Gateway Professor Rock D. Neelly Publishes First Novel

Rock D. Neelly, English professor at Gateway Community & Technical College, published his first novel entitled The Purple Heart Detective Agency with Eric Beebe of Cincinnati's Post Mortem Press.

The novel described as The Hurt Locker meets Chinatown or American Sniper meets Sam Spade tells of two veterans, turned detectives, seeking a missing celebrity. Taking a new case with a beautiful client seems straight forward enough, but each step becomes more dangerous than the last as these detective soldiers move toward a reckoning requiring dependence on each other for survival.

Robert Beattie, author of Nightmare In Wichita: Hunt For The BTK Strangler, says of Neelly's novel, "What do wounded warriors do when they return from war missing a leg or two? These tough guys start The Purple Heart Detective Agency. Using battle-tested skills, laughing all the way, when others have turned their backs, these sleuths solve mysteries. Rock Neely's novel is easy to pick-up, hard to put down."

Neelly has been working behind the scenes on detective novels as a freelance editor. With some encouragement from his mentor, Robert Beattie, he decided to try his hand at detective writing. His inspiration for The Purple Heart Detective Agency came from veterans in his classes at Gateway. I just really admire these guys, said Neelly. Neelly plans to donate a portion of the proceeds to the veterans program at Gateway. He sees this an opportunity to give back to these American heroes.

Professor Neely's novel is another illustration of his talent. As a published author, he sets an excellent example for his writing students, said Dr. G. Ed Hughes, president of Gateway Community & Technical College. We are proud of our outstanding faculty. They are not only exceptional instructors, but also practitioners of what they teach.

Neelly is a Professor of English and Communications at Gateway Community & Technical College teaching film, literature and composition for over ten years. He has written numerous articles in magazines, journals and books over the last fifteen years. In his career, he has been a newspaperman, a sales manager, a contributing editor, and a bad guitarist in a garage band. Neelly, the grandson of cattle ranchers and the son of teachers, grew up on the high plains of Kansas shooting baskets and pheasant. He now lives with his wife and family in Liberty Township, OH.

The detective novel is available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble.com and other on-line retailers. Neelly will make personal appearances at local booksellers. To see more on the publicity schedule, visit https://purpleheartdet.wordpress.com. Neelly is available for national radio and regional television appearances. For more information, contact Post Mortem Press media liaison, Anne Quinn, via email, anne.quinn@postmortem-press.com.