Kathleen 'Kathy' Mallory is a fictional character featured in eleven mystery novels by author

Carol O'Connell Carol O'Connell (born May 26, 1947, in New YorkElizabeth Blakesley Lindsay, ''Great Women Mystery Writers'', 2nd ed., Greenwood Press, 2007, p. 192, ) is an author of crime fiction, with a large series of crime books focusing around the character ...

. The novels in the series include ''

Mallory's Oracle Mallory's Oracle is the first novel in the Kathleen Mallory, Kathy Mallory series by author Carol O'Connell. The book was nominated for an Edgar Award and a Dilys Award. It was first published by Hutchinson (publisher), Hutchinson in May 1994 in ...

'' (1994), '' The Man Who Cast Two Shadows'' (1995), '' Killing Critics'' (1996), ''Stone Angel'' (1997), ''Shell Game'' (1999), ''Crime School'' (2002), ''Dead Famous'' (2003), ''Winter House'' (2004), ''Find Me'' (2006 / UK edition title: ''Shark Music''), ''The Chalk Girl'' (2012), and ''It Happens In The Dark'' (2013). Mallory is described by her creator as a

sociopath Psychopathy, sometimes considered synonymous with sociopathy, is characterized by persistent antisocial behavior, impaired empathy and remorse, and bold, disinhibited, and egotistical traits. Different conceptions of psychopathy have been u ...

. Emotionally scarred as a 6-year-old after she witnessed the murder of her mother in a small

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

town, Mallory flees to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, where she lives as a street child. She is caught trying to steal by police officer Louis Markowitz, who takes her home and becomes her foster father. From age 10, Kathy, a "baby sociopath," grows up surrounded by Markowitz and his colorful circle of friends, including his partner, Sgt. Riker, who later becomes Kathy's partner and friend. As an adult, she becomes a detective in the

NYPD The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...

. Genius Charles Butler assists Kathy in her side computer technology business and is in love with her, though she remains oblivious. Mallory is a tall, green-eyed, curly haired blonde in her mid-twenties at the start of the series. She is often compared to a cat toying with its prey.

References

Literary characters introduced in 1994 Characters in American novels of the 20th century Characters in American novels of the 21st century Fictional adoptees Fictional New York City Police Department detectives {{novel-char-stub