Aaron Elkins (born July 24, 1935 in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

) is an American mystery writer. He is best known for his series of novels featuring

forensic anthropologist Forensic anthropology is the application of the anatomical science of anthropology and its various subfields, including forensic archaeology and forensic taphonomy, in a legal setting. A forensic anthropologist can assist in the identification o ...

Gideon Oliver—the 'skeleton detective'.

Biography

Elkins's father was a machinist, his mother a homemaker. Elkins graduated from Hunter College in 1956 with a Bachelor of Arts, after which he studied at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

, earned master of arts degrees at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

(1960) and

California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public university in Los Angeles, California. It is part of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degrees, 122 master's degrees, ...

(1962), and received a doctorate in Education (Ed.D.) in 1976 from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

. Elkins had a multi-year career as a government employee, consultant, lecturer, and teacher in the fields of business, psychology, and anthropology. Elkins and his wife, Charlotte Elkins, live in Sequim,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

; they have two children.

Writing

Elkins began his first novel (the first in the Gideon Oliver series) in 1978, at the age of 42. The fourth Oliver book, ''Old Bones'', received the 1988 Edgar Award for "Best Mystery Novel" and was nominated for the

1988 Anthony Award Bouchercon is an annual convention of creators and devotees of mystery and detective fiction. It is named in honour of writer, reviewer, and editor Anthony Boucher; also the inspiration for the Anthony Awards, which have been issued at the conve ...

in the same category. The seventh Gideon Oliver novel, ''Make No Bones'', was nominated for an Agatha Award in 1991. In another series, the protagonist is

museum curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

Chris Norgren, an expert in Northern Renaissance art. His third novel in the Chris Norgren series, ''Old Scores'', won a

Nero Award The Nero Award is a literary award for excellence in the mystery genre presented by The Wolfe Pack, a society founded in 1978 to explore and celebrate the Nero Wolfe stories of Rex Stout Rex Todhunter Stout (; December 1, 1886 – October 27, ...

for best mystery novel (1994), and was also nominated for an Agatha Award for "Best Novel". One of his stand-alone thrillers, '' Loot'', deals with art stolen by the Nazis and introduces protagonist Dr. Benjamin Revere. With his wife, he has also co-written a series of golf mysteries about LPGA member Lee Ofsted. They shared an Agatha Award (1992) for their short story "Nice Gorilla".

Works

Gideon Oliver novels

#''Fellowship of Fear'' (1982) #''The Dark Place'' (1983) #''Murder in the Queen's Armes'' (1985) #''Old Bones'' (1987) #''Curses!'' (1989) #''Icy Clutches'' (1990) #''Make No Bones'' (1991) #''Dead Men's Hearts'' (1994) #''Twenty Blue Devils'' (1997) #''Skeleton Dance'' (2000) #''Good Blood'' (2004) #''Where There's a Will'' (2005) #''Unnatural Selection'' (2006) #''Little Tiny Teeth'' (2007) #''Uneasy Relations'' (2008) #''Skull Duggery'' (2009) #''Dying on the Vine'' (2012) # ''Switcheroo'' (2016)

Chris Norgren novels

#''A Deceptive Clarity'' (1987) #''A Glancing Light'' (1991) #''Old Scores'' (1993)

Lee Ofsted novels (with Charlotte Elkins)

#''A Wicked Slice'' (1989) #''Rotten Lies'' (1995) #''Nasty Breaks'' (1997) #''Where Have all the Birdies Gone?'' (2004) #''On the Fringe'' (2005)

Alix London novels (with Charlotte Elkins)

#''A Dangerous Talent'' (2012) ''(German version: Gefährliches Talent, Translator: Olaf Knechten, 2013)'' # ''A Cruise to Die For'' (2013) # ''The Art Whisperer'' (2014) # ''The Trouble with Mirrors'' (2016)

Other novels

*''Loot'' (1999) *''Turncoat'' (2002) *''The Worst Thing'' (2011) *''A Long Time Coming'' (2018)

Adaptations

The character of Gideon Oliver appeared in an eponymous TV series starring

Louis Gossett Jr. Louis Cameron Gossett Jr. (born May 27, 1936) is an American actor. Born in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York City, He had his stage debut at the age of 17, in a school production of '' You Can't Take It with You.'' Shortly after he successfully ...

that ran on the ABC television network between February 1989 and May 1989 as part of the ABC Mystery Movie rotation.

References

External Links

Interview with Aaron Elkins
''A DISCUSSION WITH National Authors on Tour'' TV Series, Episode #12 (1992)
Interview with Aaron Elkins
''A DISCUSSION WITH National Authors on Tour'' TV Series, Episode #85 (1994) {{DEFAULTSORT:Elkins, Aaron 1935 births Living people American mystery writers 20th-century American novelists Edgar Award winners Agatha Award winners Nero Award winners Writers from Sequim, Washington Writers from Brooklyn Hunter College alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni University of Arizona alumni California State University, Los Angeles alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni American male novelists 20th-century American male writers Novelists from New York (state) Novelists from Washington (state)