Debut Novel COMING SOON!
FOSTERED MINDS
by Ryan Gary Joel
Alex has lived his entire life in fragments.
As a private investigator with dissociative identity disorder, he relies on his alters to help him solve the kinds of local cases that slip through the cracks.
But when he wakes in prison with no memory of why he’s there, the world he’s carefully built begins to unravel. Flashbacks from his troubled youth blur the lines between past and present, and the faces of people he thought he’d left behind return to haunt him.
Meanwhile, the city of Adelaide is under siege. A series of coordinated, brutal attacks has thrown the state into chaos—and someone is determined to make Alex believe he’s involved.
As his memories resurface and his identities collide, Alex must piece together the truth about his past. Because buried somewhere inside his fractured mind lies the key to stopping the terror—and uncovering who he really is.
ABOUT RYAN
Ryan Gary Joel is the author of Fostered Minds, a psychological thriller with a unique hero, unexpected twists, and dark turns. Beneath the suspense, it’s a story about resilience, identity, and the ties that hold a fractured family together. Ryan is currently working on the sequel, continuing Alex’s journey as he faces new threats and responsibilities.
Though Fostered Minds marks his debut, Ryan’s passion for storytelling began in his teenage years. One of his earliest manuscripts, likely dreadful but fondly remembered, was stolen from a Big W underground car park. If anyone has information, he’s still open to leads.
Beyond writing, Ryan is an Accredited Exercise Physiologist and the director of a successful allied health business. He leads a dedicated team supporting veterans, people with disabilities, and individuals living with chronic disease. His belief in the benefits of exercise quietly weaves its way through his stories, bringing evidence-based insight to how his characters overcome adversity.
Rooted in his regional South Australian upbringing, Ryan remains closely connected to the landscapes and communities that shaped him. He lives there still with his wife and two children, balancing fatherhood, business, and the growing world of his fiction one chapter at a time.