In the eighth book in the Adam Lapid Mysteries, Jonathan Dunsky takes readers back in history to the early days of Israel’s statehood. With each book in his series, Dunsky becomes more impressive as an author. His plots grow in sophistication, and his main character gains depth and personality.
Once again we meet Adam Lapid. This time, he is walking the streets of Tel Aviv late at night, unable to sleep, when he spots another man who reminds him of himself: an unhappy soul going through the motions in the aftermath of World War II. When the mysterious man is found murdered, Lapid takes a special interest in the case.
Lapid, a former Hungarian policeman who lost his family in the Holocaust, now lives in Israel and works as a private investigator. He is hired to find the killer of the lonely nightwalker when the police cannot find any clues or solutions. Reconnecting with his friend at the local police station, he gets special inside information and begins building a background story, filling in the holes the police left unresolved.
The case leads Lapid to many distinct neighborhoods in Tel Aviv. Lapid is suspicious of everyone he meets, from construction workers to politicians. Could a possible love interest be leading him down the garden path, putting him in danger? As Lapid uncovers the facts of the case, he reveals more about his past and how it has affected his life in the present.
The trail of the killer leads all the way back to prewar Poland. Dunsky describes how people tried to escape the country and find a way to travel to Israel, where they envisioned a better future. As Lapid gets closer to the truth, he risks increasing danger. He must work quickly before anyone else dies — himself included.
In That Sleep of Death contains interesting historical content and quick-moving, twisty, suspenseful plots. Readers will become attached to the characters in Adam Lapid’s life, who make appearances in every book in the series. Dunsky draws on fascinating real events that took place in Israel’s infancy.
