Customer Reviews

Without Consent: A Comprehensive Survey of Missing Time and Abduction Phenomenon in the U.K.

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This book details investigations into some of the most compelling UFO abduction/contact cases in the UK, and since its initial publication by Ringpull Press in 1994 has appeared in various hardcover and paperback editions. The authors are Philip Mantle, respected veteran of UFO investigations in the UK, leading light of BUFORA and MUFON, conference organiser and magazine editor; and Carl Nagaitis, an independent investigative journalist. The foreword is penned by Nick Pope.

The book would be an excellent primer for any reader unfamiliar with the literature, as it examines and defines "abduction" and considers various hypotheses from the literal to the psychosocial. Its true value, however, is in its thorough investigative summary of some of the most compelling UK cases. The 1974 abduction of the entire Day family (often known as "The Avely Case") and the long-term consequences causing all members of the family to change their life-priorities, become vegetarian and live a more environmentally responsible lifestyle is particularly interesting and was obviously initiated by a real event full of "high strangeness." Philip Spencer's extraordinary 1987 photograph of an entity on Ilkley Moor is printed on a full-page plate (in the hardcover edition), to date the only professionally authenticated photo of what seems to be a genuine non-human alien being - if you discount the improbable and publicity-seeking claims of Stan Romanek and other obvious fraudsters.

Some vintage cases dating form the 1940s and earlier demonstrate that this phenomenon has been with us for a long time, and did not start with Antonio Villas Boas in 1957 or Betty and Barney Hill in 1961. Some more recent cases are really, really strange but the authors are professional enough to investigate diligently, check the facts and then report what is certain, without prejudice or judgment. There is new and original stuff here. People who have these encounters are on the whole normal, well-adjusted and in no way want any kind of public exposure; they just want to know what has happened to them and make sense of it.

At just over 200 pages including appendices, "Without Consent" is a quality publication with evidence of professional writing and editing. The book is written in a lively, populist style with good chapter organization and layout. Reading it is time well spent.

"Without Consent," newly reissued by Beyond Publications, is a laudable study for readers wishing to understand the alien abduction phenomenon. Plainly presented, "Without Consent" neither indulges in unfettered speculation nor subjective interpretation; the cases it presents stand as representative enigmas from the annals of British ufology. The authors approach the abduction enigma as a challenge to conventional thought, leaving the verdict to the reader. "Without Consent" is a short, sensible primer that shines a much-needed light on the state of UFO research in the UK.