Crime School: A Mallory Novel

by Carol O'Connell

Book Overview

New York City detective Kathleen Mallory recognizes the crime scene in which a call girl is found hanging, hair in mouth and a fire burning. It's just like the murder that happened years ago when Mallory was a child. Now, Mallory's past catches up with her.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0399149287
• ISBN13: 9780399149283
• Release Date: September 2002
• Publisher: Putnam Adult
• Length: 341 Pages
• Weight: 1.42 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.2" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Another haunting Mallory mystery

What is it about Carol O'Connell's Kathy Mallory series? Kathy Mallory is about the least sympathetic heroine of any genre...a genuine anti-anti-anti heroine. And O'Connell's writing is moody and rough - kind of like its places-you've-never-been-in-New York setting. These are never easy reads and yet I can't put them down, especially Crime School. I think it may be because I like Charles Butler and Detective Riker so very much. And because they love Mallory despite everything. And because I want her to finally pay attention to Charles (which she never will). As usual, O'Connell's plots fly all around the past and present and you have to hang on for dear life. And, as usual, you end up wanting to know more. But isn't that the hallmark of a good book? I still think that O'Connell's best book was the standalone (not of the Mallory series) "Judas Child", wherein again she specializes in wounded characters. Who knows where these twisted humans come from in Carol O'Connell's brain, but she certainly does give them convincing life.

Mallory's world is *always* fascinating- a winner!

*~*~*~*~**Mallory (don't call her "Kathy" if you want to live), is a unique detective hero. She's an NYPD "Special Crimes" Detective, who makes her own rules, takes no hostages, and can make you believe she'd kill for her own sense of justice.~ * ~ Mallory was taken in at age 10 ?? by an NYPD cop, who found her as a tough street kid, apparently a "throwaway". In earlier novels she is eerily without the type of "consicence" we recognize though we can sympathize with her ruthless pursuit of justice, especially in avenging her foster father's death.In the novel, "Stone Angel", we learned a little about how she came to live on the New York streets.In this story we learn more about her life on the streets, when a prostitute is found hanged at an arson scene. Riker, Mallorys partner, a friend of Mallory's father, recognizes the victim as a woman who once gave sporadic shelter and comfort to Mallory as a child. Mallory has a score to settle with the victim, but she is no less driven to find the killer, terrorizing firefighters and rookie detectives,and walking right over supervising officers's command.This entry was wonderful for the haunting, yet strangely compelling back story of that illuminates the child Kathy's quest for a sense "home" and "comfort" with the prostitutes, drug dealers, and theives on the streets. Supporting cast Detective Riker, and genius consultant Charles Butler are written very well, and their dedication to a strange blend of love, healthy fear, and protectiveness of Mallory is just wonderful.I recommend "Stone Angel" as a companion to the story, together, they offer a wonderful portrait of our herione.

A little psychology with your mystery, hmmm...?

I love O'Connell's ability to characterize! Some of the other reviewers seem a bit frustrated with this book. I too, wait for Mallory to 'let someone in', which she seems so unable to do. Of course, given her childhood background...I'd probably react to human kindness the way she does. Mallory's been an enigma from the first book. She's solving crimes, but sometimes it's a debate whether the crime is more interesting, or Mallory is?A child forced to become an adult before she was ready, and who grows up in a precinct station in New York is hardly likely to be normal...A serial murderer is loose on the blonde wanta-be-actresses of New York. This case is tied to a cold case from 20 years ago...and the serial murderer is doing a lot to try to get the attention of the cops. Mallory's friends and her coworker, Riker, are concerned, because as more information comes out concerning the 20-year old case...the suspect seems to have a haunted background and childhood suspiciously like Mallory's and they can't quit drawing parallels to her life. Why did her mind bend towards dealing with a her hard life in a certain way that put her within accepted societal mores, while this serial murderer is definitely asocial?I really appreciate getting some new information concerning Mallory. She can keep being mysterious and aloof, but we, the readers, want to know more about what makes Mallory tick. Only big problem I had with the book, is tying in the actress angle with the first murder...maybe I missed something. Oh...and O'Connell introduces a new younger cop for Mallory to torture! Mallory's biggest parallel with the serial murderer is her inability to connect with those who care about her, including Charles, her very nonjudgemental friend who thinks he is too ugly for her...yet she doesn't even 'see' herself as beautiful. Wonder if this little dilemma will ever be resolved.This reader hopes so...yet worries that it will be unsatisfying if Mallory ever normalizes her relationships...Karen Sadler

fascinating police procedural

She was a wild child living on the New York streets with only a few uncaring prostitutes to watch over her at times. She was saved from that sordid existence when a kindly police officer and his sweet wife brought her into their home. Their love ultimately saved Kathy Mallory, turning her into one of the finest detectives in the special crimes unit of the Big Apple.Twenty years ago, a woman was killed in her apartment but thanks to sloppy police work the killer was never found. Two decades later, a prostitute is killed in a similar manner. The police theorize that it's a copycat killing even if they don't understand how the perpetrator has the details that were kept from the public. Mallory is one of the investigators on the case as a series of murders connect Kathy the child to Mallory the policewoman.It has been four long years since a Kathy Mallory novel was published but the long wait was worth it. Fans of Mallory actually get to see her as a child surviving by her wits on the street. Carol O'Connell still has the magic touch when it comes to creating fascinating police procedurals that enthrall the audience. Let's hope we won't have to wait another four years for a novel starring this complex yet likable heroine.Harriet Klausner

Another hit in the Mallory series

This 6th in the series (following Mallory's Oracle, The Man Who Cast Two Shadows, Killing Critics, Stone Angel, and (for me)the disappointing Shell Game)expands the character and pysche of the troubled Sgt. Kathleen Mallory. This borderline pysocopath/sociopath cop battles her own personal demons of murder, betrayal, and revenge as she sets out to stop a serial killer. The similarities between the killer and the cop are both subtle and striking. We learn more about her twisted childhood and her relationship with Riker and Charles Butler. I thought this book was a fascinating portrayal of a very disturbing woman. The story was fast-paced and very suspenseful. I suggest that readers finish the earlier volumes in the series to better understand Mallory's background.