Add another hard-nosed female detective to the list. This one's a lanky blonde named Freddie O'Neal who lives among the motels and casinos of Reno, Nev., pilots a small plane to Las Vegas when she needs to check leads, and subsists on a stomach-numbing diet of greasy burgers and instant coffee. She's also a loner who's capable of steely pragmatism but tentative about showing affection for those close to her. Freddie is hired by Joan Halliday, an ex-showgirl, to investigate the drug-dealing, neglectful caretakers of Joan's elderly father.
