Jessie O’Bourne is the protagonist of the Jessie and Jack Art Mystery series by Mary Ann Cherry. She is a professional artist who paints western landscapes and travels to art shows, living in rural Montana with her orange tomcat Jack.
Background
Jessie comes from a Montana ranching family and has built a career as a professional painter. Like her creator Mary Ann Cherry, Jessie specializes in western art and sees the world through a painter’s eye, often describing everyday scenes as if composing a canvas. Her artistic perspective gives the series a distinctive voice among mystery novels.
Mysteries
In Death on Canvas, Jessie discovers a dying girl while painting haystacks on her father’s property. The investigation that follows connects a century-old theft of masterpiece paintings to modern-day murders. Her artistic knowledge and connections in the art world make her a natural, if reluctant, detective. Jack the cat provides moral support and occasional comic relief throughout.
Reading Order
See the complete Jessie and Jack Art Mystery reading order for all books in the series.