A Buhler High School graduate has released a new novel set in central Kansas that blends small-town Kansas life with a suspenseful murder mystery.
Author Rock Neelly, now based in Cincinnati, recently published Late Night Radio, a thriller set in 1978 that takes place in Burrton and Hutchinson.
The novel begins when a sheriff’s deputy visits a Burrton farm after a woman fails to pick up her children from school. When authorities investigate, they discover she has vanished—launching what Neelly describes as a tense “cat-and-mouse” mystery involving a farmer who may be hiding a dark secret.
Neelly said he wanted to create a story grounded in Kansas culture.
“My working title was something like Mile Marker 133,” Neelly said. “I wanted it to feel very Kansas. Since I write mysteries, I thought—what could be more Kansas than a farmer? That’s where the premise began.”
A Reno County native, Neelly graduated from Buhler High School before attending Hutchinson Community College. He later earned an English degree from Fort Hays State University and completed graduate school at the University of Denver.
Neelly spent much of his career in sales before turning to writing. About 11 years ago, he was mentored by Wichita author Robert Beattie, who wrote The Hunt for BTK. Since then, Neelly has written eight books.
His earlier work includes the popular “Purple Heart Detective Agency” series, which follows two wounded veterans who operate a private detective agency. The series gained traction with readers and eventually led to multiple publishing contracts.
Late Night Radio marks a return to Neelly’s Kansas roots.
The author said extensive research went into recreating the late-1970s setting. He studied music charts from Casey Kasem’s “American Top 40,” along with television programming and films from the era, to ensure the story accurately reflects the time period.
“Because the story takes place in the fall of 1978, I wanted everything—from the songs on the radio to the movies in theaters—to match that time,” Neelly said.
The novel also references historical events from the period, including the BTK serial killer investigation in Wichita and other well-known Kansas crime stories.
Neelly said setting a mystery in a small rural town creates a different tone than stories set in larger cities.
“In a small town, everybody knows everybody,” he said. “That makes it more shocking when something terrible happens. It’s not anonymous city life—it’s your neighbor.”
Several scenes in the book take place in real Kansas locations, including Burrton, Hutchinson and nearby communities.
Neelly describes himself as a regional author who writes stories tied closely to places he knows. While he now lives in Cincinnati and sets some of his books there, he continues to draw inspiration from Kansas.
Late Night Radio has already generated enough interest that a sequel is in development. The next installment will follow a character introduced in the book—a fictional KBI agent who becomes the central figure in the series.
Neelly is visiting Reno County this week for several book-signing events:
- Friday: The Barn in Burrton, 6–8 p.m.
- Saturday: Anchor Inn in Hutchinson, 1–3 p.m.
- Sunday: Hopping Gnome Brewery in Wichita
For readers unable to attend a signing, copies of Late Night Radio are also available locally at Permanent Records, 122 W. Fourth Ave. in Hutchinson, as well as through online retailers.
Neelly said returning to Kansas to promote the book has been especially meaningful because the story is rooted in the communities where he grew up.
“It was fun to revisit those places,” he said. “The music, the towns and the memories all came back while writing it.”