City of Sacrifices — Jack Karasch

A policeman, a psychologist, and a psychic are pitted against a serial killer (before the term was coined) who eludes them in 1968 San Francisco. The killer, Anson Garrett, a former cult leader from Central America, returns to his native city determined to continue a warped mission that revolves around ritualistic human sacrifices, each time leaving behind a humorous but sadistic calling card to humiliate the authorities. Attempts at capture by the SFPD and FBI fail miserably until Nicola Cabella, a female psychic and reporter, becomes involved and evens up the odds. Take a novel-length trip through yesterday's Bagdad by the Bay and to a more carefree and richly absurd period, with its Corvairs, Maypo, and some great rock-and-roll.