I've been meaning to read Anne Emery for ages as I was lucky enough to meet her at the Bloody Words Mystery Conference and thought she was generally fabulous.
Living in Halifax, I was particularly interested in this book - the city itself has such character that it tends to take over some books, and the history of the church in this town has been...well...awkward at times. As has my history with the church.
All excellent reasons to leap into the Sign of the Cross.
The book starts out slowly, and I have to say I really disliked Monty's ex-wife, who never seems able to enter a room without making a derogatory crack about her ex-spouse, but within the first few chapters I was inexorably drawn in by the feeling of evil and mystery and the locale and the characters. I developed a significant crush on both main characters, and am eagerly looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
I thought I had it solved early on, but was fooled completely. When the villain is finally revealed, the crimes are almost understandable.
I DO love a villain with some good to them.
An excellent way to spend a day, especially in a town enshrouded in fog.
( )

How did I ever miss this one? Published in Canada in 2008, I won a copy in ECW Publisher's Shelf Monkey giveaway in May. I'm so glad I got this first one in an ongoing series. It's definitely going to be one I'll pursue to catch up on all seven now in print.

It has wonderful characters: Montague (Monty) Collins, the only criminal defense lawyer in his law firm; Fr. Brennan Burke, Irish export with an angelic voice, and a love of good liturgical music; Maura MacNeil, Monty's estranged wife; and a large cast of supporting nuns, priests and admin ladies at the rectory and the school, and barristers at the law firm. There are ex-girl friends, orphans, and poker buddies. There are retired cops, current cops, bartenders, thugs, and disappointed parishioners.

Burke has not led the most exemplary of celibate or vice-free lives, either before or after his ordination. His Irish charm and matching temper often put him into situations best described as "dicey." However, when a young woman who had been employed at the Music School where Burke is the choir director is found murdered, the police immediately identify the good Father as the prime suspect. Later, a second murder with the same MO and forensic evidence seals the matter as far as the police are concerned, leading them to describe him as a "serial killer."

Collins reluctantly agrees to take on Burke's defense, but cannot get Brennan to open up about anything in his past to help identify who could possibly be framing him, and when Brennan's insistence on testifying in his own behalf backfires, all hope seems lost.

The plot is multi-layered, there are many suspects and scenarios that present themselves along the way. I especially liked the Canadian court setting. I knew nothing about how the legal system works in Nova Scotia but Emery explains it well without becoming bogged down in minutiae.

This is a series that has caught my attention. The delightful and well-drawn characters, the interesting and unusual (for me) setting, and the intricate plotting has me already searching out the next one in the series. ( )

This was lent me by a friend who knows my fondness for mysteries, particularly Louise Penny's mysteries. For some reason she felt this book was kind of a cognate to those. Now, that I don't see, but it is a good read, with some interesting entanglements and complicated characters. ( )

Sign of the Cross. Anne Emery. 2006. First person. First in a series of mysteries that take place in Nova Scotia. The main character is an attorney with a large law firm who used to be what we would call a public defender. He is separated from his wife who is also a lawyer who has continued to work for various causes and downtrodden people. They remain civil for their two children. The lawyer is asked to defend a priest who has been accused of murdering to young women. This priest is handsome, smart, Irish, out spoken, and very human. He has started a choir school and those who like church music will really enjoy the descriptions of the music. There are numerous twists and turns and you really began to like these people. I had hoped there would be more about Nova Scotia…I plan to read the next three in the series and so does Jim. They are Obit (2007), Barrington Street Blues (2008), and Cecilian Vespers (2009). ( )

An entertaining fast-paced mystery with a good cast of characters. I will definitely be reading everything in this series. Full review: http://www.canadianauthors.net/e/emery_anne/sign_of_the_cross.php ( )