To Live Forever

By: Jack Vance

Narrated by: Kevin Kenerly

Waylock had been granted eternal life - but now he was killing on borrowed time.

Gavin Waylock had waited seven years for the scandal surrounding his former immortal self to be forgotten and had kept his identity concealed so that he could once again join the ranks of those who lived forever. He had been exceedingly careful about hiding his past. Then he met the Jacynth. She was a beautiful 19-year-old, and Gavin wanted her. But he recognized that a wisdom far beyond her years marked her as one who knew too much about him to live. As far as she was concerned, death was a mere inconvenience. But once the Jacynth came back, Gavin Waylock's life would be an everlasting hell.

©2015 Blackstone Audio, Inc. (P)2015 Blackstone Audiobooks

dark, intelligent story

A good story, but also my least favorite Vance story. But it's still a Vance, so it's good:). Very deep, makes you think.

Odd but good story…

I did not have any expectations going into this book and truly went in blind. It was occasionally confusing but the author tied it all together fairly well. I would definitely recommend this one for anyone interested in human behavior and complex systems, both social and otherwise.

Unfortunately

I usually need to listen to the whole book (and sometimes series) just to know I didn't miss anything. Sometimes "it" (whatever my problem are) gets better, but this is rare.
This book was very close to "my trashcan" but I did finish it even if the way people reacted (main characters) become more and more dumb, the book did improve as it finished. So my review in a sentence may be something like ;
A bad attempt to write a story regarding an interesting problem that we "might" face in the future , if we get to that point alive (which I doubt myself).

More a modern Netflix series than a 1950s novel

I stumbled upon this one as I was looking for some of Jack Vance's Dying Earth books, and I'm glad I did. I was a little slow getting into it (as Vance set up the world and the situation for the reader), but I was immediately drawn in once the main characters were introduced. And while the idea of an unyielding antihero was likely a harder sell when this was first published in 1956, it struck a cord with this reader (close to 60) in 2021. (It really would work well today as a Netflix series.) However, the ultimate solution arrived at the end seems to me like one of the first thing humans should have tried instead of what they did instead in this book. That didn't keep me from exploring their choices and enjoying the journey. Plus, it's rather nice to see a—more or less—ruthless antihero going up against an equally ruthless hero (and world system), people who seemed more destined to be lovers than enemies, each fully believing they're in the right and have been wronged by the other side.

Classic Vance at his best

Would you listen to To Live Forever again? Why?

Absolutely! Jack Vance is one of the greatest of the science fiction authors, and this is Vance at his best. The story is tight, relevant, intricately crafted, full of intrigue and action, and demonstrates Vance's characteristic linguistic style, which is known for vivid description and an ability to use the English Language in ways that few can match. The story's social commentary is even more relevant today than it was when it was written. Highly recommended! The narrator's voice is excellent for the story and seems to relish the rich Vancian prose. I do so wish that someone will create audiobook versions of The Demon Princes, which is also Vance at his best.

What other book might you compare To Live Forever to and why?

This book is similar to many other Vance books stylistically, so, if you like Vance, you very likely will like To Live Forever. It is from his best period and reflects some of his best work.

What about Kevin Kenerly’s performance did you like?

Clear diction, great recording, fine character voices, good timing, seemed to really get Vance's subtle and sometimes dry and scarcastic humor and delight in the intricacy of the prose.