Points of Origin [Hardcover]

Darden North (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 2006

In the Deep South appearances are not a luxury but a necessity. No family finds that more true than the Foxworths of Larkspur, a quaint but greedy Mississippi town. In that community or anywhere else for that matter, the life of handsome young Sher Foxworth would seem an enviable American dream: high school star quarterback and valedictorian; successful plastic surgeon for a father; beautiful, supportive mother; rich grandparents. But then a single death at the hands of his father rips the town apart, throwing the life of Sher Foxworth and his family into a downward spiral, a corkscrew that entangles more devastation and turmoil as Sher himself lands in jail. It is that tangle with a female police officer which derails his own life from that of town hero into a journey he never intended --- far from his plans for medical school. While in Point of Origin readers will sample the return of endearing and despicable characters made popular in North's 2005 debut novel, House Call, they will become immersed in the tumultuous lives of a different set of players: the colorful inhabitants of Larkspur --- a new mix of personalities and egos that wraps the lover of fiction into the livid world of southern intrigue.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Darden North, MD, is an obstetrician/gynecologist in partnership at Jackson Healthcare for Women in Jackson, Mississippi. A member of the AMA and the Central Mississippi Medical Society, North is a fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology and a diplomat of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, maintaining board recertification. He has served two terms as chairman of Mississippi Health Partners, a Physicians and Hospital Organization. Born in Jackson and reared in Cleveland, Mississippi, he and his wife Sally are active community members. In addition to practicing medicine, North has written and published a second novel of southern fiction and mystery. His first novel House Call was nominated in fiction for the 2006 Mississippi Institute for Arts and Letters and the Southern Independent Booksellers awards.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 395 pages
• Publisher: Ponder House Press (October 15, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0977112616
• ISBN-13: 978-0977112616
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,478,266 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

A practicing obstetrician/gynecologist, Darden North has written three nationally-awarded hardcover novels in the mystery/suspense/medical thriller genre: House Call - Finalist, Mystery/Suspense 2008 Next Generation Indie Book Awards; Points of Origin - Third Place, Southern Fiction 2007 Independent Publisher (IPPG) Book Awards; and Fresh Frozen - Overall Winner, Best Cover Design and Finalist, Regional Fiction 2009 National Indie Excellence Awards; Honorable Mention, General Fiction 2009 San Francisco Book Festival Awards.

A member of Mystery Writers of America and the Independent Book Publishers Association, North has served as an author panelist at "Murder in the Magic City" (Birmingham, AL), "Author! Author! Celebration of the Written Word" (Shreveport LA), "Murder on the Menu" (Wetumpka, AL), "Thriller Author Panel - 2008 Southern Independent Book Association (SIBA) Show" (Mobile, AL), and "The Writers' Block -2009 SIBA Show (Greenville, SC) and has exhibited at the Texas, Kentucky Bluegrass, and South Carolina book festivals. He conducted a teaching workshop in writing mysteries and in promoting an author's work at the 2010 Southern Expressions Writing Conference.

Darden North actively promotes his writing through television and radio interviews as well as through personal speaking engagements and the Internet. North began his full-time medical practice in ob/gyn in 1986 and remains board-certified in obstetrics and gynecology. His background lends an unmistakable authenticity to his mystery and medical thriller novels, stories set in the South that portray intense character relationships and unexpected story lines.

Darden North lives in Jackson, MS, with his wife, two children, and three dogs.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A good story in need of an editor., January 22, 2007

By 

proudnole - See all my reviews

This review is from: Points of Origin (Hardcover)

Dr North's story idea is at least passable. His novel, however, is not. Anticipating a new Greg Iles, or at least a reasonable facsimile, the reader begins the novel with anticipation. After 50 pages, however, too much time is spent parsing sentences and paragraphs to see how they could have been better, and more clearly, written. Only then does the reader note that the novel is published at a residential address in Jackson, Mississippi, and therein lies the problem: a good editor (a corollary to a real publisher) would have proven invaluable.

5.0 out of 5 stars North Spins A Gripping Tale In Second Novel, May 8, 2010

By 

C. A. Webb "Conversations Book Club" (Jackson, MS) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Points of Origin (Hardcover)

Darden North is not your typical author. In his day job, he's an obstetrician/gynecologist and has delivered mor babies than most people can count. But it's his work as a writer, and his second novel POINTS OF ORIGIN that is still gaining cheers all across the country.

The book, set in Mississippi, takes us into a world that seems so unlike any that many of us know with its glitz and glamour and high-priced facades. But a second look reveals that nothing is ever as it seems, and in that view, we begin to see more of the world in which all of us live.

North's book ultimately shows that there is not always just one action that begets a troublesome reaction. Sometimes retribution is days in the making.

It is up to us to be ready when the cost of our facade is to be paid in full.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great ending!, July 14, 2009

By 

Martha A. Cheves (Charlotte, NC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Points of Origin (Hardcover)

'Cordell Pixler, Esquire, had a new wife, his fourth... Anyone who already knew the latest Mrs.. Cordell Pixler, or subsequently met her, thought her more attractive and definitely much younger than her attorney husband. Much to his chagrin, Pixler had not been persuasive enough to coax his voluptuous bride to move permanently into the mortgage-free home, the one his third wife insisted he buy and remodel extensively several years before his third divorce... Rachel Pixler wanted a brand new house... Furthermore it would have to be located in the most exclusive area of Larkspur, that being Manorwood Heights.'

Cordell Pixler obtained his money through the destruction of others. When Flowers Ridley's mother Charity decided Flowers needed "adjustments" to bring her inner beauty to the surface she went to the best plastic surgeon around, Sheridan Smith Foxworth, Jr. And when her daughter later died from blood clots she again went to the best plantiff's lawyer who was Pixler. Unknown to Charity, her decision to sue Foxworth would end up causing a snowball effect destroying many. One person who feels the effects the most is Sheridan (Sher)Foxworth, III who will loose both of his parents and give up his dreams to follow in his father's footsteps by failing to become a doctor himself. Instead he becomes a firefighter.

Wayne Simmons was a high school classmate of Sher and he loves to "create" fires. But not just any kind of fire. His fires appear to be of natural or neglect causes. Plus he's for hire. So when a fire occurs in Manorwood Heights killing the owner, was it accidental or intentional? Was Simmons involved and if so who hired him? One thing for sure is that Pixler wasted no time in buying the property.

Hobby Dencil is one of the best architects around and will become involved in the "Pixler Snowball" as he designs the perfect house for Rachel. Just days before construction is to start Rachel makes a few changes of her own to the plans causing Hobby to start from scratch with his drawing with the ending being a structure he really didn't want his own name associated with.

In the process of building Rachel's "palace" Pixler ends up angering half the community. So when the house burns during a charity party, was it an accident or was it planned? Could the Real Estate agent undercut by Pixler in the purchase of the property have set something up? Or the female police officer who enjoyed going after the "rich and famous?" Or maybe even Sheridan Smith Foxworth, Sr. for destroying his family?

I will give you a clue. North has done it again. The ending was a total shock to me