DEATH ON OCEAN BOULEVARD -- Interview with Author Caitlin Rother
DEATH ON OCEAN BOULEVARD: Inside The Coronado Mansion Case by Caitlin Rother
The 911 call came on the morning of July 13, 2011, from the historic Spreckels Mansion, a lavish beachfront property in Coronado, California, owned by pharmaceutical tycoon Jonah Shacknai. When authorities arrived, they found the naked body of Jonah’s girlfriend, Rebecca Zahau, gagged, her ankles tied, and her wrists bound behind her. Jonah’s brother, Adam, claimed he found Rebecca hanging from the second-floor balcony off a guest bedroom, where the door was painted with this cryptic message:
SHE SAVED HIM
CAN YOU SAVE HER
Was this a suicide note, or a killer’s taunt? Rebecca’s death came two days after Jonah’s son, Max, took a devastating fall while in Rebecca’s care. Authorities deemed Rebecca’s death a suicide resulting from her guilt, but her family insists she was murdered. But who would stage a suicide or a murder in such a bizarre, elaborate way?
“The Rebecca Zahau case is one of the great crime mysteries of modern times. It took an author of Caitlin Rother’s caliber to bring it into sharp focus. A riveting read.” -- Gregg Olsen, #1 NYT bestselling author
“A suspicious headline-making death proves to be only the beginning as Rother unlocks the door of this real-life mansion of horrors to reveal a shocking true story of money, power, duplicity and scandal.” -- Michael Fleeman, NYT bestselling author
“Gripping. Propulsive. A tour de force of true crime storytelling. Rother is a rare talent, and Death on Ocean Boulevard an instant classic of the genre.” -- Kevin Deutsch, author and host of “A Dark Turn” podcast
“In Death on Ocean Boulevard, Caitlin Rother skillfully chronicles one of the most fascinating and controversial cases of the past decade. Big money, sex and a questionable death makes for an addictive read.” -- Author Kathryn Casey