Fiction Pick of the Week: Old City Hall

Old City Hall Old City Hall by Robert Rotenberg 2009

Toronto lawyer and former magazine editor, Rotenberg, has written an engaging police procedural/courtroom drama set in Toronto. As he always does, Gurdial Singh arrives at the 12th floor suite of radio personality, Kevin Brace at 5:30 in the morning to deliver the Globe & Mail. Unlike other mornings, the door is not open with Mr. Brace ready to receive his newspaper and exchange a few words with Mr. Singh. His routine disrupted, Mr. Singh waits tentatively in the doorway until Mr. Brace appears with blood on his hands and announces “I killed her”. After this, Brace refuses to utter a word to anyone, including his defense lawyer and his family, setting in motion the complex investigation and trial for first degree murder.

Toronto and its multicultural residents provide a rich and complex background for this first mystery. There is even added hockey interest as the Maple Leafs make an unlikely run for the Stanley Cup. Given starred reviews in Booklist and Library Journal and shortlisted for the 2010 Evergreen award, Rotenberg is off to an auspicious beginning. I, for one, hope this is the beginning of a new Canadian mystery series. Old City Hall would be enjoyed by fans of Grisham, Turow, Wilhelms, or Farstein.