3 out of 4 stars
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It is 1945. The Germans have just begun to surrender their concentration camps to American soldiers. Steven is an American medic who is stationed in Germany to help heal wounded American soldiers. One day, while Americans were raiding German officer’s homes, Steven accidentally stumbled upon immortality pills that were originally intended for Adolf Hitler. Steven decided that he wanted to live forever, so he began taking these pills. As soon as Steven began taking the immortality pills, he began to realize just how lonely his life would be. He realized that instead of returning home and starting a family, he would be alone but he would also be able to do things that he never thought of before. As Steven began his quest for fame as a saxophonist, he met Albert and Jennifer.
Albert, an English missionary, explained that the immortality pills originally came from China, but they were transported to Germany through Japan after the Japanese raided the Chinese temples in the late 1930’s. Albert warned Steven that there is a very powerful man in China called Chang Sou who is also immortal, and Chang Sou will do anything to kill Steven for also possessing the immortality formula. Chang Sou is bent on world domination, and has been taking the immortality formula for thousands of years. Chow Li, another Chinese immortal, has kept Chang Sou restrained in deep hibernation through magical powers and sacred herbs because as a Buddhist monk, he does not believe in killing another life form (no matter how destructive they may be). Meanwhile, Chang Sou has been planning to rule the world through destruction once he wakes up from his hibernation. Chow Li believes that Steven is the only man who can stop Chang Sou. Will Steven be able to stop Chang Sou from world domination? Or will the Holocaust repeat itself on a larger scale this time?
I thought the plot of this story was fascinating, because even though it was set in the 1940’s, there were elements of science fiction in the story. For example, some of the ingredients that were used to make the immortality formula were found in nature, even though those same ingredients would not have the same effect on people in real life. This story was a unique blend of historical fiction and science fiction.
I also loved the character development in this story. Steven shared a strong bond with Albert and Jennifer in his quest to stop Chang Sou from world domination. Steven also changed the way he looked at his own life once he began taking the immortality pills. Steven had to decide if it was better to live forever and risk losing all his mortal friends over time, or if it was better to stay mortal and live a life like everyone else. Steven built such a strong bond with Jennifer and Albert he wanted to keep them around with him forever.
My favorite parts of this story were the near death experiences Steven had. Once Steven began taking the immortality pills, he was able to heal himself from any stabbing or gunshot wound. I enjoyed reading about the tingling sensation Steven felt as he was healing himself from gunshots and stab wounds. This made for a realistic portrayal of what it would feel like if I was also immortal.
I am giving The Diary of an Immortal: 1945-1959 by David J. Castello 3 out of 4 stars. The only reason why I cannot give this book a four star rating is because there were numerous grammatical errors that I found in almost every chapter. At the same time, I greatly enjoyed reading this book because it posed a hypothetical situation regarding immortality and world history. It was interesting to think of what would happen if an immortality formula existed during the 1940’s. This story was also filled with intense action scenes, so I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys reading action stories. The only problem some might have with this story would be the violence. This story was filled with murder scenes and cannibalism, so I would not recommend this to anyone who gets scared easily. I would highly recommend this to lovers of historical fiction and science fiction.
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The Diary Of An Immortal (1945-1959)
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