Veteran’s family targeted by drug boss in heist gone wrong


Afghanistan vet Dexter Grant is broke, reeling from PTSD, and on the verge of divorce when he’s approached by his old Army buddies to help rescue their former interpreter, the man who once saved Dex’s life. It means ripping off a vicious queenpin’s drug proceeds — but not to worry, they have it all worked out. And if anyone can pull it off, it’s Dex’s former team lead, Staff Sgt. Saenz.

Tempted by an easy score that could make his own problems disappear and imbued with new purpose, Dex agrees to play his part. But just as in combat, the best-laid plans don’t survive first contact with the enemy. When the heist goes off the rails, Dex’s wife and daughter become targets for bloody revenge. Dex must face down his spiraling inner darkness and call on all his strength and training to save his girls. In his quest, he’ll learn there was much more to this heist than he ever imagined.

Jeremy D. Baker bursts onto the crime fiction scene with a debut thriller that recalls C.J. Box’s unlikely hero Joe Pickett and the small-town, lived-in noir of S.A. Cosby. The Guilty Sleep is a riveting tale of robbery and betrayal in which a father’s love faces off with a soldier’s debt.

“A terrific debut–fast, tough and hard, shot through with hard-won authenticity and deep humanity … don’t miss out.” — Lee Child

“The Guilty Sleep”

Jeremy D. Baker | May 6, 2025 | Diversion Books | Crime thriller 

Hardcover, 9798895150290, $29.99 

Ebook, B0DPLFWB93, $19.99 

Jeremy D. Baker grew up in Italy, Florida, and Maryland. He’s a former US Army counterintelligence agent and combat veteran. He served alongside US Special Forces in Afghanistan and is a PTSD survivor. Over the past 20 years, his work in national security has focused on intelligence, counterterrorism, transnational organized crime, human trafficking, climate risk and resilience, and cybersecurity. He lives with his family in Maryland. Read more at https://www.jeremydbaker.com/