Art Lovers’ Mysteries Books In Order

Publication Order of Art Lover's Mystery Books

Expectedly, the parents and extended family members of a child strive to rear a child accordingly and expect it to be righteous. What if a particular and close kin of the child strives to do the opposite, that is, mentor it on how to cash in on illegal business operations? Elsewhere, one of the most notable prerequisites of art collectors is being well heeled. What if a person is harboring art collecting ambitions but is angling for acquiring the best in the art world, albeit through underhand means? These are some of the examples which are present in the Art Lovers’ Mysteries.

Annie Kincaid is the featured protagonist in the Art Lovers’ Mysteries series which is authored by American woman (actually, women) of letters Hailey Lind. Incidentally, Hailey Lind is the single pen name adopted by two American writers and sisters whose birth names are Juliet Blackwell and Carolyne J. Lawes. The former is a businesswoman while the latter is a history professor. The four-pronged Art Lovers’ series revolves around the travails and exploits of Annie Kincaid. There is a bunch of editions of the first book in the said series. Most specifically, the first edition of the earliest book was initially published in January 2006, titled Feint Of Art, and, in general, the art-oriented series is shelved under the thriller, cozy mystery, and art genres.

The series is set in the backdrop of San Francisco Bay Area, in the state of California, the US. A notable aspect about the series is that it is somehow based on or inspired by author Juliet Blackwell’s real-life profession. Just like the main character therein, Blackwell runs a business specializing in mural portraits and faux marbleizing.

Meet Annie Kincaid. She is single and in her early thirties. Even then she has a lot of experience in matters concerning art. Kincaid hails from a family of not only art enthusiasts but also people knowledgeable about works of art, most notably her father and grandfather. The former is a professor of art and notable watercolorist. The latter is called Georges Lefluer and is a past master at art forgery. He was the one who introduced Kincaid to the world of art and taught her how to forge art, whereby they faked paintings dating from the Renaissance period. This stands her in good stead when she pursues a career in art, highlighted by attaining an art restoration degree. What’s more, she becomes the go-to professional in authenticating paintings.

During her teenage, Kincaid was jailed in Paris because of art forging and it prompted her to change her ways. After a stint in a museum, she was sacked when her dark past is noticed. She runs the San Francisco-based True/Faux Studios. Moreover, she has a former boyfriend called Ernst Pettigrew who is a curator at the fictitious Brock Museum, a place central to the plot of the series.

The first book in the serialized Art Lovers’ Mysteries, Feint Of Art, ushers in protagonist Annie Kincaid. Kincaid is between a rock and a hard place because her landlord has increased the rent twofold and her attractive boyfriend-cum-art robber has deserted her. In the formative pages of the said book, Ernst Pettigrew, Brock Museum’s curator and her ex-lover, consults her to identify the genuineness of a multi-million dollar Renaissance era painting. The painting by the renowned Italian painter Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, which has been acquired by the museum, is said to be worth a whooping fifteen million dollars. And thus it is a shocker when Kincaid reveals that it is merely a forgery and that its overrated.

The revelation triggers a flurry of events in the museum. The management soon realizes that a renowned art collector has been stealing the genuine priceless paintings and replacing them with fake and forged paintings. Her boyfriend cannot be found and, worse still, the museum’s janitor-cum-security guard has been murdered. Eager to get the award and settle her financial problems, Kincaid assumes the position of an amateur art detective and, using her old contacts, starts sleuthing.

There is more than she had bargained for. Meeting an indecisive art robber might pull her back into the vortex of art forging business. But this is overshadowed by the real Caravaggio painting which ends up in the hands of her grandfather and mentor. Nevertheless, Georges Lefluer exhibited the genuine painting in a multinational fakery exhibition wherein he clinched an award. As Hailey Lind masterfully reconciles Annie Kincaid’s grandfather and her dark past with the museum goings-on and boyfriend Ernst, it is out-and-out evident the book deserved being nominated for the Agatha Award.

Art Lovers’ Mysteries Awards
In 2006, the then fleshly published book, Feint Of Art, was shortlisted for the Agatha Award. This was in the Best First Novel category.

Best Art Lovers’ Mysteries Books
The following are the best two books out of the four in the Art Lovers’ series. Ordinarily, the preeminent one is the already analyzed Feint Of Art. The other one is the 2006 book titled Shooting Gallery which is the second in the series. Hereby, it revolves around the theft of a Marc Chagall painting from Brock Museum and an artist’s murder, the latter disguised as a sculpture; Bryan Boissevain, a longtime friend of Kincaid, is fingered for the heist because he allegedly distracted those present. Kincaid uses the attractive art robber Michael Johnson to trace the thief and murderer.

Other Book Series You May Like
Readers who took pleasure in the Art Lovers’ Series also added the following related series of books to their carts. The first one is the Glassblowing Mystery Series authored by Sarah Atwell; this literary series features protagonist Emmeline Dowell, a celebrated glassblower faced with a series of murders in her glassblowing premises. The second one is the Portrait of Crime Mystery penned by Sharon Pape; it features protagonist Rory McCain, an ex-policeman, sketch artist, and private eye, whose housemate a Marshall’s sghost. The other notable book series is titled Craft Corner and is penned by Mary Ellen Hughes; a cozy mystery, it features protagonist Jo McAllister who is faced with a series of murders ranging from the death of an irksome clown to the death and property developer to death of an old rival; McAllister, a person of interest, is seeking to exonerate himself from the gory incidents.