The Zahir - by Paulo Coelho

The Zahir is a 2005 novel from the Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho. Similarly to an earlier book, The Alchemist, the Zahir is about pilgrimage. The book touches on themes of love, loss and obsession.
The Zahir was written in Coelho's native language, Portuguese, and has been translated into 44 languages. The book was first published in Iran, in Persian, by Caravan publishing. Iran has never signed any international copyright agreements. By publishing first in Iran, the book falls under the national copyright law of Iran. This piracy fighting measure created the unusual situation where a book was first published in a language other than the author's native language. However, the book was banned in Iran a few months after its publication, during the 18th Tehran International Book Fair.
The story is extremely autobiographical but is intended as a work of fiction.
The Zahir means 'the obvious' or 'unable to go unnoticed' in Arabic. The story revolves around the narrator, a bestselling novelist's search for his missing wife, Esther. He enjoys all the privileges that money and celebrity bring. He is suspected of foul play by the authorities and the press of having a role to play in the inexplicable disappearance of his wife from their Paris home.
Thereby, the protagonist is forced to re-examine his own life and marriage as well. The narrator is unable to figure out what led to Esther's disappearance. Was she abducted or had she abandoned their marriage? He comes across Mikhail, one of Esther's friends. The narrator with his help realizes that to find Esther, he must find his own self. Mikhail introduces him to a tribe who has unconventional ways of living. Through the narrator's journey from Paris to Kazakhstan, Coelho explores various meanings of love and life.