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Finally got around to reading the second of the new Doctor books and all I have to say is that it was OK. The book seemed to drag in some parts and the ending just sort of happened, nothing too exciting in the resolution to the problem. I do have to say that the new books do capture the chemistry of the Doctor and Rose from the screen that brings some redemption to the weak story line.
Dalek history rewritten aside this was a good book. Sam's character development seems to be hitting a glitch - her jealous streak when the Doctor even talks to another woman will soon get irritating if its not developed. The end of Davros - I doubt it. Left it wide open for a come back. The humour starting to be injected in these novels is good, especially in this case the references to Star Trek's bridge. One of the best so far in the 8th Doctore series
| What: | Genocide (BBC Eighth Doctor novels) |
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| By: | Jonny Jupiter, Hertfordshire, UK |
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| Date: | Saturday 10 September 2005 |
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| Rating: |   4 |
Absolute rubbish. Bland villans bland story bland ending. I was really looking forward to the inclusion of Jo Grant but in the end was left feeling we didnt really know what happened to her. There should have been far more interaction with the Doctor. Unless you are reading the 8th Doc's books in order steer well clear of this one
A great story. Very Bakeresque. The Rising Damp joke was good. Worth reading.
Now this is a bit more like it. Some funny moments and the start of the proper development of the characters. Post buffy its probably difficult for the writers to come up with ideas that are not cliche ridden but it was good fun. I found myself warming to this Doctor even though he has only had one screen outing.The Sam overprotectiveness is probably an arc that will be developed in future books but we all know it wont go anywhere. Grace's kiss in the movie was about as far as the Doc has ever got. Better things will no doubt be ahead but this was a very good start
| What: | Walking to Babylon (Bernice Summerfield audios) |
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| By: | Phil Ince, Cheri Cola's sternum |
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| Date: | Thursday 8 September 2005 |
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| Rating: | 5 |
What else is there to be said?
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 | Not really resolving anything |
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| What: | The Ancestor Cell (BBC Eighth Doctor novels) |
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| By: | Merlin, England |
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| Date: | Tuesday 6 September 2005 |
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| Rating: | 7 |
An ok book id say altogether, but i wish theyd sorted out the false regenration thing in interference. And the destruction of Gallifrey doesnt connect with the new Tv series in any way.
Acording to the ninth Doctor there was suppose to be another time war with the daleks. In the gallifrey chronicles the Doctor had the power to restore Gallifrey so it kinda ties in but i think this novel should have been written with a diffrent plot.
| What: | Fear Itself (BBC Past Doctor novels) |
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| By: | Joe Ford, Eastbourne |
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| Date: | Tuesday 6 September 2005 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
After a run of unmemorable books at the begining of the year BBC books have found their stride again and no-where is this more apparent than with Fear Itself, the first book to be written by a newbie in yonks. And it shows! This is wonderfully atmospheric, tense and frightening and probes the fantastic EDA combination of the Eighth Docor, Fitz and Anji is some very surprising ways. The novels is well constructed and hits the reader with a great number of twists that manage to SHOCK as they should. Add to this mix an engaging prose style, some briliantly done characters and a superb cover from Black Sheep and you have a sophisticated chiller that should please even the most avid EDA hater. I loved it.
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| A book you will never forget. |
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| What: | Only Human (BBC New Series Adventures novels) |
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| By: | Joe Ford, Eastbourne |
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| Date: | Tuesday 6 September 2005 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
Gareth Roberts is back and wittier than ever! He alwasy was a confident writer but here his work shines with total exhuberence! He nails the three regulars perfectly and makes some fantastic observations on todays society, he manages to include romance, scares, brilliant ideas and some surprisingly risque moments ALL within the spanking new NDA formula. Fantastic!
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| One of the greatest Doctor Who stories |
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| What: | The Horns of Nimon (BBC classic series videos) |
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| By: | Glyn, Isle of Wight |
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| Date: | Thursday 1 September 2005 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
This story rocks!!!
I know why some people think it's one of the worst. The Bloodknock SFX, the Nimon heads, the overacting... but it all comes together to create a fantastic story. And it's got the lovely Janet Ellis in too!
| What: | Terror Firma (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | Herb Romansa, Iraqi Free State - God Bless America |
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| Date: | Tuesday 30 August 2005 |
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| Rating: | 2 |
Why would you go to the trouble of ending a story arc planned to take several years because new fans brought to the audios by the Eccleston series on the telly might find it alienating and then make your first release in this new, cleansed 8th Doctor series such a piece of fanwank? Why would you do that?
I think the fact that the third Doctor regenerated at the end of the book is stupid because he is suppose to regenrate at the end of planet of the spiders.
I have never been able to warm to Justin Richard's writing, and the only Andy Lane novel I've found engaging was his collaboration with the wonderful Jim Mortimore on "Lucifer Rising", so I was prepared for "The Banquo Legacy" to leave me cold. I was surprised and delighted (sorry, was channelling JN-T there) to find that the opening few chapters of this book are rather marvellous. There is atmosphere, pace, and intrigue. And then...it suddenly all falls apart. It becomes dull, pedestrian, and fails to hold interest once the first death has taken place, withering into a hideously padded Agatha Christie-esque plodder for the central chunk of the book, only to recover slightly towards the end. The characters are lifeless during this section, and as The Doctor and Fitz are very much in the background, it does become very difficult indeed to sustain any kind of interest in what is going on (or not going on, to be more accurate). Endless meandering conversations that do nothing to move things forward, and a plot that fails to ignite mean that The Banquo Legacy sees a huge falling off in quality once you're past the first 50 or so pages. Approach with caution.
| What: | Blue Box (BBC Past Doctor novels) |
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| By: | Matt Bennett, Cardiff |
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| Date: | Thursday 25 August 2005 |
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| Rating: | 10 |
I've been trying to put my finger on what it is that makes Kate Orman's novels so bloody good. The writing is crisp, the characterisation is always of a high standard, and the ideas are large and well developed. These things can be found in other DW authors works though. What separates Kate Orman is that her books have a real clarity to them, they're beautifully structured. Blue Box is a success on many levels; it's depiction of the Sixth Doctor and Peri, it's choice of location, it's supporting characters, and it's strong plot. I really don't think Kate Orman is capable of producing a novel that is anything less than engaging.
An absolute joy to read, from start to finish. All the regulars are wonderful here, as are all the supporting characters. Witty, summery, and charming, The Also People is one of the very best NAs.
This first offering from Kate Orman is a truly superior piece of work. The dialogue, plot, and prose are all spot on, and guide one easily though a story that could have been off-puttingly complicated in lesser hands. It's often been said that Orman's Doctor Who novels are built around the emotional response of the main characters to their situation, rather than merely detailing plot, and this is certainly true here. The Doctor in particular is put through the wringer. This is an astonishing book, and I can't priase it enough.
Lucifer Rising is one of the chunkier NAs but seems to justify it's unusual length. It never drags or drops into clunky prose, and the writing really lifts off the page. The opening sequence is wonderfully written, and achieves a level of emotional potency that is sustained through the entire novel. Recommended.
Your response to Verdigris will depend upon what your expectations are, and whether you enjoy camp nonsense or not. If you are expecting a faithful re-tread of a Pertwee tv story, you won't get it. What you will get is a marvellously silly camp-fest that parades it's love of all things Seventies. Luckily, this kind of thing is very much my bag, and so I love it.
A good barometer of the usefulness of a book is how well-thumbed it is. Certain pages of my copy of The Discontinuity Guide now resemble the Dead Sea Scrolls, such is my regular usage of this marvellous paperback. Ok, so it gets some of its facts wrong, but to dwell on this is to be churlish. The Discontinuity Guide is very, very funny, fresh, informative and a marvellous companion when watching a particular Doctor Who story on DVD or video. I believe it is about to be reissued in a revised form - you would do well to get a copy.
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| Impressed and impressionable |
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| What: | Terror Firma (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
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| By: | Phil Ince, Outside your house ... waiting ... |
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| Date: | Monday 22 August 2005 |
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| Rating: | 3 |
SPOILERS
The broadly efficient but over-rated 'Master', sketches a background to the Doctor about which he'd forgotten and which we'd previously known nothing. In 'Terror Firma' - good title, shame about the play - 'Tiny' Joe Lidster repeats his revisionist trick. It's hard to understand why Joe bothered because the 8th Doctor's previously unknown travelling companions are abysmally-written, facelessly-dreary 'young persons' so common to Bog Flush productions.
Additionally, 'Tiny' is evidently (and justififably) impressed by Robert Shearman's 'Jubilee', taking that story's trailers and comedy leader to liberate a Dalek-infested Earth.
Repetition replaces creation, allusion replaces narrative. There really isn't a plot, 'Terror Firma' is the closest BF have yet got to the empty, stupid, amateurish, overblown bollocks which poor inept Eric Saward threw up in 'Ressurection of the Daleks' and 'Attack of the Cybermen'; umpteen references to umpteen stories, even quoting directly from the 'Genesis of the Daleks' capsule speech - " ... enough to break the glass etc" - and achieving nothing more than sullying their memories whilst highlighting its own lack of invention.
The wonderful Julia Deakin does what the guest stars often do, she does her best and turns in a performance as Harriet Griffin which ... well, it can't be, can it!? It seems to be modelled on Beryl Reid's turn as Briggs in 'Earthshock' but a version from a (slightly) altered reality where Briggs got the keys to the grog during part 2 and spent the rest of the story slurring drunk.
Some notable details are Lidster's original idiom "clutched onto" - Track 7, around 3' 00" in.
Davros whimpering like Homer Simpson forced to choose between free slices of a favourite cake and springing Bart from gaol.
The opening rant from the Daleks causes one to visualise them as a pack of stupid, tethered dogs.
The outstanding moment, however, is Davros' becoming the Emperor Dalek in the denouement though Christ alone knows why this happens and at no stage is any explanation proposed. Lidster flatters us by declining to insult our intelligenc on that point and his play is, it has to be admitted, commendably free of technobabble. It's also though largely and sadly free of sense. When Davros becomes the Emperor, the first thing that the blindly-obedient Daleks do ... is ignore his order to destroy the Doctor.
After Erimem's sanctimonious turn as Adric in last month's 'Council of Nicaea', C'rizz is finally discovered to function as Turlough - a viper in the Doctor's skinny bosom.
Maybe, Joseph, you could have said, "No."
Maybe ...?
