The Contractor: How I Landed in a Pakistani Prison and Ignited a Diplomatic Crisis, is a memoir of Raymond Davis, an ex-CIA contractor who eventually ended in Pakistani prison after he killed two Pakistani youngsters on broad day light in Lahore allegedly on self-defense.

The tragic event of 2011 not only put Davis behind the bars waiting for a fair trial in Kafkaesque legal system of Pakistan but it also ignited a series of tension between the US and Pakistan, the already strained relations between the two allies reached a stand still culmination both politically and diplomatically.

The book is an up-close and personal look at the 2011 incident in Lahore which paved the way for Davis’s imprisonment and captivity in Pakistan for 49 toughest days of his life. The book tells his side of story and unfolds the diplomatic events which both the allies faced in its aftermath as diplomats on both the sides were engrossed in getting him out.

The first thing that would take Raymond Davis out of the prison was “Diplomatic Immunity” and for this end the Americans had to establish that Davis enjoyed diplomatic immunity.

But, the then Pakistani foreign minister, Shah Mehmood Qureshi gave a blow to American’s plea when he stated that Davis did not enjoy diplomatic immunity as a was not a diplomatic rather a CIA operative involved in clandestine operations on Pakistani soil and with this a series of chaotic diplomatic and political events started to erupt.

The violent and tight confrontation between both the allies quickly escalated into a diplomatic and political crisis, making front-page headlines all over the world and threatening to destroy American relationships with one of the world’s most volatile nations. For forty nine days, Davis was in Pakistani custody wherein he was interrogated, threatened, fearing for his future and life—as rumors flew and the State Department worked tirelessly to get him back safe and sound. But the paradox is that he finally got released owing to a clause of Sharia Law- payment of blood money, the very law the Westerns loath.

Though the writer of the book is not a professional writer but yet he has vividly captured the settings, scenes, tensions between the two allies and his experience in a foreign country which thinks US is a monster and the evil that has caused ruins in the indigent country. Moreover, the book has caused up-roars in Pakistan for it has given credit to the security establishment of Pakistan for its role in getting Davis released against all odds. The book has also pointed out the fragile state of the democratic governments in Pakistan and interestingly, it has exposed the judicial system of Pakistan as well so far its criminal jurisdiction is concerned.

Even though, the story itself, escalation of confrontation between the US and Pakistan, political turmoil in the aftermath of that tragic incident, and the alleged role played by the security establishment of Pakistan are not unknown in Pakistan and other corners of the world but the way Davis has expressed them with his own experiences are worthy of reading.  In addition to this, Davis has rightly stated that his longer stay in Pakistan could jeopardize hunt for Osama bin Laden.

Although, many facts have been pend down by Raymond Davis but yet many questions have not been answered by the author. For example, he has not revealed his true identity and his real name. Many in Pakistan, particularly those from security establishment assume him to be a high profile CIA operator not a contractor or whatsoever.