By LAURA SMITH laurasmith.ddtonline.com

Delta Democrat Times  - Friday, December 5, 2008 2:25 PM CST

GREENVILLE, MS - Two Mississippi authors will sign their newest books this weekend at McCormick Book Inn.

On Saturday, Darden North will sign his third medical thriller, “Fresh Frozen,” from 2 to 4 p.m.; and Kathy Chase Young will sign her children's book, “In a Mississippi Winter,” on Sunday, from 2 to 3 p.m.

North, who grew up in Cleveland and is an obstetrician-gynecologist in Jackson, has also written “House Call” and “Points of Origin.”

Released in November, “Fresh Frozen” is set in Canton and Jackson, a departure from North's previous books, which were based in fictional towns, North said.

He said the plot centers around a New York physician who moves to Mississippi to open a state-of-the-art infertility clinic in Canton. The plot twists when a character hopes to steal the embryos of Hollywood movie star seeking treatment at the clinic.

“There's a murder in the book, too,” North said. “There are several mysteries going on at the same time and what is surprising is how all those mysteries come together ... but I don't want to say too much more than that.”

North draws on his expertise in the medical field for his thrillers and said his latest work is a bit deeper than his previous work.

“This is his third suspense/mystery novel and each has been better than the last,” said Mary Dayle McCormick of McCormick Book Inn.

North has been in private practice at Jackson Healthcare for Women for 23 years. He said he was inspired to begin writing by the works of Mississippi authors John Grisham and Greg Iles and noted that there wasn't a physician writing fiction about the medical field.

“It took me about 10 years to put ‘House Call' together and that was before ‘Grey's Anatomy,'” North said of the popular television drama. “But I've been able to capitalize on (its success) in a way.”

North said he looks forward to book signings, especially those in the Delta, because they give him a chance to meet people and visit Mississippi towns he hasn't seen since his college days.

“I also think Mississippi is so gifted to have so many independent booksellers here that are viable ... It's nice that Greenville has a store like that, that caters to the community and helps cultivate the arts.”

To watch the “Fresh Frozen” trailer, visit www.dardennorth.com.