This book was very disorganized and repetitive. It didn’t give much new insight into the case. I would only recommend it to people unfamiliar with the details of the case.

In depth review it the case. Tragic case and the author’s research and information based on first hand interviews lends to a detailed account of the case. Unfortunately, at this point, there aren’t concrete answers.

Rebecca Zahau had led a troubled life, most of which she kept very close to her chest. Secrets and a need to move around when things got tough became the norm, sometimes out of necessity but not always. Living with Jonah Shacknai, her multimillionaire business owner boyfriend, she is enjoying a more stable life than she has for a long while.

All that changes when Jonah's six year old son, Max, suffers a catastrophic accident while in Rebecca's care before, two days later, she is found dead in bizarre circumstances. Was it homicide or her own hand which caused the young woman’s death? If it was murder who was responsible or, if suicide, did guilt play a large part in Rebecca's unexplained demise?

Caitlin Rother is a go to author for true crime exposes and as I had not read anything on this case beforehand I was delighted to dive right in. The author says a great deal of new material is available for the first time but I didn't find it easy to identify what that was other than one or two exclusive interviews.

I found the whole investigation, but not the writing, a bit muddled but know I am not alone in this reaction; it was confusing and not clear cut in any way which is one of the main reasons this case and its conclusions refuse to go away. It did however provide an entertaining and thought provoking read which I enjoyed very much.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the opinions expressed are my own. This is a very well written, entertaining, true crime book recommended to all who enjoy this fascinating genre.

The story of Rebecca Zahau is one that is still talked about ten years after her death and Caitlin Rother wrote a fantastic retelling of the murder and the investigation that followed. As someone who listens to a lot of true crime podcasts has never actually read a true crime novel, this was my first.

The retelling of this story is one that has a lot of tragedy in it, Caitlin Rother does a fantastic job at making sure all the details are there and it is not persuaded one way or the other. In some way she lets the reader come to their own conclusion.

This book follows the death of Rebecca Zahau in 2011 in Coronado California. Caitlin Rother has followed this case since it happened from the start. Rebecca Zahau died a few days after a tragic accident of her boyfriend’s son Max. She was found hanging outside the vacation home in California. What seems like a clear-cut case of suicide is much more complexed than it seems. Rother follows the case for years and has documents from the police department and follows through with even going to the court trial that comes from it.

Rother has interviews with the people involved including the police officers that were on the case. She makes sure that there is all sides told and does not keep it one-sided. She makes sure that even though there are a lot of conspiracies out there and a lot of web sleuths trying to solve this case, Rother makes sure that she brings them up but that do not dominate the main theories of, was she murdered? Or, was she so depressed she committed suicide?

What pulled me into this book is that it followed the last ten years and up to the present-day fight that is going on. It is also the fact that there are many different components to this case that I had no idea about and this book gave all those views.

If looking for a serious true crime read of an unpredictable case, Death of Ocean Boulevard may be a read for you.

Thank you Kensington Books and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book early.

True crime fanatics REJOICE. I found your next rabbit hole. I remember watching this case on Dateline and then listening to the MFM podcast episode on it and once again I became an amateur sleuth. Rother also had the same intrigue from the get go. Do you know why? Because the Coronado Mansion case is tragic controversial but most importantly BIZARRE. Any time tragedy strikes in a multi-million dollar beach house it's bound to grab some attention. Add in a dead child, a shady family, and a naked gagged body and you have national headlines. I obviously had my own suspicions from my previous knowledge on the case (cough Adam cough). But Rother took us even further, blowing everything we thought we knew wide open. This is exactly what we want and need in a true crime novel. She wrote in a straightforward and fast paced manor that kept me turning pages. There are so many delicate layers to this story and everyone in it has a complicated past. Does this sound like a fiction psychological thriller? Yes, because it's almost too hard to believe. I don't think the fasciation with this case will go away anytime soon as Rother leaves us with more theories and more digging to do. Thank you NetGalley, Kensington Books & Caitlin Rother for my ARC in exchange for an honest review. (PUB DATE: 4/27/21)

“‘I think it will go down as one of the weirdest cases in American crime,’ she said. ‘It’s just too wacky, with too many holes in the “suicide scenario.”’”

In Death on Ocean Boulevard, author Caitlin Rother tells the story of two deaths that occurred at the beach front property of pharmaceutical tycoon Jonah Shacknai with in a two day period. Jonah’s 6 year old son Max was killed in what was deemed accident just two days before his live in girlfriend Rebecca Zahau died in a very bizarre hanging that was categorized as suicide. Both deaths were surrounded by mysterious circumstances and the cases though closed feel very unsolved.

This is a case I have been very curious about for a while and I have seen the documentaries and tv shows about it. This book tells a much more in depth story of all of the people involved, and the author does a fantastic job of sharing about it and about all of the trials and investigations surrounding the case. I will definitely be reading other books by this author. The book was very easy to read, and very informative without being dry. This will not be a book or a case that I will soon forget. I give it 4.5 stars

Review has been shared on Goodreads and will be added to Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and my Instagram after its release

I became addicted to true crime after reading my first Ann Rule book in the early 1990s. I haven’t read a good true crime book in awhile so I was interested in reading Rother’s investigation into two deaths that occurred. I would agree that given the bound state of Rebecca’s body, suicide was a stretch. Rother’s book focused mostly on that case. She didn’t sufficiently explain how Max died, in my opinion. I think Rebecca’s death overshadowed Max’s, at least in the book. It was a decent read, but I did skim over some parts that were ponderous and I think unnecessary to include.

I was disappointed with this book. I was familiar with this case but I learned nothing new from this book and found the writer’s personal story irrelevant and distracting.
I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book.

I have pondered on this specific case for a long time, and how dissatisfied I was by the investigation and acceptance of suicide by those involved, therefore my interest in this book was not debatable.

This book was not a disappointment, and provided new context I had not found through shows on this case. It’s laid out well, and easily digestible even for readers not user to true crime and analytical writing. It can do with increased editing, to not interrupt the fluidity of the writing.

Overall, this is the first book I’ve read about the case. I wasn’t too satisfied, but I think that’s reflective of the case itself and not the book. I would suggest this to anyone interested in true crime.

Thank you to Kensington Books and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

To begin, I would rate Death On Ocean Boulevard 2/5.

The Rebecca Zahau case is one that I’ve followed for years and have always been interested in, so I jumped at the chance to read this book, especially in advance. What I liked about the book is that Rother clearly invested a lot of time and effort into researching and compiling her work. I felt the writing was approachable and easy to read.

Oppositely, the organization and presentation of her research was what was lacking for me. The book feels very scattered and jumps around in the narrative as well as repeating established facts throughout. I feel the book could have been edited to be smoother and shorter than it is at present.

Another aspect that I found lacking was the lack of personal connection. Although Rother discusses the suicide of her former husband in the forward, it was not mentioned again until about 75% of the way into the book, and even then, it is talked about only briefly. Because of this, I felt that if another author had the same stack of information they could have produced an identical book. The relation between her life and the case was not consistent enough to me.

Lastly, Rother notes that some of the people involved in this case cut their contact with her once it was announced that the book would be published, which leaves me feeling suspicious of her methods, as I know this has been a point of contention with other books she has written.

I do feel I learned a bit more about the Coronado mansion death than I did before reading, but ultimately Death On Ocean Boulevard left me wanting more and not in a positive way.

This is how a true crime book should be written. It reads like a novel while giving the reader factual information regarding the case. The narrative was not jumbled or confusing by adding insignificant names and quotes, the story was just told. It leaves so many questions unanswered by no fault of the author, but just due to the nature of the case. I feel the author did well with presenting the facts for both major theories suicide vs homicide, without adding her opinion.

True crime author Caitlin Rother does an amazing job of writing about and investigating the cases of Rebecca Zahau and Max Shacknai.

There is a lot of good, chilling, and heartbreaking information about this case. I had seen a TV show about it, but this account brings much much more detail.

This is a great read for any True Crime aficionado!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Raw, real and very well written. I love true crime and this book knocked it out of the park for me. I couldn't put it down.

If you like true crime novels and find yourself looking for your next read...this is it!

I LOVED this book. Now to be fair true crime is my all time favorite genre but it honestly has to be written correctly. Enough detail but not to the point where I feel like I’m reading a police report - and this book does just that. It’s an enthralling albeit horrifying story, but it’s told just perfectly. Definitely a book I could not put down.

Fantastic book!! I have followed this case from the start,but this book really brought out a lot of facts that I didn't know about before. Such a sad case for the two who lost their lives tragically. #netgalley

I have anxiously been awaiting Author Caitlin Rother's unbiased account of this incident which took place on 07/31/2011 in multimillionaire Jonah Shacknai's San Diego mansion. Shacknai's girlfriend, Rebecca Zahau was found hanging from the balcony by house guest Adam Shacknai, Jonah's younger brother. Two days earlier, Jonah's son Max suffered a fall while in Rebecca's car and was in the hospital in critical condition. Police were quick to rule the hanging a suicide but the family disagreed. They all wondered how could she tie herself up, gag herself and then throw herself over the balcony railing? This is a very complicated case that has taken all these years to try to find the answers. Author Rother does a superb job researching and presenting all sides of this tragic story.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Books for the ARC of this very tragic page-turner that kept me on the edge of my seat to the very end. When I see Caitlin Rother's name as the author, I know I am in for an incredible story and this book did not disappoint me.

32-year-old Rebecca Zahau was found naked, hanging, and gagged from a second story balcony in Southern California. What the cops claimed was a suicide grew stranger with the discovery of a handwritten message left on the door to the bedroom, as well as the mysterious death of a young boy just a day before. Author Caitlin Rother deeply explores the case and as many of the multiple facets of the case as possible. With interviews with family members, neighbors, lawyers and others involved in the case, the reader gets a comprehensive look at the provable facts and the conjecture that keeps this case hauntingly mysterious to this day.   From pharmaceuticals to a possible kidnapping, this story is so much crazier than just Zahau's death.

Caitilin Rother's research for Death on Ocean Boulevard feels almost exhaustive, and I wish she could have been the one to put the case to bed for good. Perhaps her book will bring additional interest to this infamous Coronado murder case, much like Michelle McNamara's I'll Be Gone in the Dark did to help close the Golden State (EARONS) case.

Death on Ocean Bouleard is available April 27, 2021 from Kensington Books

Another true crime ARC from @netgalley. I was eager to read this once I read the synopsis. I don’t remember hearing about this but also I was younger so that may be why.
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After doing some research I found that this story had a lot of attention and was really big news. Many people were intrigued and curious by the case. They were wondering what happened to Rebecca and would justice be served.
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In 2011, when Rebecca Zahau was found dead, hanging from the balcony of the Spreckels mansion, it just seemed such a bizarre thing to happen. Very terrible and just two days before her stepson Max was injured. Are they connected or separate tragedies at the same time.
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Rother followed the story from the time Zahau died, writing and researching the story for 9 years. She wanted to write this book to give more insight on what happened that day and to the present.

Fascinating book on a big mystery. So many unanswered questions, but author sorts the facts. Great true crime.

Thanks to author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free, it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

Fatal Friends, Deadly Neighbor by Ann Rule. This book came out in 2012. That’s the first time I read about Max & Rebecca. Then I did see the Dateline episode about these two at the end of 2018.

I was thrilled to be reading this book. I have always wondered what really happened to these two. There are just too many how or why. Makes you wonder if money, can influence people.