A Necessary Evil (Maggie O'Dell)

I can't wait to read the sequel A perfect Evil. This book was terrific. I couldn't put it down.

As usual I was not dissapointed with the latest Maggie O'Dell installment. This character has all the ingredients of superstardom. She is as vunerable as she is strong, I love it. I can't wait to see what happens next with her and Nick, her and her half-brother and even with her mother. I love the way each novel slowly shows us a chapter in her life with out a real conclusion, because that's the way life really is, all behind the back drop of hunting serial killers.

My better half started reading this series a while back and now has me hooked! Alex Kava knows how to write a tight suspenseful story line, with some great twist and turns, but yet still keeps the storyline somewhat realistic. I don't understand Why Ms. Kava is not better known. This is heads and tails above anything the mega selling book machine James Patterson has ever put out. This time out Maggie O'Dell is investigating what seem to be two unrelated mass murders. One involves the decapitation of young women in Washington DC, but then she is called back to Nebraska on a case involving the serial murders of Catholic priests. I won't ruin any of the surprises but Kava manages to weave these two story lines together into a surprise conclusion. Many of my favorite characters from earlier books make an appearance to round out the fun. In conclusion, this is another great read from a great storyteller. Fans of the O'Dell series will be happy, and those new to it should go back and start at the beginning.

Alex Kava pulls off a nifty shocker with lots of twists in this latest Maggie O'Dell offering. Kava deftly handles two seemingly unrelated serial murders: Maggie is investigating the gruesome decapitations of young women in the DC area when she is called back to Nebraska to profile the serial murderer of Catholic priests. Meanwhile, Maggie's best friend and mentor, Dr. Gwen Patterson, is acting strangely and we find early on that Gwen is receiving notes from the DC killer--a killer who just might be a patient. In Nebraska, Maggie is paired with Omaha PD's Tommy Pacula, and of course she runs into her boyfriend from the first novel, Nick Morelli, who is now engaged to be married. Lo and behold, who else should be involved but Father Michael Keller, the ruthless killer from the first novel who finds himself targeted by the priest killer. There is a possible tie-in with young boys who have started a new game on the Internet, with their leader only known as The Sineater. Maggie works hard to establish the connection before time runs out, and in doing so must make a deal with the devil Keller. A NECESSARY EVIL is great fun, and Kava effortlessly interweaves these storylines with a good ironic ending. Fans of the series will rejoice and if you're new, go back and pick up the other O'Dell books--they are very well done.

In DC and in Nebraska someone is killing men who have abused power with an emphasis on priests. Though the M.O. is similar and the victims all tainted, FBI profiler Maggie O'Dell begins to think two different perpetrators are at work with a common bond. That assumption leads her with the help of her mentor Dr. Gwen Patterson and Detective Julia Racine to search for the link between the killers, which she believes, is an Internet role-playing game for those who have suffered abuse at the hands powerful males. As Maggie worries about her friend Gwen who is acting strange and wants distance from Julia, the case takes a weird spin when the man she hates most in the world, brutal Father Michael Keller, is forced to return based on a package he received while hiding in a remote part of South America, with an offer to help her stop the killings in return for his ability to vanish once again in Venezuela. Maggie debates making a Faustian deal with the child killing devil while vengeance continues. Alex Kava's latest exhilarating O'Dell thriller showcases the profiler struggling with a complex case made more difficult by the actions of her beloved teacher Gwen, whose fears of field work hampers her ability to help. The fast-paced story line for the most part contains the two subplots that move back and forth between Omaha and DC before tying together in an exciting action-packed tale. Fans of the series will enjoy Maggie's dilemma as to whether to deal with A NECESSARY EVIL or not. Harriet Klausner