A Secret Kept : Tatiana de Rosnay

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I seem to have stumbled onto a delicious book-reading phase. This week alone I have finished three books, and I can't think of the last time that happened! Probably, the absence of Chinese lessons may have something to do with it. ;-). I know that these classes will resume next month - and that's when this book reading frenzy of mine may come down - but well, that's just like exchanging one deliciousness for another.

I think I have become a fan of Tatiana de Rosnay's style of writing. I am careful to say her 'writing' - because the stories are always fluid, they move fast, and you really do not have to spend too much effort in reading them. It's that kind of a reading phase that I am in now. Heavy books that move ponderously - not for me right now. Tatiana de Rosnay is known more for Sarah's Key -and it's always heard for writers to live up to that one great book. A Secret Kept is not in the same league - but it's compulsively readable.

Antoine, there’s something I need to say. I’ve kept it back all day. Last night, at the hotel, I remembered something. Something about…”

This is what Antoine Rey's sister, Melanie, tells him just before crashing the car after returning from celebrating Melanie's 40th birthday in their childhood retreat of Noirmoutier Island. The duo haven't been there ever since their mother's death - and the memories of their childhood and the inevitable question marks over their mother's untimely death - this is the secret and the mystery that leaves a fine trail across their lives. I will be frank here - there is not much of a secret, and the effect seems a bit jaded. But what is of intrigue to me is the deep exploration that Tatiana de Rosnay provides into human relationships.

I didn't particularly like the narrator - Antoine. He seemed too much to be lolling in self pity and there were aspects of him that were not just believable. Yet, beyond that surface treatment though is the tragedy of families - the secrets that stifle emotions and the ties that often strangle. This is what held me in thrall through the book because make no mistake, the author is a wonderful storyteller. So what is the story here wears a little thin? You still enjoy reading it. Not a patch on Sarah's Key though.

Verdict: Readable. Very.

Rating: 3/5