The Secret Keeper by Paul Harris

Title: The Secret Keeper
Author: Paul Harris
ISBN: 978-0525951025
Publisher: Dutton Adult/2009
Pages: 336

Danny Kellerman, a journalist receives a letter from an ex-lover in Sierra Leone. It is a call for help from him. It had been posted four weeks before and he finds out that she has been murdered since then. He has to go there to find out what Maria wanted from him. When he lands up there, he gets embroiled in political system and finds out certain secrets about Maria.

War has ended but the place is still sitting in the midst of chaos and corruption. Danny doesn't know whom to trust and he has to go for it alone, not knowing exactly where he is going and for what. What was Maria involved in? She was an Aid worker, rescueing children from war zones, including child soldiers. Danny has to know the cause for which she died and who had her killed.

This novel is a very good portrayal of aftermath of a war, its impact on the poeople, and the utter despair of some, the corruption of the powers that are, rampant killing still a norm, people taking sides, children exploited and anyone who wishes to help them is eliminated. Danny has no interest in the country but he knows he has to do what Maria would have wanted him to do.

Maria is dead yet we feel her presence. At times it seems, she is going to walk out of the pages alive. We can feel Danny's emotions and his compulsions. For a debut, this novel is very well written and gives us a bird eye view of after shocks of war. Not exactly a feel good book but it sure is a satisfying read for all those, who want to read something realistic. And of course, it has that mystery element that is maintained till the end.