The Mourning Sexton [Paperback]

Michael Baron (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 28, 2006

After an embezzlement conviction, David Hirsch is eager to rebuild his law career. But a new investigation reveals a conspiracy of corruption and cold-blooded murder that could prove Hirsch's downfall--or total redemption.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

David Hirsch was managing partner of a prestigious St. Louis law firm until he was convicted of embezzlement and sent to federal prison. He had also been involved with drugs and accused of sexual harassment. After serving his time and regaining admission to the bar, he is eager to make a fresh start and reconcile with his estranged daughter. In doing so, he has returned to Judaism, participating in an Orthodox minyan. When one of the elderly men in the congregation asks him to investigate his daughter's death, he reluctantly agrees. While researching the case, he finds that murder may be behind a routine product-liability matter. As he digs deeper, he discovers major corruption in high places, endangering his life. His desire for atonement and justice demonstrate both commitment to basic Jewish values and a return to the true practice of law. This debut novel by a pseudonymous St. Louis attorney will appeal to Scott Turow fans. Hirsch, a multidimensional, clearly flawed hero, has the makings of a fine series lead. Barbara Bibel
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

Advance praise for Michael Baron’s The Mourning Sexton:

“There is a maxim in the legal profession that the law does not concern itself with trifles, and Michael Baron, in his wonderful story, does not concern himself with trifles. The Mourning Sexton shows what the law is really supposed to be about—morality, atonement, responsibility, and redemption. A truly original legal thriller by a fresh, new voice.”
—Nelson DeMille


“The Mourning Sexton is an original thriller with a clever plot and a complex and fascinating hero; a good read that is difficult to put down.”
—Phillip Margolin, author of Lost Lake



“Michael Baron has penned an extraordinarily nuanced novel that other writers will be alluding to with envy for years to come.”
—Jeremiah Healy, author of Invasion Of Privacy and The Only Good Lawyer

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Jove (February 28, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0515141461
• ISBN-13: 978-0515141467
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 3.8 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,694,812 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Divorced, disbarred, and destitute.", May 15, 2005

By 

E. Bukowsky "booklover10" (NY United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Mourning Sexton: A Novel of Suspense (Hardcover)

St. Louis Attorney David Hirsch is the protagonist of "The Mourning Sexton," a thoughtful, touching, and suspenseful legal thriller. Hirsch has it all--a privileged childhood, a degree from Harvard Law School, a job in a prestigious firm, a wife, and two beautiful daughters. What does he do with all his bounty? He embezzles money, sleeps around, uses cocaine and alcohol liberally, and ends up serving seven years in Allenwood, a federal penitentiary. Upon his release, David has nothing--no family, no job, and no friends, except for his old pal, fellow attorney Seymour Rosenbloom.

David starts to rebuild his life slowly. He resumes practicing law under strict guidelines outlined by the Missouri Supreme Court. He also starts to attend synagogue, where he is known as the "mourning sexton," since it is his job to lead the elderly congregation in the saying of "kaddish," the prayer for the dead. When one of his fellow congregants, Abe Shifrin, asks David to look into the death of Abe's daughter, Judith, David is reluctant to get involved. Judith was a lawyer who died in a car accident three years earlier; it seems pointless to take action now. However, to please the old man, David files a wrongful death suit on Abe's behalf. While investigating the facts surrounding Judith's death, David is horrified to discover that this young woman may have been murdered.

David Hirsch is a terrific character. He is a man who threw away everything that was important to him, and instead of being bitter about it, he willingly takes the punishment that he knows he deserves. However, contact with some good people, including a rabbi in prison, has given David a glimmer of what he could be. His duties as a sexton in synagogue, his relationship with Seymour, who stood by him when no one else would, and his involvement in Judith's case all bring David a sense of purpose. He decides that there are certain things in life worth fighting for--among them, family, friends, justice, and self-respect.

Michael Baron's plot has some familiar elements, such as legal corruption, greed, and murder for hire. Naturally, our hero puts himself in danger while he searches for the truth behind Judith's death, and he even falls in love with a beautiful law professor. However, Baron keeps his book from merely degenerating into a series of clichés. He takes the time to flesh out the warm relationship between David and Seymour, and he skillfully shows David's growth from a man who merely exists into a real "mensch," a person of value. This book features witty, humorous, and entertaining dialogue, and a number of colorful characters, such as Jumbo Redding, an ex-con whose wizardry with computers helps David acquire vital information. Baron writes about complex legal issues skillfully, and he keeps the reader guessing until the end. "The Mourning Sexton" is a wonderful novel by an extremely talented author.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A literate evisceration of legal deceits, April 19, 2005

By 

Luan Gaines "luansos" (Dana Point, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Mourning Sexton: A Novel of Suspense (Hardcover)

The Mourning Sexton is an intelligent, provocative novel of suspense that tracks the death of a young woman, Judith Shifrin, a law clerk for the US District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, her mentor the Honorable Brendan McCormick. Virtually untouchable in his judgeship, McCormick is a contemporary of David Hirsch, the lawyer filing a civil wrongful death suit against the car manufacturer and other associated vendors of the automobile that potentially caused the death of the young woman one cold December night.

A bit of an anomaly himself, Hirsch was once a high-flying trial lawyer, poised at the top of the legal food chain, with the hubris to prove it. Drawn into a clever embezzlement scheme, that very arrogance proves to be his undoing and Hirsch spends a number of years in Federal prison for his part in the crime, now reinstated in the practice of law under the auspices of long-time friend, Seymour Rosenbloom.

Rediscovering his Jewish roots, Hirsch joins a group of men who pray together every morning at a synagogue near his home; hence the title, The Mourning Sexton, as these men, a minyan, recite prayers for the dead as part of their daily ablutions. One of these men, Abe Shifrin, convinces Hirsch to file the lawsuit on behalf of his daughter. Time is of the essence, as Shifrin has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, which is progressing rapidly, pitting Hirsch against the inevitable.

What should be a relatively simple settlement case turns into something entirely different, as Hirsch uncovers documentation that Judith was onto some serious legal misconduct involving high-ranking figures in St. Louis's legal establishment. What appeared to be an accident may, in fact, be murder. Hirsch incorporates the aid of best friend, a public-spirited young woman who runs a legal clinic for abused women, and some behind-the-scenes expertise of a fellow con and computer expert, following the meager trail Judith left like scattered breadcrumbs in Hansel and Gretel's forest. But when everything adds up in a complex and intriguing mix of motives and sneaky machinations, Hirsch is holding evidence of a scheme to defraud that puts him imminent danger.

The author, a lawyer writing under a pseudonym, dives into the world of legalities with gusto, Hirsch the underdog tacking corporate litigators that would intimidate a lesser man. Hirsch is set on his own personal atonement, former excesses and personal losses weighing on his soul, cognizant of the obstacles in his path, the enormous influence of corporate wealth and his threat to the status quo. As one high-powered, well-cushioned attorney says to Hirsch on the merits of his case: "We both know the existence of St. Louis juries is the reason why we have the court of appeals." Undaunted, Hirsch makes his bid for personal redemption and a moral resolution to a young woman's senseless death, upsetting the carefully-laid plans of St. Louis's power brokers and proving himself a changed man in the process. Luan Gaines/2005.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant splash on the legal thriller scene, April 30, 2005

By 

Bookreporter (New York, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mourning Sexton: A Novel of Suspense (Hardcover)

A brilliant splash on the legal thriller scene, this debut novel starts placidly with ex-con, now-restored attorney David Hirsch performing his duties as gabbai at a daily mourning ritual. He is beginning fresh after falling to extreme lows in both his legal and personal lives, working mainly bankruptcy reorganizations and settlements under the supervision of his old friend Seymour Rosenbloom.

One morning, one of the men gathered for the minyan asks Hirsch to help him. He wishes to find justice for his daughter, Judith, who died three years earlier in a tragic accident. He needs to act quickly, though, before the statute of limitations runs out --- and before his memory falls victim entirely to his advancing Alzheimer's. At first, Hirsch balks, claiming his days as a plaintiff's attorney are over. But the old man's pleas, coupled with Hirsch's desire to reconnect with his own estranged daughters, persuade him to at least consider it. The story steadily gathers momentum from there.

What appeared on the surface as a fairly straightforward wrongful death case starts to look much more sinister the deeper that Hirsch digs. The basic facts seem uncomplicated: Judith volunteered to drive Judge McCormick home from a party due to his advanced degree of inebriation. McCormick, a man Judith had clerked for and seemingly admired, acceded to her suggestion. Icy roads and a lack of familiarity with McCormick's SUV were blamed for what happened. The judge, apparently insulated by his relaxed alcoholic state, survived the crash. Judith did not. Her father, still smarting from the sting of a strained relationship with Judith, grappled with the decision to sue the auto manufacturer, tire fabricator, and anyone associated with the vehicle and its components. But believing that slick streets took his daughter from him is something the old man simply refuses to do.

With the aid of Seymour Rosenbloom and highly respected --- and beautiful --- Dulcie Lorenz, Hirsch forges ahead against the defendants' high-powered lawyers, colleagues who carry a long-time grudge and no admiration for the recently released felon. It looked like it could get ugly. And it did. Uglier than Hirsch would have believed possible. It started to get downright dangerous. And coming out of it alive was looking doubtful.

To complicate matters, the ice between him and his youngest daughter has begun to thaw. As delighted as he is to have her back in his life, he must push her away in order to protect her. In fact, he isolates himself from everyone he cares about. The less they know, the safer they will be.

Author Michael Baron, an attorney himself, has no trouble making the legal aspects of the story sound authentic. The courtrooms come alive in his deft hands, with rich characters that texture THE MOURNING SEXTON with a lush feeling of realism.

--- Reviewed by Kate Ayers