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Doctor Who: 2 New Adventures #5
Doctor Who: Monstrous Missions
Exciting, action-packed, new original fiction for younger Doctor Who fans, starring the Eleventh Doctor with his companions Amy Pond and Rory Williams!
Monstrous Missions contains two fast-paced, fun-filled adventures! The Doctor and his friends join a group of explorers on a Victorian tramp steamer in "Terrible Lizards." The explorers are searching for the Fountain of Youth, but neither they nor the treasure they seek are quite what they seem! And, people are mysteriously disappearing on Moonbase Laika. They return with strange bite marks and no idea where they have been. Can the Doctor and his friends get to the bottom of what's going on in "Snakes on a Base!"
Monstrous Missions contains two fast-paced, fun-filled adventures! The Doctor and his friends join a group of explorers on a Victorian tramp steamer in "Terrible Lizards." The explorers are searching for the Fountain of Youth, but neither they nor the treasure they seek are quite what they seem! And, people are mysteriously disappearing on Moonbase Laika. They return with strange bite marks and no idea where they have been. Can the Doctor and his friends get to the bottom of what's going on in "Snakes on a Base!"
384 pages, Paperback
First published February 2, 2012
About the author
Gary Russell
201 books177 followersGary Russell is a British freelance writer, producer and former child actor. As a writer, he is best known for his work in connection with the television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs in other media. As an actor, he is best known for playing Dick Kirrin in the British 1978 television series The Famous Five.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 9, 2017
3 ⭐️
The adventures in themselves were good and sticking to the show, but the difference in the writing style is what took a few stars away for me.
The first story, written by Jonathan Green, is a lot more action-packed. You follow Eleventh, Amy and Rory to a mix of the Florida Everglades and Jurassic Park. Everything happens quickly, and the read is a fast one too. There is little time for character development. It reads a little like a television script, only in prose format.
The second story, written by Gary Russell, couldn't be more different. This time, you find Eleventh alone, visiting the moon on two occasions. Both occasions tie to the Space Snakes. This read is a slow one, centered more on the feelings and interactions of the characters than the action. In fact, there is very little action happening in it. There is almost no danger, and the characters that could be described the closest to actual "villains" are the World State employees - and even then.
Both stories were quite enjoyable. Both authors know the universe well and - despite my tendency to hear the Doctor's dialogues in Capaldi's voice in my head - the tics known to Eleventh fit perfectly. There was even a few throws of "Geronimo!" in the first story! It's the fact that they were so dissimilar that put me off. If you want to make a 2-in-1 book, you should make sure that the writing of both stories fits well together.
The adventures in themselves were good and sticking to the show, but the difference in the writing style is what took a few stars away for me.
The first story, written by Jonathan Green, is a lot more action-packed. You follow Eleventh, Amy and Rory to a mix of the Florida Everglades and Jurassic Park. Everything happens quickly, and the read is a fast one too. There is little time for character development. It reads a little like a television script, only in prose format.
The second story, written by Gary Russell, couldn't be more different. This time, you find Eleventh alone, visiting the moon on two occasions. Both occasions tie to the Space Snakes. This read is a slow one, centered more on the feelings and interactions of the characters than the action. In fact, there is very little action happening in it. There is almost no danger, and the characters that could be described the closest to actual "villains" are the World State employees - and even then.
Both stories were quite enjoyable. Both authors know the universe well and - despite my tendency to hear the Doctor's dialogues in Capaldi's voice in my head - the tics known to Eleventh fit perfectly. There was even a few throws of "Geronimo!" in the first story! It's the fact that they were so dissimilar that put me off. If you want to make a 2-in-1 book, you should make sure that the writing of both stories fits well together.
May 8, 2012
TERRIBLE LIZARDS
This is the 4th Doctor Who 2in1 books omnibus that I have read and so far this story is the best of them. The setting for Terrible Lizards is the Doctor, Amy and Rory landing on a Tramp Steamer during the Victorian ages that is headed to the Florida Everglades in search of the Fountain Of Youth. As the Doctor, Amy and Rory join the adventurers on their travels they come across some prehistoric creatures that were extinct millions of years ago and should not exist in the time that the story is set.
So what more could you ask for in a Doctor Who book that The Doctor, Amy and Rory being chased by T-Rex's, Triceretops, and Stegasorous in Florida in the late 19th century. Yes the story was quite silly but at under 200 pages it was an enjoyable quick read. The main three characters were pretty similar to the characters who appear in the TV show. And the throwaway characters in this book whilst not having any insightful back stories (but in such a short book I didn't expect them to) were interesting enough, set the story up nicely and provided some nice little (predictibale - but hey it's a kids book) twists at the end.
The only flaw I could find with this book was that it was littered with spelling and grammar mistakes. Other than that like I said rather silly in places but an enjoyable quick read to fill a few hours whilst I wait inpatiently for Doctor Who to return to our screens. Now let's see if the 2nd book in this omnibus is as good as this one.
HORROR OF THE SPACE SNAKES
This story was not as good as the first in this omnibus. Set during the Doctor's "farewell tour" during series 6 of the TV show the Doctor finds himself on Moonbase Laika a former UNIT Moonbase. A group of school children are visiting the moonbase after winning a TV show competetion to have their art work displayed on the moonbase. Accompanying them are the presenter of the TV show and a couple of reps from the company who now own the moonbase. Also accompanying them is the Doctor who makes out he is conducting an unnanouced inspection from the ministry of "Moons and Moonbases" a ministry that surprisingly no-one else on the base has heard of. As this group embark on their tour of the moonbase accompanied by the personnel who work their they encounter a species of cobra like snakes that are somehow able to survive on the surface of the moon.
At less than two hundred pages long this story was far from the best ever written and was never likely to be. But unlike "Terrible Lizard's" it didn't have the fun factor that can make such a short read quite enjoyable. The charcters were quite forgetable - though the Doctor's dialogue with the children was well written as he seemed to hold their opinions and theories in higher esteem than the adults, something this Doctor would be very likely to do. And the snakes the party encounters seem to have none of the "Horror" that the title hints at. The Doctor character was pretty much true to form though which should be standard in a Who novel but generally seems like something of an achievement when it happens. The authour is obviously well researched in the universe of Doctor Who by the mentions of UNIT and Moonbase 1. But whilst not a bad story an easily forgetable one.
This is the 4th Doctor Who 2in1 books omnibus that I have read and so far this story is the best of them. The setting for Terrible Lizards is the Doctor, Amy and Rory landing on a Tramp Steamer during the Victorian ages that is headed to the Florida Everglades in search of the Fountain Of Youth. As the Doctor, Amy and Rory join the adventurers on their travels they come across some prehistoric creatures that were extinct millions of years ago and should not exist in the time that the story is set.
So what more could you ask for in a Doctor Who book that The Doctor, Amy and Rory being chased by T-Rex's, Triceretops, and Stegasorous in Florida in the late 19th century. Yes the story was quite silly but at under 200 pages it was an enjoyable quick read. The main three characters were pretty similar to the characters who appear in the TV show. And the throwaway characters in this book whilst not having any insightful back stories (but in such a short book I didn't expect them to) were interesting enough, set the story up nicely and provided some nice little (predictibale - but hey it's a kids book) twists at the end.
The only flaw I could find with this book was that it was littered with spelling and grammar mistakes. Other than that like I said rather silly in places but an enjoyable quick read to fill a few hours whilst I wait inpatiently for Doctor Who to return to our screens. Now let's see if the 2nd book in this omnibus is as good as this one.
HORROR OF THE SPACE SNAKES
This story was not as good as the first in this omnibus. Set during the Doctor's "farewell tour" during series 6 of the TV show the Doctor finds himself on Moonbase Laika a former UNIT Moonbase. A group of school children are visiting the moonbase after winning a TV show competetion to have their art work displayed on the moonbase. Accompanying them are the presenter of the TV show and a couple of reps from the company who now own the moonbase. Also accompanying them is the Doctor who makes out he is conducting an unnanouced inspection from the ministry of "Moons and Moonbases" a ministry that surprisingly no-one else on the base has heard of. As this group embark on their tour of the moonbase accompanied by the personnel who work their they encounter a species of cobra like snakes that are somehow able to survive on the surface of the moon.
At less than two hundred pages long this story was far from the best ever written and was never likely to be. But unlike "Terrible Lizard's" it didn't have the fun factor that can make such a short read quite enjoyable. The charcters were quite forgetable - though the Doctor's dialogue with the children was well written as he seemed to hold their opinions and theories in higher esteem than the adults, something this Doctor would be very likely to do. And the snakes the party encounters seem to have none of the "Horror" that the title hints at. The Doctor character was pretty much true to form though which should be standard in a Who novel but generally seems like something of an achievement when it happens. The authour is obviously well researched in the universe of Doctor Who by the mentions of UNIT and Moonbase 1. But whilst not a bad story an easily forgetable one.
February 26, 2014
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2020218.html[return][return]Terrible Lizards, by Jonathan Green[return][return]An attempt at homage to Conan Doyle's Lost World - the Doctor, Amy and Rory find themselves on a ship carrying explorers to seek the Fountain of Youth in Florida in 1880 and get stuck in a time rift with dinosaurs. It doesn't work terribly well, the plot being reminiscent of one of the more nonsensical TV episodes, Amy screams and bursts into tears at any minor setback, and the one black character is the first to be eaten by the Tyrannosaurus Rex.[return][return]Horror of the Space Snakes, by Gary Russell[return][return]This is much more like it. The Doctor, travelling alone, arrives on a Moonbase (explicitly the same one visited by his second incarnation) which is suffering unexplained pressure drops and disappearances. There's also a crowd of teenage visitors who have won a ticket to the Moon from their favourite TV show. There are, of course, space snakes, and lots of continuity references (and slight reimaginings) to satisfy long-term fans, and a fairly inventive ending which will satisfy most readers.
May 2, 2013
the first story was good, once i got past the over-the-top referencing to the show. After that it was great. I liked the second story even better! I was interested in the first story but it was the second one that had me holding my breath in terror. Both stories had me laughing at the doctor's antics; as well as Amy and Rory's in the first story.
March 4, 2014
One of the Doctor Who 2-in-1s, which jam two novellas together. Both fun, the Lost World homage of Terrible Lizards looks a little anaemic since Dinosaurs on A Spaceship, whilst Horror of the Space Snakes stirs reality TV, moonbases and (funnily enough) space snakes to entertaining enough effect.
January 14, 2015
Reads like bad fanfiction. Stopped 2 chapters in. Pass.
February 22, 2016
In this case I do prefer the TV series, however I did get a sense of Matt Smith's Doctor in the stories. Big fan
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews