Product Description

It takes an alien race to show us what humanitiy truly is. This is the irony faced by a group of friends whose lives are changed forever when the mysterious alien race known as the Kethani come to Earth bearing a dubious but amazing gift: immortality. These superbly crafted episodes deal with human emotions in the face of the vast consequences of the alien arrival, and show how people across the world react to this benign invasion, how ultimately we evolve as we gain the stars.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #196724 in Books
• Published on: 2008-05-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

About the Author
Born in West Yorkshire, England in 1960, Brown has lived in Australia, India, and Greece. He began writing when he was fifteen and sold his first short story to Interzone in 1986. His story "The Time-Lapsed Man" won the Interzone readers' roll for the most admired story of 1988. He has won the British Science Fiction Award twice for his short stories and has published over twenty books: SF novels, collections, books for teenagers and younger children, as well as radio plays, articles and reviews. His latest books include the collection Threshold Shift, the novella The Extraordinary Voyage of Jules Verne, and the children's book Crazy Love. He is married to the writer and mediaevalist Finn Sinclair, and has one daughter, Freya. He lives in Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom. His website can be found at: : http://ericbrownsf.port5.com/

Customer Reviews

No.. not quite a wow
I purchased Kethani after reading a review in a Sci-fi magazine particularly as a comparison with John Wyndham - one of my all time favourite authors - was being made. Did it live up to the hype - well, yes and no. The Yorkshire setting and the way the novel is written from the point of view of a small number of village inhabitants is certainly reminiscent of Wyndham's method. Brown writes well and the book was an interesting and fairly pacy read. At times there is a feeling we could be in Arthur C Clarke territory tooo.

However something is missing. I kept waiting for a big plot twist, shock ending or some other 'unexpected' sub-plot. An intriguing premise is set-up part way through following an investigation into a murder which gave me an 'ah-ha this is significant' moment but it wasn't. What could have been an interesting sub or side plot wasn't followed through. If it hadn't been for the ending one might have thought another book or books were to follow but it seems not. It was almost as if Brown couldn't find a satisfying ending and it just goes out with too much of a whimper for me. Worth a read? - yes. Wyndham and Clarke? - not even close.

Wow - again!
I'm going to have to think hard how to come up with something different to Ammonite132's comment; I just bought this book on a whim whilst in town. Started reading it at 5:30pm, finished at 8:15pm - I was absolutely enthralled, totally blown away, and am now enthusing about the story more than any other that I can remember.

It's a science fiction story, but unlike most other stories in the genre it only uses the SF element as a core part of the idea, and then weaves the story around the lives and experiences of the characters over the years that follow.

It's touching and thought-provoking, and - as with all the good things in life - focusses on sitting around a fire in the local pub, chatting to close friends!

I'll be proselytising about this one to my wife, my parents, my colleagues; anyone who will listen. I'll probably have to buy myself another copy to lend out...

I'd be interested to see if Eric Brown can come up with other stories of the subsequent exploits in the wider universe alluded to within this novel, but even if he doesn't, I'll be certain to check out all of his other stuff.

Wow!
I received this book at 7.45 this morning and was totally engrossed for the next 5 hours. Now I have finished, I want to read it again! This is a beautiful story of humanity being 'helped' by seemingly benign aliens to achieve immortality and venture out into the stars. It reminded me of the Uplift series by David Brin in that respect, but the Yorkshire setting surprisingly softened the tone.
What can I say? I was totally blown away by Eric Brown's book and I would recommend it to anyone who is despairing of the human race and the mess we are creating of our home. A utopian get-out clause maybe, but a hopeful dream of human potential is one worth holding on to.