From Publishers Weekly
story in 1994. She is an American criminologist working in Toronto. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Fallen from grace, ex-Toronto judge Ellis Portal, known to street acquaintances as "Your Honor," leads a basically homeless existenceAbut by choice. His focus, however, is changed by the request of a homeless woman friend: she wants him to investigate the suspicious death of a homeless friend of hers. Soon Ellis finds himself visiting his former courthouse stomping groundsAdisguised as an officer of the courtAafter two further deaths convince him that a murderer has targeted homeless court "groupies." Second in a series following Free Reign (LJ 2/1/97), this title draws strength from its rich detailing, humble characters, and flawed protagonist. Highly recommended. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
This second novel in the Ellis Portal series is so richly written that it stands out in a genre often divided between stories with good characters and those with good plots. Make no mistake--this is a compelling suspense story, as protagonist Ellis Portal scours the streets and courtrooms of Toronto to find a Bible-quoting serial killer. It is also an engrossing look inside the mind of Portal, a former judge who has fallen from the good life to the streets. Aubert never states exactly how Portal suffered such drastically altered circumstances, but he subtly lets the reader get to know Portal through his reflections on his life on the streets and ongoing pain at the estrangement from his family. As Queenie, an old and incongruous friend of Portal's, prods him into helping her find out who murdered her homeless friend, he is forced to abandon his self-imposed exile to return to the real world. Aubert's eloquent prose and Portal's sad plight combine to make this a story that stays with you long after you finish it. A true feast for the mind, spirit, and heart. Jenny McLarin


From Kirkus Reviews
Ex-judge, ex-criminal, exstreet-person Ellis Portal has left downtown Toronto for the lonely shelter of an unused government fish hatchery when his street friend Queenie Johnson catches up with him. Queenie's best friend Melia Campbell has died, and Queenie doesn't believe the official verdict that she froze to death outdoors as early as November. Ellis agrees to return to Toronto to investigate but gets delayed by a second call for help from his imperious old schoolmate, Supreme Court Justice John Stoughton-Melville, whose Alzheimers-stricken wife Harpur, once Ellis's hopeless love, has disappeared from her nursing home. By the time Ellis has seen Harpur rescued by handsome young Vincent Genovi, whom Harpur seems to confuse with Ellis, Melia's friend Pauline del Mario has died under similar circumstancesmeaning that Sgt. Matt West is no more interested in her death than in Melia's. But Ellis, who's been getting vaguely threatening messages that hint at a probable fate the same as that of the victims, suspects that they're linked as habitus of the local courthouse, and goes undercover as a Court Services Officer in the courthouse where he'd once presided as a judgeand where his daughter Ellen now argues cases as a Crown prosecutor. It's his troubled relationship with Harpur, though, that will provide the key to the mystery. Not as original as Ellis's remarkable debut, Free Reign (1997), but still plotted with elegant simplicity, a rhythm all its own, and a knack for turning the simplest investigative procedures into dramatic challenges by depriving the hero of the majesty of the law. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

ANNOTATION

A disgraced judge living in poverty investigates the death of homeless women in Toronto. Police blame the deaths on the weather, but a friend of a victim suspects foul play. By applying his experience as an indigent, ex-judge Ellis Portal uncovers a serial killer who targets street people.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The Feast of Stephen is the second in criminologist Aubert's series featuring Ellis Portal, the disgraced former judge who solved the mystery in her acclaimed 1997 novel Free Reign, which was republished in translation in France, Germany and Japan.

In this new novel, Ellis' old Toronto street friend Queenie tells him of a friend who seemingly has frozen to death in the harsh winter weather before Christmas. Queenie regards the death as suspicious. Ellis remains unconvinced until a second and then a third person die and he realizes all were court "groupies," people who appeared in court every day to watch the proceedings, for a mixture of reasons. Each was found with a verse from the Bible in his or her possession — similar to threatening Bible verses that Ellis himself has begun receiving.

Ellis carries his investigation into the courts and law offices of Toronto, and into a private psychiatric hospital, the streets of the city, and a seedy boardinghouse where he now lives. He discovers all the victims were felled by the poison curare, cleverly administered. As he begins to close in on the killer, Ellis has near-fatal brushes with the poison himself — and the Bible verses continue to appear. Christmas, King Wenceslas and saints' feast days play a part in tracking down the murderer and the motive. Hence the title. The Feast of Stephen is an erudite, clever, puzzle-solving mystery.

FROM THE CRITICS

Marilyn Stasio - New York Times Book Review

"During the long days of my life as a vagrant, observation had become my hobby, my passion," says Portal, who uses this opportunity to study human society with the intelligence and moral integrity that make him such an appealing sleuth.

Publishers Weekly

FYI: Aubert won the Canadian Crime Writers' Arthur Ellis Award for best crime story in 1994. She is an American criminologist working in Toronto. Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Fallen from grace, ex-Toronto judge Ellis Portal, known to street acquaintances as "Your Honor," leads a basically homeless existence--but by choice. His focus, however, is changed by the request of a homeless woman friend: she wants him to investigate the suspicious death of a homeless friend of hers. Soon Ellis finds himself visiting his former courthouse stomping grounds--disguised as an officer of the court--after two further deaths convince him that a murderer has targeted homeless court "groupies." Second in a series following Free Reign (LJ 2/1/97), this title draws strength from its rich detailing, humble characters, and flawed protagonist. Highly recommended. Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Robert Wade - San Diego Union-Tribune

In an era where most mysteries are notable for their similarities rather than their differences, Rosemary Aubert has succeeded in crafting a series (this is the second) that is fresh and original. Her unusual milieu and unconventional protagonist combine with a complex plot to provide a novel both suspenseful and satisfying.

Publisher's Weekly

Aubert has written a most appealing story, with precise, evocative descriptions and sprightly, picaresque characters....Above all, her evenhanded account of both the top and bottom levels of Toronto's society provides an unusually rich portrait of a modern city in all its extravagance and poverty. (starred reveiw)Read all 9 "From The Critics" >

ACCREDITATION