These 21 bios and memoirs center the human side of true crime

When two-time poet laureate and Pulitzer Prize winner Natasha Trethewey was just a teenager, her mother was murdered by an ex. Decades later, Trethewey branched into memoir to confront that painful past in her gutting and beautiful Memorial Drive. Part true crime investigation of a senseless yet tragically common act of domestic violence, part history of the segregated South’s legacy of trauma, and part exquisite reflection on the ultimate loss, Memorial Drive alternately saddens, provokes, and exhilarates—not least because Trethewey’s narration is as moving and intentional as her lyrical prose.

The world was stunned when Chanel Miller revealed her identity as the woman who was sexually assaulted by Stanford swimmer Brock Turner in 2015. Known then as Emily Doe, she delivered a powerful victim impact statement that was published online the next day. Her words resonated so deeply that they were read more than 11 million times, including on the floor of Congress. In her hauntingly lovely memoir, Miller offers an intimate first-person account of surviving not only rape but also the justice system’s tragic failures in handling sexual assault cases. Her vital story is all the more powerful when heard in her own voice.

Journalist Tom O'Neill's Chaos is one of the best and battiest cult investigations we've ever heard. Like many people, O'Neill got interested in the Manson murders, in which seven people in Los Angeles (including then-pregnant actress Sharon Tate) were brutally killed by the young followers of a trippy ex-con named Charles Manson. Unlike most people, O'Neill remained transfixed for more than two decades by the story of the Manson Family, whose tentacles seemed to creep toward ever-more explosive revelations in American history. Chaos follows O'Neill's obsessive research into the case's many alternate theories, and with Kevin Stillwell's riveting narration, you'll willingly fall down every last rabbit hole, no matter how dark and deep.

When Elizabeth Smart was 14 years old, she was abducted from her Salt Lake City home in the middle of the night by a religious fanatic and his wife. Taken to a remote encampment, Smart was held captive, chained to a tree, and repeatedly raped and abused, as her captors warned that her family would be killed if she made an attempt to escape. A decade after her abduction, she published this harrowing listen, a tale of survival, faith, and recovery. Smart’s honest and stirring retelling of the most horrific moments of her life—and the touching reunion with her family that followed—will keep you captivated, leaving a sense of hope uncommon to the true crime genre.

The first thing you’ll notice about New York death investigator Barbara Butcher’s What the Dead Know is her narration. Purposeful, unvarnished, and brimming with humanity, her expertly paced performance is absolutely captivating. Once that claims your undivided attention, you’ll find a fascinating series of recollections ranging from time spent in the autopsy suite to the soul-crushing process of identifying 9/11 victims. Not for the faint of heart, Butcher’s memoir lays bare the gruesome realities of death and decomposition. But beyond the grim details, this account is all the more special for the author’s reckoning with addiction and how she managed to find a lifeline in working with the dead.

True crime is a popular nonfiction genre for many reasons, but it's also been accused of sensationalizing violence and murder in a way that harms the loved ones of the victims. But as Cristina Rivera Garza's heartbreaking, Pulitzer Prize-winning audiobook proves, combining true crime and memoir creates space to honor and remember the dead while also calling for justice. Thirty years after her sister Liliana was murdered by an abusive ex-boyfriend, Rivera Garza is still looking for answers. Liliana's Invincible Summer reflects on Liliana's life and the dark history of domestic abuse in Mexico, enlivened by emotional narration from actress Victoria Villarreal.

One of the most notorious serial killers of all time, Ted Bundy was suspected of killing more than 35 people throughout the 1970s. Around the same time he began murdering woman, Bundy began dating Elizabeth Kendall. The Phantom Prince is her story. In this cult-classic 1981 true crime memoir, Kendall details her six-year relationship with Bundy. A recently divorced young mother, she met Bundy at a bar in Seattle and the pair immediately hit it off. Their relationship progressed quickly, but soon a darker side began to emerge—Bundy was abusive, and news reports of local kidnappings led Kendall to believe that perhaps her new partner had a side more nefarious than she ever could have imagined. With a new introduction and afterword by the author and a startling chapter from Kendall’s daughter Molly, this gripping account presents a remarkable examination of a charismatic personality that masked unimaginable darkness.

This spellbinding and disturbing tale of Stéphane Breitwieser chronicles the aesthetic obsession and audacious methods that made him one of the most prolific art thieves of all time. Michael Finkel, author of absorbing true crime books including The Stranger in the Woods, plumbs the singular psyche and pure chutzpah that enabled a dazzling accumulation of loot—worth $2 billion—housed in a nondescript attic in France, amassed for the private enjoyment of Breitwieser and his girlfriend. With its exquisite tension, this exhilarating heist story tugs our sympathies in competing directions while Edoardo Ballerini’s cultivated narration is its own masterpiece.

In this story, the basis for Spike Lee’s Academy Award-winning film BlacKkKlansman, author Ron Stallworth shares what it was like to be instated as the first Black detective in the Colorado Springs Police Department—a position that gave him the opportunity to take a shot at dismantling a violent, white supremacist stronghold. Posing over the phone as a white man looking to join the Ku Klux Klan, Stallworth is soon invited to join the cause and “preserve the nation’s heritage.” Seizing an opportunity to infiltrate the nation’s largest domestic terrorist group, Stallworth hatches a plan to send his white partner to stand in as him. This insider story, narrated by the author himself, paints a stunning picture of a divided America, the absurdities that accompany racism, and the phenomenal heroes with the courage to fight back.

Known today as the Golden State Killer, a mysterious serial rapist and murderer terrorized California for more than a decade between 1974 and 1986 and then seemingly disappeared, eluding police and detectives—and denying his victims and their families any semblance of justice. Thirty years later, true crime journalist Michelle McNamara picked up the case on her own to try and put the pieces together. The result is a detailed journal of her dogged obsession with uncovering the identity of a violent offender who had been allowed to roam free. McNamara tragically passed away while in the middle of her investigation, just two years before the subject of her research was finally identified and charged. With expert narration by Gabra Zackman, an introduction by Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn, and a touching afterword by McNamara’s husband Patton Oswalt, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark is an exceedingly human portrait of the pursuit of truth.

In 1969, Jane Britton, a 23-year-old graduate student in Harvard's anthropology department and the daughter of Radcliffe's vice president, was found bludgeoned to death in her Cambridge apartment. When Becky Cooper came to Harvard as a student four decades later, she could not shake her interest in the unsolved case. A compelling author-narrated listen that blends the intrigue of true crime with a memoir edge, We Keep the Dead Close digs deep into the "cowboy culture" of Harvard at the time to demystify this brutal killing and honor the victim, a brilliant young woman lost to history.

Produced by Kevin Hart and Charlamagne Tha God’s SBH Productions, Finding Tamika does not miss a beat, propelled by a musical soundtrack and a real-life story filled with many moving pieces. Though it unfolds with the episodic suspense of a podcast, the complex narrative and ambitious format stands alone as a focused series. Centered on the case of Tamika Huston, a young Black woman from Spartanburg, SC, who went missing and was later found murdered, the story is guided by actor and activist Erika Alexander, who gives depth and dimension to Tamika’s life and family, ultimately focusing on the central crime: the vast disparity in reporting, investigating, and solving the many cases of missing and murdered women of color.

As a summer intern at a law firm in Louisiana, Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich works to defend those accused of murder. A child of two lawyers, she is committed to justice and is against capital punishment. When she is put on a case regarding the atrocities of child murderer Ricky Langley, Marzano-Lesnevich begins to waver in her beliefs, wanting him to be punished to the ends of the law. But as more is unearthed about the traumas of Langley’s past, a more human side of the man dubbed a monster begins to take shape. As the author’s own experiences with child abuse begin to overlap with the case she’s been assigned, she is forced to confront painful memories. Marzano-Lesnevich’s confessional narration of her grappling with the logistical, emotional, and ethical snarls in the Langley case make this a can’t-miss, compelling listen.

This gripping true crime biography tells the remarkable tale of Doris Payne, who became the most prolific jewel thief in the world. Growing up in the Great Depression, Payne faced racial and gender discrimination, which further fueled her desire to settle the score with those who had doubted and dismissed her. Diamond Doris illuminates the changing historical forces that shaped Payne’s drive to steal across six decades. Sit back and let narrator Robin Miles expertly recount the story of Payne’s extraordinary life in an audiobook performance you won’t want to miss.

A podcast-turned-cultural-phenomenon, Serial was the must-listen event of 2014, downloaded more than 80 million times in less than two years. It told the story of Adnan Syed, a young man who was arrested and charged—perhaps erroneously—for the 1999 murder of his ex-girlfriend. Now, hear the story as never before from Rabia Chaudry, an attorney and family friend who first jumpstarted a new investigation and trial for Syed. Despite a jury’s conclusion, Chaudry maintains that Adnan was wrongfully convicted—and claims she has the evidence to prove it. Sharing letters from Syed’s time in prison and illuminating key details missed during the trial, this inside look at a case that gripped national attention combines true crime with an in-depth look at our criminal justice system. Fervent and articulate, Chaudry narrates her own unflinching work with unforgettable candor.

If you’ve spent any time around the true crime boom of recent years, you’ve heard of Paul Holes, the celebrity detective best known for breaking the 40-year cold case of California’s Golden State Killer. Now retired, Holes has used his investigative expertise and considerable charm to propel a successful second career as a storyteller with a string of hit podcasts under his belt—and now, this endearing memoir. Charismatic and self-effacing, Holes gets surprisingly vulnerable in his self-narrated story, and that candor suits him. Expect insider details of some shocking cases and a revealing look at the personal experiences and moral compass that guided Holes through a legendary career.

Patrick Radden Keefe's brilliant Say Nothing is a true crime epic that zooms in on a violent crime while also offering a macro view of culture and society. Amid the raging, brutal conflicts of The Troubles that dominated much of Ireland throughout the late 20th century, Jean McConville, a mother of 10, was dragged out of her home in Northern Ireland. In 2003, three decades after her abduction, McConville's remains washed ashore. Interweaving the story of McConville and other such "Disappeared" with the growing tensions between the Irish Republican Army and the British, the author crafts a stunning portrait of a single life ended and a nation teetering on the brink. Matthew Blaney's impeccable narration brings to life every player painted in this expansive character study, from the notorious IRA provo Dolours Price to suspected IRA-member-turned-politican Gerry Adams to the heartbroken McConville orphans, left behind with no answers and no way to move on.