The Stargazer's Sister

A richly realized novel about a woman of science ahead of her time, and the choices she can make, in 19th century England, by the author of The Last First Day and The Rope Walk.

 

Caroline, known as “Lina” to her family, has always lived in the shadow of her older brother William Herschel’s accomplishments. And yet when William invites Lina to join him in England to assist in his musical and astronomical pursuits—not to mention to run his bachelor household—she accepts, finding a new sense of purpose. William may be an obsessive genius, but Lina adores him, and aids him with the same fervency as a beloved wife.
 
When William decides to marry, however, Lina’s world collapses. As she attempts to rebuild a future, we witness the dawning of an early feminist consciousness—a woman struggling to find her own place among the stars.