Act of Deception

By John Bishop MD

Mantid Press   2020

267 pages     Mystery

The Shortlist

John Bishop has mastered the art of the attention-grabbing first chapter in a mystery novel. The first book in the series, Act of Murder, begins with a horrific hit-and-run murder, and now Act of Deception begins with a malpractice lawsuit.

“I considered my life that morning. I, Dr. James Robert Brady, who had done my best to be a compassionate and dedicated orthopedic surgeon for the past seventeen years, was being sued for medical malpractice. I was not a neophyte when it came to lawsuits. I had been sued twice before, not an unusual occurrence in a city of four million people, with far too many law school graduates sitting in their quiet offices with nothing to do. The other two suits were quite minor and did not linger but were dismissed rather quickly, meaning over a year-or-two period. The current lawsuit, the cause of my awakening before five with the sweats and intense gastrointestinal distress, had not been dismissed.”

The Kirkus reviewer liked the authentic-sounding dialogue and engaging plot, but they particularly liked the courtroom scene that caps the climax of the book.

The Doc Brady series had two excellent things going for it: it takes place in Houston, another great place to visit in a mystery-reading journey, and it  features a kindhearted doctor full of integrity as the sleuth. Bishop entertains his reader with some unique insights that could only come from a practicing physician as he also reveals his own compassion and dedication to his field.

John Bishop’s website. Here is a good interview with the author.

The third book in the series, Act of Revenge, comes out in September. A review for Act of Murder, the first book in the series, follows this review.