The Identity Factor

James Houston Turner
Aria Publishers (2007) 
ISBN 9780958666411
Reviewed by Cherie Fisher for Reader Views (10/07)


James Houston Turner has a real winner with his new novel, “The Identity Factor.”  I was hooked on the book from the first page.  It is perfect for the person who loves a fast-paced story full of intrigue, technology and travel.

The story starts in 1919 in the Sinai Peninsula where a stone tablet is found by Sir Edmund George Clayton.  He discovers that this ancient tablet has information that could destroy religion and lead to war in the Holy Lands.  He sends his journal with information about his findings on to England and is murdered and the tablet is stolen before he can take the tablet home to study.

Fast forward to the present day where the most lethal terrorist in the world, Abu Nazer, remains on the loose and unidentified.  The tablet has finally been recovered by Youssef Sakkara in the Middle East and it threatens to cause a religious war that could destroy religion as we know it.  All of this is being monitored by Zoe Gustaves, a CIA analyst, who is completely relentless when it comes to her work.  Her investigations keep leading her to a common thread, world-renowned journalist Rutherford Tyler.

When Zoe’s boss is less than supportive of our investigations and orders her to take time off, she decides to investigate on her own.  She follows Rutherford Tyler to the Middle East where he is going to interview Youssef Sakkara while the validity of the tablet is being investigated.  Zoe is convinced that Tyler is not what he seems and begins to put the pieces of the puzzle together.  Her investigation uncovers murder, intrigue and a couple of very completely unexpected twists.  I am usually able to figure out a plot of a book before it is revealed and am not surprised by a book’s outcome.  That was definitely not the case with “The Identity Factor,” where I was completely surprised three times by the twists and turns of the story.  Overall, it is a great book and I highly recommend this it.   

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