Reviews with content warning for Grief - The Immortalists

Though I never found myself dying to jump back into this book, I always found myself hooked once I’d already pick it up.

This story felt like such a personal approach to the question: would you live your life differently if you knew exactly when it would end?

It follows the lives of four siblings who learn early on in the book the exact date in which they each will die. You then begin to see how this knowledge begins to impact their lives leading to their inevitable deaths. Though it followed four different storylines it never felt completely disconnected as each sibling always tied in with the others. However, because it followed all four of their lives individually it allowed the reader to experience different parts of the country through the span of different decades.

Overall it was beautifully written and thought-provoking. I’d definitely recommend if you’re looking for something that ignites some discussion.

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belleanndthebook's review

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dark reflective sad

3.0

After a few months worth of distance from this book. I can finally elaborate on my feelings towards it: This book creates a scenario with one set of expectations and then pivots and explores other themes almost entirely.

This book sells itself, both in the synopsis and the prologue, as a book that explores how knowing the date of one’s death shapes one’s life, a book thematically about—what I will attempt to summarize in one word as—mortality. However, immediately when we jump forward to the first sibling's perspective, the book begins to centrally explore another theme: grief. The siblings’ father dies, triggering the characters to begin thinking about death and thus begins the events of the story. Initially, the addition of this theme makes sense due to the proximity of mortality and death (and thus grief). However, the rest of the book very quickly becomes very repetitive.

The lives of the siblings become increasingly shaped mainly by grief as opposed to exploring how they grapple with their mortality. All of the siblings essentially struggle against their mortality and die in the exact same way

(self-sabotage and recklessness)

, and, until the literal climactic conclusion of the book, no other possibility of dealing with mortality is portrayed.

Thus, a book that I picked up expecting it to explore how people live their lives in the face and in spite of their inevitable mortality, actually turned out to be a book exploring grief, death, and dying over and over again without much meaningful variety. Don’t get me wrong, there was some merit in the siblings' stories individually and in the other themes explored; however, I think that many are going to find this book disappointing because the set-up in no way matched the pay-off.

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dixiecarroll's review

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

I enjoyed this and found the concept to be incredibly intriguing and captivating. I do think that it fell a little flat in certain areas, but I was still eager to keep going and will recommend to everyone! It’s a sweeping family saga plagued with death - look up triggers before hand because it’s filled with them all.

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kiwialexa's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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bebidocrimes's review

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emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

It's heartbreaking to read a story that really begs the question: what if? What if they never went to the fortune teller? I think their dates were different before they walked through her door, but that information influenced them all, and especially Simon, in how they would lead their lives. I think Simon's choices were a hefty domino effect for the rest of the siblings. How would you live your life if you knew when you would die?

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