted as the HBO documentary series I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, debuting on the cable channel June 28, 2020.

Members

Reviews

This seemed like a thing I wanted to read, but I can't get into it, and that's probably for the better.

[Half-formed thoughts about white people with anxiety disorders and our domination of the True Crime Industrial Complex go here.]
 
Flagged
caedocyon | 163 other reviews | Feb 23, 2024 |
Absolutely fantastic true crime read! You can feel all the hours spent slogging through thousands of leads for that diamond in the rough. McNamara's writing in the first handful of chapters creates a story focused around the suffering of the victims and their families. She takes care to protect privacy of the grieving families but still impart important details to the reader. Quite a delicate balance to hold.

After her passing, the novel was completed and built from interview transcripts and incomplete chapters. I appreciate that they did not attempt to copy her way of writing, instead focusing on breaking down the loads of facts that can take the search for the elusive killer in many different directions. The true capping point of the book was the letter to the Golden State Killer at the end written by McNamara. Her words are powerful and direct.

As a reader after the announcement of the capture of the alleged killer, it was unsettling to read about the methods she used realizing the exact same process is what eventually brought justice to lives of victims and their families. All and all a really good read.
… (more)
 
Flagged
b00kdarling87 | 163 other reviews | Jan 7, 2024 |
i am not one to read true crime. The story of the write appealed to me more than the crime story. All the work she put into her book and research I felt did have an impact on keeping the crimes in the minds f the people who did solve this.
 
Flagged
cfulton20 | 163 other reviews | Nov 13, 2023 |

Lists

Awards

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Associated Authors

Gillian Flynn Introduction
Patton Oswalt Afterword
Paul Haynes Contributor
Billy Jensen Contributor
Eduardo Iriarte Translator

Statistics

Works
3
Members
3,376
Popularity
#7,546
Rating
4.0
Reviews
164
ISBNs
38
Languages
9

Charts & Graphs