The Immortalist by Chloe Benjamin

Would you want to know the date of your death?  Would it propel you to action or freeze you with fear?  Would you love more generously or isolate yourself from others?  Chloe Benjamin in her novel, The Immortalist, opens these questions and more in her examination of the four Gold siblings.  A slow unwinding of each of their lives reveals the impact of the prophecy given to them by the traveling "seer" when they were just children.  Simon, the youngest, throws caution to the wind and embarks on an all out hedonistic search for physical pleasure and experiences.  Klara, with her fierce determination to succeed as a magician, finds life a precarious balancing act that she does not really want to endure.  Daniel, who becomes an army doctor sacrifices self in his efforts to "save" as many soldiers as he can.  And lastly, Varya the eldest, spends her life in pursuit of longevity enhancements for humanity through her research and studies.  Each of the Gold's probe into the unanswerable questions we all face.  What in our life is destined and what is our choice?  What power does our mind have over our life?  Will we succumb to our own fears or can we succeed against all odds?  Do we need connections with family and friends or do we suffer more for having them?  Readers are left with more questions than answers, and yet there were moments of memorable and thought provoking descriptions of love and family and life.  This is not a "light" read but it was interesting and brought out much to be discussed.