Catch Up
Christmas meant I had a little chance to read a number of books, and so here
are my quick thoughts on the ones I've read in the last few weeks
Amazingly, they were all equally good, all different types of Doctor
Who stories, and all get a solid (and similar) rating. More
evidence that the recent Virgin output has been a lot of top quality Doctor Who.
I recommend all of the works -- and as each one is a different sort of
Doctor Who book, pick the type that matches the style you like the best.
- Scales of Injustice by Gary Russell [9/10]
- A companion book to Who Killed Kennedy, the book is a definite
"fanboy" book -- it features Liz Shaw's departure, it's a sequel to all of the
Earth Reptile TV stories -- from the Silurians to Warriors of the Deep. It
features the Brigadier's family that was created for Downtime.
- Christmas on a Rational Planet by Lawerence Miles [9/10]
- A definitive "New" New Adventure, with all sorts of the standard pieces.
However, I found this to be one that played with the legends in a great
way -- both tieing into a 18th century proto-UNIT, fun references to "the
old times" that both said something new -- but maintained the proper degree
of mystery.
The book reminded me of Marc Platt's Time's Cruicible, but I found this
one to be a superior version of it, and one that was far more readable.
- The English Way of Death by Gareth Roberts [9/10]
- It's certainly a cliche to say this, but if Gareth's Romance of Crimewas Nightmare of Eden done right, The English Way of Death is
City of Death, which of course was done right the first time.
With a solid sense of humor, it captures both a fun style as a
book and the period in the tv series successfully. Witty, silly, and fun,
it's as good as Romance of Crime, and equally as recommended.