Zodiac Unmasked: The Identity of America's Most Elusive Serial Killer Revealed (Hardcover)

by Robert Graysmith (Author) "Starr's face was everywhere..." (more)
Key Phrases: eighteen characters, most dangerous game, taunting letters, Leigh Allen, San Francisco, Santa Rosa (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Rarely have the crimes of a serial murderer captured the imagination and fears of the entire country as did the unsolved "Zodiac" killings in the Bay Area in the 1970s. Close to the investigators and long obsessed with the case, Graysmith reputedly knows more about the killer than anyone else. His popular 1986 Zodiac offered such a thorough account that even a lead investigator used it as a reference. In that book, , seasoned true-crime author Graysmith identified the most likely suspect though only under a pseudonym, Richard Starr, hoping the book would trigger a reader to come forward with incontrovertible evidence. The suspect died in 1992, and in this follow-up to Zodiac, Graysmith now identifies "Starr" by his real name, Arthur Leigh Allen, a terrifying sociopath and convicted pedophile whom police long considered the prime suspect. Culled from official records and new interviews conducted in recent years, the latest book excavates the still burgeoning 30-year history of investigations into the Zodiac murders six confirmed and dozens of others that the killer claimed to have committed, and who spawned a score of copycat killers, most recently a 15-year-old from Kobe, Japan. The Zodiac case is convoluted at its heart and though Graysmith's evidence against Allen plays solidly, the narrative often gives way to unexpected segues and jumps in time. To keep track of this case that has more facets than a diamond, readers will need a scorecard. Photos and other supporting material in the book were not seen by PW.

From Booklist
Graysmith was employed at the San Francisco Chronicle in 1968, when the serial killer known as Zodiac began methodically brutalizing and murdering random victims across California. Zodiac, who was something of an egomaniac, communicated with authorities via the Chronicle. In addition to gloating over the inability of law enforcement to capture him, he would often describe how he intended to kill his next victim or would recount in chilling detail the last moments of someone he had savagely slain. At least 37 gruesome murders were attributed to him in the state of California; however, competing investigations (because the murders happened in several different counties) and other mishaps led to his consistent evasion of authorities. In this excellent study of the case, Graysmith provides never-before-published photos, a complete reproduction of the Zodiac letters, and a scary and disturbing account of pure evil. Libraries with a readership interested in true-crime tales will definitely want to stock up on this probable best-seller from the author of the widely read Zodiac (1986), which was his first book on the subject. Now readers can learn all that he has learned in investigating the case further, including the chief suspect. Kathleen Hughes
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 544 pages
• Publisher: Berkley Hardcover (April 2, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425183327
• ISBN-13: 978-0425183328
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (62 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #106,661 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Obsession Continued, May 28, 2007

By	D. J. McNamara (San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Zodiac Unmasked: The Identity of America's Most Elusive Serial Killer Revealed (Paperback)

It is true that this book is not as engaging and riveting as the first. For some reason though, some people have it out for the author Graysmith. This book is based on and is a literal text of Graysmith's thought process. Like anyone's thought process, this doesn't mean that it's all based entirely in fact. As I said in my review of "Zodiac", most police work isn't based totally in the facts but in speculation that most likely fits those facts. Being as how we weren't at the scene as the crimes were being committed, and if we had all the facts we'd know without a doubt who Zodiac was or is, speculation, whether loosely based on the facts or not, is necessary.

It is fact that Arthur Leigh Allen is the favorite suspect of many of the law enforcement officials closest to the Zodiac investigation. This book isn't how they came to that, but how Graysmith did. Graysmith is no Mike Hammer or, even a spin-off of Zodiac's favorite SFPD inspector Dave Toschi. He's a novice taking a novice's approach. This book is a good continuation of the first book, but it obviously loses a little bit because it doesn't contain the introductions to the crimes and the imagery that comes with such descriptions. I enjoyed it for what it was; don't let people deter you from this work because they have it out for the author. Read it and decide for yourself, make your own conclusions. I'm glad I did.

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good follow-up to the movie "Zodiac"..., March 27, 2007

By	William E. Adams (Hobbs, NM USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Zodiac Unmasked: The Identity of America's Most Elusive Serial Killer Revealed (Paperback)

I am amazed at the hostility against this book demonstrated by several reviewers. I found Graysmith's case against Leigh Allen to be persuasive. I bought this one right after seeing the new "Zodiac" film, which I also liked. With that background, or a background from having read Graysmith's "Zodiac" book from many years ago, "Unmasked" is a worthy read. I would not advise anyone without familiarity of the case to pick this up first, however. It is a complicated story that stretches from 1966 to the 1990's and beyond, and has a cast of scores of cops and suspects and victims and their family members. If you liked the movie, you probably don't need to read "Zodiac." Try "Unmasked" instead. How some readers can think that Arthur Leigh Allen is NOT the most likely killer is beyond me, but mysteries and conspiracies attract us precisely because we all think we can do better than the cops and reporters in coming up with a solution.

28 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Flabby but Fascinating, August 21, 2005

By	Roger Lathbury (Alexandria, VA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Zodiac Unmasked: The Identity of America's Most Elusive Serial Killer Revealed (Paperback)

_Zodiac Unmasked_ would have been twice the book at half the length. Graysmith could have eliminated repetition, told the story in fewer chapters (the breaks seem arbitrary, and there are too many of them), eliminated supererogatory data about copycat crimes, and finally developed a few insufficiently explored topics: why did murdering lose its allure for Allen? What was the psychological nexus between the Zodiac's fixations on cryptography and science and killing?

Perhaps this is to ask for a profundity beyond the author's capabilities. Graysmith exhibits no sense of irony or moral outrage--striking deficiencies in a such a book as this.

In his defense and at his own level, however, he does answer some objections other reviewers have raised about apparently conflicting DNA evidence and varying witness identifications. Unlike Patricia Cornwall's explanation of the Jack the Ripper case, Graysmith's solution seems plausible. If the prose is flaccid, at least it is not sensationalized. There should be less of it, though.