Rating: 
Summary: Excellent
Review: A must have for Freddie fans who want to know how he was and how he lived the goods and not so goods. I liked the detail and content around people that interfaced with Freddie. It is now easy to understand why Queen were so good at what they did.
The book keeps away from other Queens band members and I would have liked to know a little more about their interfaces and thoughts of Freddie. Sad butlearning end for a brilliant artist. He will live on for a long time through his music
Rating: 
Summary: poorly done and boringly so
Review: essentially i thought it .... It appeared more of a diary or even a rehash of a day planner from the writer. i was so disgusted at midpoint that i did not even finish the book and the only reason i read as far as i did was that i kept holding hope that it would improve. It did not.
Rating: 
Summary: Diamond in the rough? Not likely!
Review: I am searching high and low, for a book that wasn't as badly written as this one. I have been a fan of Queen and Freddie for over ten years and from time to time I get into my collecting bug. For example, tapes, cd's obviously, very rarely would I be able to find a book! Back in the day when the internet wasn't as fast, as commonly used, or for that matter things were as easy to find..I would be on it constantly looking for bits and pieces of information about my favorite, although somewhat defunct Queen. Now, with this plethora of information I have now, etc., I was still surprised to find this book at my local bookstores, not once but twice! Go figure, not taking any chance at all, I bought it. I was a little hesitant at first, being that because of all the information I didn't know about Freddie, personally I mean, he didn't give many interviews, etc. would this shatter my naivte about his personal life? Would it effect the way I viewed him? Well, the answer to that my friends is no. I will tell you why, because this book went into depth about nothing. From here to there it was a list of Freddie's friends and lovers, nor does it disspell so many rumors at all, they're was maybe a page about that.. until this choppy, "safely written" memoir, basically goes on about the bars, clubs and people they frequented all over the world. It doesn't go into much about really freddie at all. It seems that this book is a bit superficial, at the end is probably the most infomation you'll get out of it.. well, perhaps the beginning as well, but as for the middle, i say, read the first twenty, then the last twenty pages you just about have the book summed up.
Rating:
Summary: A Real Eye opener
Review: I found the book very informative about the man, Freddie Mercury, himself. When you are a fan you have alot of illusions as to what the person is like - I have to say this book shattered alot of these illusions. However, real facts made me see Mr. Mercury in a whole new light - some disappointing - some reassuring. Some questionable facts Mr. Freestone? You mentioned in the book that Freddie only had one godchild - wasn't he also godfather to Mary's first son? The final two chapters describing Freddie's decline made me cry. It was done very tastefully. However, I would have liked to have had maybe one more chapter explaining what went on in the months following Freddie's death - and what you are doing now. Overall an excellant book that I could not put down and I feel a must read for any Queen fan.
Rating:
Summary: The man behind the music
Review: I have been a long time fan of Freddie's and when someone bought this for me I was thrilled and yet scared. Scared because I have tried on Many occasions to read biographies and failed miserably. Luckily this book was really well done and the topic was close to my heart.The biography is written by a man who obviously loved Freddie and was very close to him in life and affected immenly by his personality. The book covers who Freddie really was to his friends, family and fans. It covers several albums and inspiration behind the music. It also covers his very sad sickness and I must admit I cried quite a bit. I only have one qualm about this book and this is the time line as it jumps around quite a bit. But it is still followable and you can piece it together. However in the end I was left feeling like I really did know Freddie and it gave me a warm feeling inside. Now when I listen to his music it brings back parts of the book to me and helps me build a better picture of the artist that Freddie really was.
Rating: 
Summary: Pleasant Memories of Freddie Mercury...
Review: I truely enjoyed reading this book. I have, for many years been a Freddie Mercury fan and great admirer of his music. I was very apprehensive about buying this book, as most often books as such are rarely kind to the individual whom they are written about. But I felt that this book characterized Freddie Mercury more as a "person" rather than this huge "rock star" (which he was) and gave some delightful and colorfull insight into his daily life. The book is filled with many stories and incidents that depict his life style more in terms of his love of music, the band, his friends, his home and his cats. There are stories demonstrating his sensitive character, as well as his over all kindness and generousity. The fact that he was gay is secondary in this book, but it was not ignored either. If you are a Freddie Mercury fan I know you will enjoy this book very much. The photo section in the book is good...but for Freddie Mercury fans there are never enough pictures. I myself have reread my book several times and enjoy it just as much each time, sometimes reading something I missed before. Peter Freestone remembered his friend kindly.
Rating:
Summary: Pleasant Memories of Freddie Mercury...
Review: I truely enjoyed reading this book. I have, for many years been a Freddie Mercury fan and great admirer of his music. I was very apprehensive about buying this book, as most often books as such are rarely kind to the individual whom they are written about. But I felt that this book characterized Freddie Mercury more as a "person" rather than this huge "rock star" (which he was) and gave some delightful and colorfull insight into his daily life. The book is filled with many stories and incidents that depict his life style more in terms of his love of music, the band, his friends, his home and his cats. There are stories demonstrating his sensitive character, as well as his over all kindness and generousity. The fact that he was gay is secondary in this book, but it was not ignored either. If you are a Freddie Mercury fan I know you will enjoy this book very much. The photo section in the book is good...but for Freddie Mercury fans there are never enough pictures. I myself have reread my book several times and enjoy it just as much each time, sometimes reading something I missed before. Peter Freestone remembered his friend kindly.
Rating:
Summary: The Last Twelve Years -- 1979-2001
Review: I will say, on the one hand, I am not a "die-hard" Queen fan, nor am I a "die-hard" Freddie Mercury fan. On the other hand, I do enjoy Queen's music.
The intent on buying this book, as in any biography, is to learn about the birth, career, and so on of the person in which the biography is based. That is not the case for this book. At first, I was a bit dissapointed to discover that I would not learn about Freddie's birth, childhood, his early carrer, the founding of Queen as a band, as well as the birth of Queen's successes. The book opens in 1979. That is when the author, Peter Freestone, began working for Queen; his original job was to make all the costume changes ready, during Queen's concert performances. His job descriptions, and responsibilities increased as time went on, and he began working solely for Freddie, himself.
'I was Freddie's chief cook and bottle washer, waiter, butler, secretary, cleaner..and agony aunt',writes Peter Freestone (quoting from the back cover, to give an insight as to the various responsibilities he had while employed by Mercury.)
'I travelled the world with him, I was with him at the highs and came through the lows...I acted as his bodyguard when needed and in the end, of course, I was one of his nurses.' This is, indeed as the title states, an intimate look at the man who is Freddie Mercury, written by someone who became one of Freddie's closest, most trusted friends.
But, it only covers the 12 years that Freestone knew, and worked for him.
The last 2 chapters are especially touching. Peter Freestone was there when Freddie passed away, in 1991, and he shares a very personal account of the goings on before, during, and after his death. What I learned, and appreciated about this intimate memoir, was how generous, and giving Freddie was. He was a loyal friend. He treated those who worked for him as close friends. This book was excellent reading, for what it was; and what it was, was an intimate portrait, getting to know Freddie Mercury on a personal level (kinda like getting a backstage pass, so to speak), learning things that would be, otherwise private.
Rating:
Summary: another fable bites the dust....yeah yeah
Review: Is this the real life?I think Pheobes writting in fantasy,is my best accolade for this undesireable memoir.Taken as a costume designer by Freddie ,Mr Freestone accounts for very little in this memoir----apart from his memory may not serve him well these days.As to account as a memoir ,I think Pheobe should recite some more opera to fullfill the meaning of memoir. With little regard to scandal or the need of more fact in the late Mercury,I regard this title .....CASHING IN ON A DUE,THAT OBVIOUSLY Mr Freestone thiks he deserves??????.Strange but true what the millions of fans world wide need is?????not this title but an accurate account of Mercurys days as deplicted by his lover Jim Hutton(MERCURY&ME).Surely Mr Freestone could have accounted for missed years ?instead of grinding on what has been. Tomorrows fish & chips is what i accept will end as this title.
Rating: 
Summary: The Rise and Fall of Mercury
Review: It would have been amazing if Peter Freestone had met Freddie Mercury five years earlier,unfortunately he did when the band Queen started to fade into musical chaos. Peter gives us here not only an account on Freddie's professional life but also the sad side of superficiality of the relationships of a man so rich and at the same time so lonely. My only complaint is the rather tedious and long description of Mercury's home, at one point I really felt like I was reading an antique's shop catalogue! It's interesting to notice how such big music projects such as Queen, work mostly based as corporations, socializing between members was non existent for what we are told. Freddie never read books and never watched the news on television according to Mr. Freestone, I feel disappointed that probably he didn't care about all the misery going on around the world even though he was sitting on a mountain of money. An interesting book but not an essential reading for fans.
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