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Past Doctor Adventures #27
Doctor Who: Corpse Marker
Long ago and far away, the Doctor and Leela faced the Robots of Death...
To a society dependent on robots, the news that these benign, tireless, obedient labourers could be turned into killers would cause panic. So it was kept a secret. In Kaldor City, only three survivors of the Sandminer massacre know the truth. But now, several years later, they are beginning to show signs of mental breakdown. And once again, the robots are being programmed to kill. Can the dead genius Taren Capel possibly be involved in this new outrage?
Worst of all, this time the deadly robots are not confined to a Sandminer. This time they are loose in Kaldor City. And this time, unless the Doctor and Leela can stop them, they really will destroy the world...
To a society dependent on robots, the news that these benign, tireless, obedient labourers could be turned into killers would cause panic. So it was kept a secret. In Kaldor City, only three survivors of the Sandminer massacre know the truth. But now, several years later, they are beginning to show signs of mental breakdown. And once again, the robots are being programmed to kill. Can the dead genius Taren Capel possibly be involved in this new outrage?
Worst of all, this time the deadly robots are not confined to a Sandminer. This time they are loose in Kaldor City. And this time, unless the Doctor and Leela can stop them, they really will destroy the world...
282 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published December 1, 1999
8 people are currently reading
376 people want to read
About the author
Chris Boucher
18 books13 followersChristopher Franklin Boucher was a British television writer, best known for his frequent contributions to two genres, science fiction and crime dramas. Prior to becoming a television writer, Boucher had worked at Calor Gas as a management trainee and he also gained a Bachelor of Arts in Economics at the University of Essex.
In science fiction, he wrote three Doctor Who serials in the late 1970s: The Face of Evil, The Robots of Death and Image of the Fendahl. Perhaps his most durable contribution to Doctor Who mythology was the creation of Leela, the savage companion played by Louise Jameson. Boucher was commissioned for the programme by Robert Holmes, who would suggest that Boucher be appointed as script editor of new science fiction series Blake's 7. He served in this role for the entirety of its four season run from 1978 to 1981, also writing several episodes himself, including the well-remembered final episode. In 1987 he created his own series Star Cops, which combined the science fiction and crime genres, and lasted only nine episodes.
In the genre of police dramas, between working on Doctor Who and Blake's 7, Boucher was the script editor on the second season of the drama Shoestring, which followed the investigations of private detective and radio show host Eddie Shoestring. In 1982, following the end of Blake's 7, Boucher script edited and wrote for the third season police drama Juliet Bravo. He later moved on to script edit the detective show Bergerac, working on the programme throughout the 1980s.
In science fiction, he wrote three Doctor Who serials in the late 1970s: The Face of Evil, The Robots of Death and Image of the Fendahl. Perhaps his most durable contribution to Doctor Who mythology was the creation of Leela, the savage companion played by Louise Jameson. Boucher was commissioned for the programme by Robert Holmes, who would suggest that Boucher be appointed as script editor of new science fiction series Blake's 7. He served in this role for the entirety of its four season run from 1978 to 1981, also writing several episodes himself, including the well-remembered final episode. In 1987 he created his own series Star Cops, which combined the science fiction and crime genres, and lasted only nine episodes.
In the genre of police dramas, between working on Doctor Who and Blake's 7, Boucher was the script editor on the second season of the drama Shoestring, which followed the investigations of private detective and radio show host Eddie Shoestring. In 1982, following the end of Blake's 7, Boucher script edited and wrote for the third season police drama Juliet Bravo. He later moved on to script edit the detective show Bergerac, working on the programme throughout the 1980s.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
February 21, 2022
DNF @ 50%. This was my first 4th Doctor novel and I was not impressed with it, unfortunately. It was slow and really uninteresting. Part of the creature collection series, it follows the 4th Doctor arc 'Robots of Death' with companion Leela. I normally don't mind a novel continuation of a TV arc, but this one relied so heavily on that story that you really wouldn't understand or get the most out of the book without watching that four part arc first. Most of the surviving characters from Robots of Death are here, living their boring, uninteresting lives alongside the titular robots from that arc. There are new robots that look more like people, and Leela ends up running in the sewers and fighting for her life. That's all that's happened in the first half of the story. The Doctor and Leela aren't in it very much and the parts they are in are just okay. I don't care about the mystery, unfortunately, or what the robots are up to. The reason why it didn't get one star? It wasn't terribly awful- just slow and forgettable. The writing was fine. The story just isn't for me, sorry to say.
November 3, 2014
The Doctor and Leela land in Kaldor City, a number of years after 'Robots of death'. They get seperated and involved in conspiracies. They also meet up again with the remaining crew of the sand miner. This is a good story, with great characterisation. Leela is very well done, and Boucher also uses a character from Blakes 7 to full effect. Are robots capable of killing?, is again the theme, with some nice twists. The ending does seem rushed though which is a shame. A very good read.
July 18, 2018
Disappointed with how the ending turned out. Slow in places but I did enjoy the political-business side to it but even then, there wasn't enough plot/substance to the book.
I did love the Leela moments in this book though and how Leela handled herself and how she fought.
I did love the Leela moments in this book though and how Leela handled herself and how she fought.
August 11, 2025
In the aftermath of the massacre of the human crew of Storm Mine Four by their staff of reprogrammed robots, the Company decides to cover up the incident. The automated mining craft is abandoned, with the evidence onboard it left to disappear underneath the desert. The three survivors – captain Kiy Uvanov, pilot Lish Toos, and undercover security agent Ander Poul – are given advancement and comfortable positions within the Company. And no mention is made of the tall man in the long coat or the woman dressed in primitive garb who somehow boarded the storm mine in the midst of the murders and then mysteriously vanished afterwards. Only now the two have appeared in Kaldor City, in the midst of attacks by the Anti-Robot Front and on the eve of the introduction of a new type of robot – one that for some reason seems determined to wipe out the survivors of Storm Mine Four.
While not unprecedented, it is rare for a Doctor Who novel to serve as a direct sequel for one of the serials of the televised series. And it is even more unusual that the author of the sequel is the same writer who penned the original story. As the scriptwriter for the original Robots of Death serial, Chris Boucher is able to draw upon his unique familiarity with both the characters and the setting to expand upon the robot-dependent civilization he created for it. Instead of simply glimpsing at from the claustrophobic confines of a storm miner, we get a much broader examination of the society in a way that is faithful to the source material. It helps that our guides through it are familiar, as we see the civilization not just through the Doctor and Leela’s experiences, but through those of Uvanov, Toos, and Poul as well.
And it is with them that Boucher offers readers something else that is rare in the Doctor Who franchise: an opportunity to follow up with the people who have experienced one of the Doctor’s visits. In the case of the Kaldorans, the Doctor and Leela are simply written out of the record, with the credit for the robots’ defeat given to the surviving crew, all three of whom suffer from some degree of post-traumatic stress. This is perhaps the single most interesting part of Boucher’s novel, as we see how the trio were changed by their experience with the Doctor. And with their creator writing their story, the characterization of Uvanov, Toos, and Poul balances nicely those changes with their depiction in the serial, fleshing them out in ways that is entirely in keeping with the original story.
This holds true as well for Boucher’s depiction of the Doctor and Leela, which is done with an equal degree of verisimilitude with Tom Baker and Louise Jameson’s portrayal of them in the series. Because of this, it’s easy to visualize the novel as serial of the show, albeit one on a much larger scale than anything the BBC could have staged at that time. In that respect Boucher makes the most of his opportunity to take the elements of a celebrated story from the Fourth Doctor area and expand it into a much larger tale about greed, politics, and survival. Not only does it serve as a worthy sequel, it stands as among the best of the Past Doctor Adventures series.
While not unprecedented, it is rare for a Doctor Who novel to serve as a direct sequel for one of the serials of the televised series. And it is even more unusual that the author of the sequel is the same writer who penned the original story. As the scriptwriter for the original Robots of Death serial, Chris Boucher is able to draw upon his unique familiarity with both the characters and the setting to expand upon the robot-dependent civilization he created for it. Instead of simply glimpsing at from the claustrophobic confines of a storm miner, we get a much broader examination of the society in a way that is faithful to the source material. It helps that our guides through it are familiar, as we see the civilization not just through the Doctor and Leela’s experiences, but through those of Uvanov, Toos, and Poul as well.
And it is with them that Boucher offers readers something else that is rare in the Doctor Who franchise: an opportunity to follow up with the people who have experienced one of the Doctor’s visits. In the case of the Kaldorans, the Doctor and Leela are simply written out of the record, with the credit for the robots’ defeat given to the surviving crew, all three of whom suffer from some degree of post-traumatic stress. This is perhaps the single most interesting part of Boucher’s novel, as we see how the trio were changed by their experience with the Doctor. And with their creator writing their story, the characterization of Uvanov, Toos, and Poul balances nicely those changes with their depiction in the serial, fleshing them out in ways that is entirely in keeping with the original story.
This holds true as well for Boucher’s depiction of the Doctor and Leela, which is done with an equal degree of verisimilitude with Tom Baker and Louise Jameson’s portrayal of them in the series. Because of this, it’s easy to visualize the novel as serial of the show, albeit one on a much larger scale than anything the BBC could have staged at that time. In that respect Boucher makes the most of his opportunity to take the elements of a celebrated story from the Fourth Doctor area and expand it into a much larger tale about greed, politics, and survival. Not only does it serve as a worthy sequel, it stands as among the best of the Past Doctor Adventures series.
June 27, 2023
Simply one of the best Doctor Who books I’ve read. This book is a perfect example of what any fan wants in a sequel to a beloved classic Who episode. Admittedly, I’m biased. The 1977 Tom Baker led ‘Robots of Death’ is a personal favorite, and this book allows the original screenwriter to craft a compelling follow-up story.
In a bit of random chance, the Tardis leaps the 4th Doctor and Leela several decades after their last encounter with deadly art deco robots on a vessel mining the sands and storms of an alien world. The survivors of that tale have moved on, each scared by knowing the the robots their entire society depends on as a servant class can turn murderous in an instant.
The Doctor finds a secret batch of clones, and an increasingly self-aware AI. Leela finds herself part of an anti-robot rebellion against the robots, who wrongly worship the evil mastermind of the original episode. Yes, it’s all quite weird and convoluted, but in a way that feel entirely appropriate for an adventure with the 4th Doctor’s bohemian traveler and his cunningly resourceful, savage companion
One criticism is that the author loves the word “gantry” and uses it a lot. At least ten times in the first 50 pages, arguably critical to show this alien civilization’s obsession with bridge-like overhead structures with a platform supporting equipment.
All in all though, it’s a great Dr. Who book. It
includes scenes far too expensive to replicate onscreen, like a fight and crash in a flying car, expansive world building, and adds a depth to the returning characters only hinted at in the source material.
In a bit of random chance, the Tardis leaps the 4th Doctor and Leela several decades after their last encounter with deadly art deco robots on a vessel mining the sands and storms of an alien world. The survivors of that tale have moved on, each scared by knowing the the robots their entire society depends on as a servant class can turn murderous in an instant.
The Doctor finds a secret batch of clones, and an increasingly self-aware AI. Leela finds herself part of an anti-robot rebellion against the robots, who wrongly worship the evil mastermind of the original episode. Yes, it’s all quite weird and convoluted, but in a way that feel entirely appropriate for an adventure with the 4th Doctor’s bohemian traveler and his cunningly resourceful, savage companion
One criticism is that the author loves the word “gantry” and uses it a lot. At least ten times in the first 50 pages, arguably critical to show this alien civilization’s obsession with bridge-like overhead structures with a platform supporting equipment.
All in all though, it’s a great Dr. Who book. It
includes scenes far too expensive to replicate onscreen, like a fight and crash in a flying car, expansive world building, and adds a depth to the returning characters only hinted at in the source material.
September 27, 2020
An absolute thrilling political-thriller that proves to be a satisfying sequel to Chris Boucher’s classic Doctor Who story The Robots of Death! He really has a great understanding for The Fourth Doctor and Leela while giving some needed world building for Kaldor and also giving some satisfying development to the three survivors from the original story. This story does prove to have good ideas even with a thin but enjoyable plot but the only thing I didn’t like was how rushed the ending was making it a bit of an anti-climax but everything leading up to it is nothing but brilliance! 9.5/10
May 26, 2025
This sequel to The Robots Of Death is a much better showcase for Chris Boucher’s talents than Last Man Running, with a stronger focus on characters other than Leela — although she is again excellent here, her trademark warrior skills now tempered with restraint.
Previous “Robots” alumni Uvanov, Toos and Poul all jump off the page, and the plot this time is suitably different to not feel like a retread. The ending is rather sudden and a bit insubstantial after all that, but there’s enough creativity throughout to leave an impression.
3.5
Previous “Robots” alumni Uvanov, Toos and Poul all jump off the page, and the plot this time is suitably different to not feel like a retread. The ending is rather sudden and a bit insubstantial after all that, but there’s enough creativity throughout to leave an impression.
3.5
August 16, 2016
Just as most of the previous readers have stated, I was excited to read a sequel to the brilliant Robots of Death serial from Doctor Who. It was an enjoyable read however a lot of it was confusing in parts and I found myself re-reading paragraphs to try and better understand what was going on (not counting the parts that are just misspelt which can sometimes be misleading...the character of Carnell was referred to as "Camel" on a few occasions. I guess that wasn't picked up by the spell checker as an incorrect word...*snigger*. Unless of course that was his nickname, and I just got confused by the method of the writing at some point. Correct me if I'm wrong if that is the case.
I am being a bit harsh to be honest as it had some great moments, where I was genuinely gripped. Leela in particular had some marvellous action hero moves, and the scenes with the returning characters from Robots of Death are rewarding (Although Poul gets increasingly annoying). The other characters, particular "Con" in my opinion are very well executed and I found myself actually caring about what happened to them.
A good book that would benefit from a second reading. It just seems to lack that "Robots of Death feel" which I think was a missed opportunity, but nonetheless satisfying.
I am being a bit harsh to be honest as it had some great moments, where I was genuinely gripped. Leela in particular had some marvellous action hero moves, and the scenes with the returning characters from Robots of Death are rewarding (Although Poul gets increasingly annoying). The other characters, particular "Con" in my opinion are very well executed and I found myself actually caring about what happened to them.
A good book that would benefit from a second reading. It just seems to lack that "Robots of Death feel" which I think was a missed opportunity, but nonetheless satisfying.
July 31, 2020
The fourth Doctor and Leela was one of my favorite pairings when I watched reruns of Doctor Who as a kid so when I came across this book and realized it was a sequel to the Robots of Death episode I snatched it up. I liked the plot about how the remaining survivors were being stalked and killed and of course Leela and the Doctor land right in the middle of it. One of the criticisms I have with the book is Leela and the Doctor spend about 75% of the book separated which is never my favorite type Doctor who stories. I like the ones where the Doctor and their companions stay together most of the time. Another one I had was I got a trifle confused a time or two about what exactly was going on eventually I figured it out but it was still a tad frustrating. Other then that I enjoyed it, the story definitely reminded me of the show and it took me back to my childhood. Plus overall it had a good plot and was an amusing and fun way to spend some time.
March 12, 2023
Why bring back such beloved characters then not do them justice or even a plausible story arc? And how unbelievable that a planet with uppity robots should have had a previous civilisation with the same problem? I'm not entirely sure what the story was trying to do, it fell apart the further in I got. There were some excellent ideas but too many plot threads left hanging
December 6, 2016
Like many have said, ROBOTS OF DEATH is one of the best Dr Who stories made but this follow up story was hard to like. The narrative is overwritten and focuses too much on events from ROBOTS OF DEATH, this story is almost sidelined.
November 5, 2019
Now I'm a massive fan of both Doctor Who and Blake's 7 and Chris Boucher's TV work in particular. I think Robots of Death is a masterpiece so you can imagine my excitement at a sequel, written by Boucher and bringing in Blake's 7 elements (here the character of Psycho-Strategist Carnell from the B7 episode 'Weapon' and the hint that the world here is part of the B7 wider universe). However I can't help being rather disappointed with the result.
The plot is very involved and convoluted and if you have little knowledge of Robots of Death and the concept of a psycho-strategist then this is going to make no sense whatsoever. It is not a DW adventure you can pick up and enjoy as a general fan and indeed it fails utterly as a stand alone. It is very much an episode of the larger multi-media whole (TV: Robots of Death/B7 Weapon, Audio Books: Kaldor City).
The narrative structure is ghastly. We follow 7 separate sets of different characters - The Doctor/Leela and her new ally Padil/Poul/Uvanov/Toos/Carnell/Robot SASV1 and we have a multitude of minor characters as well, various techs, members of the 20 aristocratic families, and a load of anti-robot rebels - trying to juggle the cast as we weave back and forth between the different stands is a nightmare. This reads like a screenplay - there's very little description and we get loads of cut scenes - we'll leave characters and then rejoin them somewhere else and you have to infer a great deal. (eg we leave the Doctor and Con being hemmed in by robots at one point and Con breaks the nose of their master. Next time we see them the Doctor and Con are in a cage.... eh? You just have to imagine the scene in between). You'll also in some cases get explanation after the fact - like there being a trap in a docking bay laid for Poul yet we only learn later on why the robots assumed he was going to be there.
The plot itself is over-complicated and unsatisfying. Part of this is down to the dreadful structure and writing style but the story itself is also problematic - I had so many questions I kept a notebook on hand and of my 10 questions I had by the end of the novel, only 3 were really answered. You also have so many different secret agents, conspiracies and betrayals that you question every single character's loyalties - so as well as keeping track of the characters themselves you're also trying to work out who's working for whom and what their motivations are. Great in an ongoing series. In a novel... MAJOR HEADACHE! And I have to say that with many of the minor characters... I just didn't care. It's like oh so this minor aristo's a villain.... oh ok.
As well as awkward writing, the editing is poor and really gets bad towards the end as if the editor didn't even bother with the last couple of chapters. Carnell becomes Carnel, Camel and even Capel/Cappell in a couple of instances (which is another character entirely) It set me to giggle every time he's referred to as Camel.
Such a shame because the premise and source material are amazing. I also have to give this credit for superb characterisation and some excellent dialogue.
This also evokes the Robots of Death setting remarkably well. I love the universe and tensions and this also brings out lots of Boucher's signature themes:
• The fallibility of human memory
• Fear of Technology
• Paranoia, secret agents, spies and mistrust
• Aristocracy vs the herd
• Psycho-strategist, puppet-masters, conspiracy & manipulation
• Population control and suppression
• Robot with a split personality (like in DW: Face of Evil)
I also like some of the role-reversals here -
Uvanov working with robots
Taren Capel being the god of the anti-robot rebels
The Doctor being mistaken for Taren Capel
If you are a really in depth Who geek who knows the source material then you are really going to appreciate this one, even if the narrative is all over the place, character and world building are top notch. If you just fancy picking up a random Who novel however, this really is not a good one to go for.
The plot is very involved and convoluted and if you have little knowledge of Robots of Death and the concept of a psycho-strategist then this is going to make no sense whatsoever. It is not a DW adventure you can pick up and enjoy as a general fan and indeed it fails utterly as a stand alone. It is very much an episode of the larger multi-media whole (TV: Robots of Death/B7 Weapon, Audio Books: Kaldor City).
The narrative structure is ghastly. We follow 7 separate sets of different characters - The Doctor/Leela and her new ally Padil/Poul/Uvanov/Toos/Carnell/Robot SASV1 and we have a multitude of minor characters as well, various techs, members of the 20 aristocratic families, and a load of anti-robot rebels - trying to juggle the cast as we weave back and forth between the different stands is a nightmare. This reads like a screenplay - there's very little description and we get loads of cut scenes - we'll leave characters and then rejoin them somewhere else and you have to infer a great deal. (eg we leave the Doctor and Con being hemmed in by robots at one point and Con breaks the nose of their master. Next time we see them the Doctor and Con are in a cage.... eh? You just have to imagine the scene in between). You'll also in some cases get explanation after the fact - like there being a trap in a docking bay laid for Poul yet we only learn later on why the robots assumed he was going to be there.
The plot itself is over-complicated and unsatisfying. Part of this is down to the dreadful structure and writing style but the story itself is also problematic - I had so many questions I kept a notebook on hand and of my 10 questions I had by the end of the novel, only 3 were really answered. You also have so many different secret agents, conspiracies and betrayals that you question every single character's loyalties - so as well as keeping track of the characters themselves you're also trying to work out who's working for whom and what their motivations are. Great in an ongoing series. In a novel... MAJOR HEADACHE! And I have to say that with many of the minor characters... I just didn't care. It's like oh so this minor aristo's a villain.... oh ok.
As well as awkward writing, the editing is poor and really gets bad towards the end as if the editor didn't even bother with the last couple of chapters. Carnell becomes Carnel, Camel and even Capel/Cappell in a couple of instances (which is another character entirely) It set me to giggle every time he's referred to as Camel.
Such a shame because the premise and source material are amazing. I also have to give this credit for superb characterisation and some excellent dialogue.
This also evokes the Robots of Death setting remarkably well. I love the universe and tensions and this also brings out lots of Boucher's signature themes:
• The fallibility of human memory
• Fear of Technology
• Paranoia, secret agents, spies and mistrust
• Aristocracy vs the herd
• Psycho-strategist, puppet-masters, conspiracy & manipulation
• Population control and suppression
• Robot with a split personality (like in DW: Face of Evil)
I also like some of the role-reversals here -
Uvanov working with robots
Taren Capel being the god of the anti-robot rebels
The Doctor being mistaken for Taren Capel
If you are a really in depth Who geek who knows the source material then you are really going to appreciate this one, even if the narrative is all over the place, character and world building are top notch. If you just fancy picking up a random Who novel however, this really is not a good one to go for.
February 7, 2018
Not gonna lie.
The only reason I read this is because it is the only tangible cross-over between Doctor Who and Blake's 7, in that the character of Carnell, the Psycho-strategist from Blake's 7, appears in this novel. We never got to see the Daleks as the alien invaders for the climax of Season 2 of Blake's 7, as originally intended, so this is the consolation prize. (Yes, there are the follow-up audio dramas as well).
This should have been a welcome return to, and sequel to the Robots of Death Doctor Who story. And there are things to like about it. There is the trademark inter-personal bitchiness between established characters that made Chris Boucher's short run on Doctor Who, and Blake's 7 so memorable. And...well, not much else. A missed opportunity was the trading of the iconic 'Robots of Death' Dums, Vocs and Super-Vocs, which anyone who has seen the original classic Doctor Who story can instantly visualise, and replace them with bland human-like cyborgs as the main threat. So the mental picture while reading went awol.
The description of the 'Sewerpits' was almost entirely absent, apart from reminding us that it was the 'seedy' part of Kandor City. The return of several characters from 'Robots of Death' made for some instant identification, but everything else, including the predictable antics of Carnell (such as we got to read) just plodded along. It's a teen read, so I wasn't really expecting to have my mind blown. Having said that, I have heard some Blake's 7 audio that did just that, so I don't think that's an excuse to churn out average fare, especially from someone intimately involved with both franchises.
Overall, glad I read it, if only to confirm the link between the two sci-fi series, and a mercifully quick and easy read, but wouldn't recommend it otherwise.
The only reason I read this is because it is the only tangible cross-over between Doctor Who and Blake's 7, in that the character of Carnell, the Psycho-strategist from Blake's 7, appears in this novel. We never got to see the Daleks as the alien invaders for the climax of Season 2 of Blake's 7, as originally intended, so this is the consolation prize. (Yes, there are the follow-up audio dramas as well).
This should have been a welcome return to, and sequel to the Robots of Death Doctor Who story. And there are things to like about it. There is the trademark inter-personal bitchiness between established characters that made Chris Boucher's short run on Doctor Who, and Blake's 7 so memorable. And...well, not much else. A missed opportunity was the trading of the iconic 'Robots of Death' Dums, Vocs and Super-Vocs, which anyone who has seen the original classic Doctor Who story can instantly visualise, and replace them with bland human-like cyborgs as the main threat. So the mental picture while reading went awol.
The description of the 'Sewerpits' was almost entirely absent, apart from reminding us that it was the 'seedy' part of Kandor City. The return of several characters from 'Robots of Death' made for some instant identification, but everything else, including the predictable antics of Carnell (such as we got to read) just plodded along. It's a teen read, so I wasn't really expecting to have my mind blown. Having said that, I have heard some Blake's 7 audio that did just that, so I don't think that's an excuse to churn out average fare, especially from someone intimately involved with both franchises.
Overall, glad I read it, if only to confirm the link between the two sci-fi series, and a mercifully quick and easy read, but wouldn't recommend it otherwise.
January 23, 2022
Simultaneously satisfying and disappointing. It succeeds in 3 ways:
1) being a good sequel to The Robots of Death by exploring very well the aftermath of the Storm Mine 4 incident, how the Company deals with it, and how it has affected the 3 survivors
2) being a decent enough political thriller that delves deeper into the Founding Families and their place in the Kaldor society
3) setting up a Blade Runner-y atmosphere for Kaldor City, a proper lived-in futuristic dystopia that provides a great base for the future stories that take place in this setting
Nevertheless, plot-wise it leaves a lot to be desired. I'm not sure that this kind of story should be told through five different POVs, and separating the characters for 70% of the book didn't work for me, especially as the last few chapters were everybody is meeting up, rely on an exposition dump to explain everything. And there is a need of a lot of explaining, as the whole thing gets unnecessarily convoluted at some point, without the pay-off being exactly mind-blowing as it is set up to be. I know Carnell is crossing over from Blake's 7, but shouldn't he be more developed here as a character? Not a very impressive villain if you have to tell rather than show most of his spiel.
Anyway, I don't want to sound too negative, there are some great characters here and the setting is delicious, I enjoyed it well enough. It works as a bridge between the original and the Kaldor City audio series I guess.
1) being a good sequel to The Robots of Death by exploring very well the aftermath of the Storm Mine 4 incident, how the Company deals with it, and how it has affected the 3 survivors
2) being a decent enough political thriller that delves deeper into the Founding Families and their place in the Kaldor society
3) setting up a Blade Runner-y atmosphere for Kaldor City, a proper lived-in futuristic dystopia that provides a great base for the future stories that take place in this setting
Nevertheless, plot-wise it leaves a lot to be desired. I'm not sure that this kind of story should be told through five different POVs, and separating the characters for 70% of the book didn't work for me, especially as the last few chapters were everybody is meeting up, rely on an exposition dump to explain everything. And there is a need of a lot of explaining, as the whole thing gets unnecessarily convoluted at some point, without the pay-off being exactly mind-blowing as it is set up to be. I know Carnell is crossing over from Blake's 7, but shouldn't he be more developed here as a character? Not a very impressive villain if you have to tell rather than show most of his spiel.
Anyway, I don't want to sound too negative, there are some great characters here and the setting is delicious, I enjoyed it well enough. It works as a bridge between the original and the Kaldor City audio series I guess.
June 27, 2017
Is this my first Doctor Who novel? I've read comics, but I think it might actually be the first novel. Either way, I enjoyed it. The writer of "The Robots of Death" returning to the same world and characters. With that in mind, it's understandable that the worldbuilding and original characters are the best parts. I loved seeing the (surviving) characters from the episode again and thought they were pretty spot-on for significantly older versions of themselves, and I also loved seeing more of the civilization. It could've stood even more of that actually -- why did the costumes and set-dressing of the episode seem vaguely aquatic, for instance? -- but fun anyway. I also would've liked more of the mystery feel of the episode to come through here... The plot was a bit confusing and the reveals lacked some impact because of it. Also Leela was awesome, but the Doctor's lines seemed out of character, and he didn't do a whole lot in the book. So, I guess I have to admit it maybe wasn't the greatest novel ever, but that really didn't hamper my enjoyment too much because "Robots of Death" is one of my favorite episodes, and this was an easy enough read with enough callbacks that the issues didn't bother me.
November 6, 2019
David Collings (Chief Mover Poul) reads Chris Boucher's sequel to Robots of Death. He does a pretty decent job with the material and being audio this gets rid of all the editorial mistakes to be found in the novel itself.
This is still an overly complex plot with far too many characters, not enough story and a lame pay off. However the audio version really helps bring this alive hence the extra star.
World building and character are excellent and I love the widening of the Robots of Death microcosm to include Kaldor City and of course the hint that it is part of the Blake's 7 universe.
I struggled a bit with the Carnell sections, it's really not until the end when his plot is revealed that you finally understand what's going on - but I didn't feel his character came across strongly enough. Or maybe it's just he's overshadowed by The Doctor, Leela, Toos, Uvanov, Poul, Con, Padil who are more easily accessible.
I have to wonder if this would have worked better as a full cast radio drama, however it's still well worth a listen for Robots of Death and Kaldor City fans.
This is still an overly complex plot with far too many characters, not enough story and a lame pay off. However the audio version really helps bring this alive hence the extra star.
World building and character are excellent and I love the widening of the Robots of Death microcosm to include Kaldor City and of course the hint that it is part of the Blake's 7 universe.
I struggled a bit with the Carnell sections, it's really not until the end when his plot is revealed that you finally understand what's going on - but I didn't feel his character came across strongly enough. Or maybe it's just he's overshadowed by The Doctor, Leela, Toos, Uvanov, Poul, Con, Padil who are more easily accessible.
I have to wonder if this would have worked better as a full cast radio drama, however it's still well worth a listen for Robots of Death and Kaldor City fans.
December 30, 2022
The sequel to TV's wonderful story "The Robots Of Death" is also written by their creator, the late Chris Boucher. Delving into the background of the survivors of the earlier tale and into the society that bred and sustains them, the tale takes up a couple of decades later when the survivors of the robot attack find themselves being targeted by a new generation of robots. Luckily, the Doctor and Leela are once more on hand to save everyone concerned - hopefully...
Lively and entertaining, an excellent sequel to one of the best adventures from the TV show. Great fun.
Lively and entertaining, an excellent sequel to one of the best adventures from the TV show. Great fun.
June 7, 2023
Chris Boucher’s interesting sequel expands on the aftermath and world of 1977s Robots of Death but doesn’t really add anything as exciting or chilling as the original. Whilst a novel exercise in a having the same TARDIS crew revisit characters a few years later it doesn’t work as much as I’d hoped. Despite a niche Blake’s 7 crossover there is some unexpected and out of place violence and perversity which felt out of place. David Collings’ lacklustre reading doesn’t make much effort to capture the characters very well, particularly Tom Baker’s fourth Doctor or Leela. Bit disappointing
March 14, 2025
The second of the Chris Boucher 4th Doctor and Leela novels, and I found it a lot easier to get into this one due to it being better than the previous book and also because it had familiar Kaldor concepts. The character of Carnell spears to be the same one from Blake's Seven and one of his pages mentions The Federation, which was kind of exciting! Not a fan of keeping The Doctor and Leela apart for the first two thirds of the story as that was just too long.
August 2, 2017
I had picked this one up at my local library along with a couple of other Doctor Who books. I remember the "Robots of Death" series well & since this book was authored by the same person who wrote the teleplay, it made for a fascinating sequel. I do not want to say too much as anything could act as a spoiler. Believe me, it was a worthwhile read.
June 23, 2024
A sequel to the amazing Robots of Death focusing on the aftermath of the events on Sandminer and the coverup and effects on the three survivors living in Kandor City.
There's some really great world building and political posturing, with some adult themes too.
Knowing the original serial is essential and whilst Boucher doesn't quite grasp Tom's Doctor here, there's some great scenes with Leela.
There's some really great world building and political posturing, with some adult themes too.
Knowing the original serial is essential and whilst Boucher doesn't quite grasp Tom's Doctor here, there's some great scenes with Leela.
April 2, 2018
42 WORD REVIEW:
Back in the late 1970s Chris Boucher established the character of Leela, wrote the classic Doctor Who story The Robots of Death, and script-edited Blake’s 7. Little surprise, then, that his robots sequel Corpse Marker showcases the better qualities of all three.
Back in the late 1970s Chris Boucher established the character of Leela, wrote the classic Doctor Who story The Robots of Death, and script-edited Blake’s 7. Little surprise, then, that his robots sequel Corpse Marker showcases the better qualities of all three.
April 26, 2020
The average sequel to "The Robots of Death" we knew we would never need, but now that it's here we can be entertained by it while it lasts nonetheless, no matter how inessential it is. Skip if you like, but if you read (or hear) it then it's just as fine.
May 28, 2021
I will honestly say this is not the worst or least favorite book that I have ever read, but out of all the Doctor Who books I've read, this is my least favorite. The idea behind the book is great; I just don't think it was written as well as it could've been.
April 3, 2025
Not a bad follow-up to the Robots of Death although it has a fairly abrupt and unsatisfying ending. Though, I see Chris Boucher has written a few more 4th Doctor Past Doctor books so, maybe they will continue.
January 14, 2020
sequel to the 1977 story Robots of Death featuring the Fourth Doctor and Leela as portrayed by Tom Baker and Louise Jamieson
July 12, 2020
The doctor is well written and it is very gruesome but is quite dull, loses you about half way and I don’t like the ending. It is not bad but very far from good!
June 29, 2021
i liked this sequel to robots of death but it lacked mystery and a good enough villain for the doctor to contend with.
May 19, 2023
If you like Dr. Who you'll like this story of robots and revenge.
July 8, 2024
More violent than even the height of the Hinchcliffe era of Doctor Who but many good ideas and wit.
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