Books reviewed prior on this site prior to March 2019 were provided to me, at no charge, by the publisher, or by the author, in exchange for an honest review. I have received no further compensation for these reviews. Reviews beginning March 2019 come from a variety of sources: advanced copies, library loans, and my own purchases. All reviews are my honest opinions.

June 1, 2015

Fatal Trauma {Richard L Mabry MD}

fatal trauma book
When Dr. Mark Baker and Nurse Kelly Atkinson are held at the mercy of a dangerous gunman, the lives of every emergency room patient are at stake. At the end of the evening three men are dead. One of them is a police officer who couldn't be saved despite Mark's best efforts. The other two are members of the feared Zeta drug cartel.

Though the standoff is over, the killing is not, because when the drug cartel loses its members, revenge is not far behind. Facing an adversary whose desires are dark and efforts are ruthless, Mark finds himself under suspicion as a killer, yet still a potential victim. When he turns to his high school sweetheart, attorney Gwen Woodruff, for help, Kelly helplessly looks on, as she hides her own feelings for the good doctor.

At the height of the conflict, three questions remain: Who is the shooter? Who will the next victim be? And can Mark prove his innocence before the gun turns on him?

My Thoughts:

The concept of the story in this book is great. The first chapter opens with a shooting in an Emergency Room, with three people left dead and an entire staff left shaken up. The victims turn out to be members of a famous drug cartel, and everyone involved becomes a target.

People start dropping like flies, and the police head down all the wrong trails to get to the ones involved. The cartel has infiltrated the police, the hospital, and more.


See, it sounds like a great story. But...


I just couldn't get into it. It's not often that I give up on a book, but I didn't finish this one. The writing style was choppy and little to no intimate details were given for any characters or scenes. I found myself wishing for more descriptions of surroundings, reactions, emotions, and such. I never felt connected to any of the characters, and got a bit irritated with a few of them over their inability to realize the reality of the situation they were in.


I typically make myself finish every book I start, but I only made it half way through this one and had to put it down. It seems to have several good reviews, so I'm not going to say it is a horrible book. It just isn't a book for me.



Dr. Richard Mabry is a retired physician, past Vice-President of the American Christian Fiction Writers, and the author of five published novels of medical suspense. His books have been finalists in competitions including ACFW’s Carol Award and Romantic Times’ Inspirational Book of the Year, and have won the Selah Award from the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference. His forthcoming medical thriller, Fatal Trauma, is coming in May, 2019. He also has a novella, Rx Murder, available on Amazon.

Richard’s non-fiction book, The Tender Scar: Life After The Death Of A Spouse (Kregel Publishers), has ministered to multiple thousands of grieving individuals. His meditations and short pieces have appeared in The Upper Room, In Touch, and several other periodicals.

When Richard is not writing, he spends his time reading, working fruitlessly to improve his golf game, and defending his title as the world’s best Granddad. He and his wife live in north Texas and are active members of Stonebriar Community Church, pastored by Dr. Chuck Swindoll.
 






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