The Zodiac Revisited: The Facts of the Case

by Michael Cole

Overview

Understand History's Most Enigmatic Serial Killer

In December of 1968, a serial killer began orchestrating a campaign of terror in the San Francisco Bay Area. Not satisfied with the simple act of murder, he taunted law enforcement and the public by writing letters to local newspapers. Through often cryptic and bizarre content-including four ciphers, three of which have never been solved-the psychopath played a twisted game. Reporters dubbed the man the "Cipher Killer," but the murderer chose a different name for himself: the Zodiac. Eventually, he would claim to have murdered thirty-seven. Law enforcement, however, could only account for five.

In 1971, authenticated communications with the Zodiac ceased. The elusive fugitive resurfaced briefly three years later, sending a small number of communiqués, before disappearing for good. What started out with shocking abruptness slowly dissolved into mysterious uncertainty. To this day, the Zodiac's true identity remains one of the twentieth century's greatest mysteries...

In Volume 1 of The Zodiac Revisited, Michael reviews the facts of the case, building a foundation for the analysis that follows in Volumes 2 and 3.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780996394307
Publisher:	Twin Prime Publishing
Publication date:	12/20/2020
Series:	Zodiac Revisited , #1
Pages:	214
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.45(d)

About the Author

Michael F. Cole is a Principal Engineer at Intel Corporation who has contributed to the design and implementation of numerous GPUs, CPUs, and chipsets over the last twenty-five years. In The Zodiac Revisited, Michael draws on more than a decade of extensive research into the case of the Zodiac. He analyzes the evidence, separates the distracting from the insightful, and reveals the truth at the heart of this decades-old mystery.

Editorial Reviews

09/06/2021

The first installment in Cole’s three-part The Zodiac Revisited series sets the stage for a definitive exploration of one of the most infamous of true-crime obsessions. Amidst the bustling San Francisco Bay Area of the late 1960s and early 1970s, the so-called Zodiac Killer haunted parks and woodlands, preying upon couples and lone individuals, sending shock waves through the city, the nation, and the decades to come. Cole’s account follows the killings, the clues––including the riddling letters sent by the killer to area newspapers––and the crime scenes and the investigation team that found itself playing cat-and-mouse with an individual who, whether through cleverness or sheer luck, evaded justice for almost 50 years.

Cole examines the individual cases that have long been linked to the Zodiac Killer as well as the time that lapsed between killings and between the killer’s intermittent communication with the press and police. A chapter posits that previous unsolved murders and disappearances may have been the Zodiac’s work as well, suggesting that the Zodiac may have been active longer than is widely known. Also covered are controversies, dead-ends, accusations of forgery of the letters, and the fizzling of the official investigation as the 1970s ended and the killer faded from the public eye. Cole closes this first volume on a note of despair, arguing that “many had reached the point where they would be happy with the story of the Zodiac simply going away.” Future volumes will cover later developments and attempt to tie this sprawling case together.

Cole’s examination of the case is expansive in its references, with extensive footnotes offering the inquisitive reader more avenues to explore should their questions remain unsatisfied. Despite the frustrations of a cold case, high emotions power each chapter, and what might at first appear to be a textbook-like reference guide proves itself a legitimate page-turner sure to seize the attention of experts, amateurs, and true-crime readers.

Takeaway: True crime enthusiasts will devour the first installment of this examination of the unsolved case of the Zodiac killer.

Great for fans of: Robert Graysmith, Gary L. Stewart and Susan Mustafa’s The Most Dangerous Animal of All.

Production grades Cover: A- Design and typography: A Illustrations: A Editing: A Marketing copy: A

BookLife Reviews

2021-08-19
A debut nonfiction book focuses on the infamous cipher-writing serial killer who terrorized the San Francisco Bay Area in the late 1960s.

In this first installment of a series, Cole centers on the facts surrounding the often puzzling Zodiac. The never-identified man killed five people from late 1968 to 1969. But just as harrowing as his murders were his letters to local newspapers, in which he relayed unpublicized specifics of his crimes. He moreover taunted authorities and made blood-curdling threats, including targeting schoolchildren on a bus. But the Zodiac is perhaps best remembered for his ciphers, leading papers initially to dub him “the Cipher Killer.” Along with the five homicides definitively tied to the Zodiac, the author shines a light on earlier murders that some have attributed to him as well. The letters, meanwhile, continued into the ’70s, featuring his “Zodiac symbol” and a “running murder tally.” His messages were cryptic even without ciphers, and later ones only furthered the enigma, ranging from those that he didn’t sign as the Zodiac to a missive that many consider fraudulent. This rigorously detailed book focuses on all of the unfortunate victims and the particulars leading up to their murders. Cole’s concise, unadorned prose lets the unnerving facts of the case speak for themselves. For example, photographs and transcriptions of the Zodiac’s numerous letters reveal handwriting and recurrent misspellings that become frighteningly recognizable, like “paradice,” “frunt,” and “Christmass.” Relevant accounts are equally chilling, such as a victim’s brother’s publicly challenging the killer and the Zodiac claiming that police officers stopped and questioned him the night of one of his murders. With so many lingering mysteries (some ciphers remain unsolved to this day), it’s easy to see why this serial killer case still intrigues people. As such, readers well versed on the Zodiac may find nothing new here. But for others, it’s a wealth of information that will surely rouse interest in the analyses and speculations that will appear in the sequel.

An absorbing, thoroughly researched account of a horrifying, real-life case.

Kirkus Reviews