Rating: Summary: started great but... Review: ended like "the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy" began. Very stupid end. Loved Forever war and Forever peace. I'd give them 5 and 4 stars respectivly. (yes I know that is spelled wrong).
Rating: Summary: Should have been better Review: This was disappointing on several levels. Haldeman could have done so much more with this story and sequel than he did. It was an interesting story. But, it could have been any character and not William Mandella et al. Also, where did the Omni come from and why was it necessary to introduce them in the last parts of the story? It added very little to the plot and we could have done with out it/him/she/whatever. I borrowed the book from my local library. I would have felt much worse had I actually paid good money for it.
Rating: Summary: great, until... Review: the STUPID ending. I loved Forever War and Forever Peace, but.... why switch over to the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy like that, Joe?
Rating: Summary: Terribly disappointing Review: Up until this point, I've liked every Haldeman story I've ever read. I don't like to give negative reviews as a rule, but this one is such a disappointment I think it would be a service to warn anyone else who likes Haldeman's normally first-rate writing. The first half of this book is an involving and well-told story, but then ideas just sort of come at you from out of left field, and the book takes off in weird and unsatisfying directions. It's as if there are pieces of three unrelated stories squeezed awkwardly into one book, and none of them are developed completely. This is not a sequel to the classic Forever War, except in so far as it (quite unnecessarily) includes some of the same characters. But even worse, Forever Free's reinterpretation of reality undermines the meaning of Forever War's powerful statements on humanity and war. Not only is this book bad in itself, it will taint your affection for its splendid predecessor. If you like Haldeman and love the classic Forever War, do yourself a favor and skip this one.
Rating: Summary: Nothing like the Forever War Review: If you're looking for a story like Forever War, then Forever Free is the wrong place to look. Don't get me wrong, the book really isn't that bad. It just doesn't have the impact or significance of Forever War. The story is slow to develop and when the central conflict of the book finally rears its confusing head, you discover that the answer you've been waiting for hasn't been worth the wait. I'm sure Mr. Haldeman had something meaningful to say about man and God, he just didn't execute very well. And an ending that should have been profound and thought provoking, just seems rushed and trite. I'm afraid I have to agree with the assertions of some of the other reviewers -- this book is an unworthy sequal to Forever War, both in tone and concept. If you're still interested in reading this book, wait for the paperback edition.
Rating: Summary: What a waste Review: Why did Mr. Haldeman write this book? The only reason I can figure is that his last sorry book, "Forever Peace" won some awards so he thought he could make some money by revisiting his best work. Well I wish he could give me my money back. Forever Free is AWFUL. This is what we waited for? The ending of Forever War was so perfect, leaving the lives of the two characters up to the readers imagination. I think anyones imagination could have devised a better ending than the one written here by Haldeman. A 25 year wait just so that Mr. Haldeman can completely destroy this story line with what? Just a bad episode of "The twilight Zone." This story is just plain bad, no action, no suspense, none of the caring for the characters that I felt in the first book. I fought off the urge to just throw it away half way through the book, hoping for a payoff in the end...it didn't come. Cant steer folks away from this piece of garbage enough.
Rating: Summary: Good but a bit of a rehash Review: Haldeman has a marvelous narrative voice and I enjoy reading just about anything he puts on paper. However...his plots are getting increasingly redundant. Forever Free feels primarily like Worlds Enough and Time from the organization of the interstellar ship, strange events begin happening, and the deus ex machina conclusion. I know Mr. Haldeman is a very intelligent and well read man. I just wish he would find a new way to wrap up his stories.
Rating: Summary: Forever Poor Review: Do yourself a big favor and run and hide from this lame-o sequel. Not only is it a drag story wise, but it covers none of the issues that made the first book so much more than a shoot-em-up. The first book, Forever War followed hapless soldiers as they fought across space and, thanks to relativity, time only to come back again and again to Earths they didn't know how to live in. That book's fitting conclusion had the main characters establishing themselves on an Outpost planet obnoxiously called Middle Finger. Forever Free picks up on that finger, the old veterans not being able to live along side the homogeneous, group-minded species now known as Man. Take a reflection on off world husbandry, then a ridiculous and pointless plot to advance 40,000 years into man's future, and place on top of that a conclusion so ludicrous as to make it laughable in a juvenile sense. This book has no action, very little suspense and leaves you feeling cheated and disappointed. Joe Haldeman, take it back. Write us another one. Let's forget this ever happened.
Rating: Summary: More of a Mystery than Science Fiction Review: I am a devoted fan of Joe Haldeman. I've read everything he has written that I could get my hands on. The Forever War was the first book of his that I read, so I was also very excited when Forever Free came out. I bought it at once. It was around page 180 in the book when I asked myself, "When is something going to happen?" The second half of the book was a boring mystery. This book is nowhere near as good as the Forever War. Please try again Joe!
Rating: Summary: A Gift to Fans Review: Rarely is a novel written for fans of the novel's protagonist. Anybody who got to know and empathize with William Mandella will totally love this book. If you never read Forever War, you need to read it first and if you want to see how Mandella turns out later in life, then buy Forever Free. Mr. Haldeman has a great story here about the Veterans of the Forever War and their life with the future MAN. The last half of the story can leave you cold if you can't suspend enough disbelief to just enjoy the story. Of course, if you can't read about fantastic realms with different versions of reality than you are used too, you might not want to read Science Fiction
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