Find Me

December 8, 2007 - Find Me (Carol O'Connell). This novel finds Kathy (that's Mallory to you) well out of her regular NYPD jurisdiction. She goes coast to coast on the hunt for a serial killer and on a simultaneous journey of self-discovery.

When the story begins, Mallory is already in the Midwest on Route 66, driving a Porsche disguised as a VW, with an assortment of music and old letters as her guide. She's following a route travelled by her long-lost father, a man named Peyton Hale. Through his letters, we learn that he had a genius for cars and a thing for rock-n-roll. And, we know that Mallory has his same green eyes.

In addition to being Mallory's father, Peyton Hale, it seems, could possibly be a serial killer. As Mallory follows the route laid out in his letters, she's also looking out for a caravan of people who travel Route 66 looking for missing children. The FBI is also on the case, and more bodies - both adults and long-dead children - keep turning up. The killer is obviously out there, too, but he manages to hide in plain sight as he continues his deadly deeds. The key to the case is Dodie Finn, a mentally damaged child who hums the tune "Mack the Knife" over and over.

As Mallory trails the killer on Route 66, her acquaintances (Mallory doesn't have friends) from New York, Det. Riker and Charles Butler, trail her. They meet up and do their best to keep the caravan together and keep the FBI from screwing up the case.

There are a lot of names of a lot of characters thrown around here, and the plot is rather involved. At times, it's hard to keep track of who's where and why and what they're doing. False leads abound. But, ultimately, Mallory gets her man. However, it's what she finds at the end of her personal journey that's more important. How important? It leaves her laughing! And, for someone who's always been more like a machine than a human, if Mallory's laughing, you know it must be serious.