In The Shadow of Exile

About the Book

"Robert Hayden has not been heard from for 5 years, ever since he disappeared during a politically-charged trial. His son, still angry over his father´s actions, receives notice of his father´s death and is told to come to a remote corner of northern New England. It is the first time any word as to his father´s fate has been received. When he arrives, he learns where his father had been but not why and how he got there. The remote place has been a kind of exile from everyday life. The letters he discovers demonstrate a descent into despair over the years, but also an abiding love for his wife and son. These and other facts cause him to search more deeply into exactly what happened, and why - and whether powerful people are behind it all. He meets with ten of the jurors from the trial. Each has their own view of the case, the guilt or innocence of his father and why his father disappeared. As he proceeds, he learns that all was not proper in the handling of the jury and the case by the state. From an angry, "obey the rule" conformist who cannot understand his father´s activism, he begins to appreciate more and more that vigilance is important to preserving democracy. Using the letters written during his father´s years at the Ugala as instruction, he probes each juror to uncover unusual actions by the government during the trial. He also is ashamed that he has not made more effort in all these years to learn what happened to his father. Only after he returns to Ugala does he learn the truth about the cover-up and how to unravel the conflicting stories told by jurors and in the letters. He also learns what happened to the father who loved him more than he knew.

About the Author

The author, Patrick Moore, is a lawyer and college instructor. He lives in northeast Ohio.