There are 4,107 reviews so far. To add a review of your own, click on the item in question, then click the Vote link.
| What: | The Crystal Bucephalus (Missing Adventures novels) |
|
| By: | Stephen Rider, Mount Prospect, Illinois, United States |
|
| Date: | Tuesday 18 August 2015 |
|
| Rating: |   9 |
I'm surprised at some of the other reviews, as this was one of my favorite Missing Adventures. The setting is clearly a significant homage to Douglas Adams, but it is overall a very clever concept in its own right. and the unique nature of the setting in turn provides opportunities for some creative plotting. The story moves a long and actually gives the companions something to do, while – ironically – the Doctor himself is missing for long-ish stretches of the story. But that works out well. This book also contains one of my favorite "fiendish traps", and a hysterical yet very clever escape from said trap. The only real stumble is a highly UNcharacteristic moment for the Doctor, where he grabs somebody by the throat and lifts them off the ground. Huh – the Doc must have been working out...? But other than that, I really enjoyed this book throughout. And yes, as the cover suggests, it even allows Kamelion a bit of room to run around and get into trouble. Overall a fun read, and the only New or Missing adventure I've ever read twice.
 |  |  |
 | Amazing this was even published |
|
| | |
| What: | The Pit (New Adventures novels) |
|
| By: | Stephen Rider, Mount Prospect, Illinois, United States |
|
| Date: | Tuesday 18 August 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 1 |
The writing on this one was so poor I'm amazed it was actually published by a professional publishing house. Where was the editor? Was there blackmail involved?
I used to make a point of finishing any book I started, but this book was so poorly put together I couldn't force myself to continue – though I somehow made it about two-thirds of the way. Scarcely a plot to speak of, no characterization, random unrelated events that appear to have been jammed in there by a drive-by fanboy (such as the Doctor landing in Victorian London just long enough to encounter Jack the Ripper – for about a page or two – before flying off again.) I'm truly shocked this ever saw press; somebody somewhere along the line should have recognized how unreadably bad it was and put a stop to it.
| What: | Plague of the Daleks (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
|
| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
|
| Date: | Monday 10 August 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 7 |
The end of the Stockbridge Trilogy brings the Daleks in as they are often brought in, to boost ratings. So, the Daleks somehow found the Tardis in Stockbridge and posted a task force in deep freeze for 1700 years just to get their hands on the Doctor. It all proceeds pretty much as a normal Dalek story. Their appearance gets delayed until the very end of part two. They have a cunning plan for bagging the Doctor. The plan backfires. Daleks make many threats, kill nearly all the secondary characters, and crash in flames themselves. On the plus side, Nyssa is particularly strong in this story. It has no major logical gaffes. The Doctor is clever and brave without being too clever and brave. It's enjoyable, though not terribly original.
| What: | Amorality Tale (BBC Past Doctor novels) |
|
| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
|
| Date: | Wednesday 5 August 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 6 |
I cannot understand what the other reviewers saw in this book. The story is that Sarah spots a picture of the Doctor (3) taken in 1952 along with a news story about killer smog, and off they go back in time to prevent a catastrophe. This story is mostly an excuse to write a Doctor Who version of the John Carpenter movie The Fog or Stephen King's The Mist. It's poison miasma plus zombie policemen all run by a religiously fanatical trio of aliens whose ideology is convert or destroy. The plotting of the novel is rather thin, and it gets thinner as it goes along, unlike the smog so prominent in the story. Some good things about this novel, though, are that Sarah is rather well characterized and the author creates the 1950s London East End feel well.
| What: | The Eternal Summer (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
|
| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
|
| Date: | Saturday 1 August 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 8 |
Part Two of the Stockbridge Trilogy is a major step up from Part One. The Doctor and Nyssa, seemingly blown to pieces at the end of Part One, find themselves alive, intact, and cast in a modern village drama, except that this drama cannot settle on the year in which it takes place. It seems that a sixty-year period of Stockbridge history has been folded on itself, with time jumping along the creases, all of it restarting in about a day's time. And then Maxwell Edison from the Doctor Who comic "Stars Fall on Stockbridge" turns up, played brilliantly by the always brilliant Mark Williams. Williams brings pathos to the character without making the character pathetic. The story concept in general works very well. The script supplies some nice surprises. Nyssa emerges as a very strong character in this one. The reservations I have concern the Lord and Lady of the Manor and the ancient evil that has been reawakened, Veridios. These are cardboard villains that take our attention away from the technical problem driving the plot. The whole would have been much better without them. Still, this story is worth listening to for the intriguing ideas and excellent performances.
| What: | Castle of Fear (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
|
| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
|
| Date: | Saturday 1 August 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 6 |
Most of the other reviewers here have stated the main problems and successes with Castle of Fear. This is the first part of a Stockbridge Trilogy. In this story, the Doctor and Nyssa find themselves characters in a traditional local play with origins in the Middle Ages. They travel back to the Middle Ages and get involved in a kind of farcical adventure. Some have compared this to Monty Python, but I believe the closer comparison is to Carry On, without so many sexual jokes. Virtually no one, except poor Maud the Withered, who gets offed in Part Three, is what he/she claims to be. Everyone is incompetent or stupid or both. There are moments of amusement, but of course these depend upon one's personal sense of humor. The exceptionally talented John Sessions is rather wasted here, mainly left to let out a rather preposterous French accent and act bombastic. Perhaps it's just too light to work well.
| What: | Evolution (Missing Adventures novels) |
|
| By: | Josh Lee, Fort Wayne, United States |
|
| Date: | Monday 20 July 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 8 |
This was a straight ahead adventure and the kind I like the best. The secondary characters were there just enough to keep it going and then they got out of the way. The Doctor and Sarah felt like they just popped off the TV screen, which is a big plus for me. My favorite stories are historicals that have a science fiction or time travel twist. My next favorite type occurs when the Doctor meets a real figure from history. I don't know much about Kipling but I am a huge fan of Doyle, so that was a big treat. If the science is implausible, I don't care. It's all in fun. This was a tribute to Doctor Who and Sherlock Holmes and a big check in the win column for me.
| What: | Managra (Missing Adventures novels) |
|
| By: | Josh Lee, Fort Wayne, United States |
|
| Date: | Monday 20 July 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 6 |
I liked this one overall but it was very bloody in places, not to mention just strange. The creativity is off the charts and well done on that score. There were nice touches throughout whether it was a good line here or a colorfully specific description there. The big picture was always clear and there was plenty of action. Plus, it never hurts to have villains you want to strangle and there were many of them from which to choose. The Doctor was true to form and Sarah had some good zingers, too. A mixed bag for me. I wish it hadn't been as dark as it was. I know, Tom's stories were very Gothic at this time and this wasn't nearly as bad as The Man in the Velvet Mask but I was still creeped out here and there. Excellent writing, though.
| What: | A Device of Death (Missing Adventures novels) |
|
| By: | Josh Lee, Fort Wayne, United States |
|
| Date: | Monday 20 July 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 7 |
I've gotten to appreciate Harry Sullivan more and more over the years. Nice to see him as a more fully developed character here. Sarah was never my favorite, definitely placing me in the minority. Tom was my Doctor and he is in fine form. The worlds in this book are interesting but the three leads are the focus (as it should be) and they carry the story. In typical fashion, they're separated at the beginning and have (thankfully minor) memory problems, too. If the goal of these novels is to fit in the TV stories, then this book does an admirable job because that's exactly what it does and I enjoyed it on that basis. I know a novel should have a bigger scope and focus on more than just the Doctor but I think of the Missing Adventures as comfort food. This one may be "standard" but it's the best kind of standard - the kind where the good guys come out on top and you had some fun with them along the way. I liked the machine with a personality, too.
| | |
| Well worth the (36 year) wait |
|
| | |
| What: | City of Death (BBC prestige novels) |
|
| By: | John Hubbard, Northants, United Kingdom |
|
| Date: | Saturday 18 July 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 8 |
This is not the book that Douglas Adams would have written but James Goss has written a book which captures the anarchic elements to the story and fleshes it out but also one which will satisfy the purists who want an rendition of what was on screen.
Romana in particular benefits from the expansion to the page and there are some lovely self referential jokes (and affectionate jibes at Doctor Who fans). I read this book with a smile on my face from start to finish.
I am now looking forward to his adaptation of The Pirate Planet and hoping that Eric Saward sees which way the wind is blowing before fans start posting copies of Misery through his front door
| What: | Time Reef (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
|
| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
|
| Date: | Friday 17 July 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 6 |
The people at Big Finish really liked Thomas Brewster far more than I did. This attempt to rewrite the Adric character ended up not working well for me. He ended up being rather one-dimensional. "Time Reef" is really two stories, the three part story just mentioned, and another called "Perfect World." The first is by Marc Platt, the second by Jonathan Morris. "Time Reef" involves a space-ship of Greek heroes stranded on a growing reef of space coral created by a stolen part of the TARDIS, stolen, of course, by Brewster, pretending to be the Doctor in the bargain. A second ship is stranded, containing only a haughty and arrogant woman from a kind of space ancient Egypt civilization. There are space-time rooks as well. The whole concept is rather strained and does not really survive much thinking about. The Doctor has to battle two recalcitrant personalities, the stubborn hero-captain who has to have battle and sacrifices no matter what, and the cowardly Brewster who can say only, "I didn't do nuthin'" indicating full well that it is all his fault. There are some humorous lines. Nyssa comes out looking fairly self-sufficient. "Perfect World" is another playing with perceptions story in which Brewster has once again mucked things up, this time with good intentions, by sending a wish through a time fissure, all unknowingly, for a young woman he has met to have a better life. This call reaches some existential time-space plumbers to come "do the job," allowing the Doctor to make many stirring speeches about how life is better with all the mistakes in it. Like "Time Reef," it is mildly amusing.
| What: | Touched by an Angel (BBC New Series Adventures novels) |
|
| By: | Robert Quinn, Chester, United Kingdom |
|
| Date: | Sunday 12 July 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 10 |
This is simply the best Doctor Who Novel that's ever been written. Many thanks to the author, Jonathan Morris, for writing such a magnificent story and an unforgettable journey! :)
| | |
| Old Time Serial Adventure |
|
| | |
| What: | Island of Death (BBC Past Doctor novels) |
|
| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
|
| Date: | Tuesday 7 July 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 6 |
Barry Letts knows his characters and knows his navy stuff. That is for sure. The story itself is somewhat light and simple. A bunch of insect aliens are posing as leaders of a Hare Krishna style cult. Jeremy Fitzoliver has joined the cult. The Doctor, Sarah, and Brigadier have to save him and the world from being sucked dry. The story moves along at a good pace, but there really is not enough of it there for a novel. So, Letts employs multiple delaying tactics to keep the Doctor and crew away from confronting the aliens for quite some time. The confrontation itself is typical of Letts, with the Doctor trying desperately to talk down the aliens from their nasty ways. There is some fun to be had with the Brigadier and some hallucinogenic mist. Because of all the delaying chapters, the whole reads like a novelization of an old movie serial from the 1940s.
| What: | Return to the Web Planet (Big Finish subscriber bonuses) |
|
| By: | David Layton, Los Angeles, United States |
|
| Date: | Sunday 21 June 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 7 |
The bonus audios have generally been awful, but this one isn't. The Doctor and Nyssa are drawn to Vortis, from "The Web Planet" in 1965. It is now hundreds of years after The Doctor helped save Vortis, and it is a much different planet. Now, lush and green as it had been before, Vortis seems an ideal world for a holiday. But always, trouble lurks.
The temptation to make a jungle planet the setting for an Adam and Eve story is very tempting, and the temptation is taken here, the apple has been bitten, and we plunge into the beginnings of a whole new species, to mix metaphors and allusions. The story itself is fairly interesting, presenting our heroes and their new Menoptera friends with an intriguing problem to solve - what is making the Zarbi change their behavior? It would have been a temptation also to bring back the Animus from the first story. Thankfully, the new threat is not the same as the old. The main idea behind this new threat - what it is and how it works - does not fully pass the believability test.
All in all, "Return to the Web Planet" is an entertaining story with the right mix of humor and danger. Its central idea does not really work out on the grounds of science or logic. However, a listener will not be just wasting time listening to this adventure.
| What: | City of Death (BBC prestige novels) |
|
| By: | Trevor Smith, Nottingham, United Kingdom |
|
| Date: | Sunday 21 June 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 10 |
I'll admit, having loved Gareth Roberts novelisation of 'Shada' I was bitterly disappointed when he dropped out of writing this book. Nobody writes 4th Doctor & Romana 2 like Gareth Roberts, so James Goss had a big task in hand writing the novelisation of this, one of the most beloved of all televised Who story's but all my worries were unfounded as Goss passes the test with flying colours. Not only does he get the 'feel' of COD but with added source material (all explained in notes at the end of the nove by the author) he expands on an already wonderful story and is able to give lots of background to the characters and the story. All in all a wonderful book that I ripped through in two days. Highly recommended.
| What: | Dancing the Code (Missing Adventures novels) |
|
| By: | Harry Ross Gorman, Bromborough, United Kingdom |
|
| Date: | Wednesday 17 June 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 7 |
A good unit story but I thought it was a bit hard to follow and had too many characters.
| What: | Island of Death (BBC Past Doctor novels) |
|
| By: | Trevor Smith, Nottingham, United Kingdom |
|
| Date: | Friday 12 June 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 6 |
Have to agree with the other reviewers. Not a bad novel but nothing particularly great either.
As you would expect, Barry Letts gets the third Doctor, Sarah Jane and the Brig spot on but the story just never kicks on and the aliens were frankly dull. 6/10
| What: | Scream of the Shalka (Miscellaneous TV spin-offs) |
|
| By: | Harry Ross Gorman, Bromborough, United Kingdom |
|
| Date: | Wednesday 20 May 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 10 |
Not many people talk about this one but its amazing. The only bad thing about the series coming back was the fact that Richard E. Grants doctor never got his time to shine. The 50th anniversary was the perfect opportunity to bring back this doctor and make him cannon. A must watch for any doctor who fan.
| What: | Lost in Time (BBC classic series DVDs/Blu-rays) |
|
| By: | Harry Ross Gorman, Bromborough, United Kingdom |
|
| Date: | Wednesday 20 May 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 9 |
This is a great set but because of its age it includes episodes of stories that have now been released on dvd by themselves and doesn't include episodes like the underwater menace and galaxy 4 and certain clips that have know been found. Fortunately the galaxy 4 episode has been released but the underwater menace episode hasn't!
| What: | Bloodtide (Big Finish: The Monthly Adventures) |
|
| By: | Harry Ross Gorman, Bromborough, United Kingdom |
|
| Date: | Tuesday 19 May 2015 |
|
| Rating: | 7 |
If your sad about how the Silurians were ruined in the new series. Listen to this. The chemistry between the Doctor and Evelyn is brilliant and Charles Darwin is a brilliant character.
