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Kéthani

3.45 of 5 stars 3.45 · rating details · 168 ratings · 37 reviews

When a mysterious alien race known as the Kéthani make contact with the people of Earth they bring with them the dubious gift of eternal life. These enigmatic aliens will change the course of the human race forever but also touch people's lives on a personal level, not least in a small town in the English countryside. But do the Kéthani have a hidden agenda and will the hu...more

Paperback, 432 pages

Published March 31st 2009 by Solaris (first published January 1st 2008)

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Aug 03, 2011 Enrique028 rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

“Vivid, emotional, philosophical, this is a work to feed the mind, heart and soul”

That’s what Stephen Baxter used to describe KETHANI, the latest book by Eric Brown, and I couldn’t have agreed more. If so, I would add “provoking” to the list of adjectives. Perhaps the idea of “immortality” have been used before, perhaps, it isn’t even original within the context of Science Fiction, given that the sole concept of Science Fiction allows for changing any context and exploring or proposing immortali...more “Vivid, emotional, philosophical, this is a work to feed the mind, heart and soul”

That’s what Stephen Baxter used to describe KETHANI, the latest book by Eric Brown, and I couldn’t have agreed more. If so, I would add “provoking” to the list of adjectives. Perhaps the idea of “immortality” have been used before, perhaps, it isn’t even original within the context of Science Fiction, given that the sole concept of Science Fiction allows for changing any context and exploring or proposing immortality. But, this book, which is more an account of experiences and more so, written much before as short stories and now linked by as many interludes, to allow us to keep a continuity of the story, tells all from the point of view of common folks in a sort of weekly Pub meeting, in a very emotional, sometimes conflicted kind of way. What would you do, given the chance to gain continuous immortality? Forever and ever, no matter how many times you die? Would you give in? There are so many stories and so many questions that you could ask to yourself, just about the rights and wrongs such a “life” changing gift could actually mean. I loved Eric Brown’s pace and simplicity yet clever way of writing when I read HELIX and I must admit that when I read a review of KETHANI and its premise sometime ago I was not drawn into the idea, simply because It sounded mundane. And not Sci Fi at all. Well, it is mundane and surprise, surprise, it is Science Fiction at its best. Its simplicity lies with the everyday characters and everyday situations that its pages tell about. This is not a book about intergalactic conspiracies and governments trying to find a way to save the planet, no. This is a book about all that other people, everyday people going about their routine and all the challenges and fears and convictions they might feel about been Immortal. In a Yorkshire town. In a Pub.

If you ever wonder what the normal folks in films like “The Day after tomorrow” where up to when the Ice Age fell over and the screen time or interest was not there to know about their experiences, then read this book. There are no lasers, no starships and no conspiracies but there is enough to feed the mind, the heart and the soul as Mr Baxter said.

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Apr 19, 2011 P. Kirby rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

Surprisingly readable for a looong book where nothing much happens.

Aliens have come to Earth and this time, instead of wrecking havoc on Los Angeles or New York, they come bearing a gift. Immortality. For reasons that are never really explained, the Kethani have granted humankind immortality in the form of a implant on the forehead. When a person dies, the implant provides the means by which the person will be reborn, younger, stronger and bestowed with a kind of zen-like peace.

The story centers...more

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Jul 09, 2010 Writtenwyrdd rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: science-fiction

The cover blurb says this book is "a future classic" and I have to say "Meh" to that. This book is interesting and I enjoyed it, but unlike many other books I've read, I have zero interest in ever reading Kethani again. I think that perhaps my opinion is flawed by a liking for the more action-oriented stories rather than this slower-moving tale where very little overtly happens. It's a psychological study more than anything else, a study in first person by a group of people who are alive during...more

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May 11, 2009 Ron rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sf

This is a thoughtful meditation on mortality and its implications for morality, set in a fine first-contact sf novel. Set in the moor country of northern England, it describes the effects of a worldwide gift from unseen aliens of reincarnation technology, and the concomitant gifts of general wellness in the reconstrued bodies and minds and the opportunity to travel the galaxy with the benefactors. That said, the novel never leaves the single county in England, following a group of people through...more

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Dec 12, 2010 Chris Amies rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A low-key post-disaster novel where the disaster really isn't one, a bit like a murder mystery where there is no murder ... but even there there can be a mystery, and here there is a sufficiency of character and incident, even too many narrative viewpoints I felt. The continuing mystery of the Kethani themselves - what do they want, why are they doing this, what do they look like - is unsolved and there is even a hint at a secondary plot regarding Kethani 'spies' among us who only seem to be hum...more

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Sep 22, 2009 Dianne rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: no one

I have thrown this book across the room half a dozen times in frustration.

The characters are nothing more than stereotypical cardboard cut-outs with whom I can find no way to sympathize (despite enormous personal tragedies, at times). The prose is uninspiring and falls flat far more often than not. Franky, there are times that I'm flabbergasted with how terrible the writing is. The plot is only rarely engaging. Eric Brown manages to take the most optimisitc, sickeningly sweet view of how humani...more

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Jun 15, 2009 Jessi Hafeman rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I found the concept quite interesting. It was the story of a group of friends and how they are affected by the choice of immortality. This book I thought was very good, and at times I could not put it down. Unfortunetly, it never amounted to much. There was no grand finale or explanation behind the reasons humaity was given the choice of immortality. I was also disappointed that the only religious points of view were crazy extreme Catholics. There was one priest and a "not so good" Buddhist, but...more

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Dec 18, 2012 Andrew rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is not - as the blurb would have us believe - a "superbly crafted novel', but a collection of short stories, linked by new material which, in the majority of cases, actually gives away the twist or moral of the story it is meant to be prefacing. I didn't find this to be as philosophically interesting as many have; I actually thought it was trite and superficial in its refusal to explore the Kethani race in any way whatsoever, given that they were supposed to be improving humans, who resolut...more

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Jun 16, 2009 Bleyddyn rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

First you have to understand that I almost never stop reading a book in the middle, no matter how much they suck. I've only done it a handful of times in my entire life. I just feel like it will be easier to put behind me if I finish the story.

In the case of Kethani, however, I'm very close to doing that. This book is billed as Science Fiction, with aliens coming to Earth and all, but really it should have been called a morality book, and not a particularly well written one at that. Specifically...more

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Sep 18, 2012 Les rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a book that I read not really expecting to like it so much. I'd initially picked it up after reading a couple of other Eric Brown books.

Kethani tells the stories of a mixed group of people and their lives and experiences with an alien species that has come to Earth offering wonderful things. Not least they offer the ability to be "reborn" after death and see the galaxy, etc.

The peoples' stories are wonderful as they grapple with their own dilemmas as to whether or not to receive the gift...more

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Aug 15, 2009 Jeff rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

Excellent first-contact story set in rural village England. The aliens are never directly involved, but do have the historic impact you'd expect.

And this is the joy of this novel: the multiple tensions Eric Brown plucks and then lets hum through out the novel. Mortality and Immortality, isolationist and galaxy traveller, friendly aliens or world conquerors, life over death over life. I don't want to say more and spoil the pleasure of discovering Brown's story on your own, but suffice it to say...more

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Jul 10, 2009 Gabriel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"At first I thought the speed with which the Kéthani's implants became universal was a little bit unlikely. After all, given the overly mysterious nature of the aliens, and the fact that every major religion in the world opposed them, wouldn't people be a bit more reluctant? If you believe in a spiritual afterlife, don't you also believe it's supposed to be better than physical life? But the book changed my mind: I think if physical immortality became a real possibility, doubts would fade pretty...more

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Sep 02, 2012 Russ Jarvis rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi

The premise and the opening chapter engaged me. The focus on ordinary people of rural Britain would be good. I like books where the protagonist(s) is someone like me (except I'm not British). I appreciated how the concept of being resurrected as often as necessary affected species-long assumptions and supposed limitations. However, I feel about this book like I did after viewing the last episodes of the ABC series "Lost". I felt that I had been provoked to think differently about some things, bu...more

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Dec 30, 2010 Mieneke rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, science-fiction

I'm not much of a SF reader. I've always maintained I didn't do SF, until I started reading my husband's Kris Longknife books and loved them. Since then I've been trying to expand my reading and try more SF.After reading Mark's reviews of Eric Brown's books over at Walker of Worlds, I really wanted to try his booksand having read Cara's review of Kéthani over at Speculative Book Review, that seemed a good place to start. And if Kéthani is anything to go by, I think I need to read more of Brown's...more I'm not much of a SF reader. I've always maintained I didn't do SF, until I started reading my husband's Kris Longknife books and loved them. Since then I've been trying to expand my reading and try more SF. After reading Mark's reviews of Eric Brown's books over at Walker of Worlds, I really wanted to try his books and having read Cara's review of Kéthani over at Speculative Book Review, that seemed a good place to start. And if Kéthani is anything to go by, I think I need to read more of Brown's books. It was such an interesting read, that I kept turning pages, despite saying I'd put the book away at the end of the chapter. I was hooked.

Kéthani is a collection and reworking of several interconnected short stories. Only the prologue, interludes, epilogue and one story were specifically written for this book. Yet despite this, the narrative never felt cobbled together, it was cohesive and if it hadn't been mentioned, I wouldn't have guessed. The book doesn't feel very SF-y, since it is more a psychological study of man's reaction to the choice of immortality. The SF seems incidental to this. Something else that contributes to this is that the book feels cosy, for lack of a better word. It's all set in this little village in the English countryside and since many of the stories are set in winter, with snow, cold and roaring hearth fires, this feeling of small-scale cosiness is only reinforced.

Brown provides no direct explanations, no info dumps, we find things out through the narrative. And while each chapter answers some questions, it always raises more. The alien technology is kept deliberately vague and Earth seems to remain relatively low-tech; apart from the implants and the Onward stations, there doesn't seem to be any real alien technology on Earth. In the end most of my practical questions were answered. For example, I kept wondering how Earth hadn't exploded population-wise and whether they were truly immortal. At the end I knew, the answers were there in the stories.

The moral questions raised by Kéthani remain largely unanswered however. We are told how the characters in the book handle them, but this is largely conveyed without any judgement attached. It is left to the reader to form an opinion about the right or wrong of their actions and whether the coming of the Kéthani is ultimately a good thing for humanity. This is what made the book so compelling and thought-provoking. I found my thoughts going back to mull over some of the characters dilemmas and choices even after I'd finished Kéthani. That is the quiet power of this book; at it's core it isn't about aliens, it's about humanity.

Apart from its thought-provoking themes, Kéthani also contains some cracking stories. From a locked-room mystery to a quiet romance, to the heart-rending story of a father and his mortally-ill daughter, they all have something to keep the reader's attention. I absolutely adored this book and I'll be sure to pick up more of Eric Brown's books when I can. I highly recommend this book, even if you're normally not much of an SF reader, the story is a great introduction to SF and to the work of Eric Brown and definitely worth the read.(less)

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May 02, 2010 Mike Philbin rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

imagine you've just had the great idea to make an alien-invasion film with your mates; you've got no money for script, lighting, special effects, location, wages ... in fact all you've got is 25 years to waste shooting anecdotal footage in your local pub drinking pints of liver-rot and one blurry hand-held shot of an inverted icicle close to the camera overlooking a snow-covered landscape.

that's this book.

432 pages of NOTHING HAPPENS, in a classical narrative sense - it's an un-book, less-than-s...more

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Jul 23, 2008 Henrik rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: the philosphically inclined

This is an interesting and thought-provoking book. The story is that aliens establish a presence on earth and offer humanity the free gift of eternal life, not as Christians understand it in heaven with God, but in this universe. The story is sent in rural England (Yorkshire) and shows how individuals and couples respond to this.

The work is highly philosophical, though this is embedded in the stories of people as they wrestle with death and immortality and the human desire for transcendence. Chr...more This is an interesting and thought-provoking book. The story is that aliens establish a presence on earth and offer humanity the free gift of eternal life, not as Christians understand it in heaven with God, but in this universe. The story is sent in rural England (Yorkshire) and shows how individuals and couples respond to this.

The work is highly philosophical, though this is embedded in the stories of people as they wrestle with death and immortality and the human desire for transcendence. Christians may profit from the book because of the author's honest exploration of many ultimate questions; though consistent, the author's perspectives are not Christian or religious. In some ways, the science-fiction premise of the story is only a vehicle to allow consideration of the greater questions. The story is valid and coherent, but the sci-fi never gets in the way of the philosophical probing.

Some of the questions are:
* How would you live life if you knew you could not die?
* Would you accept never-ending life in this universe, albeit within a universe "teeming with life"?
* What about your character flaws and eternal life?
* What about "bad people"? What happens in their case?
* How much is "enough" for people? If the whole universe and all time were at our disposal, would that be enough?
* What transcendent cause, if any, might there be in this universe which would be sufficient for people who cannot die?

The author presents a consistent view of these questions. Many Christians could profit by considering these and examining how they differ from Christian answers. I found it stimulating to reflect on the differences.

It is clear that the author is not American. It is not just the British spellings and idioms, but also the setting in the small English town. Much of the story centers around friends meeting after work in the local pub to have their "pints" and talk. Many people in the story find it hard to stay married; I don't know if this appears to more prominent to me because of the English context, or if it is more a fact of life in actual English society.(less)

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Jan 19, 2010 David rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: nobody

Eric Brown's Kethani describes what happens when an alien race arrives on Earth bearing the gift of immortality. The story is told as a series of interviews or reconstructions of events as related by the various characters, the overall structure connected by the narrator and significant character, Khalid.

The premise has promise, but the resulting novel is disjoint, repetitive, and lackluster. I was unable to finish it.

Recommended for teen +, adult topics (mostly adultery and some sex)

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Sep 27, 2009 Brandi rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2009, science-fiction

I found this book to be a really interesting concept, but I was more interested in finding out the reasons behind the aliens choices than the stories of the characters. This may be the fact that this book is a string of short stories only cohesed by the interludes. It also, for no particular reason, bothered me that despite the fact that the book takes place over 15 or 20 years, every story that was told in the book took place in the winter. That really annoyed me for some reason, as if the auth...more

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Jan 20, 2009 Wendy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I was excited for this book and it was a letdown. It was about what happened to normal people's lives when the world was finally contacted by aliens and given the opportunity to choose to live forever. The stories were bland and many of them dealt with the same old theme of divorce and people who chose not to live forever. Virtually nothing about the aliens themselves and absolutely void of any stories about actual contact between humans and aliens.

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Feb 13, 2013 Kirkus rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Nooooo, I was fooled by the nice synopsis.

It drags on and on with the different characters soulsearching and I couldnt help but thinking why all this useless speculating? The answer was so simple. At the end the story just fizzles out to nothing.

It tries drama with a sci-fi setting but fails to tell the drama and the the sci-fi sucks.

I feel sorry for readers who enjoyed this.

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Dec 07, 2010 Brad rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi

I enjoyed Kethani but it is really a book of short stories not a novel. The author created short pieces to link all the stories together. Also the book does not really deal with the aliens themselves. Rather it deals more with the psychological aspects of an alien race coming to earth bearing gifts and how humanity responds to them. While I did enjoy many of the stories and ideas presented I was hoping for space opera not space drama.

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Jul 10, 2009 Cloudwalker rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

While this particular idea (humanity forced to evolve by an extraterrestrial species) has been explored before, I thought Eric Brown took an interesting new path by telling his tale via a series of interviews.

Other than that, all I could think was that this was a kinder and friendlier version of "Childhood's End."

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Jan 30, 2010 Linda Branham Greenwell rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, fantasy, sci-fi

Aliens come to earth and make contact. They come in peace and have a way of helping people live forever... when they die they are sent away and return immortal. There is discord among the people on earth as to whether to accept the aliens or not. Kind of like the discord people have over everything today

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Aug 16, 2009 Patty rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

When I first started reading this book, I thought it had a great premise. I don't know if it's because I read a lot of Stephen King and Dean Koontz, but I was expecting a little more excitement...like, "Suprise! You've now become a slave to ugly and scary alien monsters!" Oh well! LOL

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Oct 26, 2012 Joe rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was an interesting, thought provoking book. While science fiction is its guise, in reality, this is much more a philosophical novel. If something deeper than action-packed apocalyptic alien invasions appeal to you, then give Kethani a try.

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Jul 03, 2011 Moonshadow rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Brilliant novel.
I liked it because although it was syfy it made you think about
the future and what would you do if you were given immortality.
It did not depend heavily on the "science" part but on how the situation
affects the protagonists.

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May 03, 2009 Suj rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, sci-fi

A very fascinating, well-written story with lots of unanswered questions. Or maybe answers which I didn't like(?). It is not your typical sci-fi story.

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Dec 23, 2009 Michael Davies rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

First contact S/F ok read but a bit disapointing.

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Sep 08, 2011 Adrian Fisher added it · review of another edition

What a great read.

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Aug 04, 2009 Tia Jones rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: good-books

Interesting. Worth the read. Aliens.

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About Eric Brown

Eric Brown's first short story was published in _Interzone_ in 1987, and he sold his first novel, _Meridian Days_, in 1992. He has won the British Science Fiction Award twice for his short stories and has published forty books: SF novels, collections, books for teenagers and younger children, and he writes a monthly SF review column for the _Guardian_.

He is married to the writer and medievalist Fi...more

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