Variable Star - Robert A. Heinlein & Spider Robinson

Variable Star

By Robert A. Heinlein & Spider Robinson

  • Release Date: 2010-12-07
  • Genre: Adventure Sci-Fi
Score: 4
4
From 107 Ratings

Description

A never-before-published masterpiece from science fiction's greatest writer, rediscovered after more than half a century.

When Joel Johnston first met Jinny Hamilton, it seemed like a dream come true. And when she finally agreed to marry him, he felt like the luckiest man in the universe.

There was just one small problem. He was broke. His only goal in life was to become a composer, and he knew it would take years before he was earning enough to support a family.

But Jinny wasn't willing to wait. And when Joel asked her what they were going to do for money, she gave him a most unexpected answer. She told him that her name wasn't really Jinny Hamilton---it was Jinny Conrad, and she was the granddaughter of Richard Conrad, the wealthiest man in the solar system.

And now that she was sure that Joel loved her for herself, not for her wealth, she revealed her family's plans for him---he would be groomed for a place in the vast Conrad empire and sire a dynasty to carry on the family business.

Most men would have jumped at the opportunity. But Joel Johnston wasn't most men. To Jinny's surprise, and even his own, he turned down her generous offer and then set off on the mother of all benders. And woke up on a colony ship heading out into space, torn between regret over his rash decision and his determination to forget Jinny and make a life for himself among the stars.

He was on his way to succeeding when his plans--and the plans of billions of others--were shattered by a cosmic cataclysm so devastating it would take all of humanity's strength and ingenuity just to survive.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Reviews

  • An Excellent End to a Legacy

    5
    By Ace911
    The author does an incredible job of picking up scraps left by the Master and transforming it into a novel that takes on the essence and soul of a Heinlein piece. The combination of that and such a powerful theme will leave readers staring up at the stars, as well as realizing that our extensive existence here on Terra is only the beginning of something so much larger than any of us can imagine.
  • A great gallop.

    5
    By Cristian Ioja
    It has good rhythm and was a fun read.
  • Variable star

    5
    By michaelsapplemusic
    Wonderful and written to provoke old thoughts of earlier works. Excellent job of stepping in on a half done project. I will now start downloading spiders work with great hopes of filling a void left by Robert A. H.
  • A Stretch

    2
    By ptclistener
    It's a stretch to call this a Heinlein, and it's not correct that the first cinema to take starfight seriously was . Heinlein's take on homosexuality is expressed in "Stranger in a Strange Land," and is inconsistent with a bisexual protagonist. Do not overlook "Forbidden Planet," which long presaged Star Wars. The book does recall a number of iconic themes and elements: telepathic twins, torch ships, and nubile girls, e.g.
  • Good story

    4
    By audidudi
    I liked the overall theme of the book but felt that most of the middle was filler. The first few chapters on earth were intriguing with interesting characters and story line. Most of the shipboard content seemed like filler with mostly character drama. There were a few good chapters with great sci-fi content in the middle and the end was orchestrated very well. I wish the story went on a little more but perhaps that will be saved for a sequel. Overall a good sci-fi book.. Well worth reading.

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