Helen A. Harrison

An Exquisite Corpse by Helen A. Harrison is a fantastic historical mystery with a touch of noir that does a wonderful job incorporating the real life people and feel of the Surrealist movement in New York during WWII.

The book starts with an explanation of an exquisite corpse and then continues to include interesting facts about the people and time period. I found the short chapters to be perfect because I would get up and go to the computer to find out more about the interesting people and show more artwork that Harrison had mentioned in the chapter. I think I spent equal amounts of time reading as I did on the computer! You can tell that Harrison really knows what she is talking about.

Now some authors may know a subject really well and give great lectures, but if they tried to write fiction it would be boring, but not Harrison. Her dialogue read how people really talk and the noir elements helped to make this mystery a bit more gritty. The killer was unexpected and helped to add to the realism in the story.

I highly recommend An Exquisite Corpse, and can’t wait to get my hands on book two in The Art of Murder Mysteries, An Accidental Corpse. show less

This historical mystery takes place in 1956 and combines real and fictional characters. It begins when two police officers and their 8-year-old son go on vacation to the shore. There they witness the fatal car accident that killed artist Jackson Pollack and one of his female passengers while throwing the other passenger out of the car.

Soon they learn that the female passenger was already dead when the accident happened. They are recruited by the local police chief to help with the show more investigation because his department is already stretched to the limits by a series of car accidents and the other problems that happen during the tourist season.

Fitz and Nita are glad to lend a helping hand and assist the local police. Nita is especially useful because she's a detective. There isn't another detective on the small town force.

I liked the way the story included historical details from the time period and information about local celebrities in the artistic community. I also liked that the story was told from a variety of viewpoints which added more detail.

As a mystery, it wasn't really all that mysterious. Once the villain appeared, it became quite clear what had happened and why. Before he appeared though, it was interesting to see what investigative techniques out heroes used and notice how many wouldn't be at all acceptable in a current police investigation.

Fans of historical mysteries and American artists would be a good audience for this story. show less

The Art of Murder Mystery series by Helen A. Harrison reminds me a bit of the Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters in regards to the books following the adventures of a family as they hunt down killers and solve mysteries. And they both are in the historical mystery genre and not a cozy mystery, as some readers may think.
While the first two books focus more on Det. Diaz and her husband, Captain Fitzgerald, in book three, An Artful Corpse, we see their son, TJ, taking over the reins show more while still going to his parents for advice. A very cool thing about these historical mysteries is that each one has taken place during a different decade, starting in the 1940’s and 1950’s, with An Artful Corpse taking an in depth look at society, the music scene (mainly folk), and the art culture during the 1960’s.
Harrison’s education and work experience really shines as she deftly weaves together lots of facts along with the fiction. While I’ve heard of a couple of the artists (Andy Warhol) and lots of the musicians (Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan, and Pete Seeger), it was very enjoyable learning more about them. I knew Warhol was out there, but dang, I didn’t realize all that he was doing.
I think most readers will realize who the killer is sooner rather than later in this one, but it continued to be a good read because I was invested in the characters and seeing how they would catch the killer. Another thing that I thought really made this historical mystery stand out was how the reader may actually have some sympathy for the killer.
Another great addition to An Art of Murder Mystery series and I’m looking forward to what Harrison has to say about the 1970’s aka the funkiest generation. show less

AN ACCIDENTAL CORPSE is a harmonious blending of fact and fiction. Jackson Pollock's drunk driving accident that killed him and Edith Metzger is the basis for the mystery. What if Edith wasn't killed in the accident but was already dead by strangulation? Surely survivor Ruth must know what happened. A dead girl, your roommate and best friend, doesn't just wind up dead in the back seat of your lover's car and you know nothing.
Vacationing police couple Fitz and Nita, with their son TJ, are show more witnesses to the wreck and first on the scene.
The mystery of Edith's death was solid and enjoyable. I likewise enjoyed my introduction to the Springs area of the time, it's Bonaker denizens, and the flourishing artistic community that had moved to the area. What a mix of characters.
It took me a while to warm up to Fitz and Nita, not sure why, it just did. For me, the first exchange between Capt. Steele and Nita, where she "set him straight" was unnecessary, awkward, and interrupted the flow of the story.
There were numerous references to The Exquisite Corpse, which intrigued me and occasionally made me feel I was missing out on something. I'll definitely be in line to read when it comes out.
If you enjoy seamless blending of fact & fiction mysteries, you will enjoy AN ACCIDENTAL CORPSE.

3.5 stars show less