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Fiction. Mystery. Thriller. HTML:Jonathan Kellerman says Mallory's Oracle is "a joy." Nelson DeMille and other advance readers have called it "truly amazing, " "a classic" with "immense appeal." It is all of that, and more: a stunning debut novel about a web of unsolved murders in New York's Gramercy Park and the singular woman who makes them her obsession.At its center is Kathleen Mallory, an extraordinary wild child turned New York City policewoman. Adopted off the streets as a little show more girl by a police inspector and his wife, she is still not altogether civilized now that she is a sergeant in the Special Crimes section. With her ferocious intelligence and green gunslinger eyes, Mallory (never Kathleen, never Kathy) operates by her own inner compass of right and wrong, a sense of justice that drives her in unpredictable ways. She is a thing apart.
And today, she is a thing possessed. Although more at home in the company of computers than in the company of men, Mallory is propelled onto the street when the body of her adoptive father, Louis Markowitz, is found stabbed in a tenement next to the body of a wealthy Gramercy Park woman. The murders are clearly linked to two other Gramercy Park homicides Markowitz had been investigating, and now his cases become Mallory's, his death her cause. Prowling the streets, sifting through his clues, drawing on his circle of friends and colleagues, she plunges into a netherworld of light and shadow, where people are not what they seem and truth shifts without warning. And a murderer waits who is every bit as wild and unpredictable as she....
Filled with deep, seductive atmosphere and razor-sharp prose, Mallory's Oracle is gripping, resonant suspense of tantalizing complexity—a genuinely unforgettable novel. show less
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kraaivrouw I think Lisbeth and Mallory have a lot in common.
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Member Reviews
Mallory's Oracle was great fun. Everything about it was appealing – from the unique main character (unique in my experience, though I've seen comparisons to Dexter) to the setting to the trappings of the case to the writing.
Kathleen Mallory puts a different spin on "sociopath". I'm used to thinking of the label as only applying to the ones who go out and kill dozens (and applying to men) (like my former boss), and I suppose there is the seed of the idea that, left to the tender mercies of the city or the foster program, Mallory might have become famous as a rare female serial killer. However, she was not left to any such fate, and while she is far from civilized she is a fierce proponent of the law – when it suits her – as she show more learned from her foster father, Lt. Markowitz. I'd be curious to read her point of view. As it is, the image of her gained through others' eyes is fascinating – a network has been formed to keep an eye on her, both for her own sake and the rest of the world's. She is beloved – but her leash is kept rather short, as those who care for her never lose sight of the fact that her morality is a thin veneer. What's rather wonderful about her is that, brilliant as she is – and her IQ is substantial – most of her experience as an officer has been in front of a computer. There she has no equal. On a crime scene, though, or working surveillance or questioning witnesses, her inexperience gangs up with her lack of socialization and sets her back rather than moving her forward. She screws up. She'll never admit it, ever, but she does.
All of the characters are wonderful. Louis Markowitz, dead as the novel begins, and his wife Helen, dead several years before, are as much of a presence as Kathy's putative partner Riker. The department lieutenant, Coffey, taking over Louis's office and position, is not welcome by the department, but is not the idiot his new crew assume he is, or perhaps want to believe he is. The inhabitants of the apartment building where Mallory works during her bereavement leave are bizarre flesh and blood – one of the benefits to setting a series in New York has to be the ability to fill the stories with absolutely anyone. Best of all is Charles Butler, the odd and odd-looking friend of the family, some fifteen years older than Mallory and caught in a consciously hopeless love for her. He's another genius, with major flaws and blind spots, and he is rapidly becoming one of my favorite fictional people.
There is an obvious, though not obtrusive, illustration in the cast of characters of nature versus nurture. Louis's affectionate but entirely serious epithet for the Kathy he arrested trying (probably successfully) to break into a Jaguar was "baby sociopath". (Actually, that's becoming a flaw in the series; "baby sociopath", "baby felon"; "baby whore"…) She is barely socialized, barely comprehending of the whys and wherefores of thou shalt nots, and the question is left open of what she would have become had Markowitz not accidentally adopted her. Or even if it had happened later. In the cast of victims and suspects of Mallory's Oracle, there are many damaged people, and the most damaged of them lacked what Mallory chanced onto: love.
The setting is New York, NY, and it's terrific. Rent-control and little oases of green and breathtaking architecture, and blocks that are a whole different sort of breath-taking, with "rats dancing on garbage pail lids" and crack whores, it's NYC, and all-inclusive. I admit to being partial to books set in places I know even a little, and though the commercials made it a cliché I do love New York.
I never expected the thread of the story about Charles's cousin Max Candle and his glorious days of illusion accompanied by his wife, Edith, famous in her own right as a medium. I was surprised by the magic and mediums – and, for once, it was a pleasant surprise. It all tied in together nicely. Detectives strive to solve mysteries, and here was a whole world of mystery not quite amenable to their investigation. It's all fascinating to me, and well used.
I was surprised by the writing. I read one book somewhere in the middle of the series long ago, Stone Angel, put Carol O'Connell on my List, and collected the books as I found them, but was never impelled to read them until now, anticipating the receipt of the latest Kathy Mallory (Chalk Girl) as an LTER. So I had forgotten why I enjoyed it so much. I think the only thing I disliked in this read was the dogs; abused to a horrific degree, they are mentioned without much explanation or any resolution – including one family pet which launched an unprovoked attack.
There is a sense of humor about this book, sometimes wry and sometimes whimsical, never the main object of the text. And alongside the unexpected humor is an unanticipated poetry. Again, it is never the point of the writing, but instead phrases are scattered as grace notes, like a support pillars shaped into acanthus-crowned Corinthian columns instead of plain unadorned square props. I noticed dance referenced often, literally and descriptively: Max danced, and well; one of the victim family member/suspects was a dancer; light danced, and so did rats. Magic and poetry and dance – alongside blood and age and terror, it was unexpected and surprisingly beautiful. It's not, apparently, to everyone's taste; I enjoyed it. I will be working through the rest of the series to better review Chalk Girl, and I plan on enjoying this. show less
Kathleen Mallory puts a different spin on "sociopath". I'm used to thinking of the label as only applying to the ones who go out and kill dozens (and applying to men) (like my former boss), and I suppose there is the seed of the idea that, left to the tender mercies of the city or the foster program, Mallory might have become famous as a rare female serial killer. However, she was not left to any such fate, and while she is far from civilized she is a fierce proponent of the law – when it suits her – as she show more learned from her foster father, Lt. Markowitz. I'd be curious to read her point of view. As it is, the image of her gained through others' eyes is fascinating – a network has been formed to keep an eye on her, both for her own sake and the rest of the world's. She is beloved – but her leash is kept rather short, as those who care for her never lose sight of the fact that her morality is a thin veneer. What's rather wonderful about her is that, brilliant as she is – and her IQ is substantial – most of her experience as an officer has been in front of a computer. There she has no equal. On a crime scene, though, or working surveillance or questioning witnesses, her inexperience gangs up with her lack of socialization and sets her back rather than moving her forward. She screws up. She'll never admit it, ever, but she does.
All of the characters are wonderful. Louis Markowitz, dead as the novel begins, and his wife Helen, dead several years before, are as much of a presence as Kathy's putative partner Riker. The department lieutenant, Coffey, taking over Louis's office and position, is not welcome by the department, but is not the idiot his new crew assume he is, or perhaps want to believe he is. The inhabitants of the apartment building where Mallory works during her bereavement leave are bizarre flesh and blood – one of the benefits to setting a series in New York has to be the ability to fill the stories with absolutely anyone. Best of all is Charles Butler, the odd and odd-looking friend of the family, some fifteen years older than Mallory and caught in a consciously hopeless love for her. He's another genius, with major flaws and blind spots, and he is rapidly becoming one of my favorite fictional people.
There is an obvious, though not obtrusive, illustration in the cast of characters of nature versus nurture. Louis's affectionate but entirely serious epithet for the Kathy he arrested trying (probably successfully) to break into a Jaguar was "baby sociopath". (Actually, that's becoming a flaw in the series; "baby sociopath", "baby felon"; "baby whore"…) She is barely socialized, barely comprehending of the whys and wherefores of thou shalt nots, and the question is left open of what she would have become had Markowitz not accidentally adopted her. Or even if it had happened later. In the cast of victims and suspects of Mallory's Oracle, there are many damaged people, and the most damaged of them lacked what Mallory chanced onto: love.
The setting is New York, NY, and it's terrific. Rent-control and little oases of green and breathtaking architecture, and blocks that are a whole different sort of breath-taking, with "rats dancing on garbage pail lids" and crack whores, it's NYC, and all-inclusive. I admit to being partial to books set in places I know even a little, and though the commercials made it a cliché I do love New York.
I never expected the thread of the story about Charles's cousin Max Candle and his glorious days of illusion accompanied by his wife, Edith, famous in her own right as a medium. I was surprised by the magic and mediums – and, for once, it was a pleasant surprise. It all tied in together nicely. Detectives strive to solve mysteries, and here was a whole world of mystery not quite amenable to their investigation. It's all fascinating to me, and well used.
I was surprised by the writing. I read one book somewhere in the middle of the series long ago, Stone Angel, put Carol O'Connell on my List, and collected the books as I found them, but was never impelled to read them until now, anticipating the receipt of the latest Kathy Mallory (Chalk Girl) as an LTER. So I had forgotten why I enjoyed it so much. I think the only thing I disliked in this read was the dogs; abused to a horrific degree, they are mentioned without much explanation or any resolution – including one family pet which launched an unprovoked attack.
There is a sense of humor about this book, sometimes wry and sometimes whimsical, never the main object of the text. And alongside the unexpected humor is an unanticipated poetry. Again, it is never the point of the writing, but instead phrases are scattered as grace notes, like a support pillars shaped into acanthus-crowned Corinthian columns instead of plain unadorned square props. I noticed dance referenced often, literally and descriptively: Max danced, and well; one of the victim family member/suspects was a dancer; light danced, and so did rats. Magic and poetry and dance – alongside blood and age and terror, it was unexpected and surprisingly beautiful. It's not, apparently, to everyone's taste; I enjoyed it. I will be working through the rest of the series to better review Chalk Girl, and I plan on enjoying this. show less
Sergeant Kathleen Mallory, of the New York City Police Department - but don't ever call her Kathy or Kathleen - was picked up off the streets by detective Louis Markowitz when she was an abandoned street-child of eleven caught stealing .. It was his wife's birthday, and the thought of all the juvenile department paperwork loomed too daunting, so he took the girl home where she was enveloped by his wife's love and became their daughter. She quit stealing because it made Helen., Louis's wife, cry .. She never lost the thrill of pilfering and turned her considerable investigative and computer skills to purloining evidence from cyberspace for the police department.
When Louis is killed by a serial killer, Mallory abandons the sterility of show more the police computer room to investigate the crime. All of her analytical skills and knowledge of the streets serve her well. Mallory's Oracle by Carol O'Connell is a first-rate first novel. It's almost impossible to classify as to genre for it contains more than a hint of horror, police procedural, suggestions of surrealism, and magic lore. The author has a way with description and images. We never learn anything of Mallory's past, yet its consequences are clear: "That was the sad way of damaged kids. They grew up with distorted mirrors." She is unaware of her beauty's full impact, yet not afraid to manipulate those it hypnotizes. Mallory is an unusual character, strange, yet appealing. I hope O'Connell follows with many sequels show less
When Louis is killed by a serial killer, Mallory abandons the sterility of show more the police computer room to investigate the crime. All of her analytical skills and knowledge of the streets serve her well. Mallory's Oracle by Carol O'Connell is a first-rate first novel. It's almost impossible to classify as to genre for it contains more than a hint of horror, police procedural, suggestions of surrealism, and magic lore. The author has a way with description and images. We never learn anything of Mallory's past, yet its consequences are clear: "That was the sad way of damaged kids. They grew up with distorted mirrors." She is unaware of her beauty's full impact, yet not afraid to manipulate those it hypnotizes. Mallory is an unusual character, strange, yet appealing. I hope O'Connell follows with many sequels show less
One of the joys of working here are recommendations from my co-workers. I’ve been told from day one that there was a series I needed to read, but there was always something new and shiny that distracted me.
Until now.
I have finally started Carol O’Connell’s “Mallory” series. Oh my goodness!
One of the things JB has always said about Mallory is that she’s a cipher; you only learn about her through other people. We’re never allowed into Mallory’s head (except for a tiny paragraph in the first one, Mallory’s Oracle and that is part of the attraction. Mallory’s not like normal people. She’s a functioning sociopath and she knows it. That’s what makes her so fascinating!
I haven’t been this drawn to a character show more and a series since I read Nicola Griffith’s “Aud Torvingen” series.
And I’m going to be in Mallory’s world until I’ve read them all!
[JB adds: my spiel on Mallory is that she’s a void in the stories. She’s created by how everyone tiptoes around her and how everyone anticipates she’ll react – because you do not want to make Mallory mad. (Ever) And I find that a unique way to construct a character, and that’s the fascination for me in the series – that and O’Connell’s wonderful writing.] show less
Until now.
I have finally started Carol O’Connell’s “Mallory” series. Oh my goodness!
One of the things JB has always said about Mallory is that she’s a cipher; you only learn about her through other people. We’re never allowed into Mallory’s head (except for a tiny paragraph in the first one, Mallory’s Oracle and that is part of the attraction. Mallory’s not like normal people. She’s a functioning sociopath and she knows it. That’s what makes her so fascinating!
I haven’t been this drawn to a character show more and a series since I read Nicola Griffith’s “Aud Torvingen” series.
And I’m going to be in Mallory’s world until I’ve read them all!
[JB adds: my spiel on Mallory is that she’s a void in the stories. She’s created by how everyone tiptoes around her and how everyone anticipates she’ll react – because you do not want to make Mallory mad. (Ever) And I find that a unique way to construct a character, and that’s the fascination for me in the series – that and O’Connell’s wonderful writing.] show less
“I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself. A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough without ever having felt sorry for itself.”
― D.H. Lawrence, The Complete Poems of D.H. Lawrence
Mallory evokes the same emotions in me as the quote by D.H. Lawrence. She's competent and brilliant but not someone you'd associate with the word joyful. That said, the novel is top shelf, and I highly recommend it.
― D.H. Lawrence, The Complete Poems of D.H. Lawrence
Mallory evokes the same emotions in me as the quote by D.H. Lawrence. She's competent and brilliant but not someone you'd associate with the word joyful. That said, the novel is top shelf, and I highly recommend it.
Mallory's Oracle
2 Stars
Synopsis:
Kathleen Mallory began life as a thief on the streets of New York City until she was taken in my detective Louis Mankowitz and his wife. Now a police sergeant with an expertise in computer crimes, Mallory must investigate a particularly difficult homicide – the murder of her adoptive father – which is linked to the deaths of several elderly and wealthy women.
Review:
I really wanted to like this book but failed in almost every respect. The writing is elliptical and convoluted with too many narrative threads that are difficult to follow and never seem to form a cohesive whole.
None of the characters is particularly likeable, especially the heroine who is a borderline sociopath. Her characterization is too show more reminiscent of the hero in the television show Dexter, which I stopped watching after three episodes because it is impossible for me to identify with a serial killer no matter how noble his intentions.
The serial killer plot is intriguing and has potential but the paucity of clues makes it virtually impossible for readers to figure it out for themselves. Moreover, the irrelevant subplots involving magicians, mediums and séances add nothing to the suspense, and detract from the murder mystery. In addition, while the identity of the murderer is ultimately revealed, the explanations for his actions are vague and imprecise.
Overall, the disagreeable characters, the excessive number of superfluous conversations and the lack of action make this a difficult book to trudge through. I do, however, recommend another of O'Connell's books - The Judas Child. show less
2 Stars
Synopsis:
Kathleen Mallory began life as a thief on the streets of New York City until she was taken in my detective Louis Mankowitz and his wife. Now a police sergeant with an expertise in computer crimes, Mallory must investigate a particularly difficult homicide – the murder of her adoptive father – which is linked to the deaths of several elderly and wealthy women.
Review:
I really wanted to like this book but failed in almost every respect. The writing is elliptical and convoluted with too many narrative threads that are difficult to follow and never seem to form a cohesive whole.
None of the characters is particularly likeable, especially the heroine who is a borderline sociopath. Her characterization is too show more reminiscent of the hero in the television show Dexter, which I stopped watching after three episodes because it is impossible for me to identify with a serial killer no matter how noble his intentions.
The serial killer plot is intriguing and has potential but the paucity of clues makes it virtually impossible for readers to figure it out for themselves. Moreover, the irrelevant subplots involving magicians, mediums and séances add nothing to the suspense, and detract from the murder mystery. In addition, while the identity of the murderer is ultimately revealed, the explanations for his actions are vague and imprecise.
Overall, the disagreeable characters, the excessive number of superfluous conversations and the lack of action make this a difficult book to trudge through. I do, however, recommend another of O'Connell's books - The Judas Child. show less
This was a read inspired by several conversations on LibraryThing, so I was disappointed and surprised not to like it better.
I found the jumping around from different characters' points of view very distracting. There were too many mysteries, too -- and the resolution not all that clear or satisfying.
I also agree with another reviewer who said it was hard to figure out what the characters in the book found so compelling about Mallory -- yes she was beautiful but so cold, so calculating, and amoral. So what.
I know negative reviews are unpopular. This isn't a judgement on those who enjoyed the book; I would rather enjoy a book myself than be disappointed. I do appreciate negative reviews that help me decide if it's worth investing my own show more time. I would rather have avoided this one. show less
I found the jumping around from different characters' points of view very distracting. There were too many mysteries, too -- and the resolution not all that clear or satisfying.
I also agree with another reviewer who said it was hard to figure out what the characters in the book found so compelling about Mallory -- yes she was beautiful but so cold, so calculating, and amoral. So what.
I know negative reviews are unpopular. This isn't a judgement on those who enjoyed the book; I would rather enjoy a book myself than be disappointed. I do appreciate negative reviews that help me decide if it's worth investing my own show more time. I would rather have avoided this one. show less
Kathleen Mallory's beloved foster-father is killed while pursuing a serial killer preying on elderly women in Gramercy Park. Mallory comes out from behind her computer to find the murderer. There are a lot of plot points related to magic and spiritualism until finally the killer is identified.
I liked this book. It is very well written with wonderful secondary characters. I did not yet warm to Mallory herself. I think that there are too many references to her beauty of which she is, of course, unaware, her green eyes (a beautiful fictional heroine cliche) and her scariness. I like tough female protaganists, but she is so cold it is difficult for me to actually like her, and I find it mysterious why all of the people in her show more world--including her beloved parents--do like her so much.
POTENTIAL SPOILERS
I loved the subplot featuring Margot Siddon and found it so haunting and compelling. For me, it echoed one of the saddest stories of my childhood The Little Match Girl. Margot just broke my heart -- so damaged, unloved and literally starving while just steps away from the banquet. When she finally completely loses her mind and begins stabbing strangers who she is convinced are her rapist, it was so inevitable and so preventable. I hope this unresolved thread means this will be re-visited in a future book in the series.
END SPOILER
Some of the ways the book was dated were amusing. Of course, Mallory's mad technical skills are very of the time and it is interesting to see how quickly computer capabiliities changed.
Frankly, the mystery itself was not very interesting to me for some reason. I didn't particularly feel interested in knowing who dunnit so much as in finding out more about the people populating the book.
Generally, this is a promising start to a series. I often find that whether I feel compelled to continue reading any given series has as a lot to do with whether or not the supporting cast interests me. In this case, Carol O'Connell creates fascinating people particularly Charles Butler. I will definitely read the second in the series and hopefully gain a way "in" to Mallory herself. show less
I liked this book. It is very well written with wonderful secondary characters. I did not yet warm to Mallory herself. I think that there are too many references to her beauty of which she is, of course, unaware, her green eyes (a beautiful fictional heroine cliche) and her scariness. I like tough female protaganists, but she is so cold it is difficult for me to actually like her, and I find it mysterious why all of the people in her show more world--including her beloved parents--do like her so much.
POTENTIAL SPOILERS
I loved the subplot featuring Margot Siddon and found it so haunting and compelling. For me, it echoed one of the saddest stories of my childhood The Little Match Girl. Margot just broke my heart -- so damaged, unloved and literally starving while just steps away from the banquet. When she finally completely loses her mind and begins stabbing strangers who she is convinced are her rapist, it was so inevitable and so preventable. I hope this unresolved thread means this will be re-visited in a future book in the series.
END SPOILER
Some of the ways the book was dated were amusing. Of course, Mallory's mad technical skills are very of the time and it is interesting to see how quickly computer capabiliities changed.
Frankly, the mystery itself was not very interesting to me for some reason. I didn't particularly feel interested in knowing who dunnit so much as in finding out more about the people populating the book.
Generally, this is a promising start to a series. I often find that whether I feel compelled to continue reading any given series has as a lot to do with whether or not the supporting cast interests me. In this case, Carol O'Connell creates fascinating people particularly Charles Butler. I will definitely read the second in the series and hopefully gain a way "in" to Mallory herself. show less
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Author Carol O'Connell was born in 1947. She attended the California Institute or Arts/Chouinard and Arizona State University, where she studied art. Before becoming a full-time writer, she worked as a freelance proofreader and copy editor as well as occasionally selling her paintings. At the age of 46, she wrote the first book in the Kathleen show more Mallory series and sold it to a British publisher. Her title The Chalk Girl made The New York Times Best Seller List for 2012. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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- Canonical title
- Mallory's Oracle
- Original publication date
- 1994-05-05
- People/Characters
- Kathy Mallory; Kathleen Mallory; Charles Butler; Margot Siddon; Henry Cathery; Louis Markowitz (show all 12); Helen Markowitz; Jonathan Gaynor; Jack Coffey; Edith Candle; Rabbi David Kaplan; Riker
- Important places
- New York, New York, USA; Gramercy Park, New York, New York, USA
- Dedication
- For Paul Sidey, with thanks
- First words
- The dog came when she called.
- Quotations
- "... when Helen died, he had been at the grave with Louis and Kathy. The watch and ring were more than gold to Louis, and he would not have given them up while he lived. The boy hovered close to the cage ... only wanting mo... (show all)ney to fill his veins with magic and fly away. There was a light tap at the pawnbroker's window. Kathy Mallory had come.... and she walked in slow, stalking on long legs in dungarees. A black blazer over her T-shirt hid the gun....: her eyes were cold green jewels set in ivory and framed in an aureole of gold."
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)A burst of pigeons took flight from the overhead branches of a tree, their wings rushing, all swirling as one, soaring up beyond the lamplight, screaming as one, night blind in teir flight, rising high above the woman with the wide, astonished eyes, and then gone over the rooftops, lost in the dark.
- Blurbers
- Kellerman, Jonathan; Sandford, John; Patterson, James B.; Hiaasen, Carl; DeMille, Nelson; Patterson, Richard North
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- 10 — Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Norwegian (Bokmål), Norwegian, Swedish
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- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
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