The Guilty Sleep
Jeremy D. Baker
Diversion Books
May 6th, 2025
The Guilty Sleep by Jeremy D. Baker is a riveting novel. Although this book reflects on Baker’s past experiences, both professional, militarily, and personally, the story itself is a suspenseful mystery. The plot has the hero, Dexter, asked by his old army buddies to commit a crime to save the life of their former interpreter. Also, as part of the story, Dexter’s daughter has the same eye disease Strabismus, as the author’s daughter (essentially Lazy Eye), which costs tens of thousands of dollars to fix. He has no health insurance because he was kicked out of the military. He decides to go along with the heist to get the money for his daughter’s surgery. Dex is not a Rambo-type but is trying to do the right thing to make himself better to overcome PTSD. The book is about Dex coming back from war with his life falling apart and he decides to do something to make his life relevant again. After the heist goes off the rails, his wife and daughter become targets for bloody revenge, in which Dexter is determined to save.
Elise Cooper: Since Memorial Day is coming up what does it mean to you?
Jeremy Baker: Memorial Day, to me, means Remember. Remember the lives given in service of our nation. Remember those who sacrificed their all, who gave their last full measure of devotion, to something greater than themselves. Remember not only those who died in conflict, but those who died during times of peace, and those who died because of injuries–physical, psychological, emotional–that were received in times of war months or years before they died. Memorial Day, to me, means taking the time to honor all those we remember in these ways. It does not necessarily mean the day must be one of total, quiet, somber reflection. I’ve seen some people out there scolding their neighbors for having fun on the day, but in my mind, what could be a better remembrance and reflection of our values than using this sacred, special day for periods of enjoyment, family, community, and yes, even parties to kick off the summer season. Anyone who’s ever served will tell you that there are few things we service members enjoyed more than a good time with friends, a cold drink, and good food. I take absolutely no issue with anyone celebrating Memorial Day in the way they see fit, but I do hope everyone on the day will take at least a quick moment to think about those who gave their all for the rest of us. Every Memorial Day, I take a moment of reflection to think about those I served with who died, whether in combat, peacetime, or after leaving the military. I think about Carrie Ann, Josh, Dave, Brian, and Lee. The list grows over time, and even one name makes the list too long. I guarantee every veteran keeps a list like this in their mind. I’m honored to have served with these people, and their sacrifice, their battles, will not be forgotten.
EC: Does this story have any reflection on your past service?
JB: I have been writing off and on for about twenty years. There is an awful lot of me and my military experience in this story. What I really wanted to do with this story is talk about the cost of fighting wars. I thought about this story in August of 2021 when the US was pulling out of Afghanistan. It was immediately overrun by the Taliban. As a military veteran who had served there, I had a lot of thoughts and feelings about it. I had a lot of conversations with other veterans about it. It made all the sense in the world to take all my thoughts and feelings about what happened there and put it all together in a novel that also dealt with family, camaraderie, and the cost of fighting wars on those who have fought.
EC: How did your military experience help you to write this?
JB: I was a counterintelligence agent in the army from 2000-2005, serving in Afghanistan. My team was assigned to support the Special Forces team, so we spent a lot of time chasing down the Taliban and Al Qaeda. In many ways there are elements in this story based on my personal experiences. The main character, Dex, is also a counterintelligence agent who was deployed there. He had the same training I did with many of the same experiences. He was impacted with combat induced PTSD that he developed during his deployment.
EC: Why the book quote, “The draw down in Afghanistan and the Taliban coming back is like nothing that happened even mattered. Like they died for nothing.” Please explain.
JB: I started writing this book in October 2021 and we pulled out of Afghanistan in August of 2021. I was watching it as a civilian and saw how our Afghan allies fled, and the Taliban took over our equipment. We were there for almost twenty years and so much of the blood and treasures died. I was struggling with what was it all for. There was a scene in the book where there was a veteran support group from Vietnam to Afghanistan. They talked about the Afghan pullout.
EC: How would you describe Dex, the hero?
JB: He is unraveling, a lost soul, sarcastic, a stand-up person, and a loving husband/father.
EC: Why give him PTSD?
JB: Some people who had one deployment like me struggle with PTSD and some people have many multiple deployments and do not seem to struggle with PTSD. Fighting wars and being in combat does have an impact on the human psyche. I found writing was my therapy.
EC: What was the character Dex struggling with?
JB: He had PTSD and struggled with depression, alcoholism, loss, and possibly losing his family. He screams, curses, has fury, some uncontrollable behavior, and sleep deprivation. I drew a lot of his PTSD experience from my own, especially the unexplainable flashes of rage along with the tossing and turning and unable to sleep. But like Dex I was a devoted husband and father. I put in this quote, “anger, booze, nightmares, symptoms, must be cut out like a tumor. And do it by helping people who need help.”
EC: Next book?
JB: I am working on sequel to the book. There will be some characters back. The working title is The Guilty Burn. There is no release date. Dex helps someone who gets into trouble and will do problem solving together.
THANK YOU!!
