The story of the death of Rebecca Zahau is so freaking bizarre! I first heard about it on a podcast and it was so off the wall, I was so curious…so I sought out other podcasts, resulting in total confusion. So I was happy when I read that Caitlin Rother, well-known author of true crime stories, had written Death On Ocean Boulevard. I thought surely I would at least come away from it with less confusion than I felt after the podcasts…

During the several years that I lived in San Diego, I spent more than my fair share of time bodysurfing near the Hotel Del in Coronado and hanging around on the island (actually a peninsula, but whatever), so I was familiar with the location. Reading that Rebecca Zahau and her very rich boyfriend Jonah Shaknai were staying in his “vacation home” (the Spreckels mansion, located across the street from the water, right on Ocean Blvd) with his young son and Rebecca’s visiting sister Xena when the crimes occurred, I had a clear picture in my mind of the location. That was just about the last clear picture I had about this crime. Or should I say crimes?

The first “crime” (?) is the death of Jonah’s young son Max, who was staying in the mansion in July 2011, entertaining himself as a young boy would (apparently riding his scooter around the second floor balcony), when he somehow went over the railing and ended up on the floor downstairs, along with the chandelier and his scooter. He was rushed to the hospital and died a few days later, with the death being ruled an accident. Jonah’s ex wasn’t a fan of the new woman in his and Max’s lives, and she seemed to blame Rebecca for the death of her son.

While Max was in the hospital, Jonah’s brother Adam came to stay, and early one morning he called 911 when he discovered the second “crime” — Rebecca, hanging over the outside balcony, with her hands and feet securely bound and a gag in her mouth. The first responders ruled it a suicide, despite the fact that she had gone over the railing with her hands securely tied behind her back.

Rebecca’s family won a civil suit for wrongful death against Jonah’s brother Adam (who seemed a likely suspect as he had found the body which had been tied with some intricate knots, and as a riverboat captain, he was familiar with such knots). There have been lots of investigations and attempts to explain how the bleep Rebecca killed herself, particularly since those close to her strongly objected to it even being a suicide.

Ms. Rother has done her usual fully detailed research, perhaps even more than usual as she admits to a strong personal feeling of connection to cases involving suicide after her husband took his own life. I’m fascinated by this particular story, and was hooked on the book right away, although my personal opinion is that it would have been improved by edits that took the author’s personal experiences etc. out of it. While interesting, Ms. Rother’s story is not what I was interested in, and I don’t think the book would have been diminished if it were limited to Ms. Zahau’s story. I also recall that the law enforcement and public officials in San Diego have long had a reputation for less than squeaky clean operations, and my takeaway from the book was that Mr. Shaknai’s money likely had an impact on the investigation that ruled Rebecca’s death a suicide. (In actuality, I think my reaction was along the lines of “suicide? Yeah, right…”)

Thanks to Kensington Books/Citadel and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Four stars (would have been five if it had just told the story of the crimes and left out the author’s personal story).

A very fascinating case. I had previously watched a documentary for on this same case and it was intriguing but the book had details I wasn’t aware of.

Thanks to publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

I have followed this case for many years, and was so pleased to see that Caitlin Rother had written a book about it. It is one of the most bizarre and baffling cases, totally implausible to believe that Rebecca Zahau could have committed suicide in the way it was described by the police. It is a fascinating book and I learned quite a few more details, that I hadn't known before. Comprehensive analysis and a must read for those interested in True Crime, and particularly this case. Highly recommended.

First thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of the book in exchange for my honest review. Well I will say this, the author Caitlin Rother, did a hell of a lot of research for this book. It is very thorough in that regard. I also liked the way she weaved her own personal story in with this to try to solve, or at the very least, understand this very bizarre case. I do however, agree with other reviewers, that it was difficult at times to follow all the people involved and I did find myself skimming which I rarely ever do. Overall the author did her best writing a very unique case and it is clear she, at least to me, that she will continue to pursue this if possible. I would recommend to any True Crime enthusiast.

A good true crime novel. The story was interesting and the characters were intriguing. My only drawback was I felt the story was disjointed and I found myself going back several times to follow the storyline.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for sharing this upcoming true crime investigation. Interesting story that I had not previously heard of, but apparently it has had a fair amount of publicity. Overall, the author/investigator did a fine job following the case. There were many individuals involved in the investigation and trial, and I found it difficult to follow all the players. In the end the story is unsatisfying because the case feels unsatisfying.

This story was was really big news and captured the attention of many. People were fascinated by the case, wondering what happened and was it ever going to really be known. 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. Then you read about Max Shacknai’s injury just 2 days earlier, and you’re really intrigued! Rother followed the story from the time Zahau died, writing and researching the story for 9 years all with an eye to doing this book. She was keeping tabs on the story all along, writing as it went, waiting for the right time. I have seen many shows done on TV about this case, but this book is the latest word and likely the deepest dive into the story. I’ve liked previous works I’ve read by Rother like Poisoned Love, Lost Girls, and Then No One Can Have Her. Advance electronic review copy was provided by NetGalley, author Caitlin Rother, and the publisher.

I had the expectation before reading this book that the author was a professional experienced in writing about criminal cases. After reading it, I see that I was wrong. The author sets the expectation that her personal life, specifically her husband's suicide, is key to her solving (or having a well-based opinion on) what truly happened on Ocean Boulevard. She tells the story of the principal participants in the events and that seemed like a logical place to start. But there are lots of pages spent on the histories of people peripheral to the story. Rebecca's ex-husband and the tortuous tale of their marriage is not worth the room it takes up. My impression was that he was willing to talk with the author so she included all his material. There are trials and civil cases that are reported chronologically but just become tiresome. The reader almost certainly wants to know: what caused Max's accident, and was Rebecca's death a murder or a suicide. The case is never solved by anyone. No one's opinion gets changed over the period of years, and the author does not have a solid opinion that she can back up credibly. I would have preferred that her personal life and the details of who would meet with her and where, and who showed up, etc. be seriously pruned. Then at the end, she revisits her husband's suicide and how that helped her understand the case in this book. Except no one ever proves that there was a suicide.

Author Caitlin Rother investigates a complicated case involving two deaths occurring within a few days of each other at the same location. While there are still unanswered questions, she explores and offers various possibilities as to what happened on Ocean Boulevard. The reader is given an opportunity to arrive at their own conclusion based on facts given in the book. Thank you to NetGalley.

This is the first book I've read by this author and the style wasn't really to my taste. She covers the details of the story well; she had good access to the key individuals so it's put together well and she's clearly good at the research and understanding she developed but it just didn't flow for me.

It's a very creepy case and I felt very creeped out while I was reading it; definitely not a before bed relaxing read.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is such a bizzare and fascinating case. I enjoyed this book and reading more about it. The formatting of the ARC was a little difficult to read, but didn't affect my enjoyment of the book.

I had never heard of this case and I was fascinated.
The author does a great disservice to this case by writing this book.
It was so disorganized, scattered, and full of the authors own bravado that it was hard to read.
For instance, the author kept putting herself into the thick of things, we as READERS don't care when you write...this author was asked, this author found, this author...etc....very distracting and unneeded.
Further the timeline, the organization of the book left MUCH to be desired. I barely got to know any of the characters before they were whisked away.
A more indepth analysis of Max's accident, who was all there, their stories, would have been helpful.
The same sets of data was gone over and over ad nausem.
I gave up on this book when I was 85% finished when the author decided to introduced a psychic who then "recreated" Rebeccas last night.
This book is over 300 pages and over 250 pages of that is UNNEEDED!

I am positive that there will be BETTER books written about this case, DON"T READ THIS ONE!

While reading this book I kept thinking "wow this author did some extensive research" because it was written with so much detail it was amazing. I heard about this story in the news when it first happened but reading the book it was like I was reading a story of a crime I hadn't heard of. I'm a lover of true crime/mystery etc and this book was a perfect 5 Star read. Highly Recommend adding this to your TBR pile.

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC of Death on Ocean Boulevard in exchange for my honest review.
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First let me thank Netgalley,, the publisher, and Ms. Rother for the opportunity to read this book for a review. The opportunity to read a Caitlin Rother book ARC?! You did not have to ask me twice! As always she did not disappoint. Ms. Rother starts the book telling how the story came close to home for her emotionally and end with how the story came close to home for her professionally and personally. When reading true crime I do often think about what the author has to go through to get the book written. In this case, Ms. Rother shares the experience with the reader. The deaths in this book are a decade old, yet still has no definitive ending. How could Rebecca Zahau have committed suicide the way it is suggested? Who wrote the message on the door? Was six year old Max the victim of foul play? Did Rebecca's Millionaire boyfriend's brother have anything do do with her death? There are so many questions about this case that are still unanswered. Yes, there was a trial in civil court, but with the death still listed as a suicide could we see a murder trail in the future. I had not heard about this case previously. This is a book that is 10 years in the making and was well worth the wait Any fan of true crime and/or Ms. Rother's books will be thrilled reading this story. I am giving this book a solid 5 star review. .

I received an advance copy of, Death on Ocean Boulevard, by Caitlin Rother. Such a sad story, but very well written. I do not think either of the deaths were accidents. I do not think we will ever know, what really happened.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Rebecca Zahau w1as found hanging in her boyfriend's Jonah's mansions in July When police arrive they believe they have a murder on their hands. This book kept me interested from the beginning.

Excellent true crime read about a story that I’ve actually never heard about which is always interesting. I was in rapt with the details. I highly recommend this one.