Author: Chloe Benjamin

Genre: Fiction

Published by: Putnam

Published on: January 9, 2018

Pages: 352 [hardcover]

DISCLOSURE:

New York City, 1969

It is a dreadfully hot day in the city. The Gold children are bored and sweaty in their Lower East Side apartment, a less-than-exciting summer vacation ahead of them. Rumors claim that a clairvoyant woman, who can tell anyone the day they will die, has arrived in New York City. The Gold siblings are up for anything that will take their minds off of the blistering summer heat and pay the fortune teller a visit

The Immortalists borders on a collection of short stories, as each estranged Gold sibling lives an entirely different lifestyle and their paths infrequently intersect. Simon is a dancer in San Francisco, Klara a magician in Las Vegas, Daniel a military Doctor, and Varya a successful scientist.

The story is broken into chronological parts, each one highlighting one of the Gold siblings and the years leading up to their given day. The inevitable affects the prophecy brings are eloquently depicted throughout.

∞ Prologue: The Woman on Hester Street (1969, Varya)
∞ Part One: You’d Dance, Kid (1978-1982, Simon)
∞ Part Two: Proteus (1982-1991, Klara)
∞ Part Three: The Inquisition (1991-2006, Daniel)
∞ Part Four: Place of Life (2006-2010, Varya)

“The Immortalists probes the line between destiny and choice, reality and illusion, this world and the next.”

Somber, mystical, and entirely original. Benjamin provokes reflection on one’s own destiny and the meaning of life.