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Author Joe Haldeman booklist (click here)

Book Review By Kevin Dole
Buying Time by Joe Haldeman

Dallas Barr is a millionaire playboy who has undergone several immortality treatments. When he becomes aware of a conspiracy to seize control of the immortality process he is marked for death. Together with his former lover he heads to an outlaw asteroid colony to hideout.

There they discover that the outlaws themselves have been trying to uncover the secrets of the immortality process and try to recruit allies before they are kidnapped and returned to earth.

Though outnumbered, an unexpected side-effect of a weapon gives them the advantage they need to confront and unravel the conspiracy.


Plot & Themes
Tone of book - cynical or dry-wit
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - science fiction story
Tech./$$$/Info hunt Yes
Stealing/recovering/destroying
Magical Beings/Mental/Magical/Powers Yes
magical powers:
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 10 %
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 20 %
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40 %
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 30 %

Main Character
Identity: - Male
Profession/status:
Age: - long lived adults

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - long-lived adults
Profession/status:
Eccentric: Yes
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a little/some
How sensitive is this character?
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters

Setting
Which planet? - Asteroids
Earth setting: - near future (later in 21st century)
Spaceship setting: - one or two man fighter/scoutship
Takes place on Earth? Yes
Takes place in spaceship? Yes
Not Earth, in Solar System? Yes

Writing Style
Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths
Sex in book? Yes
What kind of sex: - vague references only - rape/molest (yeech!)
How much dialogue? - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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