Reviews

Doctor Who: Dragonfire, by Ian Briggs

nwhyte's review

http://nhw.livejournal.com/1077520.html#cutid7[return][return]Briggs is able to overcome a number of the problems of the story as televised - in particular, the dodgy special effects and patching some of the more peculiar plot holes - to produce the best of the four novels from this season. There are even hints of various characters getting it on with each other - Tat Wood points to Glitz and Ace, but I would add that the Mel/Ace relationship in the book is very affectionate. (An easy pass for the Bechdel test here.)

wealhtheow's review

3.0

How the Eighth Doctor meets Ace! I love her so, so much--and so will you, once you read this thrilling adventure!

lokster71's review

2.0

It's an OK read this. It doesn't add a lot to the television version, except - oddly - by giving us the thoughts of Stellar, the annoying child. There's no attempt either to explain how a prison designed to hold a single prisoner becomes a frozen produce supermarket. I mean was it meant to be part of Kane's rehabilitation programme? Nor is there any explanation as to why it took Kane 3,000 years to get around to trying to free himself. It just ploddingly tells the story we've already seen on television.

This is the story that introduces us to Ace and sees the departure of Mel, ut again we don't really learn much new about either character. It's all a little perfunctory I'm afraid, but it is still nice to be reminded of the beginning of a new Doctor Who era. After all, without Ace - who is at her most defensive and sulky in this story - we'd have no Rose.

This isn't a bad book, it is just a bang on average novelisation of the TV story, which is a wee bit disappointing.