Doctor Who: Love and War

Doctor Who Novel Adaptations #1

by Jacqueline Rayner (adaptation), Paul Cornell, Sylvester McCoy (Narrator)

On a planet called Heaven, all hell is breaking loose.

Heaven is a cemetery for both humans and Draconians - a final place of rest for those lost during wartime. The Doctor arrives on a trivial mission - to find a book, or so he says - and Ace, wandering around Joycetown, becomes involved with a charismatic Traveller called Jan.

But the Doctor is strenuously opposed to the romance. What is he trying to prevent? Is he planning some more deadly game connected with the coffins revered by the mysterious Church of Vacuum and the unusual Arch that marks the location of a secret building below ground?

Archaeologist Bernice Summerfield thinks so. Her destiny is inextricably linked with that of the Doctor, but even she may not be able to save Ace from the Time Lord's plans.

This time, has the Doctor gone too far?

A new adaptation of the Virgin New Adventures novel which introduced Bernice Summerfield.

Genres: Doctor Who, Audiobook, Science Fiction, Time Travel

Audio CD

First published October 31, 2012

About the author

Jacqueline Rayner is a best selling British author, best known for her work with the licensed fiction based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.

Her first professional writing credit came when she adapted Paul Cornell's Virgin New Adventure novel Oh No It Isn't! for the audio format, the first release by Big Finish. (The novel featured the character of Bernice Summerfield and was part of a spin-off series from Doctor Who.) She went on to do five of the six Bernice Summerfield audio adaptations and further work for Big Finish before going to work for BBC Books on their Doctor Who lines.

Her first novels came in 2001, with the Eighth Doctor Adventures novel EarthWorld for BBC Books and the Bernice Summerfield novel The Squire's Crystal for Big Finish. Rayner has written several other Doctor Who spin-offs and was also for a period the executive producer for the BBC on the Big Finish range of Doctor Who audio dramas. She has also contributed to the audio range as a writer. In all, her Doctor Who and related work (Bernice Summerfield stories), consists of five novels, a number of short stories and four original audio plays.

Rayner has edited several anthologies of Doctor Who short stories, mainly for Big Finish, and done work for Doctor Who Magazine. Beyond Doctor Who, her work includes the children's television tie-in book Horses Like Blaze.

With the start of the new television series of Doctor Who in 2005 and a shift in the BBC's Doctor Who related book output, Rayner has become, along with Justin Richards and Stephen Cole, one of the regular authors of the BBC's New Series Adventures. She has also abridged several of the books to be made into audiobooks.

She was also a member of Doctor Who Magazine's original Time Team.

Reviews

[Mel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am the monster's nightmare and everyone's a monster sometime.

Having listened to so many of the Benny audios it was nice to go back and hear how she first met the doctor. I thought she had a lot of good interactions with Ace as well.

The "cyberspace" interactions felt a little dated and Ace falling in love so quickly also seemed a bit odd. But there were some really great moments in this. I love how Sylvester's doctor came across as such a force of chaos. There were some really lovely character moments and relationship moments with him, Ace and Benny. One I will definitely listen to again.

[Thibault Busschots · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bernice Summerfield’s introduction story leaves me a bit lukewarm to be honest, I think my expectations were too high going into this. That doesn’t mean this is a bad story though. It’s quite a dark tale and has some really cool character moments, with the seventh doctor in particular standing out as he’s at his manipulative best. But this was also my first Bernice Summerfield story and I’m afraid to say I wasn’t really enamored with her character throughout the story. There’s also quite a lot going on, making it a bit hard to follow at times. Worst of all though, I really like Ace as a character and her character arc and love line just didn’t click here for me.

[April Mccaffrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice adaptation from the book and a good place to start Benny wise considering Love and War by Paul Cornell was Benny's first-ever appearance.

This was also a good audio to see how the Benny/Ace dynamic worked on audio. In the books, there was tension between them as Benny tried to act like a mother towards Ace despite Ace who was bitter and keeps pushing her away but at times, they both cared about each other and were willing to save each other.

I also liked the Gallifreyan lore and history in this scene and the concept of Christopher with no gender was interesting too.

Also-

SKELETON WAR.

[James McIntosh Jr. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This audio drama has a very interesting and mysterious story overall, but the ending wasn't the best. I was also really tired from a very busy day and focusing on driving home, so that may have affected it partially also. But since the story is largely about "love," there are a few suggestive comments and gay comments.

I really liked this performance of the Doctor. I'm not yet familiar with this regeneration, but I may be in a while if I get to that point in the show as I watch through it. I don't have anything to compare the story and performances to so as to see how they hold up in that regard.

[Seb Hasi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having read the original novel this audio drama is adapted from, most of my thoughts on it are centred around comparison. The first point and most significant thing that stuck with me is how ridiculously swift the romance between Ace and Jan is. I mean they fall in love and want to get married over the course of knowing each other about 24 hours. It’s really hard to be all soft and emotional about their plot line when it’s just stupid how quick it happens. On the other side, the introduction of Bernice Summerfield on audio was brilliant. Lisa Bowerman was born to play her and her chemistry with Sylvester Mccoy make listening to them together a treat.

Bernard Holley is great as the villain of the story, and the brilliant audio design for the creepy monstrous voices aid imagining these horrific creatures so much easier. The supporting cast are great and their characters manage to not merge into this myriad of bland people who are hard to distinguish. It’s a shame the Doctor isn’t in the story much but given he’s pulling the strings and so on it makes sense for the story, I’m just such a big fan of 7 I always miss him when he plays a smaller role in the story.

This being Ace’s goodbye for now was explored well, with all those flashback moments and the theme of her past and deciding her future hitting very well with the emotional beats. I’d say this is one of of Sophie Aldred’s stronger performances and she makes the story more compelling as you can get invested in her story (except all the rushed nonsense with Jan).

Overall, apart from saying the book definitely does the story better than the audio, it’s still quite good and worth a listen. It marks an important milestone in the 7th Doctors timeline so is well worth experiencing.

[David Monroe · Rating 4 out of 5]

The adaptation of Paul Cornell's 1991 Virgin New Adventures novel. On a planet called Heaven, the Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) loses one companion but finds another. The archaeologist known as Prof. Bernice "Benny" Summerfield. Sophie Aldred's best work.

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Su un pianeta chiamato Heaven, si sta scatenando l'inferno.
Heaven è un cimitero sia per gli umani che per i draconiani - un ultimo luogo di riposo per coloro che sono venuti a mancare durante la guerra. Il Dottore arriva per una missione banale - trovare un libro, o almeno così dice - e Ace, vagando per Joycetown, viene coinvolta con un Viaggiatore carismatico chiamato Jan.
Ma il Dottore è strenuamente contrario alla storia d'amore. Cosa sta cercando di impedire? Sta progettando qualche gioco letale legato alle bare venerate dalla misteriosa Chiesa del Vuoto e dall'insolito Arco che segna l'ubicazione di un edificio segreto sottoterra?
L'archeologa Bernice Summerfield lo pensa. Il suo destino è inestricabilmente legato a quello del Dottore, ma anche lei potrebbe non essere in grado di salvare Ace dai piani del Signore del Tempo.
Questa volta, il Dottore ha esagerato?
--------------------------------------------------------

L'adattamento di "Love and War" è molto simile al libro, senza saltare nessuna delle scene importanti e includendo tutti i personaggi, cosa che non dev'essere stata facile da fare a causa dell'enorme complessità della storia e dei temi trattati. Dato che era uno dei primi libri delle VNA, abbiamo un'Ace ancora molto giovane, poco più grande della sua versione televisiva. In questa storia la vediamo molto diversa dal solito, a causa di un colpo di fulmine che ha avuto per un ragazzo. Questa storia d'amore mi è sembrata precipitosa anche sulla carta, ma è fonte di forti emozioni. In tutto questo, Ace è anche turbata dai ricordi delle persone che ha abbandonato sulla Terra, dando una grande introspezione sul suo passato.
Abbiamo poi l'introduzione di Bernice Summerfield, che anche se molto più giovane e con molti fardelli in meno sulle spalle, non è affatto inesperta. La sua maturità è il giusto contrappunto all'adolescenza di Ace, ma sa anche tenere testa al Dottore. Quest'ultimo sta infatti elaborando uno dei suoi piani più machiavellici, e sa che per vincere questa volta dovrà prima perdere. E la vittima principale dei suoi piani è appunto Ace, che ne uscirà distrutta. Il litigio tra i due sarà devastante, ed è ancora più pregnante sentirlo in audio. Sophie Aldred riesce a sembrare giovane come negli anni Ottanta, e le sue urla disperate straziano il cuore, e altrettanto l'interpretazione di McCoy. Questa è senza dubbio la separazione più drammatica tra Dottore e companion, che se ne va carica d'odio cocente (e non sarà neanche l'ultima volta per lei). Nel frattempo Bernice ha potuto vedere il lato peggiore del Dottore, mettendolo in guardia fin da subito di non provare a giocare certe carte con lei, prima di decidere di partire con lui. Il loro rapporto è certamente più equilibrato e già sappiamo che avrà un florido futuro.
Una storia straordinaria, carica di tragedia e misticismo. Una che vede il Dottore come paladino del Tempo e che dimostra che essere il vincitore di una guerra non è necessariamente una bella cosa (molto da serie nuova), e naturalmente è fondamentale per questo cambio di companion. Paul Cornell sa come colpire al cuore.

[MindProbe · Rating 4 out of 5]

a solid adaptation of an evidently very good story, faithful to the novel to the point of being largely verbatim, so I'm told*, but which suffers from the inherent constraints and awkwardness of transposing a story well fitted to its original medium faithfully to another, like a houseplant repotted to a smaller container. Jacqueline Rayner does an admirable job keeping the core of the story as intact as possible and dramatising it in a smooth and cohesive way (I wish she'd been the one to handle Nightshade), but there's still, perhaps inevitably, a certain literalising effect, a loss of texture that comes of retaining the spine but cutting away some of the flesh—not just incident, but style, the things intrinsic to the way a story is told in one medium that can't be replicated in another (Steve Foxon's music and sound design, while very competent, also leaves some of the drama feeling slightly sterile, where it might have been better served by something more lyrical and emotive). the strength of the original material shines through, it's done enough justice here to be easy to like and easy to recommend, but it's Very Good rather than the outright classic of the novel's reputation, and one does sense that this is not the story in its fullest and truest form.

*not having read the book, I held off for a long time on listening to this, before finally deciding that there'd probably be more fresh enjoyment to be had reading the book having already heard the adaptation than vice-versa

[Sidney McKidney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Objectively, there wasn't a lot wrong with this audio. It was a fairly faithful adaptation - some scenes and characters were cut, obviously, and others got reworked to work better with the audio format. But overall this just...didn't work.

Based on my admittedly very limited pool of Paul Cornell novels I've read, he seems to be very into imagery. He spends lots of time describing how scenes and people look so you can practically see them in your head, and even when it's kinda really gross it's utterly fascinating, and that doesn't really work in an audio format. There are other bits, too, where the story feels rushed or contrived, like when Ace just called up Julian at the end to somehow (it really doesn't explain what happens, there's just a sound effect and then the thing is kaput). To be honest, Julian felt rather tacked on to the story in general here. They could've cut him out entirely, had Christopher show up again by himself somehow to get the Doctor and Ace out of the computer thing, and then had Maire shoot the fuzz monster instead of Roisa and then there could've been happy wlw reunions and let's be real who doesn't want that. He also felt a bit tacked on in the book, but he was integrated into the story and whatever its theme was well enough that it didn't bother me so much there.)

Also: Jan and Ace still don't work for me as a couple.

[David Layton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an adaptation of Paul Cornell's novel "Love and War," which introduced the character of Bernice Summerfield. The story is written in a way that would make it fit with Doctor Who 1989. The relationship between The Doctor and Ace is getting a little more prickly as The Doctor becomes more manipulative in his methods of outsmarting opponents. All his attempts to keep Ace out of it backfire and eventually lead to a confrontation in which Ace goes ballistic. The story itself is fairly typical Paul Cornell, involving an ancient evil that can easily control people's minds and that spends aeons collecting corpses so that it can raise an army of the undead and take over the universe. Parts of the story don't quite hang together, mostly those involving the virtual-reality setup called 'puter space in this story. One might view this as the "big" production (nearly as long as a six-parter) that never got made in 1989.

[Steven Poore · Rating 3 out of 5]

An improvement on Nightshade, in that the characterisations of Ace and the Doctor are much more consistent. Plus, there's Bernice Summerfield too - chronologically speaking this is her first outing with the Doctor, and a genius combination of world-weary cynicism and open-eyed excitement created by Paul Cornell, and brought to life by Lisa Bowerman. Love and War signalled a sea-change in direction for the Virgin series of original novels and is worthy enough of adaptation for that reason alone, but shorn of all the context it does feel a bit stranded and lonely. Still good fun.

[Nina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had high expectations for this one, given how popular Bernice Summerfield seems to be among Doctor Who fans who listen to Big Finish. The plot didn’t do much for me and some elements seemed very dated. The love story felt forced, partly because the performance of the actor portraying Ace’s love interest was very flat. I also wanted to like Benny more than I did, though I’m intrigued enough that I’ll probably check out more of her stories at some point. My expectations were probably too high.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'd been aware of Bernice Summerfield but never experienced a story in which she appears. This is an adaptation of the novel where she makes her first appearance. I thought the acting in this was great, especially at the end when Ace calls out The Doctor for being super manipulative and decides to part ways with him. The Doctor also reads a description of himself saying he's never cruel or cowardly, and I wonder whether Peter Capaldi's final speech as The Doctor references this intentionally.

[Vincent Darlage · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this way back in 1993, so it was fun to revisit it as an adapted audio drama. Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred reprise their roles as the Doctor and Ace, respectively, and it's nice to finally have a voice for Bernice Summerfield. Sophie plays out Ace's hurt and anger really well! Ace leaves and Bernice becomes the Doctor's new companion.

[Lewis Simpson · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

I can never take it seriously when Ace is given emotional stuff to do, even in the TV show. This one picks up the more manipulative Sylvester McCoy is, but it is overall a story with some good sci fi twists on horror tropes and disturbing villains, even if the characters aren’t the most interesting.

[Finlay O'Riordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually prefer this adaptation way more to the original novel. Things are way more condensed and the pacing is much faster which works better for the plot, with some of the unnecessary scenes such as the library fight removed. It's also beautiful to have McCoy, Aldred and Bowerman's actual voices attached to the story. Would definitely listen to it again.

[Sara Habein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very much enjoyed this introduction to Benny/The Doctor teaming up. Ace's story here is also very interesting. She gets to be annoyed, thrilled, in love, angry. I appreciate that. Plus, there's a nonbinary character! So that's good. Was not overly invested in the villain, but that's all right.

[Travis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very well done. I liked the story, the acting, the sound effects, (mostly), and the inclusion of behind the scenes material was a fantastic bonus. I sure hope those who buy/listen to the story manage to listen to the behind the scenes material as well, it's all very enlightening.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was fun. I like listening to Sylvester McCoy and Sophie Aldred as the Doctor and Ace. The story here is pretty cool, but goes way over the top at points. And it comes off as pretty corny, overall. But it's still a lot of fun.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

As much as I've tried I have never cared much about Ace.

[Bill Rand · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very original Dr. Who story.

[Zach · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 7th Doctor epic. This is in 7's top 5 best stories of all time. Grand in scale, emotionally impactful and 7 is ALWAYS ahead of everyone. A great beginning for one and a great end for another.

[Jamieson · Rating 5 out of 5]

In October 1992, the Virgin New Adventures were continuing Doctor Who with the Seventh Doctor and Ace after the cancellation of the TV Series. This month, Doctor Who: Love and War by Paul Cornell was released. The ninth in the series, it had the distinction of temporarily writing out Ace and introducing a new companion. That companion was Professor Bernice Surprise Summerfield (Benny to her friends). Bernice would go on to be the defining companion for most of the New Adventures, the character that carried on the New Adventures after the 1996 TV Movie switched the license for Doctor Who to BBC Books, and the first range for Big Finish who produced primarily Benny audio dramas, but also novels and short story collections.

In 2012, for the 20th Anniversary of Benny, Big Finish adapted the novel into this audio drama. I haven't actually read the novel, but I understand that it's very good. I like Benny, a sarcastic archeologist who likes to drink, but also doesn't put up with any of the Doctor's schemes. The audio is good (I'm pretty the novel goes into more depth and that some scenes were cut for the adaptation) and the scenes that matter towards the end work quite well. Also included is the prelude that appeared in Doctor Who Magazine #192. If you've read the book and want to hear it performed, this is worth picking up. Also, if you can't your hands on the novel because of availability (it's a 30-year-old book) and/or price, then this is a relatively cost-effective way of experiencing the story.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

An adaptation of one of the better New Adventures books. The Doctor and Ace land on Heaven (a planet) in search of a book. While the Doctor goes to the library, Ace gets mixed up with the travellers. Meanwhile, Professor Bernice Summerfield is digging up some ruins. Ok, I admit it, I love the New Adventures series of books, I really like Benny too. It was amazing to hear on audio, what I had previously only heard in my head. The story puts Ace really through the ringer and you totally understand her actions. One of the things you have to remember when listening to this is that it is not in Big Finish continuity. A very good listen, particularly for those who loved the book.

[Debra Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting story. Not nail biting but good. I love Bernice Summerfield so it was good to know how she became a companion.

[Scott Haworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well adapted. Streamlined from the novel, yet still complex, and definitely an emotional rollercoaster for Ace.

[Kelly McCubbin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Paul Cornell's wonderful novel caused a fundamental shift (or completed a fundamental shift, depending on how you look at it) for Doctor Who between the classic and new series. Much of the modern era Who had it's primary transition right there in the eighth and, arguably, most important of Virgin's "New Adventures." Based around an anecdote tossed off by the Fourth Doctor ("the Hoothi in their gas dirigibles" "Hoothi", oddly, is prnounced differently in this audio drama, but is spelled the same in the novel), Cornell takes The Seventh Doctor's manipulative tendancies, particularly when it comes to his companion, Ace, to their extreme. And there are consequences.
This is where the Doctor is first referrred to as "The Oncoming Storm" and first refers to himself as "the thing that monsters are scared of." This is the first time that it is suggested that he needs a companion because he would be dangerous without one to ground him. And this is the first time that it's suggested that his companion may want to fear him.
The Virgin New Adventures and the Big Finish Audio Adventures would resonate for decades with echoes of this story and it would create one true star of a character, the only true breakout character to have never appeared on a screen, Professor Bernice "Bennie" Summerfield.
So, suffice to say, it's got some heft, this one.
But that's the novel and this is Big Finish's adaptation of it and, while the books were billed as "stories too big for the small screen", this radio play has the unforgiving task of shrinking the story back down. And it hurts.
Strangely choosing to eliminate most of the love story between Ace and Jan leaves the whole thing anchorless and confusing. Without the build-up you begin to wonder if Ace is under some sort of mind control, she's acting so erratically.
By the end, so many elements are so contracted that it is difficult to follow all the threads and understand what everyone is even trying to do.
Still, Lisa Bowerman begins a long run as as Bennie and she is simply terrific. McCoy is odd and erratic in a way that's quite disorienting. And teh "Travellers" as a culture, is interesting and works pretty well.
It's not bad, it's just too ambitious with Big Finish's limited resources. Do yourself a favor. Read the book. It's terrific.