This fascination was inspired by the author's rich detailing of history through the development of strong, engaging characters. Initially, I was captivated by the vivid descriptions of 18thC life in rustic Ireland and miasmic New York. Other odd, awkward blurps pop-up throughout. Eg., the slaves' names being discussed as if the listener already met the characters. This abridgement suffers from obvious continuity issues and glarlingly unanswered questions.

It is both an unforgettable drama and a timeless triumph of storytelling. And so he seeks the one who can change his fate, the mysterious dark lady who alone can free him from the blessing and the curse of his long life.ĭrawing on Pete Hamill's bone-deep knowledge of New York City, Forever is his long-awaited masterpiece, a Shakespearean evocation of the mysteries of time and death, sex and love, character and place. As he searches out these blood enemies, he must watch everyone he touches slip away. Through it all, Cormac must fight a force of evil that returns relentlessly in the scions of a single family whose path first crossed his in Ireland. In return for aiding an African shaman who was brought to America in chains, Cormac is given an otherworldly gift: He will live forever - as long as he never leaves the island of Manhattan.Ĭormac comes to know all the buried secrets of Manhattan - the way it has been shaped by greed, race and waves of immigration, by the unleashing of enormous human energies, and above all, by hope. His quest brings him to the settlement of New York, seething with tensions between English and Irish, whites and blacks, British and 'Americans,' where he is swept up in a tide of conspiracy and violence. From the shores of Ireland, Cormac O'Connor sets out on a fateful journey to avenge the deaths of his parents and honor the code of his ancestors.

Forever pete hamill book review