One gets the impression reading Hold Back the Stars that the intent—or, at least, the hope—of the author was that the effort would strike a strike a chord with readers on some higher philosophical note than typical science fiction. Perhaps the dream was to hit somewhere between the level of the film Gravity and the milestone of cinema 2001: A Space Odyssey. It does not take long, however, for some readers—if not necessarily most—to intuit that such ambition aim will strike short of the target. Which is not to say that it is a bad novel. Just that it does seem to pull off quite the ambitious goals it set for itself.
On the other hand, as far as science fiction romantic soap operas go, the effort can proudly be said to have a bullseye. As in television, however, it is usually preferable to create a middling effort geared for prime time than a masterwork for daytime drama. Few writers—especially in science fiction—seek the lower ground of soap opera. Even space opera has taken on bad taste.
The key point of reference here, aptly, is the unqualified master of both high art and low soap, William Shakespeare. One can tell that the author really set the target high by the plethora of references and allusions to Hamlet. This is a story that desperately wants to be taken seriously: just two pages in a spaceship named the Laertes is introduced. Before too long, the computer controlling the system is introduced as Osric. You can tell at this point just how serious the book wants readers to take it because Osric is about the thirtieth most famous character in Hamlet. A lesser writer might have settled for Polonius to tie in with computers generally being the same sort of know-it-all as the father of Laertes. A more daring writer might have chosen Voltemand instead because, well, you know, it kind of sounds like Voldemort. But those characters from Shakespeare’s tragedy don’t have the benefit of starting with the letters Os—as in operating system. So, clever the author may be, but ultimately it is just not enough.
Because eventually for almost every reader the point will be reached when the real inspiration of the Bard cannot be ignored. For while it is eager to rise to the level of greatness afforded the complexity of Hamlet, it is ultimately just an inventive version of Romeo and Juliet in space. The good news that while this may be seen as hitting the ground far off the mark of the target, it is genuinely engaging story of tragic star-crossed love. And as Shakespeare himself could tell you, there is no shame in that.
