I went back and forth about reviewing this one. It really has more sexual content and general nastiness than I’m usually comfortable with reading or recommending. The entire world of this novel is corrupt and festering with only a few islands of goodness or even normality, and those are under siege. This story gives “mean streets” a whole new level of meaning. On the other hand, Mr. Klavan has written a book that examines assumptions about redemption and getting a “new start” while at the same time entertaining and intriguing readers who just want to read to see what will happen next and find a solution to the mystery/suspense plotlines.

John Shannon is a petty thief who’s gotten in way over his head. He’s being accused of a heinous murder he didn’t commit, and he already has two strikes (convictions) against him; he’s headed for three strikes and you’re out for life in prison. Then, an anonymous phone caller throws him a lifeline: he can get a new identity. Are there strings attached? Can Shannon really become a new person? Is the mantra that his Identity Man, the man who provides the cosmetic surgery and the papers to give Shannon a second chance, repeats true? “Identity is like stain. You are not changed. You cannot change.”

It’s a basic question. Can a person really change? Can the stains of our sins and mistakes and even crimes really be washed away by positive thinking or a move to a new city or even by the blood of the Lamb? Some people say, “No way.” Nothing ever changes. Everything remains the same. You are what you are till the day that you die. The Identity Man demonstrates an avenue toward change, but it’s the same one our culture has been depending on for the past seventy years of Hollywood happy endings: a man can change by finding and claiming the love of a good woman. In fact, the idea that this particular change agent idea comes from Hollywood is implicit in the book. Shannon finds himself near the beginning of the story watching day after day of old black and white movies in which he finds a meta-narrative that he wishes he were able to emulate. The woman-saves-man solution, however, begs the question: how does the woman become a good woman? Are women innately good? And, if so, do those good women really have the power to drag the men into the realm of goodness and light?

The love of a good woman can’t ultimately save a man anymore than a heroic man can protect his woman from all harm, although both of those scenarios are played out in The Identity Man. Still, those myths have some powerful truth contained within them. True, selfless love can enable the beloved to turn toward change. And heroes, by the grace of God, do protect and defend those they love, even at the cost of their own lives. Nevertheless, real, lasting change in the life of a poor and needy sinner comes only by means of the miraculous. Change happens when God steps in.

We’re all desperate for change, for a new identity. “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, all things are become new.”