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The Body In Zeller's Barn
Matthew is missing.
At first, Ayden isn’t worried. Matthew is his best friend, and nothing bad ever happens in the town of Rogland. But when the police get involved and no one’s heard a word, Ayden realizes something is seriously wrong.
With the investigation going nowhere, Ayden begins searching on his own. The deeper he digs, the stranger things become—and more and more signs point to Taylor Tipton: the last person seen with Matthew. Taylor is the town’s golden boy, the star quarterback everyone loves. But he and Matthew were last seen in a heated argument, and Ayden knows what he saw.
Taylor is hiding something. And Ayden is determined to find out what it is. But as the line between truth and lies begins to blur, Ayden finds himself pulled into a mystery far bigger—and more dangerous—than he ever expected.
The Body In Zeller's Barn is a coming-of-age mystery filled with small-town secrets, off-beat characters, dark humor, and unexpected twists.
At first, Ayden isn’t worried. Matthew is his best friend, and nothing bad ever happens in the town of Rogland. But when the police get involved and no one’s heard a word, Ayden realizes something is seriously wrong.
With the investigation going nowhere, Ayden begins searching on his own. The deeper he digs, the stranger things become—and more and more signs point to Taylor Tipton: the last person seen with Matthew. Taylor is the town’s golden boy, the star quarterback everyone loves. But he and Matthew were last seen in a heated argument, and Ayden knows what he saw.
Taylor is hiding something. And Ayden is determined to find out what it is. But as the line between truth and lies begins to blur, Ayden finds himself pulled into a mystery far bigger—and more dangerous—than he ever expected.
The Body In Zeller's Barn is a coming-of-age mystery filled with small-town secrets, off-beat characters, dark humor, and unexpected twists.
330 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 10, 2026
About the author
Arian Harandi
1 book19 followersArian Harandi hopes to become your next favorite YA mystery author as he writes books filled with unique characters, dark humor, and the kind of twists that keep readers saying, "Just one more chapter."
Born in Iran and raised in Southern California, he earned his BFA in Film Production from Chapman University and briefly ventured into the indie film world before realizing that writing books is far cheaper and requires significantly fewer people.
The Body in Zeller’s Barn is his debut novel — the product of year(s) spent writing every day, talking to himself in empty rooms, and trying to strike the right balance between darkness and wit. The novel was named Best Novel at the Eyelands Book Awards, received an Editor's Pick from BookLife Reviews, earned 5-star editorial reviews from Indies Today and Reader Views, and was praised by Kirkus Reviews as a "thoroughly entertaining teenage mystery novel."
He currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife and their two doggies, where he's continuing to talk to himself in empty rooms, as he works out the plot of the next book.
Born in Iran and raised in Southern California, he earned his BFA in Film Production from Chapman University and briefly ventured into the indie film world before realizing that writing books is far cheaper and requires significantly fewer people.
The Body in Zeller’s Barn is his debut novel — the product of year(s) spent writing every day, talking to himself in empty rooms, and trying to strike the right balance between darkness and wit. The novel was named Best Novel at the Eyelands Book Awards, received an Editor's Pick from BookLife Reviews, earned 5-star editorial reviews from Indies Today and Reader Views, and was praised by Kirkus Reviews as a "thoroughly entertaining teenage mystery novel."
He currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife and their two doggies, where he's continuing to talk to himself in empty rooms, as he works out the plot of the next book.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 9, 2026
This was kind of a wild ride honestly. It took me a little bit to connect with this because not one single character (and there are MANY) behaves like an actual human being. People say and do things that nobody in reality would say or do. But the story here really pulled me in and I decided to approach it like a David Lynch film in book form- where everyone is weird and absurd and bizarre shit just happens because that’s how things are in this version of reality.
This is a noir-ish mystery that’s often a bit cheeky, packed with weirdos who have odd tics that are never explained and it all came together as a really fun, very easy to read book that feels familiar and yet also unlike anything else I’ve ever read.
Somehow this only has one other review! People- this is free on kindle unlimited. Give it a chance. I hope this weird little YA novel can find its audience, however niche that audience may be.
Harandi might not have written a masterpiece here but he can really spin a quirky story and I’m interested to see where he goes next.
*I’m bumping this up a star because I keep thinking about it and I will inevitably read it again, so I think that’s 5 star worthy even for someone as stingy with 5 star ratings as myself.
This is a noir-ish mystery that’s often a bit cheeky, packed with weirdos who have odd tics that are never explained and it all came together as a really fun, very easy to read book that feels familiar and yet also unlike anything else I’ve ever read.
Somehow this only has one other review! People- this is free on kindle unlimited. Give it a chance. I hope this weird little YA novel can find its audience, however niche that audience may be.
Harandi might not have written a masterpiece here but he can really spin a quirky story and I’m interested to see where he goes next.
*I’m bumping this up a star because I keep thinking about it and I will inevitably read it again, so I think that’s 5 star worthy even for someone as stingy with 5 star ratings as myself.
March 10, 2026
Loved this book! It’s the perfect mix of a creepy murder mystery with the heart and humor of a YA novel. Read it in 2 days!
August 3, 2026
Such a fun thrilling ride! This book is an intriguing, perfectly paced story. More of this!
August 9, 2026
I tried so hard to get into this book, but the writing kept me from it. Did you ever watch a movie where the acting is so poor that all you can see is people acting instead of portraying actual characters? The writing was like that. It was so flat. DNF'd around 25% in and picked up a Kara Thomas book to scratch my YA thriller itch.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews