Shimon Adaf

Shimon Adaf (born 1972, Sderot, Israel) – a poet, novelist, and musician known for his innovative blend of Hebrew literary traditions with contemporary genres like science fiction and detective fiction. Born to parents of Moroccan heritage, Adaf grew up in the working-class town of Sderot, an environment that significantly influences his exploration of identity and cultural friction. He served as the chief literary editor at Keter Publishing House and currently heads the creative writing program at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. In the 1990s, he was a member of a popular rock band and continues to incorporate music into his literary projects, such as the Lost Detective Trilogy companion album.

The Lost Detective Trilogy: This series features a main character, Elish Ben Zaken, who is a music critic turned private investigator (and later, a detective novelist). The books blend elements of literary fiction, mystery, supernatural, and science fiction into a unique hybrid genre that explores themes of identity, memory, and reality. 

One Mile and Two Days Before Sunset: This is the first novel in the series and is described as a literary murder mystery. The plot follows Elish Ben Zaken as he investigates the murder of a rock singer named Dalia Shushan in 1990s Tel Aviv.

A Detective’s Complaint: The second book finds Elish retired from private investigation and writing detective novels, but a new, unusual case involving his niece draws him back in. The mystery involves a young woman who experiences a three-day bus ride that she perceives as lasting only an hour.

Take Up and Read (2014; English translation 2022) is the concluding novel in the trilogy. It blends detective noir with speculative fiction and Jewish mysticism. The story follows Nahum Farkash, a librarian and poet who tries to protect the legacy of the late singer Dalia Shoshan. It also features the niece and nephew of the trilogy’s original detective, Elish Ben Zaken, who is now believed dead by suicide.The narrative jumps fourteen years into a dystopian future where Israel and Palestine have been devastated and reshaped by catastrophic war.The title refers to a corporate literacy program that mines data from readers. As the characters investigate old cases, they uncover a conspiracy involving parallel universes and futuristic biotechnology. Adaf explores the fragility of consciousness, the weight of the Holocaust on Israeli society, and the idea that all realities are connected across time. [Google/AI]

Adaf, Shimon, [The Lost Detective Trilogy, #1] (One Mile and Two Days Before Sunset [pb, Picador, transl. by Yardenne Greenspan, 2022] 978-0374227036

Adaf, Shimon, [The Lost Detective Trilogy, #2] (A Detective’s Complaint [pb, Picador, transl. by Yardenne Greenspan, 2022] 978-0374139650

Adaf, Shimon, [The Lost Detective Trilogy, #3] (Take Up and Read [pb, Picador, transl. by Yardenne Greenspan, 2022]) 978-0374277970