happysami's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
nightshade_novels's review
3.0
I picked this book up for a quick read and was not disappointed. I am always a bit wary of books which have been written based on a TV series or film. It can be hard to turn a good book into a film, but I think sometimes it can be even harder to turn a show into a good book. However, I have found that the Doctor Who books are fairly good and I think part of this is due to the fact that some of them are written by the authors that write the TV episodes. You do notice between the books the slight differences in the way the different authors perceive the characters.
This story was laid out in traditional Doctor Who fashion: Doctor and companion arrive in a new location, companion is lost, in searching for each other they come across an alien invasion and become friends with the locals who happily trust these strangers, and finally they solve the alien problem before leaving.
The invading alien in this story was a Jal Karath; “black, sinuous and weed-like... composed of dozens of thin, twining limbs, attached to a thicker central stalk... covered in clusters of blinking, milky-white eyes.” This particular Jal Karath has the typically complicated alien name of Darac-Poul-Caparrel-Jal-7 which is conveniently shortened to Darac-7. Darac-7 is harvesting humans to create gelem warriors; described as “Daleks without the intelligence” they are used to fight wars.
One of the locals that they befriend is the famous Mohandas Gandhi. Now Doctor Who is no stranger to name dropping or actually including famous people in the stories. Generally a good job is done of being historically accurate (albeit with the odd alien thrown in) and successfully bringing them to life. Gandhi was no exception with Morris writing him in just as you would expect and you find yourself loving the gentle little man. His peaceful personality is perfectly highlighted when Gandhi breaks Darac-7’s machine by being too good.
The story was well written with enough intrigue to keep you wanting to read more. It receives 3 stars.
This story was laid out in traditional Doctor Who fashion: Doctor and companion arrive in a new location, companion is lost, in searching for each other they come across an alien invasion and become friends with the locals who happily trust these strangers, and finally they solve the alien problem before leaving.
The invading alien in this story was a Jal Karath; “black, sinuous and weed-like... composed of dozens of thin, twining limbs, attached to a thicker central stalk... covered in clusters of blinking, milky-white eyes.” This particular Jal Karath has the typically complicated alien name of Darac-Poul-Caparrel-Jal-7 which is conveniently shortened to Darac-7. Darac-7 is harvesting humans to create gelem warriors; described as “Daleks without the intelligence” they are used to fight wars.
One of the locals that they befriend is the famous Mohandas Gandhi. Now Doctor Who is no stranger to name dropping or actually including famous people in the stories. Generally a good job is done of being historically accurate (albeit with the odd alien thrown in) and successfully bringing them to life. Gandhi was no exception with Morris writing him in just as you would expect and you find yourself loving the gentle little man. His peaceful personality is perfectly highlighted when Gandhi breaks Darac-7’s machine by being too good.
The story was well written with enough intrigue to keep you wanting to read more. It receives 3 stars.
quigonchuy's review
2.0
This one was not as good as other audio adventures I've read/heard. It just felt forced. Like they wanted to do a story with Ghandi in it, and the doctor constantly sucking up to him was odd too.
scampr's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
A fun but heartfelt historical adventure with 10 and Donna at their best. Captures the vibe of series 4 whilst also exposing the reader to new ideas and a lesser known (non-western) historical topic.
mbray341's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.75
beccas_books's review
4.0
This book was very energetic and fast paced. As usual, I loved Donna but I felt as if she was a bit toned down in this book. The villain, while suitably menacing, seemed to serve only as the vehicle for the Doctor to have some fun times with Gandhi. But that's ok! I wish more of the books were about history, and Gandhi surpasses expectations. Great for people already fans of the show.
ailurus's review
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5