A WILLFUL CORPSE

Where there’s a will, there’s murder.

In the high-stakes game of authenticating artwork by Jackson Pollock, the foremost expert, a feisty character known for his hair-trigger temper, is certain that a bunch of bogus paintings are up for consideration. He believes they’re clever forgeries painted by a member of the late artist’s inner circle. Private detective TJ Fitzgerald is hired to track down the source.

Is it one of Pollock’s drinking buddies, his art dealer, or perhaps his lover?

As the evidence piles up and the culprit’s identity is about to be revealed, a fatal accident derails the investigation. Was it really an accident? Fitzgerald believes it was murder, with the forger as suspect number one. But the victim’s multiple wills suggest other motives. As one lead after another fails to pan out, a chance encounter sends the detective in a new, more sinister, direction.

. . .

“Helen Harrison knows her way around—upstairs and down—what is generally called the art world. Her forensic examination of the convergence of big money, big egos, and high achievements is based on insider knowledge few could rival. Trust her, but watch your back as you venture into her perilous domain. It is a place where more than one person you’ll meet deserves killing and is likely to fall victim to the intrigues that drew them and fellow denizens of the cultural mainstream and its backwaters like flies to a rotting corpse.” 

~ Rob Storr, former Dean, Yale School of Art

“A rich cast of characters with all the complexities and charm one could want…informed by a true insider’s eye. The writing and plot work [are] excellent.” 

~ Bronwen Hruska, author of Accelerated

“Another entertaining mystery from Helen Harrison! Skillfully weaving fact and fiction, A Willful Corpse will keep readers engaged from beginning to end.” 

~ Carrie Doyle, author, Hamptons Murder Mysteries;

co-founder, Hamptons Whodunit

“The mix of fact and fiction in this art-world thriller by insider Helen Harrison is as fun, fast, and complicated as trying to decipher the missing Jackson Pollock paintings at its core and figuring out which are real and which are fake.” 

~ Jonathan Santlofer, bestselling author of The Lost Van Gogh

and The Last Mona Lisa