True crime fans have been urged to binge the “gut-wrenching” two-part documentary, Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter, on Netflix.
The series, which left viewers heartbroken by the true story, follows a woman called Cathy Terkanian and her relentless search for her birth daughter, Aundria Bowman, who went missing in 1989 after being adopted.
In April 2010, Cathy received a letter from a social worker, who explained that the daughter she had given up for adoption 35 years earlier had disappeared from her adoptive home.
Desperate for answers, Cathy enlisted the help of an amateur sleuth and local authorities as she underwent a 10-year quest to find out the truth of what happened to her child.
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The series follows Cathy Terkanian’s search for her daughter (Image: Netflix)
The Netflix series, released in 2024, follows her search and the horrific true crime story that is uncovered. Cathy had given birth to her daughter at the age of 16 in 1974, and gave her up for adoption after being convinced by her own mother and believing she was too young to raise her. She agreed to a closed adoption and never found out who had adopted her daughter.
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She only heard about her daughter decades later, when police discovered a body and wanted to test her DNA to see if it could match. After learning that it wasn’t a match, Cathy found out that her child had been named Aundria, and the devastating details of her upbringing.
In an interview last year, Cathy said she was still left with questions, telling Netflix Tudum, “I’m still deciphering all that madness. There is no deciphering — yeah, there is none. I’m the only thing that brought sanity to this.”
Viewers have been left horrified by the gut-wrenching true story (Image: Netflix)
Speaking of the documentary, she added: “I’d like to think this is a road map to how you find somebody.” She went on to the outlet: “There are times you’re a little crazy, but you gotta get crazy. As much as you can, contain yourself: Don’t tick the cops off, build a rapport, and, you know, pray a lot.”
Viewers have been left gripped by the horrific documentary, with one person writing: “Sad. Sick. Profoundly disturbing,” while another called it “Jaw-dropping, tense, disturbing and emotional.” Someone else said, “I could not stop watching. This shows the opposite ends of our human condition. Pure love and dark evil. Love will always win.”
Another person called it a “shocking but superb documentary”, saying: “This is one of the most gripping documentaries I’ve watched in a long time. First and foremost, it’s an incredibly shocking story, almost unimaginable, filled with jaw-dropping twists and revelations.”
It follows the search for, and death of, Aundria Bowman (Image: Netflix)
Yet another viewer said, “As the mother of a little girl, I had such a hard time watching this story. It is completely captivating, and Cathy is an incredible woman. It’s rare that a true crime documentary grabs me in this way without leaving me sad and stressed. The way the story unfolded and the reveals felt natural and welcome, not overblown or manufactured. The story is just actually that shocking.”
One fan labelled it “absolutely worth watching”, saying: “I am ADDICTED to true crime, like pretty much everyone, but this story is such a heartfelt one. It shows the incredible bond between a mother and daughter that only had 8 months in each other’s lives before the daughter was given up for adoption. Cathy is such an amazing, hilarious force to be reckoned with.”
Another said “my heart is completely broken”, while one fan said the “compelling documentary is gut-wrenching”. Someone else said it was “the best Netflix true crime for a while”, adding: “Gripping like a thriller, paced like a mystery – packs a punch like a tear-jerker. It’s the best one they’ve turned out over under the red N for a long time – and maybe the best singular true crime documentary since The Jinx.”
Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter is available to watch on Netflix.
