Act of Fate by John Bishop

Act of Fate is the fifth novel in the Doc Brady mystery series. All of them are winners, but I might just like this one the best. As a physician myself, its my opinion that Bishop knows how to capture the hospital scene and personnel, and his medical dramas are real-to-life. His use of the science of medicine is spot on. In this book, his beloved wife Mary Louise is in the wrong place at the wrong time. She has a severe auto accident that results in multiple fractures and massive head trauma. She is left in a coma and her survival is in doubt. Meanwhile, there is drama among the hospital staff (doctors, nurses, ward clerks). 

Nearly emotionally paralyzed by the possible loss of his wife, Brady finds himself unable to see patients in his orthopedic practice, and he finds an excuse to be of help to a detective with the Houston Police Department, Susan Beeson, who just happens to be Mary Louise’s best friend. They work together on solving the case of a doctor’s wife who was murdered about the same time as Mary Louise was in her accident. The cases seem to have some things in common besides the timing of the murder and the accident. The murdered woman is the only daughter of a wealthy Houston philanthropist, so the pressure is intense on Detective Beeson to reach a quick conclusion to her investigation.

 

In short, the unfolding of this plot is very well written. It will be obvious once you’re read it why the ending to the story literally brought me to tears, something that most novels do not do to me. The characters are all compelling and believable, some good guys, some very bad ones. 

At the end of the book, there’s a teaser for the sixth book in the series, and I can hardly wait to get my hands on that one.