Collins-Burke Mystery Reading Order
| Title | Published | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| Sign of the Cross | 2006 | Buy |
| Obit | 2007 | Buy |
| Barrington Street Blues | 2008 | Buy |
| Cecilian Vespers | 2009 | Buy |
| Children in the Morning | 2010 | Buy |
| Death at Christy Burke’s | 2010 | Buy |
| Blood on a Saint | 2013 | Buy |
| Ruined Abbey | 2015 | Buy |
| Lament for Bonnie | 2018 | Buy |
| Though the Heavens Fall | 2018 | Buy |
| Postmark Berlin | 2020 | Buy |
| Fenian Street | 2022 | Buy |
| Counted Among the Dead | 2024 | Buy |
Anne Emery spent years practicing law in Nova Scotia before turning to crime fiction, and that legal background gives her writing a grounded, procedural authenticity. Her Collins-Burke series draws on Halifax’s history, architecture, and working-class neighborhoods in ways that feel lived-in rather than decorative.
The pairing of Monty Collins, a criminal defense lawyer with a complicated personal life, and Father Brennan Burke, an Irish-born priest with a sharp mind and a taste for whisky, gives the series an unusual dynamic. The two men approach crime from different angles, which creates genuine tension alongside the camaraderie.