Double Star Book Review

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Like I mentioned before, I planned to read more Heinlein. The next book I read was Double Star. Before going into whether I enjoyed it more than other Heinlein works, let’s get into the review.

Serialized in Astounding Science Fiction in 1956, Double Star earned Heinlein his first Hugo Award that year. In this world, several planets, including Mars and Venus, and several of Jupiter’s moons experienced colonization. The story focuses on Lawrence Smith, or “The Great Lorenzo,” a well-known actor. However, he struggles to find work until a mysterious spaceman heading for Mars approaches him for a job. Desperate, Lorenzo takes the job and heads with the crew to Mars. But the job might prove more than he can handle. The spaceman explains that Lorenzo needs to impersonate a politician who went missing some time ago.

I think what I appreciated most about this book is the main character. After doing research on Heinlein’s technique his writing strengths, I noticed quite a few people say that this book appears to be one of his best character-driven stories. Lorenzo exhibits some of the best character develop I’ve read in a while. Lorenzo starts as a very proud person, a little too confident in his skills. However, as the character he assumes gradually takes over his life, he needs to question the worst parts of himself.

The story also exhibits a strong political bent that Lorenzo deals with when assuming this character. Lorenzo confronts the ethics of assuming someone else’s identity for political reasons, especially since he diagrees with the ideas. We witness a character gradually experiencing character development against his will in more ways than one. This added so many layers for me. Was the development positive? Maybe at first. Negative? Well…

This makes the ending all the more satisfying in more ways than one. By the time I reached the end, I really felt for Lorenzo and his situation. The story almost developed into a horror, and I love a good sci-fi horror. The last few sentences left a lasting impression. I won’t spoil anything, but Heinlein takes this character-driven story in a terrifying direction.

The quest to read more of my TBR continues, and that means reading more Heinlein. However, it also means reading more Clarke, which I’m also excited to review. On a note, though: I WILL NOT be posting this Saturday because I’m heading back to the States this week! So you all next week for another book review. Happy reading!

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