Minyan member Abe Shifrin wants something more from Hirsch than a prayer partner.  Three years ago his daughter, Judith, was killed in a car accident, and Shifrin has decided that he wants to file a wrongful death lawsuit.  He’s not especially interested in money, just justice for his daughter, who had a promising legal career as a law clerk to a prominent St. Louis judge.  Although Hirsch tries to explain to the elderly man that he doesn’t handle this type of case, he finds himself filing the lawsuit only days before the statute of limitations expires. 

With the help of his loyal friend Seymour Rosenbloom and an attractive law professor who worked with Judith at a women’s law clinic, Hirsch tries to put together a picture of the dead woman so he can make a strong argument that her accidental death was a tragic loss that deserves to be compensated.  But as he digs deeper, he realizes that Judith’s death may not have been accidental after all.  As Hirsch rattles some powerful cages high within the St. Louis legal community, he realizes his own life may be at risk as well.  But even when Abe Shifrin is no longer capable of pursuing the lawsuit, Hirsch soldiers on, realizing that if he can find justice for Judith, he may find some small measure of redemption for his past sins as well.   

The novel’s suspense plot moves quickly, although it suffers from a slight sense of distance.  Hirsch is investigating the death of a woman who was investigating possible corruption.  Instead of making the discoveries first hand, he’s trying to piece together the clues that Judith left behind.  Although there are a few spooky moments, the danger doesn’t escalate until the book’s last 50 pages.  That’s okay, though, because the first 250 pages are full of interesting characters, most notably the ailing but raunchy Rosenbloom, who is Sancho to Hirsch’s Samson from Don Quixote.  Hirsch’s former prison buddy Jumbo is worth a novel himself, and Dulcie Lorenz, the fiery law professor, makes a nice love interest.   

Ultimately the novel succeeds because of David Hirsch, who is duly trying to do the right thing after years of selfish behavior that left him divorced, debarred and destitute.  Baron doesn’t spend a lot of time showing Hirsch wallow in repentance; he lets his protagonist’s current actions speak for themselves so it becomes obvious that this is not the same man who ignored his two daughters, utilized high-price call girls and filed phony legal charges to support his uptown lifestyle.  It’s unclear if this book stands alone or is the start of a new series, but there’s certainly more opportunities to explore Hirsch’s long road back to humanity.   

The Mourning Sexton contains several scenes that take place at Hirsch’s synagogue, and both Hirsch and Rosenbloom are Jewish, but Baron thoughtfully provides a glossary of frequently used Hebrew and Yiddish terms at the book’s end to prevent any cultural confusion.  If you like character-driven suspense novels such as Faye Kellerman’s Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus series, you will definitely find much to appreciate about this novel.  Michael Baron, writing as Michael Kahn, is also the author of the Rachel Gold mystery series, which also portrays the exploits of a St. Louis Jewish attorney – albeit one with less emotional baggage.   

--Susan Scribner