Intruders: The Incredible Visitations at Copley Woods

by Budd Hopkins

A shocking account--documented and corroborated--of the abduction of humans by aliens, told with chilling objectivity by one of the most diligent UFO investigators in the country. 8 pages of photographs, illustrations.

Genres: Nonfiction, Aliens, Paranormal, History, Mystery, Biography, Occult

238 pages, Hardcover

First published March 12, 1987

About the author

American painter, sculptor, and prominent figure in alien abduction phenomena and related UFO research.

in 1964 Hopkins witnessed an UFO, dissatisfied with the response Hopkins received when he reported the incident to nearby Otis Air National Guard Base, he suspected a possible government cover-up.

Reviews

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having now read what I consider to be his three major works (this book, Missing Time and Witnessed: The True Story of the Brooklyn Bridge UFO Abductions ), I think I've settled on Budd Hopkins being my favourite ufologist. Though ingenuous to fault - being willing to believe and advance one of the most unlikeliest explanations for the alien abduction phenomena - his work tends to be rigorous, entertaining and humane. There's a sense that he really cares about the well-being of the people he interviews and studies, even when the progression of events might lead a more cynical person to believe he's being strung along by fantasists.

Intruders is primarily the story of Kathie Davis (an alias) and her encounters over several decades with what she believes (or, says the cynic, claims to believe) are alien lifeforms who, we learn after she drops several subtle-as-a-sledgehammer hints to Hopkins before and after undergoing a number of dubious hypnosis sessions with him, are utilising her in an ongoing hybrid breeding program. Why the aliens would elect an overweight woman with a catalogue of health problems (as listed by Hopkins in the book) as an incubator in such a sensitive program is never adequately explained, but it's reassuring to believe that the spacemen in our midst are apparently not as concerned with eugenics as some of our more earthly antagonists were/are.

The story is, of course, pretty bonkers, and I don't believe Kathie Davis for a minute, but Intruders is still a pretty good read. There are even some vignettes describing alien interference with Kathie's defenceless children (the 100% human ones) that strike a somewhat chilling note. A detour that deals with a trucker's graphic encounter with a large-breasted female alien is also, erm... Interesting. Also, I kind of hope the story of the campout-crashing blonde boy and his two mute, utterly forgettable comrades is a case of aliens in disguise cavorting among humans. Much better to be thought of as a pair of Zeta Reticulans employing some kind of memory-cloaking trickery than seen as virtual non-entities whose faces weren't worth remembering.

If you're a believer in the alien abduction phenomena then you'll probably love this book. It has a lot more meat to it than a Fire in the Sky: The Walton Experience , for example, and is actually written by an author who's likeable. There's plenty for the committed skeptic to scoff at and enjoy, too. All told, this is probably Hopkins' best book.

[Erik Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Over the years and starting in elementary school, I have read many dozens of books about unidentified flying objects and close encounters with them of all kinds. As a result of this I have become convinced of a few things. First, there are many earnest experiencers at all levels and persons, like Budd Hopkins, sincerely concerned about them. Second, the phenomena coming under this rubric have been exploited, manipulated and fabricated by many individuals and even agencies of our own government for various purposes. Third, that it is very highly unlikely that Earth is being regularly visited by extraterrestrial craft. Fourth, that there is at least a family resemblance between close encounters with "aliens" in the post-war years and encounters with other non-human intelligences which have occurred throughout recorded history, worldwide, and which, in fact, still occur. Fifth, that hypnotic "memory" retrieval is an extremely faulty method not to be trusted as a means of obtaining data about objective events.

These caveats notwithstanding, I read this material as if reading a novel, i.e. with a suspension of disbelief, file it away for story-telling and for the next book or personal account of such an experience.

With all this said, there remain some accounts which truly trouble me. These are the ones with multiple witnesses, particularly when the witnesses are unknown to one another, and/or objective corroborations such as radar records, ground traces and the like. There appear to have been such cases. Here the possible explanations are unsettling. Here I am challenged to reconsider how I think of mind as something pertaining to individuals and/or to relate such evidences to what we know about governmental mind-control experiments.

[Heidi Wiechert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very, very creepy. The Wednesday phone calls that Kathie received when she was pregnant reminded me of the phone call phenomenon that was documented by various people in The Mothman Prophecies by John Keel. I wonder why that happens. So strange.

[Matin Pyron · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is worth noting that I found this book to be quite thought-provoking.
The number of bizarre incidents that occurred to the Coply Woods family are indeed disturbing yet captivating thanks to the non-hostile attitude and demeanor of the extraterrestrials toward the family mcreatures at the end of the book you come to this realization that we are not the only creatures in the universe, however, what I can say for certain is that there is a slight chance of these creatures being the alleged Demons mentioned in the Holphenomenon you have a keen interest in the paranormal phenomenon, I highly recommend the book Roswell: The Ultimate Cold Case: Eyewitness Testimony and Evidence of Contact and the Cover-up written by Thomas J. Carey

[Dollie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was so disturbing to me that I could only read it in small doses. To the nay-sayers who don't believe I say, "Why would anyone make this shit up?" Very good, in-depth study of incidents at "Copley Woods."

[Nadienne Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Back when I was a teenager in the dark days of the 1990s, I devoured just about every book I could find on the subject of Aliens and Alien Abductions. And I swallowed the party line, hook and all, without question. I was absolutely convinced that these were real occurrences and events and that they were going to lead to and amount to something in the very near future.

Now, I'm 41 years old in 2021...and this is all garbage. Sure, it's fun to read, and I'll even go so far as to say that the abductees may even believe what they "remember." But, everything else I've learned about sleep paralysis, the ability of hypnotists to implant memories, and the basic unreliability of memory, not to mention what I've learned in the fields of quantum mechanics, astrophysics, and interstellar travel...this is all garbage. Fun to read garbage, but garbage nonetheless.

No offense meant to the author, or any of his subjects. I'm sure that they all mean well, and, as I said, I'm sure that they are convinced of the truthfulness of their claims, but lots of people believe lots of crazy things.

[B. Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Evidence" is too strong a word for a series of hypnotic recalls and some burnt grass. This book did little to win me over from a position of open-minded skepticism, but the earnest stories of the author and his witnesses of midnight abductions will give you the willies for sure. This book is a great resource for those interested in the recurring themes of alien abduction or for anyone who would enjoy a good fright the next time you see weird shadows in your hallway at night.

[Ayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even if the events in this book are not true, it was still well written and wildly entertaining. Do I think these things happened? Who am I to say? It was thought provoking and it tormented my soul, as a good book should. If you don't come away from a book or a movie rethinking your whole life, was it really worth taking time for? I think this one is.

[Steven H · Rating 1 out of 5]

HOPKINS EXTENDS AND DEEPENS HIS RESEARCH OF THE ABDUCTION’ EVENTS

Elliot Budd Hopkins (1931-2011) was a prominent American artist (having received a Guggenheim Fellowship, and a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts), an author, and a ufologist specializing in ‘alien abductions.’ He was a prominent figure in ‘alien abduction’ phenomena and related UFO research.

He wrote in the ‘Note to the Reader’ section of the book, “Surely a majority of the world’s scientists believe in the possibility of extraterrestrial life existing somewhere in our inconceivably vast universe… Obviously the UFO phenomenon … may offer immediate evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence… But the scientific community has not investigated these reports and then rejected them; for the most part the scientists have only the vaguest idea of the weight and the specifics of the evidence. There is an all-too-human reason for this lack of curiosity. The idea of an extraterrestrial intelligence existing ‘out there’ somewhere, but not as yet possessing a technology that allowed travel between solar systems, is [a]… comforting concept to hold… The possibility that extraterrestrial intelligence may already be visiting our planet… and treating the human species as laboratory specimens for some … unfathomable purpose… is a truly disturbing idea… Shortly after my book ‘Missing Time’ was published I appeared on a radio interview program to discuss the UFO phenomenon. The talk show host proclaimed himself a skeptic… I told him that of the two of us I was the more skeptical. ‘I’m so skeptical… that I find it beyond me to deny the possibility of anything.’ And so my request of you, the reader. Do not prejudge… Try not to put anthropomorphic limits on what may be an entirely alien intelligence and technology. The true skeptic cannot, at the beginning, accept the impossibility of anything.”

In the first chapter, he explains, “No aspect of [the UFO] phenomenon] is as controversial… as a so-called ‘abduction report’ of the type I shall deal with in this book… However one wishes to theorize about these accounts---that they represent some strange new mass psychological delusion or that they represent descriptions of real, physical experiences---something important is going on, something which demands open-minded, scientific investigation.” (Pg. 3-4)

He states of experiencer Kathie Davis: “All the details she has described [in her letter to Hopkins] predate the publication of ‘Missing Time.’ … I am satisfied that in 1978 she had almost no knowledge of the typical ‘bedroom visitation,’ nor of the commonly reported UFO occupant-type. Her images and memories cannot be ascribed either to ‘contamination’ by reading the UFO literature or by viewing its Hollywood version…” (Pg. 18-19)

He notes that “I asked Laura [Kathie’s sister] if she had read my book ‘Missing Time’… and she said that Kathie had lent it to her, but that she had only read parts of it… ‘But when I saw the movie [the UFO Incident’… it scared me to death. I had to turn the TV off… I hardly slept that night.’ I have investigated enough similar cases to recognize in Laura’s account … many of the signs of a traumatic—and buried---UFO abduction experience. Everything I was learning about the Copley Woods affair underlined my desire to go to Indianapolis and see for myself.” (Pg. 28-29)

After psychologist Dr. Slater administered a battery of psychological tests to the subjects, Hopkins concluded, “that a trained psychologist testing nine individuals ‘blindly’ found absolutely no psychological explanation for their abduction accounts, and also that each exhibited the kind of ‘psychic scarring’ such a trauma would be likely to inflict.” (Pg. 33-34)

He recounts, “The tale of Kathie’s health problems is long and depressing… Hypoglycemia, hyperadrenalism and high blood pressure have all been complex problems, and allergic reactions to certain medications have compounded her difficulties… It is ironic that what should be one of the easiest, most natural things for a UFO investigator to do is often one of the most difficult: listening carefully to the witness… We tend to let out knowledge of other cases and patterns dictate what we ‘select out’ as being particularly significant in the subject’s account. This, I am sorry to say, is what happened during my first interview with Kathie, in the context of her medical history.” (Pg. 77-79)

He acknowledges, “In ‘Missing Time’ I dealt with three separate instances of apparent nasal cavity implants, and in my investigations since that time I’ve encountered several more. Yet so far as I know no one has unequivocally established that an implant is currently in place in any abductee… I am certain, however, that eventually one of these objects will be located, and then we will have our long-sought-after physical artifact, our ‘smoking gun.’” (Pg. 84)

He notes that “Abductees like Joyce or Kathie almost always ask us, the investigators, to tell them what it all means, why it is going on. And I always have to confess the truth---I have no idea of the ultimate purpose of it all.” (Pg. 149)

He summarizes, “Abductees are not ‘believers’ in some religion of outer space, they are not seeking publicity or other rewards, and they are, at heart, confused and frightened by their experiences, which they regard more as a profoundly unsettling problem in their lives than as any kind of advantage. These abductees are neither paranoid nor suffering from delusions of grandeur; they are honest people who have suffered traumatic experiences they do not understand.” (Pg. 149-150)

He admits, “Occasionally I receive letters from those I believe are normal people who have had genuine UFO experiences---abductions---but who have been too overwhelmed to handle these experiences with any degree of balance of calm. Most of these writers, I feel certain, are sincerely and essentially sane, btu are now teetering on the rim of mental breakdown, trying to hold themselves together in the face of radically disorienting traumatic experiences.” (Pg. 177)

He states, “We know, now, a great deal about the content of these long-term, cross-generational UFO abductions. What we DON’T know is, of course, the biggest question: What is the ultimate purpose of it all?” (Pg. 235)

He says, “When I first became aware of this pattern of ‘lost’ babies and the later ‘presentation’ of tiny, bizarre infants, I decided I should try to find out if this theme is a common one in psychology. I asked two psychiatrists and two psychologists… if they had ever encountered female patients reporting this kind of dream or memory. None of them had… all four experienced therapists assured me that in their practice they had never heard of a ‘missing baby’ or ‘tiny baby’ dream such as I described.” (Pg. 249)

He summarizes, “behind the abduction phenomenon … there seems to be a very peculiar and very consistent ethical position. In none of the cases I’ve investigated have I ever encountered even the suggestion of deliberate harm or malevolence. The abductees are apparently kept as calm as possible and seem to suffer only minimal physical pain… There seems to be a definite effort by the UFO occupants to make the operations as swift, efficient and painless as possible.” (Pg. 277)

He continues, “And so we come to a central paradox: The UFO occupants, with their apparently hypnotic ability to frame and control at least our short-term behavior, seem, at the same time, to understand almost nothing about basic human psychology… It is as if they are truly alien to most human psychology, though they may understand enough about human PHYSIOLOGY to concern themselves with physical pain and its alleviation.” (Pg. 278)

He concludes, “UFO abduction reports…must be accepted one of two ways: Either they represent some new and heretofore unrecognized and nearly universal psychological phenomenon---a theory which does not take into account the accompanying PHYSICAL evidence---or they represent honest attempts to report real events… By any standard of comparison, the UFO phenomenon … seems less like a simplistic product of popular fantasy than it does a highly complex morally ambiguous and self-contained external reality. A reality, I should add, that none of us understands.” (Pg. 279-280)

This book will be of great interest to those studying UFOs, the alien abduction phenomena, and related matters.

[Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

En algunos momentos el autor peca de reiterativo en lo que se refiere a su convicción para creer en la veracidad del fenómeno. No obstante, al señor Hopkins lo caracteriza su humanidad respecto a sus pacientes y su forma, nada sensacionalista, de transmitir los hechos ocurridos (aunque los testimonios de los pacientes sean inherentemente sensacionalistas).
En general, es un libro que engancha y se lee bastante rápido con momentos realmente aterradores y retorcidos. Me ha sorprendido muy gratamente como a medida que iba avanzando en la lectura, muchos tabúes (psicológicos y sexuales) se van manifestando hasta conformar la parte central del propio fenómeno de las abducciones.
Me ha gustado mucho.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

As silly as it sounds, I find stories of aliens and of alien abductions to be terrifying. There's something about the ideas of home invasion - alien entities and alien intentions - amnesia - and helplessness in these accounts which make my skin crawl. I've felt this way since childhood, when I would warily peek into UFO books at the library and suffer nightmares for days afterward. I'm not sure what came over me, but I decided to read this classic of the abduction phenomena chronicles as an adult to make up my own mind.

The accounts are chilling and strange. Bright and blinding lights, frozen compatriots, missing time, men without identities, and encounters in the woods feature in a chronology of anxiety and fear. I couldn't read this book alone or at night at first.

As I read more, however, I noticed some problems with the assumption of the reality of these experiences.

One problem is the heavy reliance on hypnotic regression to recall memories. While Hopkins is transparent in how he does or does not use leading questions, and attempts to minimize their impact on the testimonies he collects, one can't help but look back over the forty years since this publication and how far hypnosis has fallen from favor in the psychiatric and forensic sciences. Are these accounts trustworthy at all? Or are they entirely fabricated memories which just *feel real* to these waking dreamers?

Another problem is that many of the reports follow a classic progression of sleep paralysis hallucinations. Sleep paralysis is a common and harmless, though terrifying, phenomena where a dreamer awakes enough to be conscious, but not enough to rouse the body from the inhibition of motion normal during sleep. The result is a feeling of paralysis and terror, almost always accompanied by auditory, tactile, and visual hallucinations projected onto one's surroundings. I've personally experienced sleep paralysis and it was extremely frightening, but I accept that it is a physical process. A recurring motif in this book is an abductee waking from sleep in their room to find figures watching them, speaking to them, and guiding them elsewhere. Seeing figures in one's room is a common experience of sleep paralysis, and it's easy to imagine that the dreamer fell back into REM sleep and transitioned to a vivid dream state.

This motif becomes more damning when one learns that sleep paralysis is often comorbid with narcolepsy, a condition in which one experiences a disrupted sleep cycle. Unplanned and unexpected naps caused by undiagnosed narcolepsy could account for "missing time" incidents. Sufferers of narcolepsy may also experience hypnagogic hallucinations, which are vivid hallucinations experienced when drowsy - much like one abductee's account of watching television late at night and seeing an alien walk across her hallway. It's much easier to believe that she experienced a hypnagogic hallucination while nodding off than that she was visited by an alien grabbing a drink down the hall.

Finally, sleep paralysis and nacrolepsy may run in families, which would help to explain why familial groups tend to experience abductions.

While I believe that many abductees believe they have experienced an abduction, and suffer side effects and psychological effects, reading this book with curiosity and a critical outlook helped reduce my fear around alien abductions. It's still a frightening and compelling narrative, but I took Budd's advice from the introductory chapter and decided for myself.

[Aaron Martz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hopkins offers an interesting spin on the UFO encounter: his gray men are attempting to create a human/alien hybrid. Whether it is in order to introduce empathy into their apathetic world or to acclimate themselves to our world so they can live in harmony with us is anyone's guess. In one of those cases where "all of the names have been changed to protect the innocent," which essentially means Hopkins, or his subjects, could be, and probably are, making the whole thing up or are delusional, attention seeking, or merely describing their fantasies, dreams or nightmares, Hopkins collects seemingly hundreds of interviews about alien encounters, focusing his book mainly on a woman and her two children and their encounters over a number of decades, starting when the woman was a teenager, with the same alien visitors. It's eventually revealed that this woman felt she had a third child, an alien/human hybrid, who was taken away from her, but whom the aliens eventually allow her to see. And she's not the only one. Mixed in with this are a number of other "reproductive" encounters between humans and aliens, among them several sexual encounters between men and "female" aliens, which is a new one for me, as well as one incredibly spooky incident in which some teenagers invite a weird-looking kid and his two friends (whose appearance no one is able to describe) to party with them at their cabin in the woods, suspecting later that all three of them were aliens. Hopkins takes all of this very seriously, and although that doesn't make it any more or less credible than the National Enquirer, it doesn't make it any more or less entertaining either.

[Michael Alford · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before I became a Christian, I read everything I could get my hands on about the UFO phenomenon, including several books on abductions. Most authors in this genre are the farthest thing from objective, and it shows in their research, especially when trying to coax 'memories' out of people under hypnosis. Budd Hopkins in this book was , honestly, as about as objective as he could be, and I believe he deserves credit for that. Even when his interviewee is under hypnosis, he is very careful not to lead them or suggest things to them. The one or two times in the book where he does do that (it would be hard not to) he apologizes to the reader for it.
Having said that, the accounts are terrifying, and Hopkins offers no solution or defense against what he perceives to be an assault on the human race by an outside force. But then again, how could he?
My own thoughts on this are long and complex and largely influenced by my understanding of the Bible. Let me just say this; I see no reason to assume that these entities are who (or what) they say they are, and the abduction literature is amazingly void of accounts by professing born-again Christians. Apparently our 'sky brothers' steer clear of that group. Do you ever wonder why?

[Bill Nadeau · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is interesting how many armchair experts, none of them claiming to be professionals in the field--or any related field--dismiss hypnotic regression as unreliable quackery. A rigorous investigation into the therapeutic use of hypnotic regression by trained professionals would prove otherwise.

Can hypnosis and hypnotic and post hypnotic suggestion be misused? Sure, obviously. Go see a stage hypnotist show and have a laugh while the hypnotist manipulates people. It can be illuminating. Do abduction researchers like Budd or David Jacobs misuse these techniques? Not at all.

Budd trained Jacobs and his methods are publicly described and quite effective. This is something I have extensive experience with, and his work was the real deal. I actually met Budd in the late 70s. He was a great guy, his pioneering work in this field has helped a lot of people.

People not familiar with the subject may be dismissive about it, that does not mean this isn't real. Budd helped crack this mysterious phenomenon wide open with this book. This and his other books are worth the time spent reading. And check out the made for TV movie "Intruders" - derived from this book and the abduction research of Harvard's Dr. John Mack.

[Revellanotvanel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book left chills with me reading this as a young kid. I literally locked myself in my bedroom unconcerned with anyone until I finished it. I certainly believe in the phenomena of abduction, but never quite came to any kind of concrete conclusion (of what I believe) this phenomena really IS.

What I find interesting is the many people who came to learn of the phenomena as young kids, like myself I was 10 years old, and I grew up very sheltered. We lived tucked deep into the woods with the only real view coming out of the driveway all farmland as my dad bailed hay and the neighbors grew acres of corn.

I say I grew up sheltered because we only visited the mall maybe once or twice a year and for my dad (retired AF) to even have bought me this book was bizarre--literally no begging involved--when you have four other kids usually there's some begging involved as my older siblings were wway better at getting things out of our parents than I was. I went on to read many many other books--particularly THE WATCHERS by Raymond E Fowler and Communion by Streiber which fascinated me just as much as INTRUDERS.

WOW, Amazing thinking so many of us grew up with this book.

[Stacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a well researched and very interesting book about ETs abducting humans in order to create hybrids. Several women, who did not know each other, all had nearly identical recollections under hypnosis. Their experiences included their hybrid babies that they even met during later abductions. As far fetched that many may find this, this is not the first book that I have read this in. All the abduction books that I have read so far, if no actual mention of hybrids was made, they did go into the physical exams and taking of semen from males and eggs from females. In fact, it is the striking similarities uncovered by various different UFO researchers that makes these claims all the more believable.

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stumbled upon Whitley Strieber a couple of months back. He referenced Budd Hopkins, which led me to Intruders. Like Strieber, Hopkins brings a reasoned, intellectual approach to Ufology. Intruders summarizes Hopkins' work with a young woman who experienced a UFO visitation and compares her experiences with others. Large portions are transcripts from hypnosis sessions that Hopkins conducted. Intruders was written in the 1980's and while some of the scientific and cultural references seem dated by today's standards, it definitely offers a solid, in-depth overview of the UFO phenomenon. I recommend if you're curious about this subject.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

An early account of the UFO abduction phenomena, focused mainly on a family in Indiana with material from other similar cases. Most of the testimony Hopkins relies on was obtained by using hypnosis to recover lost segments of time. In the years since this book was written, there have been very serious concerns raised about the reliability of accounts obtained in this way, so I'm skeptical of his conclusions. It's intriguing speculation and a creepy story, but that's as far as I'm willing to go.

[Joshua Hargis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating. Groundbreaking. Eerie.

Reading books like this take me back to when I more or less were open to the idea of aliens, but never searched into any alleged experiences. I never thought deeply on it. Yet you read books like this and it’s like turning a corner.

There’s so much potential insight as to intentions. I see all the more why this was shouted out in John Mack’s Abductions book (if memory serves). Reading books like these help remind me that just because humanity thinks it has everything figured out, doesn’t mean it does. The mind must remain open.

[MrFuckTheSystem · Rating 4 out of 5]

For someone who is new into the “hybrid breeding” hypothesis this book would be a great start for them ! The author does a great job at recounting the details for a few different cases in which the memories are retrieved consciously and hypnotically ! Budd Hopkins leaves no stone unturned ! I’m not a big fan of hypnosis when it’s practiced by a ufo investigator but Budd is the exception ! I do recommend !

[Ron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though this book is old it outlines the events of several people who were abducted by aliens. In many cases there are multiple abductions. Budd Hopkins interviews and sometimes uses hypnotic regression to get to the buried memories of these people. The book is a bit frightening as well as informative and is relevant today. A very good read and it is not science fiction.

[Dana Hutchings · Rating 2 out of 5]

that was a slog! he compares believing in alien abduction to believing in the holocaust and there's a bunch of weird sex stuff. about 30% of the book is hypnosis transcripts filled with ellipses and tortured, halting pauses. only bother if you wanna learn about the Wise Babies

[Nathan Lowery · Rating 4 out of 5]

very good book keeps you interested with the pictures it has in there, it talked about weird stuff sometimes and showed very strange pictures.

[Robin Udell]

Wow.

[Konstantine · Rating 3 out of 5]

certainly wasnt expecting much but to its credit makes for some interesting moments and stories, eerie at times and
more absurd at others

[Mercurymouth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A difficult subject is handled well by Budd Hopkins.
Some of us know they exist & visit now & then...and some of us choose not to believe, & that's ok too.

[Alain del Risco · Rating 5 out of 5]

So realistic!!!! I believe.

[John Wenz · Rating 1 out of 5]

"hi I'm an artist. Want to come to my art studio so I can hypnotise you poorly and ask leading questions about if aliens did sex stuff to you?"

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

still keeps me up at night sometimes

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, this book had it's moments, but it wasn't anywhere near as scary, engrossing and entertaining as Whitley Strieber's Communion. Communion really focuses on Strieber's experience and goes into terrifying details about it. If I remember correctly, it still talks about other cases, but it's told more in the first person rather than as a retelling done through hypnosis which is the majority of this book. I enjoyed this book, but found Communion much scarier and enteraining. This book seems to be more grounded (and potentially more realistic/scientific) while Communion seems more dramatic or embellished.

This book really focuses on Kathie Davis's (an alias) experience in Copley Woods (also an alias). It's a good case because there is a lot of supporting evidence. There's some physical evidence ("crop circles" - dead grass that makes a shape where the craft was supposed to have landed), multiple people had a part in the experience and relived it through hypnosis, and there was even neighbors who had noticed that something had happened the same night (power outages and seemingly localized earthquakes). A lot of this book are from reports given while under hypnosis. It goes over some of Kathie Davis's case and then tells about other cases that Hopkins investigated. These other cases are given to show that the Davis case was not an isolated or one-off scenario but something that is happening to a large number of people. Hopkins relies on the number of isolated but similar cases for credibility.

While Communion seemed to rely much more heavily on Whitley Strieber's personal account and credability, this book relies on the number of cases that Hopkins is investigating and how similar they are. While this book can be scary if you take some of the cases and imagine what it could mean for you or for humanity as a whole. With Communion, you don't have to imagine what it would be like because Strieber details it in terrifying details and makes you feel like you could be woken up by aliens at any point.

A small complaint I have for the Kindle version, was that the pictures weren't moved to the corresponding text, but instead were left in the middle of the book. It makes sense for physical books to have all the pictures in the middle as they frequently have different paper, and it's easy enough to flip to the pictures and then back as the pictures are easy to find, but someone couldn't take the time to move the pictures for the Kindle version? (I realized that I could have bookmarked the pictures and it would have been relatively easy to find them, but that's only if I had realized that the pictures where in the middle of the book as there wasn't a way to know that). It meant that I saw all the pictures at half way through the book. This meant that I didn't remember reading about the pictures in the beginning, and hadn't yet read about the later half of the pictures.

The last sections of the book really focuses on the belief that aliens have a breeding program where they are cross breeding humans. Definitely interesting, but also concerning at the same time. The biggest question I had from this section, is that there was a young girl (13 I think?) that was verified to be pregnant, was also verified to be a virgin. Wouldn't this make national headlines? How was this kept so quiet? Wouldn't this young girl essentially be like the Virgin Mary which was considered to be a miracle?

This book seems more realistic/scientific than Communion. Communion is more of an entertaining story. There are definitely parts where Strieber tries to prove his credibility in the book, but his book is definitely terrifying and doesn't seem to let the truth stand in the way of a good story. This book seems more realistic and at the end discusses the belief that aliens genuinely don't want to hurt people and do take every imaginable step to make the experience as comfortable and as pain-free as possible. They seem to lack some understanding into human emotions, but it seems like they do try to make it as harmless as possible. This seems much more potentially realistic to myself compared to aliens being completely careless and treating humans how we treat livestock.