The Heart's Secret; Or, the Fortunes of a Soldier

This book by Maturin Murray Ballou is an impressive work with a lovely side story to it. The story is set on the island of Cuba and is an account of Ballou's temporary residence on the island. What makes this work more interesting is that a notable effort has been made to carefully stick to the island's geographical facts and truthful belongings throughout the novel. This has helped Ballou successfully paint an accurate and colorful picture of these low latitudes through his words. He has managed to activate all the senses of readers by vividly describing this tropical clime.

Ballou wrote the novel under his pseudonym, Lieutenant Murray. He was the first editor of the Boston Daily Globe and wrote numerous travel books and works of popular fiction. In the 1880s and 1890s, he authored several travel books, covering Alaska, Russia, Cuba, India, South America, Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand, Samoa, and elsewhere.