Helen Reilly

Helen Reilly
BornApril 25, 1891
New York City
DiedJanuary 11, 1962(1962-01-11) (aged 70)
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Other namesKieran Abbey
EducationHunter College
OccupationMystery writer
OrganizationsMystery Writers of America (president, 1953)
SpousePaul Reilly (1914–1944)
Children4, including Mary McMullen and Ursula Curtiss
ParentJames Michael Kieran
RelativesJohn Kieran (brother)

Helen Reilly (April 25, 1891 – January 11, 1962), was an American mystery writer known for a series of novels featuring Inspector Christopher McKee, head of the fictitious Manhattan Homicide Squad. She wrote mostly under her own name but also under the pseudonym Kieran Abbey.[1] A member of the Mystery Writers of America, she served as its president in 1953.[2]

Born Helen Kieran in New York City in 1891, she attended Hunter College, graduating in 1914.[2] In that same year, she married Paul Reilly, an artist.[1] Two of their four daughters, Ursula Curtiss and Mary McMullen, also became published mystery writers.[3]

Reilly died on January 11, 1962, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She was preceded in death by her husband in 1944.[2]

  1. ^ a b Bakerman, Jane S. (1980). "Reilly, Helen". In John M. Reilly (ed.). Twentieth-Century Crime and Mystery Writers. Macmillan. pp. 1251–54.
  2. ^ a b c "Helen Reilly". Contemporary Authors Online. Gale. 2002. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  3. ^ Bakerman, Jane S. (1980). "McMullen, Mary". In John M. Reilly (ed.). Twentieth-Century Crime and Mystery Writers. Macmillan. pp. 1059–60.