The premise of the story is great, however, the plot was predictable. It would make for a great short story rather than a dragged-out novel. 3 stars

When I started reading Iain Reid’s Foe, I had no preconceived ideas as to what to expect, except that this was “a taut psychological mind-bender”.

I’m not sure that I would describe Foe as an “enjoyable read. Enjoyable is too easy, perhaps too soft, a word, to describe a book that I read in one sitting, a story that drew me in tight from page one and spat me out at the ending . I simply had to reach that ending.

Take a married couple, Junior and Hen, who live a quiet life in a secluded old house in an undetermined time and place. Add a stranger appearing in the dead of night, in itself a very unusual event, because...Junior and Hen just don’t get visitors. Add the very odd message this stranger,
Terrance, delivers, and the offer he makes to Junior. And that`s just about all I`m going to say about the storyline...why spoil the surprises that just keep coming.

Foe is very different. It`s unlike any novel I`ve read before. It is often baffling and I found myself sometimes frustrated by the actions, or perhaps I should say non-actions, of Junior. Brilliant, well written and impactful, this is a suspenseful, edge-of-the seat, read that will have you scratching your head and will leave you wondering.

Thanks to Mr. Reid, Simon & Schuster, and Netgalley for an ARC of Foe in return for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

This was a good, quick read that left me compelled the entire way. It was so smooth, I didn't notice that the book was almost done until the climax hit me in the face!

I loved how much suspense there was and liked how was done and said despite there only being 3 characters.

Junior and Hen enjoy an easy, quiet life on their farm outside the city. This all changes when a man shows up on their doorstep to notify Juniour that he has been randomly selected to travel a great distance from home without Hen. He needn’t worry though - Hen will be well taken care of by some.. familiar company. Making waves in 2016 with his psychological thriller I’m Thinking of Ending Things, Iain Reid returns with his sophomore fiction effort, Foe.

To be honest, Reid had completely flown under my radar despite the heaps of critical praise he’s been receiving. He only recently popped up with the announcement that Charlie Kaufman (the award winning writer of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind - a favorite of mine) would be adapting I’m Thinking of Ending Things for Netflix. Given my appreciation for Kaufman and the fact that Reid had a new book available for consumption on Netgalley, I thought I would check him out

This was a hell of a read. The narration comes in short, stinging bursts coupled with hasty dialogue to boot. While Reid doesn’t have the stylistic punchiness of James Ellroy, he carries the same urgency with his writing that lends itself to gobbling multiple chapters in scarce sittings.

The vagueness of the location (they live outside “the city”) as well as keeping the year unspecified adds another layer of disorientation on top of an already dizzying plot. I had my mind working overtime trying to figure out where Reid was taking all this. In fact, there were no fewer than three times where I assumed I had nailed it down only to be blindsided at the finish line.

It’s difficult to say too much without going into spoiler territory. The best advice I can muster up is to go into this as blind as possible. Foe is the kind of novel that probably benefits from the shock of it all; the need to get out there and find someone else who has read it just so you can discuss it endlessly over coffee.

Foe by Ian Reid was the first book I read from this author and I will now go back and read all that he has published.
Foe can be classified a mystery, thriller or Sci-Fi. I read this book in two sittings, the story will leave you with more questions then answers but will open-up your eyes to how a relationship between two persons can be guided to a certain degree but humans being humans cannot be manipulated forever. I will not provide any details of this book. I recommend that you get this book and enjoy it as much as I did!
Bravo Mr.Reid. Certainly deserving of a few stars.

This is an eerie, puzzling story unlike anything I had ever read. Thanks to Simon& Schuster and NetGalley for an advanced copy.

A married couple, Junior and Hen, live on an isolated home in the country far from any neighbours. They never have visitors and seem content with the isolation. The time is the near future. One evening they have a mysterious visitor who informs them that Junior has been selected to go on a long journey for an undetermined time period. Hen will not be lonely as a replacement will be provided. He will live in their home and take Junior's place while he is away.

The visitor returns from time to time making intrusive inquiries about their life together. The story takes on a foreboding, sinster feeling. Electronic and sensing devices are placed around the home and on Junior's body to measure his health and emotional reactions. He is also given pills. He is told that the trip is compulsory and no turning back. Eventually the visitor moves in, taking the increasingly apprehensive Junior's place at work and wearing his clothes. Hen remains distant and the couple have problems communicating. She displays minimum emotion about his future trip. The worried Junior wonders why he is so compliant and tells himself he should be more assertive.

I kept puzzling over what I was reading. Each time I thought I had it figured out I was wrong. About 50 minutes from the ending I felt for sure I had solved the mystery but mistaken again. The last couple of pages left me with a new mystery to ponder. I enjoyed how unsettling I felt and was entranced by the plot.

Foe is a compelling read that entertains and challenges the reader at the same time. I read it from cover to cover in less than a day, I figured out the "obvious" twist (one the author, one presumes, expects the reader to figure out) without it lessening my enjoyment of the book. Then, by the time I finished my first reading, I realized that there were other possibilities opened up by the text. This the rare book that one knows, upon first reading, one will read repeatedly-each time finding things not noticed or understood on previous readings.

At the same time the book is an excellent meditation on being, self, individuality, memory, consciousness and marriage.

Is this real life?

Like I did after reading I'm Thinking of Ending things, I have so many questions. I don't know exactly what I just read. I feel haunted.

Junior and Henrietta live quiet lives in the country. It seems they never have vistors, until one night, a very surprising person turns up at the door and tells them that Junior has been chosen to participate in a program where he will travel far away, and be gone for a while. No worries about Hen, she will have company, she will be just fine.

You can't know what exactly is going on in the time that Junior prepares for his trip. You may look at the cover of this book, which is really beautiful, and think, oh I know what this is going to be. But you don't. It is not what you think at all. And once you're reading, you will think, Oh, NOW I get it, but you DON'T!

Iain Reid really has a talent for making a person feel on edge while reading his books. Its eerie and fantastic.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and Mr. Reid for the ARC of this book!

I was SO excited when I found out Iain Reid was coming out with another book because I loved I'm Thinking of Ending Things SO much!! I was even more excited when I got my hands on an ARC. Just by looking at the cover you can tell it's going to be creepy and that something sinister is lurking in those pages. I loved everything about this book - Junior and Hen are real and they're living in an old house in the middle of nowhere. I couldn't imagine having to go through what they did. I couldn't get through this book fast enough. I couldn't wait to know exactly what was going on! Junior's frustration was palpable. Definitely a clever, thought-provoking, page-turner.