On the day he graduated from law school, there was little doubt that Ellis Portal would have a brilliant future. He and five of his similarly gifted colleagues commemorated the splendor of their shared expectations with the presentation, to each, of a specially commissioned signet ring. For a time, those expectations were borne out, and Ellis took his place at the top of Toronto society. However, he has fallen hard. Homeless now, cut off from his family, he lives in Toronto?s shadows and has almost succeeded in forgetting his own past. And then one day he makes a grisly discovery and comes across an unusual, unmistakable signet ring. And Ellis, against his will, begins to remember.
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From School Library Journal
YA. This title's setting and plot should attract YAs. The protagonist is a former judge named Ellis Portal; he is also a convicted felon. Isolated from his children and friends, he resides in a shack in a wilderness preserve that runs through the middle of Toronto. One day he finds a hand in his vegetable garden; on it is a ring that the man knows is one of only five in existence. A former law school associate had the rings made for himself and four classmates. This discovery and subsequent investigations yield a reconnection with "normal life," romance, and extreme danger. Aubert has written a good first novel; her premises are plausible; the introduction of environmental issues, homelessness, human isolation, and personal scandal are current and well presented; and her plot is well paced.?Clodagh Lee, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
Ellis Portal was a compassionate and hardworking Toronto judge before a nervous breakdown landed him in a mental ward, and a scuffle with a woman he loved in law school sent him to prison. Now Portal is homeless and living in a shack near Toronto's River Don. While tilling his garden, he finds a severed hand with a ring from a secret law-school partnership. To solve the mystery of the hand, Portal draws from his past as the son of Italian immigrants and seeks help from friends in both his judicial and homeless lives. The mystery's solution emerges from a thicket of modern medicine and social problems. Aubert's writing in her first mystery is crisp and brisk, and her plot is capably constructed, offering many surprising and satisfying human and natural twists. The people in her story are all well developed and sympathetic, but her most intriguing "character" is the wilderness along the Don, which miraculously thrives in one of the world's busiest cities. John Rowen
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I enjoyed the atmosphere of both the street people and the legal profession. It was very interesting as social commentary, but not so much as legal procedural.
By A Customer
Format:Mass Market Paperback
What a wonderful story.Using a former judge as a homeless person and as the narrator is a stroke of genius. It was a well thought out mystery with good character development and an interesting premise. As a former Torontonian, I was thrilled to see the attention to detail. The descriptions of the locations, the people and the flavor of the city was so accurate it made me homesick.I can't wait to read more of her work.
By "tangwystl"
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Believe it or not, the story works. Rosemary Aubert writes like a dream. Her protagonist, Ellis Portal, offers us a glimpse into a world we hope never to enter. The mystery is as compelling as the hero. I'm not going to go on and on about the story as some reviewers do. I'll only say this: To those mystery lovers who yearn for a masterfully told tale, snap this one up!
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