After losing his family in a tragic car accident, Thomas O’Shea finds himself driving around the Iowa countryside, trying to find peace on a quiet afternoon. But when he stops to admire a unique mailbox, he sees a beautiful, bloody woman racing down the country lane from her home, screaming for help. Not wanting to get involved, Thomas considers not helping. Eventually his heroic side wins out, one thing leads to another and he discovers an enormous plot to sell tens of millions of dollars’ worth of prime Iowa farmland. As Thomas continues lifting up and peering under rocks in the beautiful river town of Rockbluff, Iowa, the more he learns…and the more he attracts those who will do anything to stop him. Attempts on his life are made, but O’Shea is a tough guy with nothing to lose as he struggles with the loss of his family, drinking, women, and his guilt for precipitating so much violence in this peaceful town filled with quirky and unforgettable characters.

Signs of Struggle

Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

John Carenen

Mystery

Neverland Publishing Company, LLC

A Far Gone Night

Suffering from insomnia, wise-cracking tough guy Thomas O'Shea goes for a late-night stroll through the peaceful streets of Rockbluff, Iowa, and finds himself pausing downtown on the bridge that spans the Whitetail River. When he glances downstream, something catches his eye...something that looks like a body. He scrambles down to the riverbank, pulling the body of a young girl from the water. The girl is naked, with two bullet holes in the back of her head. Ever suspicious of law enforcement, O'Shea chooses not to mention the bullet holes when Deputy Stephen Doltch, on routine patrol, discovers him at the river's edge.When the coroner's report lists the cause of death as "drowning," Thomas confronts the coroner, but his questions are met with hostility. Then the coroner and his wife disappear, along with the body of the dead girl.Teaming up with his friend Lunatic Mooning and Clancy Dominguez, an old buddy from his Navy SEAL days, Thomas and the other two men join together to bring justice to the dead girl, a quest that takes them to the Chalaka Reservation in Minnesota, seedy businesses adjacent to the Chalaka Casino, and straight into the world of organized crime.A fast-paced story, laugh-out-loud moments and familiar, quirky characters from Carenen's debut novel, Signs of Struggle, continue to enliven the complex world of Thomas O'Shea. Once again, Thomas gears up to find answers that will reveal who put the bullets in the girl's head, why she was killed, and her identity, which may hit a little too close to home.

Keeping to Himself

"A gripping, character-driven thriller with alluring landscapes." 
﻿-Kirkus Reviews\nDeep in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, Whit Coombs seeks peace, quiet, and healing. Scarred spiritually by the death of his wife, who died cursing him for not euthanizing her, and physically from an IED in Iraq, he just wants a simple life in his cabin by a lake, miles from a hard road. Then, on a nighttime hike, he witnesses a grisly murder and finds himself with a dilemma: report the crime and lose his privacy-and maybe his life-or let the killers get away with it. As the killers and the attractive female county sheriff get closer to discovering what he saw, he realizes that maybe Keeping to Himself won't give him the peace he needs.

Literature & Fiction

Genre Fiction

Koehler Books

Deep in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, Whit Coombs seeks peace, quiet, and healing. Scarred spiritually by the death of his wife, who died cursing him for not euthanizing her, and physically from an IED in Iraq, he just wants a simple life in his cabin by a lake, miles from a hard road. Then, on a nighttime hike, he witnesses a grisly murder and finds himself with a dilemma: report the crime and lose his privacy-and maybe his life-or let the killers get away with it. As the killers and the attractive female county sheriff get closer to discovering what he saw, he realizes that maybe Keeping to Himself won't give him the peace he needs.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by John Carenen. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by John Carenen

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by John Carenen. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Signs of Struggle

A Far Gone Night

Keeping to Himself

Keeping to Himself