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In the days when the Time Lords were young, their war with the Vampires cost trillions of lives on countless worlds. Now the Vampires have been sighted again, in San Francisco. The Doctor, aided by Sam, must find a way to stop them.

288 pages, Paperback

First published July 7, 1998

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660 people want to read

About the author

Jonathan Blum

30 books23 followers
Jonathan Blum is the author of several Doctor Who novels and Big Finish audios. He currently lives in Australia with his wife Kate Orman.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 102 reviews
Profile Image for Ken.
2,535 reviews1,375 followers
March 4, 2024
This feels more of a starting point for the Eighth Doctor Adventures after the TV movie, with the previous book being nostalgic and lightweight.
This is much more a character piece as we see Sam question the Doctor and the situation she's found herself in.

Having this adventure set in San Francisco is a nice call back, it's just a shame that the BBC books couldn't get the rights to have Grace appear.

Of course the vampires are a cool villain and much of the mythology surrounding them is more inkeeping with other 90's ideas of them.
This novel doesn't shy away from the darker elements with adds to the complexity of Time Lord and companion.
Profile Image for Ken.
2,535 reviews1,375 followers
December 21, 2017
The Doctor and Sam battle Vampires in San Francisco. Following up from the nostalgic romp in the previous book, the range really starts to have a distinct feel to it.
Profile Image for Trin.
2,272 reviews675 followers
May 27, 2024
Genuinely why does this cover have the presidential seal on it. Was this all the BBC could think of to signify "America"?

Anyway, this takes place in San Francisco and does not feature a vampire president. The Doctor is nearly turned into a vampire, however, which is definitely a fanfic premise if I have ever heard one. The plot is mostly very silly, but Blum and Orman seem to have a knack for writing great side conversations that reveal character beautifully, and there are several such moments in this. Also in one of these convos the Doctor is letting kittens crawl all over him, so. A++ content.

Also it's never outright stated (fuck the '90s, man) but this book absolutely opens at a gay bar, the Doctor is described as looking like Oscar Wilde (accurate, if perhaps flattering to dear Oscar), and Sam and this book's guest companion, Carolyn (who was originally meant to be Grace from the movie, before this was disallowed), check each other out in a bi4bi sort of way. Blum and Orman are apparently a married couple -- and a couple of real ones, for sure.
Profile Image for Hidekisohma.
427 reviews10 followers
July 24, 2021
Finally got around to reading the 2nd book in the EDA, and all in all, i DID have a fun time with this book.

I'm going to start off with the elephant in the room that is this cover. No, i have no idea why the presidential seal is on this cover. it has nothing to do with the president, nor does it even take place in Washington DC. it takes place in California. About as far away as you can from DC while still being in America. I think the golden gate bridge with a vampire bat would have been a much better image.

Anyway, onto the actual story. I like the way these two authors write. Jonathan and Kate work well together and it's not one of those double author books where it feels disjointed and it FEELS like there's two separate authors. There was enough description to know what was going on, but not enough to be annoying.

As for the actual plot, while i'm not the biggest fan of vampires, but for what it was, i actually had a bit of fun. Sam is quite bloodthirsty in this one which caught me a bit by surprise and the doctor has to pull her back quite a few times.

The general, Carolyn, and Harris are all fine characters and they all work well. However, if i DID have to make a criticism, it would be on the male characters. There are two characters that if you just removed them from the story you literally wouldn't lose anything.

James was a plank of wood who for 3/4 of the book was like "durr this stuff is fake. vampires don't exist!" until they almost quite literally shove them in his face.

Doctor Shackle on the other hand is COMPLETELY and UTTERLY pointless. like, i don't even know why he was in this book. he doesn't DO anything other than whine about being alive. that's literally his entire character. He 100% needed to be removed. he didn't add a single thing to this story.

Carolyn's "Wah i hope james is okay" got quite annoying in the first half and james' being a loser 9/10 of the book didn't help either.

I think this book would have been MUCH stronger if James and Shackle were both removed as their parts were by far the worst.

If you're hoping for a book with a lot of action, i would say this probably ISN'T it. there's SOME to be sure, but the majority is them all discussing the philosophy and morality of being a vampire and yeah, the middle does drag for a bit.

All in all, i give this book a 3.5/5 but round it up to a 4, if not just barely. Good ideas, a little schloggy in the middle, and some useless characters, but still a good 8th doctor story.
Profile Image for Emilija.
1,781 reviews29 followers
May 22, 2025
2025 Alphabet Challenge - The Letter V

This was a really good adventure with the 8th Doctor and Sam, and I really liked the moral quandary of what constitutes living and alive.

I thought the characters were well written and characterized, though Sam feels very much like she's been travelling with the Doctor for ages and she's just now having second thoughts and this is only the second novel? To a certain extent, it makes me feel like I've missed something in between the two novels.

My major gripe with this novel is that it feels really drawn out, and I really struggled to get into the beginning / first quarter because it felt quite slow.

I did however, adore the scene with the 8th Doctor eating salad threateningly.
Profile Image for Gareth.
378 reviews5 followers
January 23, 2024
The Eighth Doctor and Sam get some much needed character development in this low-key horror story, which places vampires alongside Time Lords and ponders the ups and downs of a long life, and the potential perils of coming alongside as a companion. I don’t know how the co-authorship worked in this case, but it’s probably safe to say there’s plenty of Kate Orman in this, as the clever (the Doctor arriving too early because his invite got lost in time) and the whimsical (he really gets on well with cats) are effortlessly mixed. It’s rich and confident stuff.
Profile Image for Amanda Rubio.
11 reviews
January 16, 2025
this was a lot of fun! the Doctor was fantastic, the vampires were fantastic, and while I didn’t looove them, the side characters felt realistic and i was invested in them. Nice to finally get to know Sam (her introduction in the first book was not really an introduction). This book states she has been travelling with the Doctor for a while already. Gotta say, I would have preferred to have actually seen her first adventures to get a better feeling for her character before seeing her in this nasty and very traumatising experience. As it is, I kinda feel like I got to see her development, but without really having a firm grasp on where she was developing *from*, if that makes sense.

i’m coming from having already listened to many Big Finish dramas with 8th, so i have his character very well defined in my head already. i was afraid his book characterisation would be too different, but i was delighted to see that it works perfectly. i could clearly hear every line of his in Paul McGann’s voice (it makes sense, of course, considering the audios come way after the novels were published, but i was afraid there would be a big disconnect)
Profile Image for Natalie.
797 reviews2 followers
February 5, 2021
Vampire Science is definitely one of the better Eighth Doctor stories I have read. This is the first time Sam joins the Doctor for an entire story, and it shows. She's ready to jump in and prove herself, but gets hurt in the process and must determine whether she wants to continue travelling, or go back home. The side characters in this story actually provide some value, as opposed to some installments in the series where we get dozens of pages of characters who really add nothing to the plot. Carolyn, Kramer, Harris, Shackle, and even James provide perspectives and knowledge of value to the story. The plot itself is nothing new- a vampire coven divided- those who wish to kill and rule the human world indiscriminately, and those who wish to live in secret alongside humans and cause them as little trouble as possible. The latter group, run by Harris, is working to find a way to feed the vampires without killing humans, researching and experimenting in her laboratory- hence the title. She is the one that the Doctor finds himself working with, and as always, uses his charismatic diplomacy to try to talk the other side out of killing people. Doctor 8 is very well characterized here by the dual authors, which, as always, is very much appreciated.
The story moves along well enough, but hits a slog somewhere around 1/3 of the way through, and doesn't really pick up until the last quarter or so. This and the fact that I don't really care for vampires (at all, really) lends to the final score. Well done, well written, well characterized, but, in the end, not entirely my jam.
Profile Image for Brayden Raymond.
547 reviews14 followers
May 11, 2020
After this novel I think the 8th Doctor is quickly becoming one of my favorites! Or maybe this 8th doctor adventure was just very well written. This 4 star rating is more of a 4.5 stars. It just didn't amaze me enough to quite get 5 but it was a great read. With a thrilling conclusion and episodic like ending as the climax occurs and then the book is literally 4 pages from being finished. This almost makes me want to go looking for more Vampire/Doctor Who stories.
Profile Image for Lennon.
59 reviews1 follower
November 20, 2022
Leaps and bounds better than the last 8DA, Vampire Science feels like the real beginning of Eight’s novelised adventures. It’s dark, brooding, witty, fun and thrilling, with a pair of strongly defined leads and a really well realised underground world of vampires and… well, science.

There is a bizarre format/series decision to address first. Strap in, and be sure in the knowledge that I’ll discuss the book in isolation soon! Despite leaping into the TARDIS for the first time at the end of the last book, Sam Jones is now months into her travels with the Doctor. We begin the novel in media res, from the perspective of a young bystander - Carolyn - to vampire violence, who subsequently joins the mysterious duo for a quick ride, and then doesn’t meet them again for a couple of decades.

It’s interesting, in a lot of ways this opening reminds me of the new series episode Rose, when we’re introduced to the compelling, heroic but dark and mysterious Doctor through the eyes of a young relatable woman who’s a little dissatisfied with her current life - Rose Tyler. This similar choice made in this novel certainly elevates our TARDIS team’s cool factor, and makes for a most thrilling and intriguing beginning for Carolyn’s journey. Carolyn McConnel fills her Rose-like role perfectly, and we’re treated to her presence and perspective throughout the entire novel too, in doing so, endearing us to her character… far more than Sam Jones.

But the issue is, Carolyn isn’t our companion, and mild spoilers, she doesn’t join the team (I’d of loved it if she had frankly). The time committed to her certainly ensures this particular novel is stronger, more impactful and meaningful, but consequently we’r distanced from our permanent companion in both of her first two books. From bookending The Eight Doctors, with no direct actions of her own, to playing second fiddle to a more interesting and likeable middle-aged woman.

Pitting a fresh companion with a well rounded original character is dubious enough, but honestly, it’s really disappointing not to see our new companion’s first adventures in the TARDIS. Those early adventures, where she’s trepidations, but in the honeymoon phase of sorts. Instead, immediately Sam the Doctor’s relationship is rocky, dark and moody. Things are already going wrong, and it seems as though a repeat of the NVAs with Seven and Ace may occur. But, who’s to say if that will manifest this early on… for now, Sam Jones is under-featured, bold, brash and full of youthful spirit. I’ve seen a lot of criticism and hate of her character in the ether, and whilst I see the basis of some critiques, I found her compelling enough for now - just bizarrely impacted by the time-jump.

Character messiness aside, the Doctor and Sam have landed in San Francisco in the 90s and are working alongside cancer researcher Carolyn and UNIT to root out a coven of vampires. Things aren’t easy, as they’ve integrated into human society, and their leaders are at odds, allying with others, and behaving rather bite-y. The shifting balance of turf-war vs. diplomacy is compelling and packed full of twists, turns and caveats all deliciously dark and meaty. The Doctor is already putting his life on the line with far more reckless abandon than ever before, and I love it. Other than a hiccup in the beginning, which I’ll elaborate more on later, the structure was solid and sound. The resolution was tense, dramatic and explosive, but there was one slight technobabble-fuelled contrivance which shaped the fate of one of the characters in an un-grounded way, which induced a slight eye-roll. Other than that, it was spot on.

New/old companion Sam is put through the wringer. As is almost everyone frankly. Vampires are plaguing the streets and the homeless, nightclubbers, amateur investigators, and political figures are finding themselves cold and dry. The violence, biological experimentation and physical threat the vampires pose are all excellent. I had no confidence in any character’s fate other than the Doctor. But most delightfully, the vampires weren’t just prowling monsters. They were colourful, complex characters with fascinating history, amusing weaknesses, funny messiah complexes and sometimes, possible heart and value.

Not all are bad, though there certainly are some villains, and consistently, the Doctor and his merry gang’s values and morals are tested. The Doctor behaves most interestingly, avidly campaigning for peace in the face of increasing death on the part of the vampires. A move which puzzles, tests and frustrates his allies and friends. Sam in particular, as she gets a little closer than she’d of liked to with the vampires.

The vampire leader, Joanna was the most complex and grey. Throughout the entire book I wavered back and forth, as to whether she was redeemable or not. As well as whether to side with the Doctor or Sam (again, pitting poor Sam against the Doctor so early on is an bold and admirable decision, but also a fast track to fan dislike of her character). Contrasting the multi-faceted Joanna however, was the young (for a vampire), bloodthirsty (for a vampire), egotistical and performative Slake (really named Edwin!). His pathetic ego-trips detracted from his menace slightly, but Joanna’s complexity, and a third, late-game monstrous reveal ensured he was a suitable antagonist throughout. And thankfully I found his arrogant attitude funny and not grating.

Supporting the Doctor and Sam was the aforementioned Carolyn, her boyfriend James, new Brigadier Kramer, and local conspiracy theorist and doctor, Doctor Shackle. Each and every one of them was skilfully fleshed out, incorporated and utilised. Though I will just quickly point out it was an odd decision not to use Brigadier Bambera from Survival, in place of Kramer (ultimately complicating things with three Brigadiers). Carolyn was the heart and soul of the piece. From the initial wonder and trauma of her first encounter with the Doctor and Sam, to her personal, almost obsessive modern day encounter. Her often toxic, but also friendly and loyal new relationship with the Doctor helped Sam’s suffering one. Whilst simultaneously testing her bonds and respect for herself in comparison to Carolyn’s own relationship with her boyfriend James. Who after initially showing interest in her investigations, fled when things got serious…

Kramer served largely as the figurehead for UNIT - representing the military might of the Empire (or States in this case), and the tantalisingly easy and convenient potential for utilising military tactics and murder to solve ‘alien’ incursions. Lastly there’s Shackle. He’s perhaps the most unique character, in that his fate is left open ended. He balances on the edge of life and death, endlessly contemplating suicide in the face of relentless and pointless death - and subsequently life. His travels with the Doctor and friends show him new perspectives, but the scheming and selfish Joanna tests his will. His inclusion was not integral to the plot, but served as a most endearing and compelling side-plot and additional bounty of ethical dilemmas.

The Doctor himself was beautifully rendered in prose form. Every facet and characteristic was flaunted and integrated into the narrative with devious cunning! All the charm and glitter from the TV movie is there, but the edge and darkness of Seven’s EU and later years remains in the Doctor’s post regeneration state. The manipulation isn’t at the forefront, if present at all, and he’s a lot more earnest and open about his motives, but it is the motives and attitudes he possesses which ground and enrich Eight. His sheer alienness in the face of brutality and hope. Honestly, this was such a beautiful direction to take him in, as if all the best elements of his past selves were at the forefront. But it’s not just a generic, average Doctor, he has his own style. His own delivery. And well, being such a Big Finish fan I can’t help but read all of his dialogue with the voice of Paul McGann in my head!

The pacing of the novel was gripping, but also allowed for a few scenes of down-time, character-work and fun domestic moments with Doctor loving cats. I had a slight issue with the very beginning of the novel, where Carolyn first encounters the Doctor and Sam. Her joining the pair for a brief vampire hunt felt rather awkward and contrived. As, just after witnessing a murder, and watching the Doctor and Sam try and stop it, (Sam had chatted to her in the bar for a little earlier, with some of the more cringier lines too) for some reason the Doctor invites her to come with him and Sam to catch the vampire. And bizarrely, she accepts and things move on. The entire rest of the book flows marvellously, and Carolyn’s character and all the other dialogue was leagues better than this jarring scene. I’m not sure what happened, but alas, it is there, and soured my first impression for a moment, and got my guard up. Thankfully, the guard lowered fairly quickly, and the momentary stumble was just that; a single momentary stumble.

Overall, I was thoroughly impressed and hooked by Vampire Science. Though I’ve only read a handful of Doctor Who fiction thus far, I can easily say this sits at the top. Blum and Orman are already names I’m eagerly anticipating in this range and more. The new Eighth Doctor, following the self-indulgent mess of his 8DA introduction, has finally settled down and is already vibrant, engrossing and magnificent. Sam needs a little more time in the oven, but I haven’t written her off yet, and it seems I must say goodbye to Carolyn. She was a fantastic character who’d of made a fine companion. Oh well, she’s simply part of a fine book, that’s good enough!
Profile Image for Michael.
18 reviews17 followers
June 6, 2013
Night and day. Not only is it an appropriate expression for a book about vampires, but it is the perfect description of the difference between Terrance Dick's skill and that of Kate Orman and her husband Jonathan Blum. It was quite refreshing to see that the BBC could hire not simply decent, but *good* authors.

The story isn't perfect, and I think it was very awkward for these authors to come so close, then shy away from, making the vampire's bite into an analogy of rape. Perhaps, given the BBC-as-publisher, that was mandated from above, but it felt like the authors simply didn't have the courage to tackle the issue head on. Worse still was the way in which the character bitten got over her ordeal; it was on her mind throughout much of the book, but once she faced it head on she magically got better. Emotional scars don't work that way. It would have felt much better, and given that character much more strength, for her to work through it gradually. {Best of all would be if it was even mentioned in future books as something she was in the process of healing through, but with a new writer around every corner that seems like it might be too much to ask for.}

Aside from that, my sole complaint here is that it did not pick up directly where The Eight Doctors left off. The new Companion, Sam, brazenly pushed her way onto the TARDIS at the end of the previous novel; but nowhere can you find her first [or even second or third or...] adventure with the Doctor. This story sees the pair already well-comfortable with each other, which robs the reader of the opportunity to see that relationship develop.

I don't know if the problems I have with this book are its authors fault or meddling on the part of the BBC. Either or both could be laid at the publisher's feet. But still, it left the book feeling *almost* perfect, but sadly not quite reaching its potential.
Profile Image for Nicholas Whyte.
5,295 reviews204 followers
January 23, 2010
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1383037.ht...

I winced at first at the depiction of California vampires, so familiar from Buffy, who actually gets referenced (presumably meaning the Kirsty Swanson film rather than the TV series which started only a few weeks before the book was published in 1997). But actually the book takes the vampire mythology in a couple of interesting directions, one of which (the vampire nest squabbling about strategy) was later followed by Buffy, but others (the vampire intellectual researching what makes them vampires, the possibility of turning in reverse) which were new to me. With all of this, the book doesn't particularly tie into the vampire lore of the Whoniverse (ie Terrance Dicks' State of Decay and Blood Harvest, and Paul Cornell's Goth Opera). I also expected a bit more to be made of the San Francisco setting, given its relevance to the Eighth Doctor's only on-screen appearance (according to the lore, Grace Holloway was originally intended to be in the book but they couldn't get clearance). The book does however do quite a lot for the development of the Eighth Doctor as a character - he gives the vampires several chances for redemption - and his relationship with Sam (presented here as a companion of long standing rather than someone who tagged along at the end of the last book). There's also some intriguing continuity with a Jonathan Blum story which apparently brought the Seventh Doctor into contact with the US branch of UNIT.
Profile Image for Harry.
58 reviews2 followers
June 17, 2018
(UPDATED REVIEW)

Quite an enjoyable book. This was a novel I was really looking forward to and I heard a lot of good things about it. When finished with the book, I part of me really liked it but another part of me found it to be rather average.

Vampire Science is the second novel in the EDA range after the first novel, The Eight Doctors which seemed to have received a marmite reception. Vampire Science however, seemed to be getting a lot of praise so this intrigued me. I can sort of understand why it’s liked so much but personally I would class this book as just above average in terms of enjoyment.

The characterisations of The Eighth Doctor are pretty well done and they both have some interesting moments in the book. I’ve heard not a lot of people like Sam as a companion but I don’t think she’s that bad. A lot of the authors have said that they struggle with the eighth doctors characterisation as when the EDA’s were being written, they only had the 1996 TV movie for reference. The story itself is pretty good and has an interesting premise. Some fans aren’t too keen on the whole vampire idea in Doctor Who but I think it works quite well.

Overall Vampire Science is a decent story, definitely not a bad one either. If you’re a fan of vampires then I’m sure you’ll love this book!
Profile Image for Akiva ꙮ.
929 reviews66 followers
December 29, 2014
With this introduction to the Sam-and-Eight dynamic...
She was a young blonde with unbelievably short hair and a wiry, athletic body. Unapologetically butch. She was at least a couple of years younger than Carolyn---nineteen, at the very most---but her face was already disconcertingly hard to read.

...

'You here by yourself?' she asked Sam.

'Nah, I'm with him,' she said, pointing over to the bar, where a long-haired guy who looked like Oscar Wilde was collecting their drinks. The guy was dressed flamboyantly even by Castro Street standards, in a long green velvet coat which looked like a leftover from the glory days of the Haight.

Carolyn looked him up and down. 'I take it he's not your boyfriend.'

The girl smirked. 'No way on Earth.' A good sign, thought Carolyn.

...how could I not fall in love instantly?

Even if it is about vampires. *shrug* They did a better-than-average job of charting the psychology of being immortal, at least.
18 reviews2 followers
Read
January 14, 2015
Skipping through this quite merrily, more of a ticking off of various tropes rather than the full-baked crazy of later doors EDAs, but this is only the second one and they've got to do SOMETHING after the Eight Doctors throws Sam in the TARDIS and runs away laughing.

TROPE LIST:
- Doctor described as having 'elven features'!
- Vamps are as of yet the sort of vamps who appear in the background of the Bronze. Maybe they will get a bit more Great Old Ones towards the end? Doc Who books have a GREAT history of vamps in the Missing Adventures so it would be disappointing if they merged into Buffy-lite rather than sticking to their original, pleasingly ridiculous past.
- BUT! as of yet no-one has turned into a bat.

Still, this is a book I can cope with reading before 8am so not bad innit.
Profile Image for Igor.
Author 82 books40 followers
November 27, 2013
The 2nd book in the EDA series is a marked improvement over the first. I mean, sure, The Eight Doctors wasn't really a hard mark to shoot over but even when viewed on its own, this ss an okay book. It would have benefited from being a bit shorter (say 250 instead 300 pages) because around the middle the plot begins to sag a bit and a shorter word count would have meant a tighter plot, more dynamic. But the Doctor is spot on and the companion is coming up nicely and the vampires are - well, they're okay and nothing more really. Not really interesting as DW villains. Not really interesting as villains generally what with being so overused and de-fanged. Although, vampire squirrels. That was...weeeeird. Good weird.

Profile Image for Shannon Appelcline.
Author 30 books163 followers
December 8, 2015
After a mediocre TV movie and a bad first book, BBC finally gets the Eighth Doctor right in this third outing. It returns to San Francisco, it returns to vampires, and it overall offers a great beginning to the Eighth Doctor adventures. The characterization is strong enough that I finally know who Eight is (and Sam too). The plot is exciting, and the one-off characters are folks I care about.

Really, about 4.5 stars, only missing a 5 because there's nothing extraordinary here, just darn good storytelling.

You can see more more extensive review, as part of a ongoing thread at RPGnet.
Profile Image for Jacob Licklider.
312 reviews5 followers
September 12, 2021
The Eighth Doctor is perhaps the Doctor with the largest blank slate when it comes to character development. His line of novels began publishing in June 1997, one year after the airing of The TV Movie, and the Time War as an effect on the character would only come when the series was revived in 2005. All we get is that he’s a hopeless romantic who gets amnesia when he regenerates and during The Eight Doctors picks up companion Samantha Jones for a series of travels. Terrance Dicks focused on a celebration of continuity for his novel, but this leaves Eight and Sam as a blank slate. We know that Sam Jones is a vegetarian and liberal activist living near enough to Coal Hill School while having an overactive sense of justice. Vampire Science is the follow up novel and actually gives us the start of the Doctor and Sam’s actual travels. The biggest problem of the novel is Sam Jones: as a character she doesn’t come across as likable, but is written in this style where she’s just all snark and no care. It seems that the people running BBC Books were attempting to follow the formula to make a companion like the smash hit Bernice Summerfield, but she really doesn’t. Sam’s obsession is saving the planet from pollution and attempting to rebel against parents who would only dislike her if she became a drug addict or dared to join the Conservative Party. She’s a whiny teenager who thinks that everyone should be the ones treating her like an adult and going with the Doctor she can prove it. Sorry, but that’s not really a well-defined character overall and she’s really the only thing getting in the way of this being a great novel.



Vampire Science is written by Jonathan Blum and Kate Orman. Kate Orman is perhaps my favorite writer of these Doctor Who novels or is at the very least one of the greats. Her novels may not always have the most plot driven stories, but tonally and thematically they are always rich and provide hours of contemplation. Vampire Science is of course no different here as the plot deals with Carolyn McConnell, an oncologist who’s deepest desire is to find a cure for cancer. Carolyn stumbles upon a group of vampires in the 1970s where she is saved by the Doctor and Sam, before we flash forward to 1997: vampires start attacking again and after her boyfriend is kidnapped, she has no choice but to call the Doctor for help. Perhaps the greatest theme of this novel is that of the existential dread of death and the insignificance of life in the world. Carolyn is a woman who retreats into despair with the Doctor on his way, yet when her eyes are opened to the possibility of a wider universe she can only become intrigued. Carolyn is definite companion material and in all honesty she would work much better than Sam. She has this great dynamic with the Doctor, a lasting image of the novel being Carolyn waking up to the Doctor in her kitchen making breakfast. Her boyfriend is kidnapped and there is a coven of vampires, but this man can make the entire world better, can give poor Carolyn hope, by making breakfast and forming a plan of action. He opens the door and she follows, she’s strong enough to save James and even attempt to save the vampires.



Joanna Harris, the leader of this vampire coven, a woman who has been living for nearly a millennium. A woman who spent centuries attempting to develop a cure or a potential substitute to satiate the hunger of the vampires and a woman who has been manipulating humans into joining her. Harris leads men and women metaphorically to the edge of a cliff of despair, slowly over the course of months, even years, and then offers them a choice. They have been brought to their lowest point and have nowhere left to go but over the edge, suicide is the only option. Except it isn’t. Joanna Harris gives them a choice, they can become a vampire and join her or continue living their lives, knowing full well that suicide is what awaits them if they do. The Doctor still wants to help her find the cure, he wants to gain her trust because he doesn’t want to see a war between the humans and the vampires. The Doctor doesn’t like needless bloodshed and even though they have killed countless people and are mortal enemies of the Time Lords, he is going to help them. He goes so far as to set up a psychic and physical link between the two as a show of good faith and trust, something both parties betray over the course of the novel. Harris’s latest victim is one Dr. David Shackle, an emergency room Doctor in a low income area of San Francisco. A man who cannot come to terms with death and the inevitability of being forgotten. He spends much of the book attempting to be a big help, but once Harris makes her offer he finds himself unable to refuse and the final page of the novel ends his story. He is perhaps my favorite character of the book due to the intense despair he feels.



Like any piece of science fiction, Vampire Science remains topical through themes about immortality, this time through the younger vampires. Our chief example is Slake, real name Edwin Pratt, a young vampire who is itching for war, itching to cause chaos because he’s young and needs a cause to fight for. Blum and Orman craft a message about when it is right to take action: people always want some injustice to fight against and as those injustices get smaller and smaller as humanity gets better and better, fighting gets worse and worse. It hasn’t changed since the dawn of time and people always try to find a cause. Sam has her cause, Slake wants a cause, Shackle lost his cause, and Carolyn found hers again after it became routine. Cause and effect is perhaps the best description of this book. 9.5/10.
Profile Image for France-Andrée.
672 reviews26 followers
April 28, 2013
I'm reading the eighth Doctor's series of books in order this is the third (counting the novelize version of the movie) and because of the word "vampire" in the title I stalled my reading of this series for months. I'm not attracted to the vampire lore to say I never was would be a lie, I read plenty of books within the genre when I was in my early twenties, but now almost two decades later I'm passed that genre. I was surprised how much I liked this book, the vampire mythology is well thought of and The Doctor is very well realized, I enjoyed this one; it really felt like an out of breath, running through half the story kind of episode.
Profile Image for Daniel Kukwa.
4,696 reviews122 followers
January 16, 2011
Two authors set out to write the definitive mission statement of the Paul McGann incarnation of the Doctor...and succeed beyond everyone's expectations. "Vampire Science" is brilliant on all levels: it's a funny, outrageous, poignant novel, full of nail-biting moments, and passages that will leave you sighing with contentment. Skip the disappointing "official" start of the BBC 8th Doctor line (that would be the utterly forgettable "The Eight Doctors") and make THIS book #1...you won't be disappointed.
Profile Image for N.
190 reviews28 followers
January 7, 2014
Wow! A really wonderful vampire story, and a book that perfectly sets up the Eighth Doctor's character for the rest of the novel series.

The plot is completely standalone, and would be enjoyable even for someone who doesn't know the first thing about Doctor Who. It's funny, scary and touching, with complex characters and exactly the kind of lush gothic horror atmosphere you'd expect in a vampire novel. At the same time, it's also modern and self-aware, and has just the right amount of camp. Really one of my all-time favourite Doctor Who stories.
Profile Image for Samantha.
9 reviews
July 11, 2015
The story and the characters saved this book for me. The writing wasn't the best in the world but it was bearable. The only mention of POC in this book was when they were breaking into a house and that just didn't sit well with me. Other than those small errors, I really enjoyed reading about the eighth doctor adventure with Sam and others.
Profile Image for Andrew.
140 reviews48 followers
May 17, 2025
Just fantastic. Compared to the absolutely dreadful, hopelessly outdated and hackneyed wretched turd that was the Eight Doctors, a near unreadable throwback whose only intention was to put a warm blaket on new Who readers and go "it's alright. It's still Doctor Who. Look! Gallifrey and monsters and the past and things!", this, THIS is where the Eighth Doctor Adventures start. This is was grounded, serious, adult, mature, thoughtful beautiful Who fiction reads like. Thank god for Kate Orman and Jonathan Blum.

It's so modern it feels like it could've been part of the 2005 season, everything is put right back into normal people with their normal lives, hopes, fears and dreams, the dialogue so naturalistic and believable it's just wonderous to read. They are beautifully crafted characters, each one a genuine personality, each one has a through line, an angle, an agenda. Each one is wrong and right, hateful and compassionate. When one decides to become a vampire, he does it not out of some laughable treason to humanity but just out of sheer exhaustion, sheer desperation. When Carole is abandoned and is left for 30 something years trying to find any specks of evidence of vampires and the Doctor to give her life meaning - it's so believable, it's so sad, it's so human. The tough as boots, badass bitch military hardass is reasonable, funny in one scene.

The doctor too is a joy to read, he couldn't be more different from 7th - the glorious scene where the doctor shows his butterfly room in the TARDIS, enchanted by the sheer beauty of it, is one of those scenes genius writers can produce that showcase how magical the format it. He's a lovable, wonderful guy, this book made me love him. This is a doctor who eats ice cream, does the dishes for a friend when they're sad, tries to convince a man not to kill himself, and puts kittens in his pockets to rescue them from a burning house. Imagine any of Virgin NAs 7 doing this. Imagine. The companion, Sam, is finally an interesting character, in a way the previous EDAs i've read (Doctor Who: The Eight DoctorsEight Doctors and Doctor Who: Alien BodiesAlien Bodies) is not. It's as if Orman and Blum took the crude child's outline of a character Terrance Dicks drew and actually went, hang on, she's a gutsy and passionate teenager whose just jumped into the Doctor's life, what's she actually like? Suddenly, she's a renaissance painting, full of shades and colours. She actually has an argument with the Doctor, one of the most serious ones i've seen in any companion, confused and angry.

Even the bad guys, the vampires, are drawn with impeccable subtly and detail, almost no 2 of them are the same. Some are bored of being a vampire, others have revelled in the deliberate gothic theatrically of it, one is trying to deal with the problem scientifically, one has gone mad. They're also, thankfully and amazingly, funny. Alot of them take their situation with a kind of droll cynicism, and at times there aware of how ludicrous the situation is. They have vampire squirrels after all, and even attempted to make vampire slugs. It's the kind of self effacing reality checks that stop it descending into utter melodrama - which would kill it stone dead. The worst thing one could do with a story about vampires is to turn them into droning bores. There is one who is a droning bore, and that's deliberately lampshaded. Yet there horror is not played for laughs. The sheer misery of being a vampire is quite graphically shown, as is the 'solution' the good vampire gives to coming up with a blood substitute (shudders).

It's only real major drawback, and it is a drawback, is it's too long. Almost all these books are, it's a consistent problem i've found with these books as i've read them over the years, there's at least 100 pages too many. The plots never seem to be able to stretch far enough to justify the length (and in the case of Alien Bodies, the solution becomes lots of padding and as many flashbacks, forwards and sideways as one can manage, much to the detriment of the plot's focus). This really has the same problem. The plot really peaks far too early in an astonishing confrontation, and a hellavu lot of the rest after it comes across as really meandering. Doctor Who worked best when it was 4 part 24 min episodes. That enabled a long enough amount of time for moments of character and wordbuilding to unfurl while also making it short enough that it could gallop along that it, as an action adventure sci fi show, required. It's why 6 partners almost never worked. These books are frequently like 6 or 8 partners (and sadly more like The Dominators or the Ice Warriors than the Talons of Weng Chiang or The Invasion), and that middle bloat comes into full play.

However, so much of this book is so good, and has so many sparkling moments of sheer joy and wonder it barely matters. A triumph!
Profile Image for Zealot Pete.
6 reviews
January 18, 2024
Vampire Science is the second instalment in the BBC series of novels, The Eighth Doctor Adventures, and continues the path of The Doctor and his companion Sam who were first introduced in The Eight Doctors.

In true Doctor Who style, there are already several adventures that the pair has embarked upon between the start of this book and where the last ended, that are only alluded to in the narrative. This presents a handy shortcut for Blum and Orman as authors to allow the protagonists to have built up more of an understanding than in the previous entry to series. Of course, The Doctor requires at least one confused bystander to impress in order to properly be The Doctor and in this book those roles are filled by Carolyn, a biochemist, Dr Shackle, a put-open Doctor (of the actual medical kind) and General Kramer of UNIT.

Each of the bystanders has a different level of knowledge of The Doctor, and therefore the alien universe. Carolyn is introduced by way of the prologue, meeting The Doctor and Sam in 1976. Her fleeting meeting creating a lifelong obsession with the paranormal. Dr Shackle is introduced during the narrative itself. Finally, being a member of UNIT, General Kramer has met The Doctor before. Although her knowledge seems limited to the Seventh Doctor, not the eighth.

Reference to the TV continuity is common in this series of books, an area in which many of the readers of this review will have a lot more knowledge than I do. I had to do some research post-reading to satisfy myself that she is not a pre-existing character. In fact, she has appeared only a fan-made film which starred author Jonathan Blum as The Doctor.

The band are faced with confronting a coven of marauding Vampires in San Francisco, in 1997, mentioned because in Doctor Who narratives you really do need to specify the date. It begins in the way of typical vampiric story, ticking all the boxes of the genre, mysterious unexplained killings with the victims completely drained of blood, a gothic nightclub, an abandoned theatre. However, Blum and Orman successfully subvert expectations on many an occasion, starting with The Doctor’s first confrontation with the leader of the Coven.

While there was, perhaps, only one outright twist in the book, it does successfully track the ups and downs, successes, losses and hair breadth escapes that encapsulate the nature of Doctor Who. In the interests of avoiding too many spoilers, I’ll not mention too many more plot details here but rather focus on the way that The Doctor and Sam are treated.

The interesting thing about reading a series such as this is that it’s multi-authored, and this can present a real challenge for character continuity. Indeed, the acknowledgements in the book itself expressly mentions “the other eighth-Doctor novelists” and “lots of e-mail trying to make sure the new Doctor and companion really sparkle together.”

Despite the correspondence, each book will have a subtly different take on The Doctor and Sam, developed through each author’s own narrative lens. Vampire Science featured a Doctor at odds with himself and a Sam in crisis.

One of the hallmarks of The Doctor, particularly in the darker tone of the 2005 TV reboot, is a relentless self-questioning. Constantly attempting to save everyone, no matter how unsaveable, and decrying the unintended consequences of his actions. Vampire Science continues this theme as The Doctor, elevated by his own actions, has to face mistakes and deaths that may have been preventable.

This take on The Doctor also presents some more inner confusion as to his own nature with Blum and Orman using the contrasting views that Kramer and Sam hold of the Doctor to highlight this. Does he always have a plan, or is he making it all up and hoping for the best? The answer, as always with The Doctor, seems to be somewhere in between. He has many plans, and he ends up hoping that at least one of them will work. At times the contrast of The Doctor’s actions from one scene to the next can feel a little clumsy, as if the authors have actually written it as two different characters rather than one character in a state of flux. He can’t be any easy character to write, but this isn’t always the most convincing attempt that I’ve read.

The author’s treatment of Sam is one of the highlights of this book for me, and at odds with how many companions are treated in the Doctor Who universe. Broadly, the civilians in any Doctor Who story fall into the categories of either excited, young person who can’t wait to leave it all behind and explore the universe or reluctant local who is awed by The Doctor but ultimately refuses to join him on his travels. In Vampire Science we get to see Sam realising just what it means to travel with The Doctor, her initial teenage enthusiasm is faced with brutality, pain and death.

The treatment of Sam’s doubts, her confusion, her anger at The Doctor, is expressed in a much more convincing manner than Blum and Orman manage with The Doctor himself. By the nature of the character, Sam is much easier to relate to than an thousand year old alien but I’m not sure that that was where the difference came. The authors just seemed to have a clearer vision for Sam’s journey in the book than they did for The Doctor. After all, The Doctor rarely changes (excluding regenerations) whereas a teenager whisked away to see a strange and terrifying universe for the first time would have to do a lot of changing in a very short time.

This is an excellent entry into the Doctor Who universe, and where my qualms with The Eight Doctors was that it served only as an introduction, Vampire Science suffered with none of those problems. It’s a well constructed story, with mostly convincing characters, that manages to satirise a traditional Vampire horror without becoming a parody itself.

Check out more reviews at Zealot Script
Profile Image for Julia.
190 reviews30 followers
August 13, 2021
#BBCEighthDoctorAdventures

BBC EIGHTH DOCTOR ADVENTURES #2: “VAMPIRE SCIENCE” di KATE ORMAN e JONATHAN BLUM.

Nei giorni in cui i Signori del Tempo erano giovani, la loro guerra contro i Vampiri costò trilioni di vite su innumerevoli pianeti. Ora i vampiri sono stati avvistati di nuovo, a San Francisco. Alcuni vogliono coesistere con gli umani, usando l'ingegneria genetica in un macabro esperimento per trovare una nuova fonte di sangue. Ma alcuni preferirebbero andarsene in una vampata di gloria – e i tentativi della UNIT di contenerli potrebbero provocare un'altra devastante guerra.
Il Dottore stringe un patto pericoloso, ma perfino lui potrebbe non essere in grado di impedire alla città di finire in mezzo al fuoco incrociato. Mentre lui si ritrova intrappolato in una rete di vecchie faide e schemi high-tech, la sua nuova compagna Sam scopre quanto sia pericoloso viaggiare con il Dottore.

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Se “The Eight Doctors” è stato un inizio traballante, “Vampire Science” può essere il miglior punto di partenza per entrare nel vivo della serie.
Ci ritroviamo di nuovo a San Francisco, quasi a voler legare ancora più saldamente L'Ottavo con questa città. L'inizio è dal punto di vista di un personaggio secondario, Carolyn, ricercatrice medica, e anche per il resto del libro il suo è uno dei contributi principali. Con un prologo ambientato negli anni '70 si entra subito nel vivo dell'azione, con una caccia ai vampiri che sembra uscita da una puntata del coevo Buffy. C'è poi un salto temporale che rimanda al 1997.
Oltre agli ovvi collegamenti con State of Decay, i vampiri rappresentati qui sono molto tradizionali e in linea con lo stile goth che avevano negli anni Novanta (e che forse adesso è un po' fuori moda). Se la maggior parte di loro è un leggermente stereotipata, ho apprezzato Johanna Harris, la capoclan, che ha molte sfaccettature e sviluppa un interessante rapporto con il Dottore.
C'è molta azione ma anche molte riflessioni filosofiche date dal fatto che il focus è molto incentrato su cosa significhi essere umani, esseri vivi, anche andando ad esplorare un personaggio afflitto da una tremenda depressione.
L'Ottavo Dottore viene ben caratterizzato con la sua voglia di vivere e il suo ottimismo, ma nonostante abbia le sue convinzioni sulla necessità di dover almeno provare a salvare chiunque, perfino chi non se lo meriterebbe, ha anche molti dubbi.
Sam sta già viaggiando da tempo nel TARDIS, tanto che il Dottore la lascia andare a fare investigazioni per conto suo. Non ho apprezzato molto questa scelta, dato che in “The Eight Doctors” la sua introduzione è stata appena accennata e non si era neanche mai trovata di fonte a una minaccia aliena. Saltare del tutto le sue prime avventure, il senso di meraviglia per i suoi primi viaggi e il tempo passato a conoscere il Dottore mi sembra un peccato. Ma almeno qui abbiamo modo di esplorare il suo carattere e le sue motivazioni. Sam si ritrova perfino in conflitto con il Dottore per i propri ideali (è in questo è simile ad Ace, con una testarda convinzione di cosa è giusto o sbagliato), e arriva quasi sul punto di decidere di tornare a casa, il che mi è sembrato un po' prematuro.
Anche se avrei preferito che il focus fosse più su Sam, Carolyn mi è piaciuta come protagonista. Se questo libro fosse stato più avanti nella serie non avrei avuto problemi con questo sbilanciamento (ho poi scoperto che la prima bozza del libro era stata scritta con Grace Hollway in mente, questo spiega perché l'enfasi sia posta di più sulla donna matura con conoscenze mediche piuttosto che sull'adolescente).

Nel complesso è un bel libro, sviluppato accuratamente e che apre la strada per i successivi, ma credo che sia più interessante per lo sviluppo dei personaggi piuttosto che per la trama in sé.
Profile Image for Seb Hasi.
230 reviews
April 4, 2021
Vampire Science feels like it could easily lead on from the TV Movie, capitalising on an American setting and a few tropes to tell a fun and interesting story. I absolutely loved thinking ‘this is a bit Buffy’ right till the book outright agrees and a character goes ‘well, this is very Buffy the vampire slayer’. The characters are explored well, with some interesting shifting dynamics, the story itself is fun, if not hampered by a very ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ ending, which is a shame given the amazing setup, and the imagery is excellent. You really feel like you’re in 90s America, just because Orman & Blum set up all the imagery right at the beginning, so vividly that it just sticks with you.

Characters like Carolyn, James, are all well realised and feel like proper people thrown into this strange world of sci fi, James reacting like a real person would, and Carolyn reacting like someone tired of life. Throw in the fact they are partners it adds nice character drama to the whole situation. The Doctor is utterly brilliant in this, with his wide eyes wonder from the film, but clearly with a more defined character and the aspects of him having a dark edge, and being a lot older than his childish behaviour hides, really adding to him. It really adds to him and makes him a captivating protagonist, giving even the most dull scenes of characters in a room talking, a whole new dimension to them. The sad thing is his companion, Sam, is awful. ‘I am not going to listen and rebel just for the sake of it and when i get in trouble blame everyone else’ is essentially her character contribution to the narrative. She might’ve been written to be unlikeable, but it just slows the story down, when her whining about things take up a half page of what was until that point an engaging chapter. The vampires are excellent, with a concept of philosophy around their age being added to give them all such different personalities. The young ones hunting, the old resting, and Joanna trying to do the right thing, with her corrupt morals occasionally causes friction with the Doctor.

The dynamics in the story are excellent, Joanna/Doctor, James/Carolyn, and are explored incredible well through very good tense scenes of action, as well as much more subdued conversations. It adds to the story which without may be a bit empty. Obviously the plot is ‘vampires in San Fransisco, Doctor arrives and all hell breaks loose’ but for a near 300 page novel you have to do little more than an episode of Buffy. The inter-character drama, the social commentary and philosophy, plus the drama and action all mesh together to tell an excellent story that is captivating and although the second book, feels like read start of the EDA range. The ending as I’ve mentioned is a bit of a let down, but I can’t blame them given ‘everything is okay again’ had to be the end point and to somehow get there from the very dramatic and seemingly irreparable climax would be difficult. A slight ex machina in The Doctor being a bit Jesus-like again seemed to be the solution, and some sci-fi nonsense that conveniently started to exist in the last 2 chapters save the day.

All in all, the end doesn’t devalue the story before, especially when the highlight of the book is the characters, but it does end it on a somewhat ‘is that it?’. It’s definitely self-contained enough to read even if you dont want to read all 78 EDAs and is a fantastic standalone novel.
Profile Image for Tom Jones.
106 reviews17 followers
October 3, 2017
I think Vampire Science is an overrated Doctor Who book.

I read it in two days and enjoyed it but when comparing to other reads I personally felt it didn't hit the level of those books and I had some negatives popping up with it.

One thing it nails the characters. The Doctor is great, Sam Get's her development (as she had none in The Eight Doctors) and the supporting characters are wonderful and feel like really people with how the interact and react in these different situations.

What it lacks is action, tension and drive. The book is too centralised on character drive and it needed something else to get the plot moving. This is a vampire story as shown by the title and there is better Vampire stories out there. Slake the leader of the Vampires of this group comes across as a little annoying and not how I like vampires delivered. He's self centred, a little childish and egotistical. Delivered more to humour than something like jago & Litefoot series 2 and 12 or State of Decay. He said all this threatening stuff but I could never believe he could do them and it was just "all talk." Actions speak louder than words. Though there were times I have to admit. Especially when Sam's life is in danger.

Supporting Characters are perfect (when putting Slake out of the equation) but the plot was could of been better and it did lack in areas and the worse part for me was the lack of any strong drive as when in the middle of the book, I felt there was no drive and too much character focusing and not enough plot development or action.

Overall, I think it's overrated. Not bad by any means. I am however disappointment that it didn't hit my expectations considering Kate Orman's reputations is very high and she's very respected with the Doctor Who books. It's a good novel but not 10/10 that some say.
6/10.
Profile Image for Brian.
186 reviews9 followers
August 8, 2021
OH MY GOD this was such an upgrade from Doctor Who: The Eight Doctors I could not be happier. I was so hesitant to keep reading but the fact that the books are written by different authors gave me hope, and also the understanding that this series will probably be hit or miss.

So! Plot? Super fun! It didn't feel really serious or really insane like some of 8's audios, which both benefited it (it's technically Sam and 8's first adventure together so it should be a fluffy one to ease them in) and served as a detriment (I love insane plots in my Dr. Who stories). One thing I really did love were the one-off characters. Carolyn in particular was fleshed out really well, but Shackle, James, and especially Harris were fantastic characters. And it was fun seeing Kramer there too. Genuinely a super fun book with an interesting enough plot to make it a quick read.

The one thing that really dragged it down for me is that, despite knowing more information about Sam - a little bit about how she grew up and how her life was before leaving with 8 - I feel like I don't know her any better as a character. She's in that default-companion state right now for me, and I really want her to be developed more, but maybe I just have to wait. Still, I wished this book put more into developing her character and her relationship with 8.
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