This week’s topic for Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl) is “Books that Include/Feature [insert your favourite theme or plot device here]”. There were lots of different options here! After some thought, I decided to list ten books with characters who have doubles and are either mistaken for them or decide to impersonate them.
1. The Scapegoat by Daphne du Maurier – I’ve read all of du Maurier’s novels and I think this is one of her best. John, an Englishman visiting France, meets his exact double, Jean de Gué, a French count. As they are both dissatisfied with their current lives, John ends up impersonating Jean, taking his place at the family château with interesting results!
2. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens – This is probably my favourite Dickens novel, featuring one of my favourite characters, Sydney Carton, who bears a strong resemblance to Charles Darnay, a Frenchman on trial for treason in 1780s London.
3. The Prisoner of Zenda by Anthony Hope – One of the most famous impersonation novels of all time is this 1894 classic by Anthony Hope in which an English gentleman, Rudolf Rassendyll, impersonates the King of Ruritania to save him from a treasonous plot.
4. The Man in the Iron Mask by Alexandre Dumas – This is the final book in Dumas’ d’Artagnan series which began with The Three Musketeers. The first half of the novel revolves around one of the musketeers, Aramis, and a plot involving a man imprisoned in the Bastille who resembles the King of France and is forced to hide his face behind an iron mask.
5. The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins – This is another favourite of mine! It begins with drawing master Walter Hartright’s meeting on a lonely London road with a mysterious woman dressed all in white who has escaped from an asylum. The next day Walter takes up a teaching position at Limmeridge House in Cumberland where he finds that one of his students, Laura Fairlie, bears a striking resemblance to the woman in white…
6. The Ivy Tree by Mary Stewart – I love Mary Stewart’s books, including this one, in which Mary Grey is approached by a man who has mistaken her for his cousin, Annabel, and persuades her to impersonate Annabel as part of a scheme to inherit his great-uncle’s fortune.
7. The Mark of the Horse Lord by Rosemary Sutcliff – This book appeared on my recent Top Ten Tuesday list of books set in the ancient world, but it fits perfectly with this week’s topic as well. In Roman Britain, Phaedrus, a slave, is asked to impersonate King Midir of the Dalriadain, whom he closely resembles and who has been overthrown by a usurper queen.
8. The Great Impersonation by E. Phillips Oppenheim – The title says it all! This entertaining impersonation novel from 1920 begins with Everard Dominey meeting his doppelganger in an African desert and coming up with a plan to steal his identity.
9. Dance of Death by Helen McCloy – Published in 1938, this is one of a series of detective novels featuring the psychiatrist Dr Basil Willing. The body of a young woman is found buried in snow in a New York street and is quickly identified by the police – but the mystery deepens when they interview her cousin, who looks very like the dead girl and claims she had been asked to impersonate her.
10. Destination Unknown by Agatha Christie – This is a standalone thriller rather than a detective novel. Our heroine, Hilary Craven, encounters a British secret agent in a Casablanca hotel who persuades her to impersonate a dying woman whom she resembles. He hopes she will be able to locate the woman’s husband, one of a group of scientists who have disappeared. Maybe not one of Christie’s best, but I still enjoyed it.
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Have you read any of these? Can you think of any other books where a character has a double and/or impersonates them?
She Reads Novels 
I agree that The Scapegoat is one of DduM’s best. Have you read Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey? Might be another one you’d enjoy, along similar lines.
I came here to recommend Brat Farrar too – I love Josephine Tey’s books, and this is my favourite of hers, partly because her picture of family life is so engaging – before it all goes pear-shaped!
I’ve only read a few of Josephine Tey’s books, but will definitely get to Brat Farrar eventually. I’m pleased to hear it’s your favourite.
I haven’t read Brat Farrar yet, but I’ve been meaning to for years (since reading Mary Stewart’s The Ivy Tree which was apparently inspired by it). Thanks for the reminder!
I have heard lots of good things about The Scapegoat.
It’s great – one of du Maurier’s best!
What a great idea Helen!
Thanks! I’m glad you like it.
I recently read The Scapegoat and really enjoyed it. It didn’t go how I was expecting it to. 🙂
It does have an unusual plot!
The Woman in White sounds really good.
It is! It’s one of my favourite Victorian novels.
Ooh, I love a doppelgänger! I adored The Scapegoat and The Woman in White, but my top doppelgänger rec will always be Tana French’s The Likeness.
I haven’t read that one – thanks! I realised after I put my list together that they’re nearly all classics. I don’t seem to come across the doppelgänger trope very often in newer books.
That’s me put in my place. This allegedy well-read person hasn’t read a single one of these. And I can’t think of a single doppelgänger to contribute 😒.
Apart from maybe the Christie, which isn’t one of her best, the others are all books that I loved and can highly recommend.
👍
Ooh, I love this idea! The Scapegoat has been on my TBR for years.
The Scapegoat is great! I hope you’re able to read it soon.
My only overlaps with you are the Dickens and the Hope. Other ‘doubles’ that immediately spring to mind are Highsmith’s Tom Ripley and Dickie Greenleaf and Twain’s The Prince and the Pauper.
I haven’t read either of those, but the Highsmith is on the TBR!
oh this is a fun topic! I’ll have to check some of these out! My TTT
I’m glad you like it!
When I saw the heading my immediate thoughts were of Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey and Daphne du Maurier’s My Cousin Rachel
I must read Brat Farrar soon!
I haven’t read any of these books, though Destination Unknown is on my TBR. I can’t think of any other books that include this trope.
Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!https://readbakecreate.com/mature-citizens-of-the-world-books-featuring-mature-characters/
Destination Unknown is an unusual Christie novel – much more of a thriller than a mystery. I hope you enjoy it.
I *loved* ‘Two Cities’. I thought that Dickens really ‘got’ the revolution. I’m betting that parts of the book horrified its English readership.
Yes, probably! It’s a great book and he did seem to really get the revolution. The ending was perfect as well.
What a clever choice for this week’s TTT! I’ve only read two: Tale of Two Cities and Woman in White, but I love both those books. 😀
They are two of my all-time favourite classics. I’m glad you love them too.
Great topic! The most recent book I read where there was a lookalike was The Truth by Terry Pratchett!
I haven’t read that one. There are so many books with lookalikes and doubles in them!
Oh wow, great one! I think I never came across books featuring this topic. I at least haven’t heard of these.
My TTT: https://laurieisreading.com/2025/03/11/top-ten-tuesday-books-including-books/
I can highly recommend most of these!
What a brilliant idea for a list! I must read The Scapegoat and I’ve never heard of Destination Unknown so will get to it one day!
I love The Scapegoat – it’s one of my favourites by du Maurier. Destination Unknown isn’t one of Christie’s better books, but I thought it was quite entertaining and still worth reading.
I’ve read and enjoyed some of these, but now you’ve added a lot more to my wishlist!!!
They’re all enjoyable books. I can happily recommend any of them!
Great topic! I enjoy this plot device too.
Happy TTT (on a Wednesday)!
Susan
http://www.blogginboutbooks.com
I think it’s a great plot device. I’m glad you enjoy it too!
I love this idea, and you have some of my favorites on here (The Scapegoat, A Tale of Two Cities, The Woman in White) I know I read Prisoner of Zenda about a hundred years ago, but I don’t remember anything about it. I’m also slowly making my way through Mary Stewarts ouevre
That posted before I was ready! If you want to check out my list, it’s here: https://franlaniado.wordpress.com/2025/03/11/top-ten-tuesday-books-that-feature-time-travel/
I’m glad you’ve enjoyed some of these books too. I can’t remember much about The Prisoner of Zenda either and it was only about ten years ago when I read it! I’ve always intended to read the sequel, Rupert of Hentzau, but still haven’t got round to it.
I didn’t even know there was a sequel!
Hello Helen, A Tale of Two Cities is quite possibly my favourite Dickens’ novel, too! I am also looking forward to reading The Ivy Tree and The Woman in White. Great list!
Blessings, Jessica 💌
I’m pleased to hear A Tale of Two Cities might be your favourite Dickens novel too, Jessica! I think you’ll enjoy The Ivy Tree and The Woman in White, so I hope you’re able to read them soon.
Great idea for a book list. I have to admit that I haven’t read any of these (and hadn’t even heard of a few) but it’s definitely an intriguing subject that can work well with a vast variety of genres. I’m most intrigued by the one that was also on your ancient world list and The Woman In White. The thing that immediately springs to mind for me is The Parent Trap movie 😅 I watched it so many times growing up.
I’m glad you like my list, even though you haven’t read any of these yet. I can recommend all of them! The Woman in White is brilliant. I’ve read a lot of Wilkie Collins’ books and that one is my favourite.
I’ve only read A Tale of Two Cities from your list; I would also add Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night to the classics featuring twins/doppelgangers. If you enjoy science fiction, Brothers in Arms and Mirror Dance (both by Lois McMaster Bujold) feature a pair of clones, one of whom tries to impersonate the other. Thanks for the list and happy reading!
Yes, Twelfth Night would have been perfect for this list! I haven’t read anything by Lois McMaster Bujold but she has been recommended to me before. I’ll have to try her books one day.