The Immortalists

by Chloe Benjamin

Book Overview

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: Washington Post - NPR - Entertainment Weekly - Real Simple - Marie Claire - New York Public Library - LibraryReads - The Skimm - Lit Hub - Lit Reactor

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

"A captivating family saga."--The New York Times Book Review

"This...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0735213186
• ISBN13: 9780735213180
• Release Date: January 2018
• Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.3" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Loved it!

I purchased this book at random shortly after it came out and started creating buzz. I’m so glad that I did! It is a very inspiring story that basically anyone on earth could identify with one way or another. Sometimes books come along your path at a certain time in your life for a message you need to read or hear. They come as signs that fate and the universe are working WITH you. This book did that for me. This book includes SUCH rich character details and really adds to the depth of the story. The author did such a fabulous job (so much so that halfway through reading the book, I googled the author to find more books written by them!!!) The Immoralists tackles issues such as the fine line between destiny and freedom of choice, reality and illusions, this world or the next. It is a deeply moving testament to the long familiarity of the family bonds that we all have experienced, good or bad.

It was ok

I love the premise of this book, and maybe down the road I'll give it another shot, but I just found myself bored.

The first section was the best and it went downhill from there

In theory, I loved the idea of the book and I thought that Simon's story was thrilling, heart-breaking and worth telling. The book is broken-up into sections based on which sibling is talking btw. Plus, I enjoyed the youngest sister's magician life, but Daniel's story felt like it wasn't really tailored to his character, but written in order to tie in the story of the fortune teller. I wish Daniel and Varya had more of a story that felt like them and not a story that was added for the sake of wanting to tie in the fortune teller. Also, I thought that there were a lot of unnecessary side characters that did nothing for the plot, besides Robert, I felt that the side character's weren't very interesting at all. All in all, the book is worth renting from your library, but not worth buying.

Such a great read.

The characters are so easy to connect and become attached to. The story line is so interesting and heartbreaking. Definitely add this to your tbr list!

Beautifully written

This charming book tells the stories of four siblings who seek a fortune teller. Then follows them through their lives and outcomes of what the fortune teller revealed. It made me smile and made me cry and made me feel anger I haven’t felt from a book in quite a while. I will definitely be recommending this book to friends and family.

I was obsessed with this book!

I couldn’t put this book down! Loved every minute of it! One of the best books I’ve read in 2019 so far

Wow

"The Immortalists" contained such ordinary ideas with a bit of mysticism that made the overall outcome of the novel quite unique. The novel was about hopeful kids in the 60s who were curious about a certain fortune teller. Right away, the author captured my full attention. These kids in the cusps of adolescence and longing to know about their future seemed to be a clever idea of a coming of age story. I liked the idea that these kids were curious and self-aware. The interesting part especially in the eyes of the reader is how these kids would react to their fortunes being told. The idea of "self-fulfilling prophecies" immediately comes to mind. Will knowing about their futures affect their futures, or are their futures set in stone based on what the mystical woman had told them? I guess you have to read to find out.

Thought-provoking and interesting tale that asks, what happens if you know too much?

“If you knew the date of your death, how would you live your life?” Personally, I probably wouldn’t, having developed an obsessive fixation on said date and letting that fixation permeate every waking day and every waking thought. My life would end the day I learned of the date because there certainly wouldn’t be any “real” living after that point in time. Such an interesting premise for sure and one I’ll (hopefully) never have to explore, but the same can’t be said for the Gold siblings in The Immortalists. In the summer of 1969, the four Gold siblings - Varya, Daniel, Klara, and Simon - learn of a rishika, a woman with the power to tell someone their exact date of death. Whether or not her predictions are accurate, the moment that each sibling learns of the dreaded date is something that will change them forever. While some of them don’t put much salt in the old woman’s power, it’s definitely something that sticks with them long after they leave her apartment and childhood, following them into adulthood and invisibly and unconsciously shaping their thoughts and actions. Whether or not it’s something they “believe” in, that moment with the old woman was a critical moment in the lives of these four siblings, and definitely one that they can’t erase. With The Immortalists, Benjamin takes something that we all think of from time to time, something that’s inevitable for us all, and plunks it dead center in this story. While the Golds grow and change and move on, death and thoughts of death are always there in the background, subtly letting itself be known. With each character, it was interesting to see what they did with the information learned so long ago and the psychological changes that happen when the dates loom closer. Impulsivity. Recklessness. Extreme caution. An excess of pragmatism. Of course, some of these were already traits of each siblings’ personality, and perhaps having an expiration date and knowing that date made each trait just a little stronger and a bit more like an invisible hand. Bottom line - The Immortalists was such an interesting and thought-provoking tale of siblings and life and how perhaps some things are better left unknown. Highly recommended, and I’ll definitely be keeping my eyes open for future works by this author.