The Killing Art: A Novel of Suspense

by Jonathan Santlofer

Book Overview

History and fiction collide with deadly consequences in the third Kate McKinnon novel--a story of bitter revenge, where the past invades the present and a decades-old secret proves fatal Kate McKinnon... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060541075
• ISBN13: 9780060541071
• Release Date: October 2005
• Publisher: William Morrow & Company
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 1.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

GREAT SUSPENSE FICTION ABOUT THE KILLING ART. I LOVE IT

History and fiction collide with deadly consequences in the third Kate McKinnon novel -- a story of bitter revenge, where the past invades the present and a decades-old secret proves fatal Kate McKinnon has lived many lives, from Queens cop to Manhattan socialite, television art historian, and the woman who helped the NYPD capture the Death Artist and the Color Blind killer. But that's the past. Now, devastated by the death of her husband, Kate is attempting to quietly rebuild her life as a single woman. Gone are the Park Avenue penthouse and designer clothes. Now it's a funky Chelsea loft, downtown fashion, and even a hip new haircut as Kate plunges back into her work -- writing a book about America's most celebrated artistic era, the New York School of the 1940s and '50s, a circle that included Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, and Mark Rothko. But when a lunatic starts slashing the very paintings she is writing about -- along with their owners -- Kate is once again tapped by the NYPD. As she deciphers the evidence -- cryptic images that reveal both the paintings and the people who will be the next targets -- Kate is drawn into a world where art and art history provide lethal clues. The Killing Art is Jonathan Santlofer's most gripping and chilling story yet, but that isn't the only reason the novel is remarkable. The author, who is also an acclaimed artist, has created works of art just for the book that tantalize and challenge readers by using well-known symbols in innovative ways, allowing them to decode the clues along with Kate. A masterwork of both suspense fiction and art, The Killing Art will impress both thriller readers and art fans as the plot twists and turns toward a shocking climax.

A suspenseful and thrilling third installment in the Kate McKinnon series

Jonathan Santlofer's third Kate McKinnon novel repeats the themes of his first two offerings: violence that erupts in the art world and/or around priceless works of art, murders of artists, curators, art collectors, and the occasional "collateral victim." Kate is a former Queens cop who married "up," quit her day job, and became a society matron, a philanthropist, host of a TV show on PBS, and now she is writing a book. In her last outing her husband is brutally murdered, and she insists she work as a consultant on the case. She brings to her colleagues a doctorate in Art History, thus giving the police (and readers) short courses on great artists and their work. To solve this crime, a working knowledge of the symbolism behind each painting and an understanding of the artist who created it are helpful. In THE KILLING ART, "original artwork by the author is included." This is an interesting device that challenges readers to help discover the clues and make the connections. Kate is a mover and shaker who uses her influence and money to help children who have potential that would die if not for the special opportunity she affords them. "Talk about timing. Just after her third miscarriage, tangled in the red tape of adoption, and here they were --- dozens of kids who needed her help. Kate had seen what the program could do --- offering a handful of kids special attention, less crowded classrooms, encouragement, and preparation for college, if they wanted to go." The plot centers on a killer who vandalizes and slashes great works of art as his signature. His plans go wrong in his second outing and he is caught; the owner of that artwork is his first kill. He enjoys it --- the power, the feeling of the knife entering the man --- and decides to add killing to his M.O. He escalates into a sociopath/psychopath committing increasingly ghoulish murders. In THE KILLING ART Kate once again inserts herself into the investigation of the series of diabolical killings that are connected to the slashed paintings. The spouse of one of her dear friends is murdered when he catches the killer in the act of destroying a painting that hangs in his home. Kate is determined not to let his or the deaths of the other victims go unsolved. The perp's M.O. makes for an interesting twist. S/he sends a warning, via a painting that incorporates the last victim's ruined canvas, and hints at who the next target is. Since Kate is writing a book about the New York School of artists and their inner circle known as the "irascibles," she definitely is an asset to what appears to be a vendetta against their work. "To the artists of the New York School painting was their life, their soul, their raison d'etre. For them the 1930s and '40s were defined by cold-water flats, hard work, heavy drinking; painters hanging out in bars and coffee shops, arguing about the latest trends and ideas --- creation over completion, painting as an event --- but most of all, it was a time of intense frie

A "can't put it down" read.

Jonathan Santlofer's 3rd book is even better than the first two, both of which I loved. This is a book like no others. Smart, witty, suspenseful, fast-paced. The Killing Art combines history and fiction in a most creative way. It may even encourage you to go back to learn what really happened among the most prominent painters of the New York School. Personally, I love to get a glimpse into a world of which I know nothing, and this book does just that.

Unique, suspenseful mystery!

With "The Killing Art," Jonathan Santlofer has written a well-paced, intelligent and suspenseful mystery with a unique twist. The author has made art and it's history feel like a character in his book by including black and white paintings by the killer who is targeting paintings from the 1930s and the owners of those works. It draws you into a world where art and it's history provide clues for the reader to decipher along with the police. These cryptic images reveal hints as to as to the killer`s identity and the actual people who will be the next targets. It was fun to feel I could participate in the investigation as I tried to decipher the evidence, and "play detective" along with the characters in the novel. An intriguing, thinking person's mystery which is often surprising, and ultimately very satisfying. I'd recommend it not only to lovers of suspense, but to anyone who enjoys intelligent, storytelling. Be prepared to be educated, intrigued, and thoroughly entertained. Highly recommend!

existing crime thriller

Former NYPD detective Kate McKinnon quit the force after her husband was murdered to become an art historian. She was drawn back into police work when art and murder intersected in the cases of the DEATH ARTIST and the COLOR BLIND. Now she is writing a book about the New York School of abstract impressionists of the 1930's and 1940's like Phillip Zander. One of the paintings Kate donated to the Modernist Museum was slashed beyond repair and she later finds out that a Jackson Pollack painting was defaced in the sane manner a few weeks earlier. The same person ruins a Kline painting at the home of Kate's friends the Starnetts and kills the male member of the twosome. Kate is once again drawn into a murder case. The killer strikes three more times leaving a clue each time. Even when various police departments and the FBI finally believe they know who the killer was after he died in a shoot out, Kate is convinced that the person was not a murderer just a thief and con man. Acting on a hunch, she enters a scenario where innocent people could die. Jonathan Santlofer has written an existing crime thriller that focuses on the cliques, petty jealousies and the competition for attention that is prevalent in the art world. The small paintings that contain the clue the killer sends to the victims are placed in various chapters in the book giving the plot an artsy feel and makes the reader feel that they are part of the investigation. The protagonist is a strong woman still recovering from the death of her husband but is determined so make a new life for herself. Readers with will eagerly await her next adventure. Harriet Klausner