sabregirl's review against another edition
4.0
Struggling between three and four stars. I wasn't really too pleased with these. I understand that there had to be big gaps between the books because of trying to encompass the entire time he was on Trenzalore before Clara came back. It was interesting though that every resolution for all the months dealt the the sever weather of Trenzalore and snow, ice or what have you.
atlantic_reader_wannabe's review
5.0
This book was amazingly good! This book is a must-read for any and every Whovian and a great addition to any bookshelf! I enjoyed reading this book and I would recommend this book to all Whovians!
felinity's review
4.0
f you haven't seen "The Time of the Doctor" (the last Christmas Special with Matt Smith), I strongly suggest watching it before you read these 4 tales for full appreciation and minimal confusion.
These tales, in a chronological order (though not back-to-back) tell of some of the Doctor's exploits while defending Trenzalore and the town of Christmas from all of his enemies.
Here the Doctor is tricksy as old enemies evade the Church and come to him, and with typical high-speed delivery stuns the townsfolk into silence with bad news while leaving them hanging for his brilliant plans. (Later on, of course, they've figured out - as Clara and other companions do - that he generally makes it up as he goes along!) Some of the enemies I vaguely remembered from the old series, but one was completely new to me.
We learn why he really needs a walking stick, and where it came from, and see an unusual variety of methods for dispatching his enemies along with the incredible inventions the people of Trenzalore have made to keep them living on such an inhospitable planet. Some mysteries are unraveled, but we also see the Doctor gradually fading, losing the seemingly inexhaustible energy that made the Eleventh Doctor who he was. Only the knowledge of the overall ending made that part better.
They were well-written, with a good choice of foe and resolution, and all gave a little more insight into that interminable period while the Doctor gave up everything for the planet. I'd like to read more like this!
Disclaimer: I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
These tales, in a chronological order (though not back-to-back) tell of some of the Doctor's exploits while defending Trenzalore and the town of Christmas from all of his enemies.
Here the Doctor is tricksy as old enemies evade the Church and come to him, and with typical high-speed delivery stuns the townsfolk into silence with bad news while leaving them hanging for his brilliant plans. (Later on, of course, they've figured out - as Clara and other companions do - that he generally makes it up as he goes along!) Some of the enemies I vaguely remembered from the old series, but one was completely new to me.
We learn why he really needs a walking stick, and where it came from, and see an unusual variety of methods for dispatching his enemies along with the incredible inventions the people of Trenzalore have made to keep them living on such an inhospitable planet. Some mysteries are unraveled, but we also see the Doctor gradually fading, losing the seemingly inexhaustible energy that made the Eleventh Doctor who he was. Only the knowledge of the overall ending made that part better.
They were well-written, with a good choice of foe and resolution, and all gave a little more insight into that interminable period while the Doctor gave up everything for the planet. I'd like to read more like this!
Disclaimer: I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
ladyzbyrd's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
As a Whovian, I find it hard to be biased against anything but a glowing review of these fantastic high-stakes tales of our runaway space hero and the screen’s untold stories!
art_cart_ron's review
2.0
The idea of the Doctor allowing himself to be stranded in one place for centuries was absurd, so I was eager to see if this book redeemed it at all. Instead it offers up 4 cartoon depictions of enemies of the Doctor that new series viewers wouldn't be very familiar with. The enemies in the Ice Warrior and Auton stories could have been almost any other characters - the stories were that generic and weak. The Krynoid ending hurt. It was a Doctor ending, but the Doctor in question is Seuss. The Mara installment may have been the strongest - but it was a struggle not to be in full-on skim mode by the time I got to it.
Do we get to look at whether generations of humans appreciate one person endangering their lives non-stop? Not really. Do we get to know Handles? Nope. How about some insight into how it is that the town itself barely changes in so many hundreds of years? LOL, no.
Damnit Doctor Who handlers, why you wanna do me this way? I wish I didn't care. It's silly to be bothered by this.
Do we get to look at whether generations of humans appreciate one person endangering their lives non-stop? Not really. Do we get to know Handles? Nope. How about some insight into how it is that the town itself barely changes in so many hundreds of years? LOL, no.
Damnit Doctor Who handlers, why you wanna do me this way? I wish I didn't care. It's silly to be bothered by this.
iphigenie72's review
3.0
I'm really glad I read this as an ebook and never saw the cover properly until now because what I really found fun was guessing what monster The Doctor was dealing with. It was interesting to "hear" about stories that happened on Trenzalore in the long life of the 11th Doctor, but there's not one that's really mind blowing.
If you don't want to know about the monsters skip the rest of this review.
The first story, Let it Snow by Justin Richards was the best of the bunch. I usually liked the stories written by this author. I thought the Ice Warriors were a solid monster to start this anthology and the ending was quite clever. My only qualm is.
An Apple a Day by George Mann wasn't that bad. It took a monster that I haven't seen too much of, since I haven't read or listened to the other stories featuring The Krynoid, making it for me the first time I encountered them since seeing The Seeds of Doom. I thought the author made a good go of a monster that is not easy to present.
I quite liked Strangers in the Outland by Paul Finch probably because I'm a huge fans of the Autons (My favorite Classic DW story is Terror of the Autons) and even getting them in a small quantity is better than none at all. I guess someone who already knew this was an Autons story would already have lost half of what I found the most interesting. I thought the snow boat concept really good and that is for me what redeem this from an okay.
I thought The Dreaming by Mark Morris was better as a Mara story than the television episodes with the 5th Doctor that's not saying a lot since I didn't like those episodes at all. I just didn't feel any suspense or fear through the characters here.
Through the stories what was the most fascinating was seeing The Doctor age since centuries happen between each short. It's not the best DW book I read, but it is a decent one.
If you don't want to know about the monsters skip the rest of this review.
The first story, Let it Snow by Justin Richards was the best of the bunch. I usually liked the stories written by this author. I thought the Ice Warriors were a solid monster to start this anthology and the ending was quite clever. My only qualm is
Spoiler
that it is so easy to guess the "friend" of the Ice Warriors is actually The Doctor under an another nameAn Apple a Day by George Mann wasn't that bad. It took a monster that I haven't seen too much of, since I haven't read or listened to the other stories featuring The Krynoid, making it for me the first time I encountered them since seeing The Seeds of Doom. I thought the author made a good go of a monster that is not easy to present.
I quite liked Strangers in the Outland by Paul Finch probably because I'm a huge fans of the Autons (My favorite Classic DW story is Terror of the Autons) and even getting them in a small quantity is better than none at all. I guess someone who already knew this was an Autons story would already have lost half of what I found the most interesting. I thought the snow boat concept really good and that is for me what redeem this from an okay.
I thought The Dreaming by Mark Morris was better as a Mara story than the television episodes with the 5th Doctor that's not saying a lot since I didn't like those episodes at all. I just didn't feel any suspense or fear through the characters here.
Through the stories what was the most fascinating was seeing The Doctor age since centuries happen between each short. It's not the best DW book I read, but it is a decent one.
nwhyte's review
3.0
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2268815.html[return][return]Four stories from the Eleventh Doctor's climactic centuries of battle against the bad guys on Trenzalore, each bringing back a classic era monster. The first one, where Justin Richards (who is excellent when, as here, he is on form) brings in the Ice Warriors, is the best; Paul Finch does well with a Krynoid too. Less convinced by George Mann's Autons or Mark Morris's Mara.
caduceus's review against another edition
3.0
3.75 stars
This was a lot of fun. All the stories were a little too short for my own liking, but overall they were pretty enjoyable.
This was a lot of fun. All the stories were a little too short for my own liking, but overall they were pretty enjoyable.
ghreggori's review
5.0
Fun collection of stories of my favorite Doctor. They could easily make a series about the hundreds of years he spent on Trenzalore.