Kathy Mallory - a fascinating character
If you are looking for a classic mystery series with a central crime that moves the plot forward with a intriguing and never boring protagonist, then look no further. Start with Mallory's Oracle and keep reading through Find Me. I've been reading this series since it was first published, and it is a real treat. O'Connell is a master of character development.
The main character, homicide detective, Kathy Mallory, is beautiful, brilliant, and as ruthless as the killers she chases. Her life as a street kid has left her scarred, but growing up as foster child to Helen and Louis Markowitz, a cop who took her off the streets, she develops her own code that appears to let her operate on the right side of the law - most of the time.
Here is a classic quote from one of the books,''Dead Famous:"
Mallory needs a parking space that has just been taken. She tells the pudgy driver to move his car, so she can keep tailing her suspect.
'"Yeah, lady,'' he says, ''Over my dead body." And she raised one eyebrow to indicate that this might be an option. The long slants of her eyes were unnaturally green -- unnaturally cold. A milk-white hand rested on the door of his car, long red fingernails tapping, tapping, ticking like a bomb, and it occurred to him that those nails might be dangerous.''
So Mallory shows her gun, but not her badge. The man moves his car.
''Kathy Mallory had a detective's gold shield, but she rarely used the badge to motivate civilians. Listening to angry tirades on abuse of police power was time-consuming; fear was more efficient.''
