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zmftimelord's review against another edition
4.0
A fun trip down third doctor memory lane. It captured the mood and bikinis of the era perfectly.
kilcannon's review against another edition
2.0
It's starting to look as if it is just impossible for anyone to write a good Third Doctor story.
Humor, characterization and plot were all over the place in this one.
The Master had some good moments and plot turns, though. I almost gave it an additional star for those.
Humor, characterization and plot were all over the place in this one.
The Master had some good moments and plot turns, though. I almost gave it an additional star for those.
mschlat's review against another edition
3.0
I love Doctor Who. I love Alastair Reynolds (especially the Revelation Space books). So I thought I would love this. Sadly, not so much.
One big issue is the choice of Doctor; I'm very partial to Tom Baker and David Tennant, but Reynolds is focusing on the third Doctor (Pertwee) and his relationship with the Master. I don't think I've ever seen a Pertwee episode, and --- when I've seen clips of the Master --- I always thought him the equivalent of the mustache-twirling villain of an old Western serial.
The other issue for me was one of pacing. There's a great start involving a fantastically old ship with super-powerful weapons being deciphered by an alien civilization (almost stereotypically Reynolds), but then the action turns to Earth and slows down. Honestly, I almost gave up a time or two.
There's a lot at the end about the relationship between the Doctor and the Master, and if you are a fan of that era of Doctor Who, you may get a lot out of it. However, it was not a good fit for me.
One big issue is the choice of Doctor; I'm very partial to Tom Baker and David Tennant, but Reynolds is focusing on the third Doctor (Pertwee) and his relationship with the Master. I don't think I've ever seen a Pertwee episode, and --- when I've seen clips of the Master --- I always thought him the equivalent of the mustache-twirling villain of an old Western serial.
The other issue for me was one of pacing. There's a great start involving a fantastically old ship with super-powerful weapons being deciphered by an alien civilization (almost stereotypically Reynolds), but then the action turns to Earth and slows down. Honestly, I almost gave up a time or two.
There's a lot at the end about the relationship between the Doctor and the Master, and if you are a fan of that era of Doctor Who, you may get a lot out of it. However, it was not a good fit for me.
geofisch's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
rysmi's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. It had a quick pace and explored some new ideas. Even made a tie in to the new tv based series even though this book features the 3rd Doctor. I felt some of the plot was resolved a little too easily but that would be my only complaint. I received this book from a giveaway.
otherwyrld's review against another edition
4.0
This was not only a good book, but a good Doctor Who book. It is set in the era of the Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) and Jo Grant, and also features UNIT in its heyday, and has the Master as one of the antagonists.
Firstly the characters - they were all very well drawn, to the point that I could actually hear the dialogue between the Doctor and the Master in my head in the actors voices, not something that always happens for me. Jo Grant and UNIT all get their chance to shine as well. The main guest character is Edwina McCrimmon (nice touch making her a possible descendent of Jamie McCrimmon, a Second Doctor companion), and it's nice to have a no-nonsense woman working and leading in a man's world, especially in one such as the oil industry in the 1970s.
The plot starts out rather similar to the novelisation of [b:Doctor Who and the Loch Ness Monster|1474095|Doctor Who and the Loch Ness Monster|Terrance Dicks|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1183984851s/1474095.jpg|1963479] that I read recently, with a story about missing oil rigs in the North Sea, which was a little unfortunate because I thought it was a retread of that story. However, the quality rises markedly when the Doctor and the Master take a trip to the end of time to try and find out what is going on. There they find an
There are some massive time loops (in the range of billions of years) and huge paradoxes throughout this part of the story (the John Sims version of the Master is killed?), but this is Doctor Who after all, so you should expect wibbly wobbly timey wimey things to happen. Just don't think about it too much or you brain might explode. The author is well known for writing very ambitious and big hard SF stories, so he is well suited for writing this story.
It's clear that the author has a lot of affection for Doctor Who in general and for this era of Doctor Who in particular, because the book is a lot of fun to read. Edwina's story is particularly satisfying, tied up as it is with the fulfilment of childhood dreams and how one person can make a difference.
A very satisfying book.
Firstly the characters - they were all very well drawn, to the point that I could actually hear the dialogue between the Doctor and the Master in my head in the actors voices, not something that always happens for me. Jo Grant and UNIT all get their chance to shine as well. The main guest character is Edwina McCrimmon (nice touch making her a possible descendent of Jamie McCrimmon, a Second Doctor companion), and it's nice to have a no-nonsense woman working and leading in a man's world, especially in one such as the oil industry in the 1970s.
The plot starts out rather similar to the novelisation of [b:Doctor Who and the Loch Ness Monster|1474095|Doctor Who and the Loch Ness Monster|Terrance Dicks|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1183984851s/1474095.jpg|1963479] that I read recently, with a story about missing oil rigs in the North Sea, which was a little unfortunate because I thought it was a retread of that story. However, the quality rises markedly when the Doctor and the Master take a trip to the end of time to try and find out what is going on. There they find an
Spoiler
ancient Time Lord ship packed full of the most dangerous objects in the Galaxy which has been hijacked by a race called the Sild, hive mind creatures that reminded me of the Goa'uld from Stargate. One question though - why put these things on a spaceship that could be found and misused, why not put it in a Tardis and shrink the entrance to microscopic size, and yes I know the ship was supposed to have been destroyed, but still, very careless of the Time Lords. Needless to say, without it we wouldn't have much of a story though.There are some massive time loops (in the range of billions of years) and huge paradoxes throughout this part of the story (the John Sims version of the Master is killed?), but this is Doctor Who after all, so you should expect wibbly wobbly timey wimey things to happen. Just don't think about it too much or you brain might explode. The author is well known for writing very ambitious and big hard SF stories, so he is well suited for writing this story.
It's clear that the author has a lot of affection for Doctor Who in general and for this era of Doctor Who in particular, because the book is a lot of fun to read. Edwina's story is particularly satisfying, tied up as it is with the fulfilment of childhood dreams and how one person can make a difference.
A very satisfying book.
trishsg's review against another edition
5.0
My first Dr. Who book. I've seen the episodes with the third Doctor, so was familiar with that era of the show. Some things were explained well and other details were not, but it didn't take away from the story. I've read TV show stories which read like a detailed episode recap. This read like a novel, if that makes sense. I really liked this story and am glad I found it. My public library had it in their Overdrive ebook collection.
hadleyshouse's review against another edition
4.0
A story involving the third Doctor, Jo Grant, Unit, and others. This feels very much like season 8 with perfectly recognisable characters. These ARE the versions of your much-loved characters and Alistair Reynolds deserves buckets of praise for this book.
The main plot involving activities on oil rigs feels so right and a fast pace makes this story rattle along nicely. The scenes where the first aliens appear are particularly tense.
The best Doctor Who story you've never seen. I wish all Doctor Who books could be this good.
You can pick up the Kindle version on Amazon.
The main plot involving activities on oil rigs feels so right and a fast pace makes this story rattle along nicely. The scenes where the first aliens appear are particularly tense.
The best Doctor Who story you've never seen. I wish all Doctor Who books could be this good.
You can pick up the Kindle version on Amazon.
tenthplanet1's review against another edition
3.0
Seeing the names 'Jo Grant', 'Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart', 'UNIT', etc. was exciting every time, but that was about as much relation as they had to their televisual counterparts. A few "Dear chap"'s does not make your Doctor sound like Jon Pertwee, and so, whilst this story had its entertaining moments, I couldn't get past how much more I'd be enjoying it if The Master & The Doctor actually acted like the bickering foes they are, and how much better it would be if it just stayed on Earth the whole time.