Quick Doctor Who Book Reviews, Round Five
Jan. 17th, 2007 09:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
andrasteWow, I got through this set quicker than usual. I thank the Christmas slump at work for all the extra reading time I had towards the end of December.
The Wages of Sin by David A. McIntee
With his control of the TARDIS restored by the Time Lords at last, the Third Doctor takes his old friend Liz Shaw and his current companion Jo Grant to pre-revolutionay Russia. When their time machine is stolen, the travellers find themselves mixed up with Russian royalty, British spies and the mad monk Rasputin as they race to get it back.
Even on his average days, McIntee is always worth the read, and although this isn't one of his strongest outings it is good fun. The historical setting doesn't seem quite as deep as those in The Talons of Weng-Chiang or The Eleventh Tiger - perhaps it's the move from Asia to Europe? - but the atmosphere is still vivid. The author also has a great time with Rasputin. In many ways, he's a perfect David McIntee villain, full of personality and interesting motivations.
Rating: 6/10
Deep Blue by Mark Morris
The Fifth Doctor, Tegan and Turlough visit a British seaside town where a peculiar jelly-like substance is turning locals and tourists alike into monsters. This being the '70s, UNIT is already in the midst of an investigation, but as everyone in the area falls under the influence of the contagion they may do more harm than good.
After Morris' rather limp The Bodysnatchers, I wasn't particularly looking forward to Deep Blue, so this was a pleasant surprise. The alien invasion plot is standard, but the '70s setting is well-drawn and the aliens are genuinely horrifying. The book's real strong point is the combination of classic UNIT with a Doctor from their future, especially since this leads to Five meeting Mike Yates before that whole unfortunate incident with the dinosaurs. The characterization is uniformly strong and interesting - it's not every book that could pull off a scene where the Brigadier bursts into tears.
Rating: 8/10
War of the Daleks by John Peel
The Doctor and Sam Jones land on a space ship which is soon invaded by warlike Thals, who are desperate to retrieve a piece of space debris the crew have unwittingly taken on board. The Doctor discovers an interest in its contents himself, once the Daleks show up to claim it as well.
This book isn't as terrible as its reputation suggests, which means that it's merely quite bad rather than a warcrime against literature. The pointless fucking around with continuity is irritating, but I don't care enough about Dalek history to get upset about it. Of course, I also don't care enough about Dalek history to get excited about this book. The Daleks work best as an implacable, irredeemably evil enemy for the Doctor to face. I've never found them very interesting outside that context, and since the Doctor doesn't get much to do here, it was all a bit dull. Also, I dislike Sam Jones more with each passing story. (Not least because getting jealous over the attentions of a slutty thousand-year-old alien is silly and annoying. Eight is too pretty to belong to just one girl!)
Ironically given how widely loathed it is, this book is very difficult to get hold of. I had to pay $5 to get it on inter-library loan, which is a lot less than I'd have forked out to get it from eBay.
Rating: 3/10
The Stealers of Dreams by Steve Lyons
The Doctor, Rose and Jack land on a planet where any kind of imagination - fiction, dreams, lies - is banned an mundane reality rules. Assuming the problem is an oppressive political regime, they set about introducing a touch of fantasy back into this grey society. But it soon becomes apparent that on this world, dreams really can be dangerous ...
I have nothing to say about this book, except that I wish they hadn't let people write books with Captain Jack in them without seeing John Barrowman in action. Neither The Deviant Strain nor The Stealers of Dreams get close to capturing his charms. This is another demonstration of how pedestrian and disapointing the NSAs are compared to the earlier book ranges. Doctor Who fans have never had to put up with the pointless glut of cash-in novels other franchises turn out with monotonous regularity, and its sad that the new series on TV has caused a reduction in printed material aimed at people over twelve.
Rating: 5/10
Business Unusual by Garry Russell
Following The Trial of a Time Lord, the Doctor has been roaming the cosmos thwarting evil and trying to avoid his own future, including a certain red-haired computer programmer from Pease Pottage. But when he needs help to defeat a coalition of old enemies who have kidnapped Alaistair Lethbridge-Stewart, Melanie Jane Bush may just be the only girl for the job. A loose sequel to Scales of Injustice
One of the quirks of Season 23 is that Mel never got a proper introduction story. This is probably part of the reason her reception was less than warm; the audience was asked to accept a new companion without being properly introduced. Business Unusual does a solid job of correcting this oversight, and Garry Russell has obvious affection for both the Sixth Doctor and Mel. After writing this novel, he went on to redeem them in the eyes of many fans by commissioning and producing a series of excellent Big Finish audios. The Doctor and the Brig are present and correct, but this is really Mel's story - it provides her not only with an origin, but with a reason to travel through time and space.
Rating: 7/10
The English Way of Death by Gareth Roberts
The Fourth Doctor, Romana and K9 visit England in the 1930s to return some long-overdue library books, but as is the way of such things they're soon distracted by mayhem and peril. A group of time travellers have unwittingly opened the way for an alien invasion which only the TARDIS crew, a mystery writer and a retired colonel can foil.
If the summary above is brief, it's because the plot is hardly the point of a Gareth Roberts Four/Romana book. They swan about saving the planet and generally being smarter, sillier and sexier than the opposition (as a science fiction magazine recently put it.) The author's ability to mimic Season 17 remains uncanny, and I actually enjoy his take on this era more than all but one of the televised adventures. Also, Romana is in drag the whole time, which is invariably awesome.
Rating: 9/10
The Sorcerer's Apprentice by Christopher Bullis
The Doctor is a man of science, and not inclined to believe in magic. Yet even he finds it hard to dismiss a firebreathing dragon when it attacks him and his companions. Stranded on a world filled with elves, dwarves and wizards, the Doctor will have to learn to use the sorcery he disdains if the crew are to survive and find a way back into the TARDIS.
I try to restrict myself to using the phrase 'entertaining romp' once per review set, and this book demanded to be described as such. It's Doctor Who done as Lord of the Rings, and Ian specifically recognizes it as such. Other authors might have done more with the concept, but it certainly does what it says on the tin.
Rating: 7/10
Dying in the Sun by Jon de Burgh Miller
The Doctor takes Ben and Polly to visit an old friend in '40s Los Angeles, only to find that he's been murdered. When the police take him in for questioning, he's soon uncovering a sinister plot to take over the world through the magic of Hollywood.
This has an interesting setting, but the plot never quite lifts off the ground and the characters feel generic. It's notoriously difficult to capture Patrick Troughton's Doctor on the printed page, and de Burgh Miller doesn't really manage it. There are a couple of interesting insights into Polly, but nothing to raise this above the average.
Rating: 5/10
The Algebra of Ice by Lloyd Rose
Investigating a series of time disruptions, the Doctor and Ace trace their source to a brilliant but unbalanced mathematician and some strange crop circles. (Or, rather, crop things-that-are-not-circles. This is important.) To hold off an alien invasion from beyond the universe, the Doctor may have to make some terrible decisions.
I was surprised to find reviews lamenting that The Algebra of Ice wasn't as good as Lloyd Rose's first two Doctor Who books. If this the case, the first two novels must be extraordinary, because I thought this was bloody fantastic. It's not really about the alien invasion at all, but about the characters and how they relate to each other. The Doctor and Ace are at their fabulous best here. I recommend the book to anyone who loves them, and anyone who loves their love. I also really liked Ace's boy of the week, who is in many ways the true protagonist. Plus, where else can you see the Doctor save the universe with a soup tin lid?
Rating: 9/10
The Wages of Sin by David A. McIntee
With his control of the TARDIS restored by the Time Lords at last, the Third Doctor takes his old friend Liz Shaw and his current companion Jo Grant to pre-revolutionay Russia. When their time machine is stolen, the travellers find themselves mixed up with Russian royalty, British spies and the mad monk Rasputin as they race to get it back.
Even on his average days, McIntee is always worth the read, and although this isn't one of his strongest outings it is good fun. The historical setting doesn't seem quite as deep as those in The Talons of Weng-Chiang or The Eleventh Tiger - perhaps it's the move from Asia to Europe? - but the atmosphere is still vivid. The author also has a great time with Rasputin. In many ways, he's a perfect David McIntee villain, full of personality and interesting motivations.
Rating: 6/10
Deep Blue by Mark Morris
The Fifth Doctor, Tegan and Turlough visit a British seaside town where a peculiar jelly-like substance is turning locals and tourists alike into monsters. This being the '70s, UNIT is already in the midst of an investigation, but as everyone in the area falls under the influence of the contagion they may do more harm than good.
After Morris' rather limp The Bodysnatchers, I wasn't particularly looking forward to Deep Blue, so this was a pleasant surprise. The alien invasion plot is standard, but the '70s setting is well-drawn and the aliens are genuinely horrifying. The book's real strong point is the combination of classic UNIT with a Doctor from their future, especially since this leads to Five meeting Mike Yates before that whole unfortunate incident with the dinosaurs. The characterization is uniformly strong and interesting - it's not every book that could pull off a scene where the Brigadier bursts into tears.
Rating: 8/10
War of the Daleks by John Peel
The Doctor and Sam Jones land on a space ship which is soon invaded by warlike Thals, who are desperate to retrieve a piece of space debris the crew have unwittingly taken on board. The Doctor discovers an interest in its contents himself, once the Daleks show up to claim it as well.
This book isn't as terrible as its reputation suggests, which means that it's merely quite bad rather than a warcrime against literature. The pointless fucking around with continuity is irritating, but I don't care enough about Dalek history to get upset about it. Of course, I also don't care enough about Dalek history to get excited about this book. The Daleks work best as an implacable, irredeemably evil enemy for the Doctor to face. I've never found them very interesting outside that context, and since the Doctor doesn't get much to do here, it was all a bit dull. Also, I dislike Sam Jones more with each passing story. (Not least because getting jealous over the attentions of a slutty thousand-year-old alien is silly and annoying. Eight is too pretty to belong to just one girl!)
Ironically given how widely loathed it is, this book is very difficult to get hold of. I had to pay $5 to get it on inter-library loan, which is a lot less than I'd have forked out to get it from eBay.
Rating: 3/10
The Stealers of Dreams by Steve Lyons
The Doctor, Rose and Jack land on a planet where any kind of imagination - fiction, dreams, lies - is banned an mundane reality rules. Assuming the problem is an oppressive political regime, they set about introducing a touch of fantasy back into this grey society. But it soon becomes apparent that on this world, dreams really can be dangerous ...
I have nothing to say about this book, except that I wish they hadn't let people write books with Captain Jack in them without seeing John Barrowman in action. Neither The Deviant Strain nor The Stealers of Dreams get close to capturing his charms. This is another demonstration of how pedestrian and disapointing the NSAs are compared to the earlier book ranges. Doctor Who fans have never had to put up with the pointless glut of cash-in novels other franchises turn out with monotonous regularity, and its sad that the new series on TV has caused a reduction in printed material aimed at people over twelve.
Rating: 5/10
Business Unusual by Garry Russell
Following The Trial of a Time Lord, the Doctor has been roaming the cosmos thwarting evil and trying to avoid his own future, including a certain red-haired computer programmer from Pease Pottage. But when he needs help to defeat a coalition of old enemies who have kidnapped Alaistair Lethbridge-Stewart, Melanie Jane Bush may just be the only girl for the job. A loose sequel to Scales of Injustice
One of the quirks of Season 23 is that Mel never got a proper introduction story. This is probably part of the reason her reception was less than warm; the audience was asked to accept a new companion without being properly introduced. Business Unusual does a solid job of correcting this oversight, and Garry Russell has obvious affection for both the Sixth Doctor and Mel. After writing this novel, he went on to redeem them in the eyes of many fans by commissioning and producing a series of excellent Big Finish audios. The Doctor and the Brig are present and correct, but this is really Mel's story - it provides her not only with an origin, but with a reason to travel through time and space.
Rating: 7/10
The English Way of Death by Gareth Roberts
The Fourth Doctor, Romana and K9 visit England in the 1930s to return some long-overdue library books, but as is the way of such things they're soon distracted by mayhem and peril. A group of time travellers have unwittingly opened the way for an alien invasion which only the TARDIS crew, a mystery writer and a retired colonel can foil.
If the summary above is brief, it's because the plot is hardly the point of a Gareth Roberts Four/Romana book. They swan about saving the planet and generally being smarter, sillier and sexier than the opposition (as a science fiction magazine recently put it.) The author's ability to mimic Season 17 remains uncanny, and I actually enjoy his take on this era more than all but one of the televised adventures. Also, Romana is in drag the whole time, which is invariably awesome.
Rating: 9/10
The Sorcerer's Apprentice by Christopher Bullis
The Doctor is a man of science, and not inclined to believe in magic. Yet even he finds it hard to dismiss a firebreathing dragon when it attacks him and his companions. Stranded on a world filled with elves, dwarves and wizards, the Doctor will have to learn to use the sorcery he disdains if the crew are to survive and find a way back into the TARDIS.
I try to restrict myself to using the phrase 'entertaining romp' once per review set, and this book demanded to be described as such. It's Doctor Who done as Lord of the Rings, and Ian specifically recognizes it as such. Other authors might have done more with the concept, but it certainly does what it says on the tin.
Rating: 7/10
Dying in the Sun by Jon de Burgh Miller
The Doctor takes Ben and Polly to visit an old friend in '40s Los Angeles, only to find that he's been murdered. When the police take him in for questioning, he's soon uncovering a sinister plot to take over the world through the magic of Hollywood.
This has an interesting setting, but the plot never quite lifts off the ground and the characters feel generic. It's notoriously difficult to capture Patrick Troughton's Doctor on the printed page, and de Burgh Miller doesn't really manage it. There are a couple of interesting insights into Polly, but nothing to raise this above the average.
Rating: 5/10
The Algebra of Ice by Lloyd Rose
Investigating a series of time disruptions, the Doctor and Ace trace their source to a brilliant but unbalanced mathematician and some strange crop circles. (Or, rather, crop things-that-are-not-circles. This is important.) To hold off an alien invasion from beyond the universe, the Doctor may have to make some terrible decisions.
I was surprised to find reviews lamenting that The Algebra of Ice wasn't as good as Lloyd Rose's first two Doctor Who books. If this the case, the first two novels must be extraordinary, because I thought this was bloody fantastic. It's not really about the alien invasion at all, but about the characters and how they relate to each other. The Doctor and Ace are at their fabulous best here. I recommend the book to anyone who loves them, and anyone who loves their love. I also really liked Ace's boy of the week, who is in many ways the true protagonist. Plus, where else can you see the Doctor save the universe with a soup tin lid?
Rating: 9/10
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(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-17 12:45 pm (UTC)They're definitely up there with the best of the EDAs, IMO. I think Camera Obscura's generally more popular but I liked City of the Dead best (and it's less arc-centric); I am biased, though, because it involves Eight getting naked (a lot) in New Orleans and is the only book I know of where any of the Doctors actually gets to have sex.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-17 02:32 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-17 06:44 pm (UTC)On the other hand, it's pretty darned clear to me that he had sex at the end of Interference. Eight was such a tom cat. ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-18 12:21 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-17 03:40 pm (UTC)(Um, purely hypothetically, of course)
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-17 07:13 pm (UTC)I suppose that one great advantage of being a time traveller is that you never have to pay fines for overdue library books. Is the reader informed what the books were?
(no subject)
Date: 2007-01-17 11:59 pm (UTC)