From Publishers Weekly
SFWA Grand Master Pohl's latest is a pure delight, miraculously combining wry adventure and compassionate satire. Since it began with the novel Gateway (1977), Pohl's Heechee series has been among the most consistently daring of SF's continuing enterprises, and this first book in 15 years does its best to wake readers up. Pohl's characters have a lot to think about, too. As humans spread through space—allying themselves with the alien Heechee and realizing that they now have the option of having their personalities preserved forever electronically in the company of dazzlingly accomplished AIs—they must decide what to keep and what to give up. A young man and woman begin, tentatively and convincingly, to explore the possibilities of their relationship in this complicated universe. At the same time, though, selfish and super-rich Wan Enrique Santos-Smith refuses to surrender any of his childish anger and sets out to take revenge on all the adults who've frustrated his desires. Pohl flips nimbly from character to character, star to star, inside and outside the black hole where the Heechee and many humans are learning to live maturely together. Surprises abound, but readers will feel that they could have seen them coming if they'd been a little more ready to trust their imaginations. Pohl believes we can learn to live with extraordinary challenges; his tempered, hard-won faith in humanity makes this book especially satisfying. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.


From Booklist
Pohl returns to his Gateway Universe and his most famous creation, the Heechee. A couple of youngsters with no future on earth make it to the galactic core where live the Heechee, both the quick and the dead in body, the latter of whose active minds are stored electronically. Many humans of both kinds also live there. But the core is threatened by another alien species, the Kugel, and by an insane organic human who so hates the Heechee that he is plotting their destruction without regard for consequences. Shifting narrative perspective between the youngsters and their mentors, Pohl brings them all to the right place in the nick of time to save the core. It has been 14 years since The Gateway Trip, the last previous novel of the Heechee, so bear in mind that readers may wish to refresh their memories with Gateway (1977), Beyond the Blue Event Horizon (1980), Heechee Rendezvous (1984), and Annals of the Heechee (1987), too, to ensure full enjoyment of this book. Frieda Murray
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Review
Praise for Gateway by Frederik Pohl

"A masterpiece by one of SF's greatest talents and a certain candidate for
top SF awards."-Booklist

"Gateway is one of those rare gems: a deeply human story set against the wonders and beauty of the infinite starry universe. Fred Pohl, Old Master that he is, has broken new ground for the science-fiction novel." -Ben Bova, Editor, Analog Magazine

"Frederik Pohl, one of the old pros of the genre never takes unnecessary risks. For him, science fiction is a form of play-an excusable indulgence since he plays it better than most people. His new novel is based on a wonderfully satisfying SF premise . . . The Heechee space station-known as Gateway-is the ultimate roulette wheel. The odds are lousy, but the jackpot is so large that there are always gamblers willing to try their luck."
-The New York Times Book Review

"The plot combines mystery and adventure with an excellent profile of a very lucky anti-hero. An outstanding work which is highly recommended."-Library Journal



Book Description
In 1977 Frederik Pohl stunned the science fiction world with the publication of Gateway, one of the most brilliantly entertaining SF novels of all time. Gateway was a bestseller and won science fiction's triple crown: the Hugo, Nebula, and John W. Campbell Memorial awards for best novel. Now, more than twenty-five years later, Pohl has completed a new novel set in the Gateway universe. The Boy Who Would Live Forever has a sense of wonder and excitement that will satisfy those who loved Gateway and will delight new readers as well.
In Gateway, long after the alien Heechee abandoned their space-station, Gateway (as humans dubbed it) allowed humans to explore new worlds. The Heechee, alarmed by the alien Kugel whose goal was to destroy all organic lifeforms, had already retreated to the galactic core where they now lived in peace. Now, in The Boy Who Would Live Forever, humans with dreams of life among the stars are joining the Heechee at the core, to live there along with those humans and Heechee whose physical bodies have died and their minds stored in electronic memory so that their wisdom passes down through the ages.

Their peace is threatened by the Kugel, who may yet attack the core. But a much greater threat is the human Wan Enrique Santos-Smith, whose blind loathing of the Heechee fuels an insane desire to destroy them and, incidentally, every living being in the galaxy.

Stan and Estrella, two young people from Earth, went to Gateway looking for adventure, and found each other. They settle among the Heechee on Forested Planet of Warm Old Star Twenty-Four, never suspecting that they may be the last best hope to save the galaxy. But with allies like Gelle-Klara Moynlin--one of the galaxy's richest women, who isn't content to just have money, but wants to use her wealth for good, and machine mind Marc Antony-a wonderful chef to thousands of living and stored clients, they are destined to contend with Wan's terrible plan. Frederik Pohl has woven together the lives of these and other memorable characters to create a masterful new novel.



About the Author
Bestselling, multiple Hugo and Nebula Award-winning SF author, Frederik Pohl has written over twenty successful novels, has been the award-winning editor of SF magazines and anthologies, has been lauded as a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America, has collaborated on classic SF novels such as The Space Merchants as well as having written such fine solo novels as Gateway, Beyond the Blue Event Horizon and Man Plus, and has been active in a myriad of other ways in the field for many decades. He lives in Palatine, Illinois.

FROM OUR EDITORS

In 1977, science fiction writer Frederik Pohl swept the boards with Gateway, a deftly crafted tale about the discovery of an alien way-station. Gateway won the Hugo, the Nebula, and the John W. Campbell Award for Best Novel, becoming an instant genre classic and a backlist bestseller. Responding to fan enthusiasm, Pohl added four volumes to his Gateway/Heechee epic, but then turned to other projects. Now, after 15 years, he reenters the world of the alien Heechee and the threatened humans who live among them.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"In Gateway, long after the alien Heechee abandoned their space station, Gateway (as humans dubbed it) allowed humans to explore new worlds. The Heechee, alarmed by the alien Kugel, whose goal was to destroy all organic lifeforms, had already retreated to the galactic core, where they lived in peace. Now, in The Boy Who Would Live Forever, humans who dream of life among the stars are joining the Heechee at the core, to live there along with those humans and Heechee whose minds have been stored in electronic memory so that their wisdom may survive the death of their physical bodies." "Their peace is threatened by the Kugel, who may yet attack the core. But a much greater threat is the human Wan Enrique Santos-Smith, whose blind loathing of the Heechee fuels an insane desire to destroy them and, incidentally, every living being in the galaxy." Stan and Estrella, two young people from Earth, went to Gateway looking for adventure and found each other. They settle among the Heechee on Forested Planet of Warm Old Star Twenty-Four, never suspecting that they may be the last, best hope to save the galaxy. But with allies like Gelle-Klara Moynlin - one of the galaxy's richest women, who isn't content just to have money but wants to use her wealth for good - and machine mind Marc Antony - a wonderful chef to thousands of living and stored clients - they are destined to contend with Wan's terrible plan.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

SFWA Grand Master Pohl's latest is a pure delight, miraculously combining wry adventure and compassionate satire. Since it began with the novel Gateway (1977), Pohl's Heechee series has been among the most consistently daring of SF's continuing enterprises, and this first book in 15 years does its best to wake readers up. Pohl's characters have a lot to think about, too. As humans spread through space allying themselves with the alien Heechee and realizing that they now have the option of having their personalities preserved forever electronically in the company of dazzlingly accomplished AIs they must decide what to keep and what to give up. A young man and woman begin, tentatively and convincingly, to explore the possibilities of their relationship in this complicated universe. At the same time, though, selfish and super-rich Wan Enrique Santos-Smith refuses to surrender any of his childish anger and sets out to take revenge on all the adults who've frustrated his desires. Pohl flips nimbly from character to character, star to star, inside and outside the black hole where the Heechee and many humans are learning to live maturely together. Surprises abound, but readers will feel that they could have seen them coming if they'd been a little more ready to trust their imaginations. Pohl believes we can learn to live with extraordinary challenges; his tempered, hard-won faith in humanity makes this book especially satisfying. Agent, Ellen Geiger at Curtis Brown. (Oct. 1) FYI: Gateway won Hugo, Nebula and John W. Campbell awards. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

When recently orphaned Stan Avery inherits enough money to buy a trip to Gateway, the alien Heechee waystation that allows travel to all parts of space, he doesn't realize that his voyage has effectively cut him off forever from the world he left behind. Pohl's first Gateway novel in 15 years (the 1977 original Gateway won the Hugo and Nebula Awards) revitalizes a favorite far-future setting as it tells the tale of a young man's journey to self-realization amid the stars. Bringing both accessibility and gentle humor to hard sf adventure, Pohl's latest is a good addition to most collections. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews