The Postmortal

A Novel

By: Drew Magary

Narrated by: Johnny Heller

Length: 10 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

John Farrell is about to get "The Cure". Old age can never kill him now. The only problem is, everything else still can.

Imagine a near future where a cure for aging is discovered and - after much political and moral debate - made available to people worldwide. Immortality, however, comes with its own unique problems, including evil green people, government euthanasia programs, a disturbing new religious cult, and other horrors.

Witty, eerie, and full of humanity, The Postmortal is an unforgettable thriller that envisions a pre-apocalyptic world so real that it is completely terrifying.

©2011 Drew Magary (P)2011 Tantor

Critic reviews

"A must-read for fans of postmodern dystopia in the vein of Margaret Atwood, Chuck Palahniuk, and Neil Gaiman." ( Library Journal)

Wow.

I had listened to The Hike and loved it, so I thought Id try something else from the same same author. I really liked this one. A bit melancoly at times, but so good.
I liked the narrator, but not for this book. Very talented, but the personalities of the protaginist and narrator did not mesh. Honestly, the boice was way too old for someone eternally 29. But not too big a distraction, or enough that I wouldn't recommend this book. Because I do!

A cynical take on immortality

Post mortal reads like the ranting of a pessimist, in every beat of the book, the worst possible outcome is made to seem like the most obvious one, and the most likely, and is then blamed on the inmate nature of man to be selfish and self serving. It is unreasonable to believe that in a society, where mortality is no longer an issue that they would not find better solutions for the problems the author introduces to society as the population grows larger. But as the author seems to be a cynic, every problem society as a whole is faced with in the book is met with the most self serving apathy. The the main character is an apathetic and unlikable person who seems to float through his entire life without learning anything, he has no drive and no real inspiration to continue throughout the entire book, and even in the end, where it seems like, he has finally learned the true meaning of life, he still hasn’t. Overall, it is beautifully written, Drew Magary is a fantastic writer, but this book left a sour taste in my mouth sadly.

Who wants to live forever

The book is not what I expected. I don’t know why but I assumed it would be light hearted. It most certainly is not. But I actually liked it better that way. It was depressing at times but I think I’ll be thinking on this book for many years as this not a rehash story. It’s original in many ways. Even the way the plot progressed didn’t follow a cliche style. Get this book.

Fun thought-provoking work.

Fun and thought-provoking don't often come in pairs, but this book definitely was both for me.
I plan to get a couple of friends read it so we can discuss all the "what would you do" scenarios. Recommend!

Audio Edits are awkwardly done

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The premise is interesting and explored in detail through the main character's blog entries and news clips. Since a smaller portion are events that are happening to him directly, this format makes the main character's story seem like a bit of an afterthought.

Would you be willing to try another book from Drew Magary? Why or why not?

If you're only going to read one of Drew Magary's books, The Hike was much more entertaining.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

They overdubbed a bunch throughout the book, and it's really obvious.

Interesting headline. Falls apart at the end.

Would you try another book from Drew Magary and/or Johnny Heller?

No.

Has The Postmortal turned you off from other books in this genre?

absolutely not. this is a mediocore book in an amazing genre.

What does Johnny Heller bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

bad voices

Could you see The Postmortal being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

It's written like it wants to be optioned into a movie or tv show. that's one of the biggest problems with it.

Any additional comments?

Interesting premise and starts off pretty good but the whole 3rd act is basically a weak post appocalyptic movie.

Very good!

For some odd reason I could not understand what happened in the first chapter until i went back and heard it a second and third time. It also seemed to be jumpy, and had a strange thing of first person narration, but log entry type things at the end of the chapter.

Dark humor with deep issues

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Overall, yes. It was thought-provoking.

Any additional comments?

So this is a tough book to review and take my 3 stars with a grain of salt. As a pure story, I did not love this book. The narrator is not sympathetic, his emotions and motivations are eminently shallow and his romances have all the depth of a high school attachment. However, as a thought-piece triggering musings on life and death, motivation and commitment, overpopulation and environmental challenges, euthanasia and disease, religion and class, it is excellent. The thumbnail sketches of a world where aging has been cured (but not everyone can afford or wants to afford such a cure) work incredibly well to seed the reader's own consideration of a variety of topics, from the mundane to the existential. In the end, I recommend this to anyone who would like to look the gift horse of never aging in the mouth, who would like to contemplate all the ways in which humanity can deteriorate even when they don't physically deteriorate, lovers of dystopia and black humor and the like. Just don't expect to like any characters or really delve into the emotional life of the protagonist; this book works best as a springboard to deeper thoughts and a way to maybe, just a little bit, be glad you will only live for so long.

sex and guns

My boy Drew really went out of his way to get the sex and guns in there. He also kind of hides behind the genre conventions of journalism and noir.

Historically Accurate Fiction?

I loved this book! I could not get enough of it and I could not stop talking about it. The author provides the reader with so many perspectives, I enjoyed hearing everyone's point of view. Many of the scenarios were very close to how humans have reacted to similar situations in the past. It is beautifully written and well researched.