If you’re after something deeply unsettling and psychological, this raved-about crime drama mini-series deserves a spot on your Netflix watch list

Dear Child

Netflix crime drama with 100% Rotten Tomato rating is ‘masterpiece not to be missed’ (Image: Netflix)

The German crime drama on Netflix centres on a woman named Lena (Kim Riedle), who is imprisoned for five months along with two young kids, Hannah (Naila Schuberth) and Jonathan (Sammy Schrein). Accompanied only by Hannah, she successfully escapes from her unknown captor while the police look into the details surrounding her kidnapping.

Authorities are drawn into a puzzling case involving a girl who disappeared around 13 years ago. Is there a connection between Lena and that disappearance? The series shifts between the current investigation and flashbacks to the unsettling experiences that Lena and the other children endured. As more details come to light, startling revelations emerge.

Lena played by Kim Riedle in Dear Child
The German crime drama centres on Lena who is imprisoned with two young kids (Image: Netflix)

The series in question is called Dear Child, based on the book of the same name (Liebes Kind) by Romy Hausmann.

Taking to the Netflix Bangers Facebook Group, one fan said: “I just binged this whole series, and I can honestly give it 10 out of 10.”

Another wrote: “Dear Child is mind-blowing! 10 out of 10, the suspense is killer.” A third commented: “From the storyline, the plot twist and ending, it kept me glued to the TV.”

Dear Child has also racked up a flawless 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics hailing it a “thrilling and twisted watch”.

Dear Child
Dear Child has also racked up a flawless 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes (Image: Netflix)

Another summed the series up as “gripping, heart-wrenching, horrifying” and said they “could not stop watching”.

Over on IMDb, fans were also raving about the mini-series. One wrote: “Once you start Dear Child you find it impossible to look away. I was completely entranced by this series. I beg of people to watch it.”

Another said, “This is probably my favourite psychological thriller/horror/mystery of all time.”

A third commented, “This is really an amazing German psychological thriller miniseries on Netflix. The series is an unsettling exploration of human endurance. It’s a masterpiece – not to be missed.”