Absolution, by John A. Vanek

Absolution, by John A. Vanek Father Jack Austin’s alcoholic father suddenly returns to town, decades after deserting him as a young boy. His dad is fleeing a vindictive drug lord and begs him for help. Although Jake detests his old man for abandoning him, he can’t allow him to be murdered, so he enlists the…

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Miracles, by John A. Vanek

Miracles (270 pages) is the second novel in John Vanek’s Father Jake Austin Mystery series. Father Jake Austin assumes multiple, often seemingly incompatible roles of physician, priest, healer and detective, and with each case, he hopes for miracles. “Vanek brings G.K. Chesterton’s Father Brown into the twenty-first century and sprinkles in hints of PBS’s Grantchester. You…

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DEROS, by John A. Vanek

DEROS: A Father Jake Austin Mystery by John A. Vanek

DEROS (304 pages) is the first book in a mystery/suspense series by John A. Vanek set in Oberlin, Ohio, and featuring amateur detective Father Jake Austin. A series of murders force Father Jake Austin to confront his own violent past, regrets over lost love, and his doubts about the priesthood. “This intense debut introduces a…

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