Passport to Death: A Dotan Naor Thriller

Zur’s so-so second Dotan Naor thriller to be translated into English (after 2018’s Death in Shangri-La) takes the tough-talking Tel Aviv private eye, who specializes in rescuing missing young Israelis abroad, to Bangkok, Thailand, in search of Sigal Bardon, a 26-year-old beauty and spoiled brat, who hasn’t checked in with her wealthy family for several weeks. She was last seen headed toward a railroad station in the company of a known druggie and carrying a duffle most likely filled with heroin. As he pursues the elusive Bardon, Naor encounters a number of stock characters, including the cabbie who knows all, the matriarch madam willing to share everything about Bangkok’s sex and narcotics trade, and the drug boss who thinks little of human life and often speaks in riddles. The choppy, hard-to-follow quest ends with little more than a sigh. Along the way, readers never get a chance to form an emotional connection with Bardon, because she’s only cursorily introduced at the end. Fans of sophisticated international thrillers will have to look elsewhere. [em]Agent: Murray Weiss, Catalyst Literary. (Nov.) [/em]