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Book Review: Foreign Identity by Becca J. Campbell


Contemporary Americans live in a fascinating time. A time when audiences are notoriously hard to trick, surprise, or frighten. Authors everywhere are enduring a constant struggle to keep readers on their toes and shock them with a twist ending they never expected. This struggle is nicely battled in Becca J. Campbell’s novel, Foreign Identity, where suspense and horror are balanced with genuine human emotion and an overwhelming sense of mystery. The novel is, in short, steeped in the unexplainable, bringing to mind some of the most entertaining episodes of The X-Files and psychological suspense movies like Shutter Island.

In Foreign Identity, the two heroes (a man and a woman) are thrown unceremoniously into a horrific maze of vaguely familiar circumstances, which they must work together to put in context.  The characters are very real entities, with real, human problems that are eked out in front of the backdrop of an eerily perfect landscape. This setting throws the drama of human relation into stark contrast, complemented masterfully with the slow progression of the characters’ recovering memories of their past relationship.

So how can this book really be classified? On the surface it might seem like a simple science-fiction adventure, but the complicated drama surrounding the romantic relationship between the heroes belies the genre. This could easily be a story taken out of its fantastic context and still found emotionally evocative. Yet the sci-fi elements are not underdone. The characters are consistently pursued by otherworldly entities made up of supernatural elements, put in strange situations of pursuit and capture, and forced to confront not only their personal struggles, but the technology (or miraculous occurrences) that lead to their capture and provide the potential for their demise. They must fight, not only for their lives, but for their essential humanity, and it is this which is most thrilling for the reader.

These elements come together to provide the reader with a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience that ends in an exciting and emotionally satisfying conclusion. This book is ideal for readers teenaged and above, and the perfect suspense story for both a sunny day at the beach or a cozy night and a thunderstorm. Enjoy!

For a sneak peak at the novel, visit Becca J. Campbell's blog!
 
Get a free copy of Foreign Identity in a giveaway here: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/YjIwNzc2NGQxYmM0OTliNDg0MTAwODc2NzdhZmFhOjA=/

Follow Becca J. Campbell on Goodreads! 
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