True Crime Addict

February 8, 2016
In this in-depth crime exploration, journalist Renner (The Serial Killer’s Apprentice) pursues the truth behind the disappearance of Maura Murray, a University of Massachusetts student who vanished in 2004 after a car accident in the mountains of New Hampshire, while tying his interest in the case to his own troubled life. The conflicting evidence surrounding Murray’s disappearance and the events leading up to her last sighting have baffled investigators and authorities for over a decade, with theories ranging from abduction to suicide to a voluntary disappearance on her part. Renner describes his own private investigation, which borders on obsessive, as he tracks down Murray’s friends and family, often contacting them despite their wishes to be left alone, running down cold trails and wild leads. He recounts the years of research, utilizing the collective efforts of amateur sleuths on the Internet, and his own inexhaustible skills, all of which leads him to some sort of conclusion. While this is clearly the definitive write-up on Murray’s story to date, Renner’s personal involvement in the case—and his self-destructive, relentless dedication to confronting the darkness at the heart of it—is the more noteworthy component of the narrative. Agent: Yishai Seidman, Dunow, Carlson, and Lerner.