Author Interview: Richard L. Mabry & Medical Mystery

It’s always a treat to have Dr. Richard L. Mabry stop by the blog & today he’s here to chat about his new novella, Medical Mystery!

Dr. Richard Mabry is a retired physician, now writing “medical mysteries with heart.” In addition to his medical books, he is the author of one non-fiction book, several novellas, and thirteen published novels. His novels have been finalists for the Carol Award, the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award, the Reviewer’s Choice Award, the Selah Award, and others.

He and his wife live in north Texas. In addition to regular efforts (thus far unsuccessful) to improve his golf game, he spends much of his time trying to convince his family that sitting at his desk staring into space does indeed represent work.

You can learn more about him at his website, and via his blog and Facebook page.

MEDICAL MYSTERY by Richard L. Mabry, MD
GENRE: Inspirational Mystery/Suspense
RELEASE DATE: January 18, 2022
PAGES: 112

When her phone rang, Diane Macklin wondered what her sister wanted now. Then, she heard that their mother was in the Emergency Room with a heart problem.

The doctor tending to her mother was Dr. Joe Adams, who was far from Diane’s idea of the family doctor. He had been alone since his first wife had died, and was apparently heaven-sent as a mate for Diane, if she could only get past the trauma of her previous near-miss at the altar.

The heart problem was hard to solve initially, the subsequent difficulty turned out to be murder, and affected the lives of both Diane and Joe.

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Hi Dr. Mabry! Welcome back to the blog!

Richard: Neither—we watch recorded programs

Carrie: same here, though I do enjoy the Hallmark Mysteries…. which I record lol

Richard: Soup most of the time, sandwich occasionally.

Carrie: Again, I’m the same way. I almost never opt for a sandwich, but occasionally I crave one.

Richard: Board game (usually when my granddaughter visits).

Carrie: Our nieces & nephews love board games, and we do too – it always brings much laughter into our household 🙂

Q: Tell me some good books you’ve read recently.

Richard: I have two full book-cases full of books I have read by my favorite authors, and I constantly re-read them. I’m currently working my way through Robert B. Parker’s books (for the third or fourth time).

Carrie: i love that!

Q: If I asked your characters to describe YOU as an author, what would they say?

Richard: He doesn’t get to really know us until at least the second or sometimes third revision. Guess he just throws the character list out there without knowing enough about us at first. Oh, and he procrastinates a lot.

Carrie: haha! the truth comes out 😀

Q: How did you come up with the title for Medical Mystery?

Richard: My wife kept after me to write another book, but the one she initially suggested was about a nurse trying to write in her spare time. This just didn’t work out for me, but instead (after repeated tries) I came up with a murder that was almost undetectable on autopsy—a true medical mystery. Since that was my working title, I kept it.

Carrie: I’m so glad you listened to your wife & wrote another book! And I can’t wait to read this one; I’m so intrigued by this almost undetectable murder.

Q: Which of your main characters in Medical Mystery is most like you? 

Richard: The doctor who’d lost his wife and made up his mind he’d always be considered a widower.

Carrie: For those who aren’t aware, Dr. Mabry’s first book is The Tender Scar, which he wrote after the loss of his first wife.

Q: Which character was the most difficult to write? 

Richard: The nurse who was so affected by her prior romantic experiences that she was ambivalent as a result.

Carrie: I bet she was difficult to write!

Q: What do you most want readers to take away from Medical Mystery?

Richard: God uses us, even though we’re not perfect. (After all, if He only used perfect people, He’d have no one to work with).

Carrie: so very true! Thankful He uses me in spite of my flaws

Thank you so much for taking time to talk with me! 🙂 Before we say goodbye for today, tell us what‘s coming up next for you.

Richard: As a challenge for myself, I included a bit of a novel that I’ve had on my hard drive since my first writing attempt, a story about a doctor who’s a failed baseball player. I guess we’ll see if I can take that framework and make something of it.

Carrie: yay!!!

What about you? What makes you want to read Medical Mystery by Dr. Richard L. Mabry?