LightQuest: Your Guide to Seeing and Interacting with UFOs, Mystery Lights and Plasma Intelligences Perfect Paperback – June 7, 2012

LightQuest is among the most intriguing UFO books I have read in a long time; the author's approach is refreshing, even while traveling a lot of familiar ground. He manages to make ufology interesting again with new spin and perspective.What's particularly fascinating is that Andrew Collins takes a favorite foil of the most ardent UFO debunker and turns it back on them - commandeering one of the skeptic's best "go-to-debunking tools" and effectively taking it out of their hands.What we're talking about here is plasma - as in the natural formations of plasmatic balls of light energy which form as a byproduct of certain geological processes beneath the earth's surface.Hard-core skeptics, such as Philip Klass, frequently trotted out plasma as a favorite explanation for mysterious lights manifesting in bizarre patterns across the sky and landscape - whether it was the famous "Foo Fighters" which dogged military aircraft during World War II -- or the thousands of encounters with globes or saucer-shaped objects on a lonely road in a remote location as reported by unsuspecting motorists.Klass often maintained the gullible observers were mistaking natural emissions of plasma light - including stuff like "swamp gas" - for otherworldly aircraft or some other paranormal phenomena. Klass often pointed out that natural plasmas can act in weird and unexpected ways, giving the impression of alien intelligence operating behind them.Well, Andrew Collins agrees that plasma lights are almost certainly natural formations generated by earth-bound processes, specifically, high pressure faults beneath the surface of the earth. This theory is on solid ground (no pun intended) - such plasma formations have even been recreated in a laboratory setting using immense pressure tools to certain kinds of rocks until they burst forth plasma emissions.But then Collins takes it a step further - or perhaps I should say, several miles further - by suggesting that these natural plasma emissions might actually play host to intelligent life forms -or "light beings" - which leverage the plasma state and manifestation to enter our dimension and plane of existence for short periods of time.If it sounds farfetched, I say read the book: Collins does a marvelous job of providing a solid theoretical model of how a natural plasma formation could be the "temporary body" of trans-human life forms. He brings in quantum entanglement, and also offers physicist David Bohm's "implicate order" as a background framework of how all this could come together.His theories are backed up with case studies - both famous incidents, such as the Barney and Betty Hill abduction, and the amazing events which took place at the Rendelsham military base in the U.K. - as well as lesser known cases of abduction that are not widely known.Is this a perfect book? No. There is much I would quibble with - it's not as tightly written or eloquent as one might hope. I also think Collins gets some things dead wrong, such as his conclusion that hypnotic regression is by-and-large unreliable in retrieving memories of "lost time" events as the result of abduction scenarios.Admittedly, for the past couple of decades, I was in complete agreement with Collins about the quality of information gleaned via hypnosis - until I read the works of Harvard-trained psychiatrist John Mack, who makes a powerful argument in support of hypnosis as a legitimate investigation tool.There is also the case of the Hills whom were hypnotized by one of the world's best experts in hypnosis, Dr. Benjamin Simon. I would urge the author (and others) to read or review the marvelous book, "Captured!" written by the niece of Betty Hill, Kathy Marden, along with a co-author, the famed UFO researcher Stanton Friedman. In this book, we see how hypnotic regression - when done right and professionally - includes any number of protocols and safeguards which can screen out imaginative content infecting the narrative of memory.But like I said - I'm just quibbling here. LightQuest is a terrific, must-read for anyone interested in the UFO phenomenon. Even those well-versed in ufology and who have consumed scads of UFO literature over decades (like me) may learn something new, or maybe see this most enigmatic and confounding of subjects in an all-new light (pun intended).

There are plenty of UFO books out there. More than you can probably count. Most of them do not offer anything new, if they offer anything at all. The majority of them are stuck in the extra-terrestrial paradigm. Through the years, there have been books in the field that stand out, notably the work of people like Jacques Vallee, John Keel, John Mack, Whitley Strieber, etc. The people who were willing to try and truly understand the phenomenon.I believe that Lightquest from Andrew Collins belongs on that list. Is it the definitive book that clearly explains everything? No. We may never have that. But this book, may very well be a step in the right direction. Expanding primarily on the work of another novel researcher, Paul Devereux, Andrew proposes that what we see as space ships, fairies, etc, are really plasma formations. This is not a new idea, although it is not a well known theory, where Collins differs, is he proposes a definite intelligence behind the phenomenon. He suggests a combination of altered states of consciousness, and what he calls a 'bubble reality' to explain what is happening to people who come in close contact with these plasma intelligences. He starts the book by debunking Roswell, the flagship of the ET Hypothesis. Following that, he explores areas that have earth lights, probable plasma formations, that show up regularly, such as Marfa, Texas. He then takes it deeper into UFO territory and explores encounters and how strange they really get. He deals with cutting edge science to try and understand what we may really be experiencing, rather than what it looks like on the surface.Like all of his books, he shares information you will not find anywhere else. He shares some personal accounts and some never before published accounts that support his theory. He even, at the end, takes a look at the Rendlesham case.All throughout, as he explores 'window areas', UFO hotspots, and why they may be such, he also gives you tips if you wish to visit them yourself, and where you are most likely to see something. Personally, I have been a fan of Andrew Collins for a long time now, and the majority of his books have had to do with archaeology and lost civilizations, but there are a few exceptions, like this. He has never disappointed me. He always has something worthwhile to share when he authors a book, and with the number he has out, that is quite impressive. This one is around 400 pages, detailed, well written, easy to read, and just packed with information. There is even a brief Q&A section at the end just to clarify some of the points in the book.If you are at all interested in the UFO Phenomenon, you owe it to yourself to read this book. Even if you disagree with his overall theory, I can almost guarantee you will get something out of it of value.

A simple book which explores an interesting and common sense compatible alternative theory on ufos and other mysteries along with tips for making contact, including location and travel tips.

Theories are new to me but plausible alternatives.

Andrew Collins has always been a sensible and rational writer on matters which border on the paranormal, particularly - as in this case - the UFO mystery. His writings on ancient civilisations are very worthwhile and his book on Atlantis (Gateway to Atlantis) is certainly one of the best on that subject.The present book is a development on his earlier small tome Alien Energy, about how light forms may be interacting with the human mind, a book which should have enjoyed a wider audience. However, it seems to have had a short life, and one not very mainstream. Here, it seems the publishers have set out to market the present book by having a picture of an alien being on the cover, and a subtitle which, until the book is read, when the reasoning becomes clear, has the air of New Ageism about it.(One wonders though if this was the author's subtitle or the publisher's.) For anyone seeking spacecraft with pilots from Zeta Reticuli and elsewhere, don't look here. Which is why Collins spends some time summarising the spurious and infamous Roswell event of 1947, before going on to cover the stories of numerous UFO (and mystery lights) 'hot-spots' such as Marfa, Avebury, Warminster, Rendelsham Forest,etc. together with accounts of some alleged 'abductions'. If all this seems old hat it's really a means to an end. And a very interesting end it is. In these days of quantum physics it's not such a big step to contemplate a development of earlier ideas which didn't take off at that time amongst researchers and thinkers on this subject, such as the research of Wilhelm Reich and the books of Trevor James Constable, who posited the concept of bioforms in the atmosphere which could somehow interact with human consciousness. Take this a step further and we enter the esoteric realms of the Theosophists etc. Such sentient energy forms and plasma constructs may be manifestations of higher dimensional realities and a part of Earth's development and evolution. When the effects of geological disturbances, faulting etc. so active in the very hot-spots we read about are added then we are in a world more wonderful and exotic than structured spacecraft. And, we might say, more properly earthbound.This book deserves to be acknowledged for renewing and developing a concept for UFOs and strange nocturnal events. Any acceptance it seeks might have to run a gauntlet between two schools as it were. The book's appearance will be attractive to ufological and general 'borderland' people but might tend to alienate the very people who should consider it, scientists of various persuasions, especially when they see that a part of the story involves encouraging personal visualisations (a theme Collins has always been keen on in a sympathetic way) in an attempt to communicate with the light intelligences. This smacks of an Aetherius Society for new times. Yet it's this very matter which is crucial to any understanding of what the mystery is all about - an interaction by at least some people at certain places and times with a truly (currently) alien world which involves human consciousness. This at least deserves attention. The previous reviewer rightly suggested that further space should have been given over to more discussion on these themes. Yet - one step at a time maybe...?There are one or two errors in the text that perhaps should be noted. In the Warminster section Sybil Champion is incorrectly named Chapman. Also Cradle Hill is southeast, not northwest of where the author's party saw a ball of light; and Imber, on Salisbury Plain, is four miles east, not west of the same position. But these are minor points in a very readable book written in an enjoyable personalised style.

This long awaited new book by Andrew Collins finally arrived a few days ago. From the impressive artwork on the cover the book goes from strength to strength, and promotes a very convincing argument that UFOs are not extra-terrestrial `space-craft', but something far more exotic, and far more exciting! Taking as its starting point `Earthlights' by Paul Devereux, Andrew makes some convincing arguments and observations about reports of UFOs and unusual lights in both America and the UK. His theory is that UFOs are in fact a form of plasma based inter-dimensional intelligence that interacts with our consciousness on some sort of archetypal level is very well stated.But will this book have its fans? Without a doubt it will become a classic in the field, but I have a feeling it won't be popular. Why? Modern UFOlogists are obsessed that UFOs are `ET' and nothing will shake them from this. The Skeptics believe UFOs are all explainable by natural means. This leave's Andrews book stuck somewhere in the middle. This is a shame, and I hope I'm wrong, as the idea that plasma based conscious intelligence is interacting with us is a very exciting one.Minor quibbles. Every book has them! For me, there was too much time spent on Roswell. The section on Rendlesham had some imaginative leaps regarding place-names and Beowulf (too imaginative for me!) and I would have liked to have seen more on techniques for interacting with these plasma intelligences. Also, considering the scope of this book, it would have been good to see some reference to another book on light anomalies - `Spiritual Encounters with Unusual Light Phenomena' by Dr. Mark Fox (University of Wales Press)If you had read Andrews other excellent books, `The Circle Makers' and `Alien Energy' you get a feel for where this book is going, although I would have liked to have seen more of the `Alien Energy' material in this current book.Overall though, a great book with some great ideas!

As I would expect from this author, this book is no mere re-telling of UFO stories and experiences but a new way of considering the genuinely unexplained phenomena in the skies. He deals with the issues carefully and precisely but in a manner that is engaging for the reader. I would say that the material presented in the book is challenging both to traditional science and also to some strands of UFO thought.

One word, Brilliant!This book changes the way that you view UfologyI urge anyone who has an interest in all things Fortean to read it.