Mystery novelist Carol O’Connell has written eight books featuring New York detective Kathleen Mallory. The ninth, “Find Me,” takes place prominently on the Mother Road.
I found out about O’Connell’s book, which has been in stores for about a week, with this review in the Arizona Republic:
Mallory is missing at the outset, and in her apartment is a woman who has died of a gunshot wound. Riker, Mallory’s partner, tries to find her before suspicion settles on her head. But he’s up against the powerful pull of Mallory’s mysterious past: She’s traveling west on old Route 66, tracking a serial killer who has murdered children all along the decommissioned road, but she’s also chasing the memories of the father she never knew. By the end of this book, you’ll learn a lot about Mallory’s disturbing childhood, and about why as a little girl she was homeless and alone on the streets of New York City until a police detective and his wife took her in. She’s one of the most interesting characters in crime fiction today, but this book has the added attraction of the Mother Road and a climactic scene near Seligman.
Here’s also a description of “Find Me” from the Penguin Group, her publisher.
The Amazon.com listing also contains overviews from Publishers Weekly and Booklist. Only five readers have reviewed “Find Me” so far. But the descriptions from them of the writing and plot are intriguing enough that I’m going to see whether I can get my hands on a review copy and report back on what I find. This could be a nice pickup for Route 66 aficionados.