The Double: An Investigation (Hardcover)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Too much sex, some dopey philosophy spun from grade-B SF novels and New Age tracts and a sprinkling of genuinely funny lines mark this hybrid mystery/fantasy debut. Computer game designer John Reynman finds a dead man in his Austin, Tex., house. The body has tattoos where John has tattoos, and dyed bronze-colored hair where John's is natural. The Austin cops are naturally interested. John is worried. He hires lawyer Michelle Galen, who quickly becomes his lover and, later, his ex-wife's lover. An unlikely amalgam of stud and nerd, John follows a trail back in time to a secret society of adventurers that included his deceased father and Dr. Niles, who knew John's dad and helped him find a fortune in silver. Webb doesn't deliver clarity, but energetic prose and computer gaming lore abound. The story, if it were relieved of the obsessive focus on sex and some of the semi-philosophical, pseudo-mystical speculation, would carry readers along on a pleasant ride.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

John Reynman awakens one day to discover a man who looks just like him lying dead in his living room. John's subsequent dealings with police, his relationship with the female lawyer he hires, and his attempt to learn about his double all take place in a surreal world punctuated by arid humor, graphic sex, and bizarre characters. As he stumbles across arcane cluesAa weird witness, two books in a car, three men at the door, a strange message on his laptopAhe ponders the reality of death. A well-written but sometimes baffling debut; for larger collections.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 242 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr; 1st edition (October 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312191448
• ISBN-13: 978-0312191443
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,315,031 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If You Look Into The Abyss . . ., April 10, 1999

By	Alex Burns "alexburnsdisinfo" (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews

Don Webb's first novel The Double will come as no surprise to readers familiar with his huge output of short stories and essays, particularly for the highly regarded Fringeware Review magazine. There must be something in the water of Austin, Texas, because Webb's Vision is an unusual but strangely compelling one.

Webb's dialogue and plot structure is like something out of a David Lynch movie co-written by Robert Anton Wilson and Jack Sarfatti. There are some unusual twists on familiar themes from crime and occult mystery literature, and on what it is like to survive fin-de-siecle nervous breakdowns, dissociations, and fugue states.

Webb has obviously done both research and praxis of S&M, Memetics, and Optimal Psychology; methods for the alchemical processing of Humanity via Ordeals-of-Change; and creative excuses for handling editors via psychological warfare ("I woke up this morning, and there was a dead body in my room that looked exactly like me!").

A wyrd trip, but one definately worth taking.

5.0 out of 5 stars Webb's Best Book Yet., November 28, 1998

By	Michael Hemmingson ([e-mail]) (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Read it, now. It came to me at a time when I needed it to. Things like that happen in the land of the mysterious. I look forward to more mysterious mysteries from Don Webb.

4.0 out of 5 stars A strong first novel from a great short story author., November 10, 1998

By A Customer

Don Webb is a fantasitic and prolific writer of speculative fiction. His first published novel, The Double: An Investigation, will not disappoint those familiar with his previous work. Those who are new to Webb's talent for reality bending will find themselves in for a literary joyride across terrain that is at once beautiful, strange, and sometimes grotesque. The only criticism that I have is that this story may well have been more effective as a novella. Other than that, it was a very engaging work.