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Doctor Who: New Series Adventures #54
Doctor Who: The Crawling Terror
"Well, I doubt you'll ever see a bigger insect."
Gabby Nichols is putting her son to bed when she hears her daughter cry out. 'Mummy there's a daddy longlegs in my room!' Then the screaming starts... Alan Travers is heading home from the pub when something rushes his face — a spider's web. Then something huge and deadly lumbers from the shadows... Kevin Alperton is on his way to school when he is attacked by a mosquito. A big one. Then things get dangerous.
But it isn't the dead man cocooned inside a huge mass of web that worries the Doctor. It isn't the swarming, mutated insects that make him nervous. It isn't an old man's garbled memories of past dangers that intrigue him.
With the village cut off from the outside world, and the insects becoming more and more dangerous, the Doctor knows that no one is safe. Not unless he can decode the strange symbols engraved on an ancient stone circle, and unravel a mystery dating back to the Second World War.
Gabby Nichols is putting her son to bed when she hears her daughter cry out. 'Mummy there's a daddy longlegs in my room!' Then the screaming starts... Alan Travers is heading home from the pub when something rushes his face — a spider's web. Then something huge and deadly lumbers from the shadows... Kevin Alperton is on his way to school when he is attacked by a mosquito. A big one. Then things get dangerous.
But it isn't the dead man cocooned inside a huge mass of web that worries the Doctor. It isn't the swarming, mutated insects that make him nervous. It isn't an old man's garbled memories of past dangers that intrigue him.
With the village cut off from the outside world, and the insects becoming more and more dangerous, the Doctor knows that no one is safe. Not unless he can decode the strange symbols engraved on an ancient stone circle, and unravel a mystery dating back to the Second World War.
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
43 people are currently reading
1681 people want to read
About the author
Mike Tucker
106 books46 followersMike Tucker is a special effects expert who worked for many years at the BBC Television Visual Effects Department, and now works as an Effects Supervisor for his own company, The Model Unit. He is also the author of a number of original tv tie-in Doctor Who novels (some co-written with Robert Perry), and three books based on episodes of the television series Merlin. He co-wrote the factual books Ace! The Inside Story of the End of an Era with Sophie Aldred in 1996, and BBC VFX - The Story of the BBC Visual Effects Department with Mat Irvine in 2010.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 214 reviews
September 1, 2014
When the TARDIS takes The Doctor and Clara to a seemingly sleepy English town, they are stunned at what they find: giant, mutated insects and arachnids. But what does that have to do with townsfolk wandering around in a zombie-like state, the stone circle at the edge of town, and something mysterious that happened during WWII? That's what the Doctor intends to find out!
I got this from Netgalley.
This is the third Twelfth Doctor novel I've read and it's a pretty middle of the road Doctor Who novel. Clara rings true and, as with the previous novels, I can't be too sure how accurate Doctor Capaldi's characterization will turn out to be. I will say that he doesn't feel like the Tenth or Eleventh Doctors, though.
Much like Silhouette, this Doctor Who had all kinds of plot elements that eventually converged. However, it may have had a little too much going on. There were some chapters that didn't feature Clara or the Doctor.
I did like how Mike Tucker managed to bring everything together in the end. What could have simply been a giant monster tale turned into quite a bit more. It was a fun Doctor Who adventure but by no means was it one of the better ones I've read. 3.5 out of 5 stars.
I got this from Netgalley.
This is the third Twelfth Doctor novel I've read and it's a pretty middle of the road Doctor Who novel. Clara rings true and, as with the previous novels, I can't be too sure how accurate Doctor Capaldi's characterization will turn out to be. I will say that he doesn't feel like the Tenth or Eleventh Doctors, though.
Much like Silhouette, this Doctor Who had all kinds of plot elements that eventually converged. However, it may have had a little too much going on. There were some chapters that didn't feature Clara or the Doctor.
I did like how Mike Tucker managed to bring everything together in the end. What could have simply been a giant monster tale turned into quite a bit more. It was a fun Doctor Who adventure but by no means was it one of the better ones I've read. 3.5 out of 5 stars.
September 19, 2014
The Doctor's eyes blazed and Clara felt a tingle of anticipation run down her spine. Despite the danger, despite the death, it was these moments that brought her alive, that made every second of her extraordinary life worth living. Her and her Doctor, side by side, facing whatever the universe could throw at them.
When the Doctor and Clara arrive in the sleepy countryside English town of Wiltshire, they are almost immediately pulled into a conspiracy involving larger-than-life insects, government produced science labs, and ancient stone circles.
I was waiting for the first group of 12th Doctor / Clara books with great anticipation and excitement. So far, I absolutely adore the chemistry between the new Doctor and his companion and was eager to see it continue on in book form. And I was not disappointed in the least! I absolutely loved this book! The story was exciting, fun, engaging, and quirky, which are basically all the requirements, in my opinion, to have a wonderful Doctor Who story. :)
"Where's this then?" asked Clara, looking around with mistrust. "Distant past? Far-flung future? Alien planet that just happens to look like the English countryside?"
The Doctor glared at her. "Wiltshire."
"Wiltshire?" Clara have him a nod of mock approval. You really are showing me to exotic corners of the universe."
When the Doctor and Clara arrive in the sleepy countryside English town of Wiltshire, they are almost immediately pulled into a conspiracy involving larger-than-life insects, government produced science labs, and ancient stone circles.
I was waiting for the first group of 12th Doctor / Clara books with great anticipation and excitement. So far, I absolutely adore the chemistry between the new Doctor and his companion and was eager to see it continue on in book form. And I was not disappointed in the least! I absolutely loved this book! The story was exciting, fun, engaging, and quirky, which are basically all the requirements, in my opinion, to have a wonderful Doctor Who story. :)
"Where's this then?" asked Clara, looking around with mistrust. "Distant past? Far-flung future? Alien planet that just happens to look like the English countryside?"
The Doctor glared at her. "Wiltshire."
"Wiltshire?" Clara have him a nod of mock approval. You really are showing me to exotic corners of the universe."
August 30, 2014
I was first introduced to Doctor Who in the 70s. At that time we Americans were getting the episodes of Tom Baker as the fourth doctor. Tom Baker was pretty much responsible for taking Doctor Who from an obscure BBC import on PBS to an legitimate cult phenomena in the states. To most of my generation, Tom Baker will always be The Doctor. But the fans still keep up and now thanks to BBC America, we are now enjoying the 12th doctor (or is it 13th? That turn with John Hurt has me confused).
I even went to the first U.S. Doctor Who convention (1978?) in Los Angeles. While I was there, I loaded up on the the novelizations of the TV episodes that were only available as British imporst. Terrence Dick wrote most of them and he was the primary script editor of the show. All in all, they were very disappointing, aping the dialog and action in a rather pedestrian way. They also seemed rather childish which makes sense since Tom Baker's episode were in many ways the bridge from thinking of Doctor Who as a children show to a cult show loved by adults. It basically led me to believe that the original script writers were not very talented when it came to writing books. But of course there is always an exception as in Douglas Adams who fooled everyone and wrote The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
Now it is 40 years later. The Doctor Who franchise is stronger than ever. The series can not in any way be called children TV and the plots and themes are complex and they are not even afraid to throw in a few innuendos now and then. So here I am, holding another novelization, this time about the 12th doctor and his sidekick, Clara titled The Crawling Terror. I am holding it with both excitement and dread.
I have to say. Not all good but not bad. Douglas Adams should be proud if not overjoyed. The dialogue is true to the show. I have not seen the episode The Crawling Terror so I can't say for sure but i would not be surprised if the dialog is pretty accurate. Friends who have seen the new doctor tell me this book catches his personality well. More importantly, the author Mike Tucker is a galaxy better than the older novelization and he moves both the action and interplay between characters well. The novel reads fast and will entertain you for a couple of hours max.
The plot? This is where I am a little fascinated with it. Doctor Who and Clara land in a village in Wiltshire where there are giant insects and zombiefied villagers. There is a stone ring involved, mad scientists and even Nazi collaborator. (The TARDIS is a time machine, remember?) The fascinating thing is that, for my first pick at a recent novelization, I seem to pick an episode that feels like a throwback to the old doctors: Buggy monsters, military allies, those nazi scientists, and a misquided earthling. But I still enjoyed it.
The bottom line is, if you are already a Who fan you will enjoy this. But no way it is essential. If you do not know The Doctor, this little novelization may be a good introduction since you do not need to know much back story to be entertained by it. But the TV show is really where to start. First read up on the Doctor's background (Wikipedia may do the trick) so you can understand some of the complexities and intricacies, then flip on the show and munch on some popcorn.
I even went to the first U.S. Doctor Who convention (1978?) in Los Angeles. While I was there, I loaded up on the the novelizations of the TV episodes that were only available as British imporst. Terrence Dick wrote most of them and he was the primary script editor of the show. All in all, they were very disappointing, aping the dialog and action in a rather pedestrian way. They also seemed rather childish which makes sense since Tom Baker's episode were in many ways the bridge from thinking of Doctor Who as a children show to a cult show loved by adults. It basically led me to believe that the original script writers were not very talented when it came to writing books. But of course there is always an exception as in Douglas Adams who fooled everyone and wrote The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
Now it is 40 years later. The Doctor Who franchise is stronger than ever. The series can not in any way be called children TV and the plots and themes are complex and they are not even afraid to throw in a few innuendos now and then. So here I am, holding another novelization, this time about the 12th doctor and his sidekick, Clara titled The Crawling Terror. I am holding it with both excitement and dread.
I have to say. Not all good but not bad. Douglas Adams should be proud if not overjoyed. The dialogue is true to the show. I have not seen the episode The Crawling Terror so I can't say for sure but i would not be surprised if the dialog is pretty accurate. Friends who have seen the new doctor tell me this book catches his personality well. More importantly, the author Mike Tucker is a galaxy better than the older novelization and he moves both the action and interplay between characters well. The novel reads fast and will entertain you for a couple of hours max.
The plot? This is where I am a little fascinated with it. Doctor Who and Clara land in a village in Wiltshire where there are giant insects and zombiefied villagers. There is a stone ring involved, mad scientists and even Nazi collaborator. (The TARDIS is a time machine, remember?) The fascinating thing is that, for my first pick at a recent novelization, I seem to pick an episode that feels like a throwback to the old doctors: Buggy monsters, military allies, those nazi scientists, and a misquided earthling. But I still enjoyed it.
The bottom line is, if you are already a Who fan you will enjoy this. But no way it is essential. If you do not know The Doctor, this little novelization may be a good introduction since you do not need to know much back story to be entertained by it. But the TV show is really where to start. First read up on the Doctor's background (Wikipedia may do the trick) so you can understand some of the complexities and intricacies, then flip on the show and munch on some popcorn.
December 3, 2014
Written in a more obviously child friendly style than the other two books in this release cycle, I initially thought that this was the one of the trio designed most consciously for children. Of course there’s nothing wrong with that. The programme did after all start as a kids TV show, before it was forced to rebrand itself as ‘family entertainment’ when people like me grew up and just refused to let it go. Set in that very picturesque village which is always photographed for greetings cards, the villagers find themselves menaced by huge, and extremely dangerous, insects. It all seems to be linked to a nearby science park and an ancient stone circle, but most curiously of all it all seems to have happened before. The prose is clear, crisp and almost Terence Dicks-esque, while the plot is easily graspable to everyone from the age of 8 to 80, so I thought initially that this was a good read for the whole family. Then the death toll started mounting. And then it started getting really quite scary.
With its town cut off from the outside world by giant creepy crawlies, this reads like a cross of two Jon Pertwee classics ‘The Daemons’ and ‘The Giant Spider Invasion’. There are also repeated spins on “reversing the polarity of the neutron flow”, and so as someone who is generally favourable to the Pertwee era, this was right up my time vortex. On balance I preferred ‘Blood Cell’, but one has to admit that this is spine-tinglingly entertaining.
With its town cut off from the outside world by giant creepy crawlies, this reads like a cross of two Jon Pertwee classics ‘The Daemons’ and ‘The Giant Spider Invasion’. There are also repeated spins on “reversing the polarity of the neutron flow”, and so as someone who is generally favourable to the Pertwee era, this was right up my time vortex. On balance I preferred ‘Blood Cell’, but one has to admit that this is spine-tinglingly entertaining.
December 27, 2021
This my 2nd reading of this book, it's a shame that Jodie has had no books of this style. Here we have Green Death style book with giant spiders in Shelob style. Horrible bettles and scorpions.
Set around WWII Nazi experiment that went wrong the Doctor goes back to 1944 to see what happens.
It's not story that could work on TV but that's whole point with the books stories that to costly or the actors are gone. Set in first season of Peter it's creepy special.
Set around WWII Nazi experiment that went wrong the Doctor goes back to 1944 to see what happens.
It's not story that could work on TV but that's whole point with the books stories that to costly or the actors are gone. Set in first season of Peter it's creepy special.
June 28, 2025
This was a fun enough story. If you're not a fan of Clara, it'll probably be a better read, as she's absent for chunks of the book at a time - which suited me, as I am not a fan of Clara. Plot wise, as long as you're not afraid of creepy crawlies, it's a middling plot.
March 20, 2018
This is a book that is based on the television series. This has Peter Capaldi as The Doctor and Clara as his companion. In this one, giant insects are attacking a town. There is more to the story than just giant insects attacking and soon The Doctor and Clara are involved in stopping this crisis.
I thought this book was one of the better media tie-in books from this universe. I was immediately impressed at how the author portrayed The Doctor. I know this was published early in the first year of Capaldi's run as The Doctor so the author did not have much to go on. That being said, I had no problem picturing The Doctor in this one. I was a little skeptical at first about this book until I was fully immersed in it. I kept on wondering if it was going to be another sci-fi book with giant insects running amok. But in true Doctor Who fashion, there is a twist on it that separated it from other traditional versions of this story concept.
This book entertained me throughout the whole story. I had to give four stars because while reading it, I was jumping at shadows as the idea of giant insects seemed to invade my subconscious. This was a good book to read as we wait for the new Doctor to visit us on our screen.
I thought this book was one of the better media tie-in books from this universe. I was immediately impressed at how the author portrayed The Doctor. I know this was published early in the first year of Capaldi's run as The Doctor so the author did not have much to go on. That being said, I had no problem picturing The Doctor in this one. I was a little skeptical at first about this book until I was fully immersed in it. I kept on wondering if it was going to be another sci-fi book with giant insects running amok. But in true Doctor Who fashion, there is a twist on it that separated it from other traditional versions of this story concept.
This book entertained me throughout the whole story. I had to give four stars because while reading it, I was jumping at shadows as the idea of giant insects seemed to invade my subconscious. This was a good book to read as we wait for the new Doctor to visit us on our screen.
January 5, 2023
A mix between 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘋æ𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴 and 𝘈𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘯𝘪𝘥𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘜𝘒 as well as 𝘏𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘐𝘐𝘐, this book is essentially a bingo card checking off as many 𝘋𝘰𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘞𝘩𝘰 clichés as possible.
Coming off the back of the two previous Twelfth Doctor novels, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘳𝘢𝘸𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘛𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 marked a stark contrast with its opening creepy prologue. Both prior stories had been dark plots with an undercurrent of humour and light-hearted relief, whereas this began utterly chillingly. The notion of giant insects wreaking havoc on a small English village sounded terrifying - especially with the description of the huge daddy long-legs and the discovery of the dead man in the spider's web. However, as the story unfolded, it began to feel more and more generic with plots and beats I have seen a thousand times over in 𝘋𝘰𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘞𝘩𝘰: giant insects, a mysterious science facility, a masked villain with a facial disfigurement, secret Nazi experiments, a stone circle, mind controlled zombies, the companion swapping bodies with an enemy, and a big explosion to resolve the plot. Everything just felt clichéd and highly predictable, leaving the last few chapters especially boring and uninspired.
It is interesting to see how these tie-in novels present the eras in which they are set due to their publication coinciding with the release of the TV show. I imagine this lends difficulty to capturing the tone and voices within that series, as many of the authors have not yet watched the incumbent Doctor in action. Consequently, one of the first things I noticed was that this story felt very Third Doctor. This is not, by itself, a bad thing as I adore the Third Doctor and his respective era. However, there is emulating an era on one hand, and on the other there is ripping it off outright. The Doctor and assistant find themselves visiting a curiosity in a quaint English village is a premise very well-trodden in said era. Add on to that a mysterious facility that seem to be causing damage to the local populace, and a military invasion later in the story to save the day - there are many Third Doctor stories that this could describe. I don't know whether the author intended this story for the Third Doctor before switching to the Twelfth, but it certainly felt that way. The Doctor had been swapped out, Jo Grant had been swapped out for Clara, UNIT were swapped out for the army, and the Brigadier had been swapped out for Colonel Dickinson. With both books prior to this firmly placing themselves clearly within the Twelfth Doctor's era (𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘊𝘦𝘭𝘭 remains on top for its impeccable characterisation of the Twelfth Doctor and Clara), it felt especially jarring to have something so misplaced.
There were stuff that I liked here. As a whole, the story flowed well and the protagonists remained likable throughout. Despite the generic plot and surprising number of typos, I still felt the urge to continue reading and find out more - especially with the frequent cliffhangers. It's very vividly written, with the aliens well thought out and easily pictured in the mind's eye. It could be exciting and creepy, and there were emotional stakes as well as real stakes. This book certainly isn't all bad and does have its redeeming qualities - even if the book's best and most intriguing parts are its prologue and epilogue which bookend the, more often than not, mediocre story.
For those also working their way through the BBC New Series novels, I certainly don't recommend skipping this story as there is definitely value in it. However, for those looking to cherrypick or start reading these novels, I wouldn't recommend this as a place to begin.
Coming off the back of the two previous Twelfth Doctor novels, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘳𝘢𝘸𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘛𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 marked a stark contrast with its opening creepy prologue. Both prior stories had been dark plots with an undercurrent of humour and light-hearted relief, whereas this began utterly chillingly. The notion of giant insects wreaking havoc on a small English village sounded terrifying - especially with the description of the huge daddy long-legs and the discovery of the dead man in the spider's web. However, as the story unfolded, it began to feel more and more generic with plots and beats I have seen a thousand times over in 𝘋𝘰𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘞𝘩𝘰: giant insects, a mysterious science facility, a masked villain with a facial disfigurement, secret Nazi experiments, a stone circle, mind controlled zombies, the companion swapping bodies with an enemy, and a big explosion to resolve the plot. Everything just felt clichéd and highly predictable, leaving the last few chapters especially boring and uninspired.
It is interesting to see how these tie-in novels present the eras in which they are set due to their publication coinciding with the release of the TV show. I imagine this lends difficulty to capturing the tone and voices within that series, as many of the authors have not yet watched the incumbent Doctor in action. Consequently, one of the first things I noticed was that this story felt very Third Doctor. This is not, by itself, a bad thing as I adore the Third Doctor and his respective era. However, there is emulating an era on one hand, and on the other there is ripping it off outright. The Doctor and assistant find themselves visiting a curiosity in a quaint English village is a premise very well-trodden in said era. Add on to that a mysterious facility that seem to be causing damage to the local populace, and a military invasion later in the story to save the day - there are many Third Doctor stories that this could describe. I don't know whether the author intended this story for the Third Doctor before switching to the Twelfth, but it certainly felt that way. The Doctor had been swapped out, Jo Grant had been swapped out for Clara, UNIT were swapped out for the army, and the Brigadier had been swapped out for Colonel Dickinson. With both books prior to this firmly placing themselves clearly within the Twelfth Doctor's era (𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘊𝘦𝘭𝘭 remains on top for its impeccable characterisation of the Twelfth Doctor and Clara), it felt especially jarring to have something so misplaced.
There were stuff that I liked here. As a whole, the story flowed well and the protagonists remained likable throughout. Despite the generic plot and surprising number of typos, I still felt the urge to continue reading and find out more - especially with the frequent cliffhangers. It's very vividly written, with the aliens well thought out and easily pictured in the mind's eye. It could be exciting and creepy, and there were emotional stakes as well as real stakes. This book certainly isn't all bad and does have its redeeming qualities - even if the book's best and most intriguing parts are its prologue and epilogue which bookend the, more often than not, mediocre story.
For those also working their way through the BBC New Series novels, I certainly don't recommend skipping this story as there is definitely value in it. However, for those looking to cherrypick or start reading these novels, I wouldn't recommend this as a place to begin.
October 9, 2014
(I got a copy courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.)
Second Twelfth Doctor novel I read, and one I liked better than Silhouette. I'd say it's typical-enough Doctor Who, perhaps closer to some of the older adventures than to the most recent ones, in its theme and some of its elements? Namely giant insects and technology snagged from the Nazis—there's always something both eyeroll-worthy yet deliciously "old-fashioned" to find in such aspects, as far as I'm concerned. ("Old-fashioned", in that it always reminds of older stories I was reading back when I was a kid and WWII/the Cold War were still present in our minds. Nowadays, these themes feel like they're going further and further away from us.)
The Doctor and Clara investigate mysterious cobwebs and mutant insects in a small village known for its ring of ancient stones, as well as a few other curious things (either in the present or in the past). At first, they don't seem to be really linked together, but the author makes all those lines converge together in a timely fashion.
Not having seen many episodes with Peter Capaldi as the Doctor, I'm not completely sure if the character in this book is really close to the one portrayed in the series. He felt close enough, at least, and clearly different from Eleven, at any rate. Clara isn't always present, and depending on whether you like her character or not, this will be a good or a bad thing. I wasn't too convinced, but that may be because I thought she didn't have too much of an important role (and she should have—this is the novel where we learn , after all).
A few editing mistakes/typos, that I hope aren't in the final printed version. The writing style's alright: not too complicated, not too simple (with a couple of redundancies now and then, but nothing too bad from what I could see). Dialogues sound similar to the ones in the show. Overall, it indeed reads like a DW episode, and I liked that.
3.5/5 stars.
Second Twelfth Doctor novel I read, and one I liked better than Silhouette. I'd say it's typical-enough Doctor Who, perhaps closer to some of the older adventures than to the most recent ones, in its theme and some of its elements? Namely giant insects and technology snagged from the Nazis—there's always something both eyeroll-worthy yet deliciously "old-fashioned" to find in such aspects, as far as I'm concerned. ("Old-fashioned", in that it always reminds of older stories I was reading back when I was a kid and WWII/the Cold War were still present in our minds. Nowadays, these themes feel like they're going further and further away from us.)
The Doctor and Clara investigate mysterious cobwebs and mutant insects in a small village known for its ring of ancient stones, as well as a few other curious things (either in the present or in the past). At first, they don't seem to be really linked together, but the author makes all those lines converge together in a timely fashion.
Not having seen many episodes with Peter Capaldi as the Doctor, I'm not completely sure if the character in this book is really close to the one portrayed in the series. He felt close enough, at least, and clearly different from Eleven, at any rate. Clara isn't always present, and depending on whether you like her character or not, this will be a good or a bad thing. I wasn't too convinced, but that may be because I thought she didn't have too much of an important role (and she should have—this is the novel where we learn , after all).
A few editing mistakes/typos, that I hope aren't in the final printed version. The writing style's alright: not too complicated, not too simple (with a couple of redundancies now and then, but nothing too bad from what I could see). Dialogues sound similar to the ones in the show. Overall, it indeed reads like a DW episode, and I liked that.
3.5/5 stars.
June 3, 2023
Rating: 4.5 stars
It is really hard for authors to write media tie-in novels. Just think about it, all the main events of the franchise are already set in stone and you can't alter characters too much so that it doesn't work with the main timeline. For instance, in this book Clara can't die because she *departs* the show in a specific episode we all know but I can't name for spoiler reasons, so are we ever really worried for her? Even if you were reading this book before that episode aired, you would never actually believe Clara was in danger because Jenna Coleman was still signed on for the next however long. And the side characters, we know they are never going to come back because that would require audiences to read all the books to just watch the show.
Yet somehow this book was great. And not just "oh it's Doctor Who so of course it's great". No. Actual great. It had some full on creature/bug/blood-and-guts horror stuff going on which I am all here for. Lots of timey wimey stuff which is a DW staple at this point. And I know people say it's overdone, but any historical kind of setting surrounding WWII is awesome. AAAAAAHHHHHH this exceeded my expectations immensely.
It is really hard for authors to write media tie-in novels. Just think about it, all the main events of the franchise are already set in stone and you can't alter characters too much so that it doesn't work with the main timeline. For instance, in this book Clara can't die because she *departs* the show in a specific episode we all know but I can't name for spoiler reasons, so are we ever really worried for her? Even if you were reading this book before that episode aired, you would never actually believe Clara was in danger because Jenna Coleman was still signed on for the next however long. And the side characters, we know they are never going to come back because that would require audiences to read all the books to just watch the show.
Yet somehow this book was great. And not just "oh it's Doctor Who so of course it's great". No. Actual great. It had some full on creature/bug/blood-and-guts horror stuff going on which I am all here for. Lots of timey wimey stuff which is a DW staple at this point. And I know people say it's overdone, but any historical kind of setting surrounding WWII is awesome. AAAAAAHHHHHH this exceeded my expectations immensely.
June 1, 2018
In letzter Zeit bin ich auch von der Kombination Clara x 12. Doctor übersättigt und komme mit ihnen als Team nicht zurecht. Ich denke, dass der Doctor unglaubliches Potential als Charakter hat, doch kommt das nicht bei mir an. Weder in der Serie noch in dem Buch.
Das Buch lässt sich schnell lesen und ist gut gemacht. Es ist aber wie jede Doctor Who Folge: manche liegen einem und andere wiederum nicht. Diese Geschichte hier, war nichts für mich. Die Rieseninsekten klingen nach einem Gänsehaut-Buch, die typische 2. WK Thematik machen es dann wieder zu einer Doctor Who Folge. Sowohl Rieseninsekten, als auch 2. WK sind beides nicht meine Themen, weswegen ich an diesem Abenteuer keine Freude finden konnte.
Das Buch lässt sich schnell lesen und ist gut gemacht. Es ist aber wie jede Doctor Who Folge: manche liegen einem und andere wiederum nicht. Diese Geschichte hier, war nichts für mich. Die Rieseninsekten klingen nach einem Gänsehaut-Buch, die typische 2. WK Thematik machen es dann wieder zu einer Doctor Who Folge. Sowohl Rieseninsekten, als auch 2. WK sind beides nicht meine Themen, weswegen ich an diesem Abenteuer keine Freude finden konnte.
November 11, 2024
The Crawling Terror (Doctor Who: New Series Adventures #54) by Mike Tucker is a solid story featuring the 12th Doctor and Clara. The storyline itself is pretty decent, but I wasn't quite sold on Clara and the Doctor. I get that it's supposed to be earlier days for the 12th Doctor and that he's not all that well defined yet in terms of the tv show, but I was hoping for a bit more.
September 28, 2014
The Review: http://thefoundingfields.com/2014/09/....
“A fast paced, entertaining novel that reads very much like an episode of the series. It’s always fun, blending some wacky conspiracies with interesting enemies to keep the momentum high throughout the novel.” ~Bane of Kings, The Founding Fields
“Well, I doubt you’ll ever see a bigger insect.”
Gabby Nichols is putting her son to bed when she hears her daughter cry out. ‘Mummy there’s a daddy longlegs in my room!’ Then the screaming starts… Alan Travers is heading home from the pub when something rushes his face — a spider’s web. Then something huge and deadly lumbers from the shadows… Kevin Alperton is on his way to school when he is attacked by a mosquito. A big one. Then things get dangerous.
But it isn’t the dead man cocooned inside a huge mass of web that worries the Doctor. It isn’t the swarming, mutated insects that make him nervous. It isn’t an old man’s garbled memories of past dangers that intrigue him.
With the village cut off from the outside world, and the insects becoming more and more dangerous, the Doctor knows that no one is safe. Not unless he can decode the strange symbols engraved on an ancient stone circle, and unravel a mystery dating back to the Second World War.
I’ve been a massive fan of Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor so far, even if the individual episodes of Season 8 haven’t exactly been spectacular to say the least. So it was welcoming then that when I did actually get around to reading my first Doctor Who tie-in novel featuring the new Doctor, It wasn’t a complete disappoint, instead providing something that allowed for a read that’s just simply sheer fun, and feels more like a conspiracy thriller than Doctor Who has in ages, making The Crawling Terror as a result feel very much like Dan Brown with aliens.
The novel itself feels as though it could easily be an episode of the series (case in point, when writing novel in this sentence, I accidentally wrote episode first) and it’s got all your ingredients there – a typical English backdrop (in this case a small village) and an alien twist on something historical, However, with the advantage of a novelization, Tucker doesn’t have to be held back by the constraints of budget and time-limit, and allows to as a result create a fast paced thriller that works very well, and I had very little issues with this given its intentions as a tie-in.
The characters are familiar and Tucker gets the interaction between the Doctor and Clara very well, for example, a highlight early on is when they first arrive in Wiltshire (the location of the events in this novel), and Clara is disappointed that it’s not an alien planet, and just Wiltshire. The exchanges between these two continue throughout the novel and it’s no surprise that the book is at its strongest when the two are together. But not everything is perfect though – The Doctor himself feels a bit flat and underdeveloped as a character, with nothing really distinguishing himself to be the Twelfth Doctor. He could have easily been the Eleventh or even Tenth and I wouldn’t have noticed the difference, but that in large part is probably due to the fact that this novel was released (IIRC) before the first episode of the new series even aired, meaning that the writer was probably constrained by what he had to show as a result.
The secondary characters however shined when it came to this novel with a variety of people getting plenty of pagetime. It was good to see Tucker not just making everything about the two main recurring characters, and as a result this allowed for a better novel character-wise, which was very good to see.
The plot speeds along at a lightning-fast pace and if this was an episode of the series then It would most certainly be more in tune with the fast-paced The Bells of Saint John or The Eleventh Hour as opposed to the recent Listen episode. The conspiracy element of the novel works well and there’s a reasonable explanation for the mystery that’s presented here, which dates back to the Second World War in a big way. I liked how Tucker used the TARDIS in this novel as well, making a refreshing change from where writers in either the show itself or the novels only use it to get the Doctor to a location where he will stay still for an entire episode.
The Crawling Terror then, is a pretty good tie-in novel. Don’t go in expecting to read the novel equivalent of instant-classics like Blink or The Doctor’s Wife, but it’s very much one of the stronger ones that I’ve been able to read from the series. Doctor Who fans will be entertained by this one for sure, and as a result I can wholeheartedly recommend it.
VERDICT: 7.5/10
“A fast paced, entertaining novel that reads very much like an episode of the series. It’s always fun, blending some wacky conspiracies with interesting enemies to keep the momentum high throughout the novel.” ~Bane of Kings, The Founding Fields
“Well, I doubt you’ll ever see a bigger insect.”
Gabby Nichols is putting her son to bed when she hears her daughter cry out. ‘Mummy there’s a daddy longlegs in my room!’ Then the screaming starts… Alan Travers is heading home from the pub when something rushes his face — a spider’s web. Then something huge and deadly lumbers from the shadows… Kevin Alperton is on his way to school when he is attacked by a mosquito. A big one. Then things get dangerous.
But it isn’t the dead man cocooned inside a huge mass of web that worries the Doctor. It isn’t the swarming, mutated insects that make him nervous. It isn’t an old man’s garbled memories of past dangers that intrigue him.
With the village cut off from the outside world, and the insects becoming more and more dangerous, the Doctor knows that no one is safe. Not unless he can decode the strange symbols engraved on an ancient stone circle, and unravel a mystery dating back to the Second World War.
I’ve been a massive fan of Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor so far, even if the individual episodes of Season 8 haven’t exactly been spectacular to say the least. So it was welcoming then that when I did actually get around to reading my first Doctor Who tie-in novel featuring the new Doctor, It wasn’t a complete disappoint, instead providing something that allowed for a read that’s just simply sheer fun, and feels more like a conspiracy thriller than Doctor Who has in ages, making The Crawling Terror as a result feel very much like Dan Brown with aliens.
The novel itself feels as though it could easily be an episode of the series (case in point, when writing novel in this sentence, I accidentally wrote episode first) and it’s got all your ingredients there – a typical English backdrop (in this case a small village) and an alien twist on something historical, However, with the advantage of a novelization, Tucker doesn’t have to be held back by the constraints of budget and time-limit, and allows to as a result create a fast paced thriller that works very well, and I had very little issues with this given its intentions as a tie-in.
The characters are familiar and Tucker gets the interaction between the Doctor and Clara very well, for example, a highlight early on is when they first arrive in Wiltshire (the location of the events in this novel), and Clara is disappointed that it’s not an alien planet, and just Wiltshire. The exchanges between these two continue throughout the novel and it’s no surprise that the book is at its strongest when the two are together. But not everything is perfect though – The Doctor himself feels a bit flat and underdeveloped as a character, with nothing really distinguishing himself to be the Twelfth Doctor. He could have easily been the Eleventh or even Tenth and I wouldn’t have noticed the difference, but that in large part is probably due to the fact that this novel was released (IIRC) before the first episode of the new series even aired, meaning that the writer was probably constrained by what he had to show as a result.
The secondary characters however shined when it came to this novel with a variety of people getting plenty of pagetime. It was good to see Tucker not just making everything about the two main recurring characters, and as a result this allowed for a better novel character-wise, which was very good to see.
The plot speeds along at a lightning-fast pace and if this was an episode of the series then It would most certainly be more in tune with the fast-paced The Bells of Saint John or The Eleventh Hour as opposed to the recent Listen episode. The conspiracy element of the novel works well and there’s a reasonable explanation for the mystery that’s presented here, which dates back to the Second World War in a big way. I liked how Tucker used the TARDIS in this novel as well, making a refreshing change from where writers in either the show itself or the novels only use it to get the Doctor to a location where he will stay still for an entire episode.
The Crawling Terror then, is a pretty good tie-in novel. Don’t go in expecting to read the novel equivalent of instant-classics like Blink or The Doctor’s Wife, but it’s very much one of the stronger ones that I’ve been able to read from the series. Doctor Who fans will be entertained by this one for sure, and as a result I can wholeheartedly recommend it.
VERDICT: 7.5/10
March 3, 2023
It was so long ago as a kid but I loved this book. I remember it being creepy and very interesting with all the time travel. I was and still am forever a Doctor Who nerd.
September 18, 2014
Actual rating: not four stars in the way I gave, for example, The Luminaries four stars. And possibly more like 3.5, mostly for reasons of characterisation falling a bit flat.
And in general, this was pretty much a run-of-the-mill Doctor Who story, with all the elements one would expect - but then again, that's what one generally wants from a Doctor Who story, so marking it down for providing exactly what it is expected to would be a bit naff, wouldn't it?
Anyway, yeah, I actually enjoyed The Crawling Terror quite a lot. As said above, it offered pretty much everything one can want from a regular series tie-in: a familiar setting (in this case, a good old picture-perfect English countryside village) taken over by alien monsters, with the Doctor strolling in, getting himself and his companion involved and putting them in some danger and in the end saving the day with some clever technobabble and bravery.
If this makes it sound as if the story was unoriginal - then no, not really! I liked the plot and it felt fresh enough, especially with the way the time-travel aspect was weaved in. Several secondary characters were also rather nicely fleshed out.
The only issue I really had, and I wouldn't blame the author for this - I suspect this is something all three books in this first batch of Twelfth Doctor tie-in novels will have in common - is that the characterisation of the leads, the Doctor in particular, felt a bit flat. Other than a couple of moments, I didn't get at all a sense of this being the Twelfth Doctor in particular, as seen in (what is, at the point of writing this review) the first four episodes of his first season. I can only assume that the material the tie-in authors had to work with was rather restricted, possibly limited to character overviews and scripts, which wouldn't give a good idea of Peter Capaldi's on-screen performance of the Doctor or the on-screen chemistry in his Doctor's relationship with Clara.
That said, while the Doctor appeared to be more of a generic Doctor than Twelve, nothing in particular jumped out at me as wrong either. And being a Three fan, I appreciated the occasional little throwaway reference to him ("reversing the polarity" of various things in particular, but not only that!). In fact, the entire book had a strong feel of what a modern interpretation of Three's era (and UNIT) might feel like, and since I really love that particular period in the show's history, I'm not complaining about that at all!
* ARC of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review. Thanks!
And in general, this was pretty much a run-of-the-mill Doctor Who story, with all the elements one would expect - but then again, that's what one generally wants from a Doctor Who story, so marking it down for providing exactly what it is expected to would be a bit naff, wouldn't it?
Anyway, yeah, I actually enjoyed The Crawling Terror quite a lot. As said above, it offered pretty much everything one can want from a regular series tie-in: a familiar setting (in this case, a good old picture-perfect English countryside village) taken over by alien monsters, with the Doctor strolling in, getting himself and his companion involved and putting them in some danger and in the end saving the day with some clever technobabble and bravery.
If this makes it sound as if the story was unoriginal - then no, not really! I liked the plot and it felt fresh enough, especially with the way the time-travel aspect was weaved in. Several secondary characters were also rather nicely fleshed out.
The only issue I really had, and I wouldn't blame the author for this - I suspect this is something all three books in this first batch of Twelfth Doctor tie-in novels will have in common - is that the characterisation of the leads, the Doctor in particular, felt a bit flat. Other than a couple of moments, I didn't get at all a sense of this being the Twelfth Doctor in particular, as seen in (what is, at the point of writing this review) the first four episodes of his first season. I can only assume that the material the tie-in authors had to work with was rather restricted, possibly limited to character overviews and scripts, which wouldn't give a good idea of Peter Capaldi's on-screen performance of the Doctor or the on-screen chemistry in his Doctor's relationship with Clara.
That said, while the Doctor appeared to be more of a generic Doctor than Twelve, nothing in particular jumped out at me as wrong either. And being a Three fan, I appreciated the occasional little throwaway reference to him ("reversing the polarity" of various things in particular, but not only that!). In fact, the entire book had a strong feel of what a modern interpretation of Three's era (and UNIT) might feel like, and since I really love that particular period in the show's history, I'm not complaining about that at all!
* ARC of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review. Thanks!
September 14, 2014
We're raced through the terrors of giant insects at normal Doctor-speed (that is, barely time to breathe) while Peter Capaldi is still getting accustomed to his twelfth incarnation. As always, he seems to trust to luck as much as intuition and skill to save the day while Clara risks everything to prevent an old-school plot to take over the world with plenty of historical parallels, and as always he offers his opponent a chance at redemption.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
September 12, 2016
Další super jednohubka. Mám tyhle Doctor knihy ráda - a i když Dvanáctku zrovna nemusím (nevím, proč jsem si místy představovala Jedenáctku), tak jsem se bavila. Stejně tak s Clarou. Ty hmyzáci by tam sice být nemuseli, protože je nemám ráda, ale přežila jsem.
3.5/5*
3.5/5*
February 15, 2016
3.5/5
October 27, 2018
A sleepy English village is soon cut off by various large insects and arachnids.
There’s a really 70’s/UNIT vibe to this story!
There’s a really 70’s/UNIT vibe to this story!
May 16, 2017
!Doo wee oooh!
4.5 out of 5 extraterrestrial stars!
Check out this review on my blog -> authorrealityjumper.wordpress.com
First of all, this book was mental. Giant bugs? Get me the hell out of here. I would have DIED. I hate bugs. Imagine giant roaches. I'm having a heart-attack just thinking about it. Good God, help us all.
This was the most recent buddy read I did with my friend Brooklyn (follow her at brooklynthebookworm!), and not the first Doctor Who book we've read with 12. And 12 is one of my favorites. I love him to death. But thus far, most of the books with 12 had not been able to collect and portray his personality very well in book-form, which broke my heart. There was one we read recently that was simply dreadful, and I never give two-star ratings. The only good thing about that book was the beautiful cover. Other than that, I wanted to cry. That's how dreadful it was. Like, beyond horrid. It was all over the place. Even Clara was well written, and the side characters were fabulous. I love seeing how different people react to the Doctor.
But thankfully, that wasn't the case with The Crawling Terror. This book was action filled from the moment it began. And I kid you not, we essentially didn't learn where these monsters bugs were coming from until more than halfway through the book. I honestly thought people were making bugs genetically bigger, which is what everything made me lean towards, but that wasn't the case!
Most of them were bloody aliens. Aliens supposedly outcast from their society and were searching for a new planet to inhabit. Sounds like a lot of Doctor Who episodes, so the plot fit in with the universe perfectly.
Brooklyn and I talked about this a lot, but I kid you not, guys. The action never stopped. It was there right up until the very end, and when I mean end, I mean like the last chapter. Even the epilogue was a little bit there too. But I won't spoil it for you.
If you're a history buff like Brooklyn and I are, you'll enjoy this. And if you're in love with 12, like me, definitely give this a read. I'd probably advise not at night, in case of when you put and down and try to sleep and begin to imagine the noises of giant bugs coming for you. Or maybe that was just me. My cat staring blankly at a wall wasn't helping any.
4.5 out of 5 extraterrestrial stars!
Check out this review on my blog -> authorrealityjumper.wordpress.com
First of all, this book was mental. Giant bugs? Get me the hell out of here. I would have DIED. I hate bugs. Imagine giant roaches. I'm having a heart-attack just thinking about it. Good God, help us all.
This was the most recent buddy read I did with my friend Brooklyn (follow her at brooklynthebookworm!), and not the first Doctor Who book we've read with 12. And 12 is one of my favorites. I love him to death. But thus far, most of the books with 12 had not been able to collect and portray his personality very well in book-form, which broke my heart. There was one we read recently that was simply dreadful, and I never give two-star ratings. The only good thing about that book was the beautiful cover. Other than that, I wanted to cry. That's how dreadful it was. Like, beyond horrid. It was all over the place. Even Clara was well written, and the side characters were fabulous. I love seeing how different people react to the Doctor.
But thankfully, that wasn't the case with The Crawling Terror. This book was action filled from the moment it began. And I kid you not, we essentially didn't learn where these monsters bugs were coming from until more than halfway through the book. I honestly thought people were making bugs genetically bigger, which is what everything made me lean towards, but that wasn't the case!
Most of them were bloody aliens. Aliens supposedly outcast from their society and were searching for a new planet to inhabit. Sounds like a lot of Doctor Who episodes, so the plot fit in with the universe perfectly.
Brooklyn and I talked about this a lot, but I kid you not, guys. The action never stopped. It was there right up until the very end, and when I mean end, I mean like the last chapter. Even the epilogue was a little bit there too. But I won't spoil it for you.
If you're a history buff like Brooklyn and I are, you'll enjoy this. And if you're in love with 12, like me, definitely give this a read. I'd probably advise not at night, in case of when you put and down and try to sleep and begin to imagine the noises of giant bugs coming for you. Or maybe that was just me. My cat staring blankly at a wall wasn't helping any.
October 30, 2020
This reminded me a lot of Stephen King’s “the Mist”. However, instead of mist it’s creepy webs and the body count and reach seems lower here. But the creepy facility with experimental research, massive bug like creatures, scared confused masses, etc. All there. But this one has some fun twists.
I must say I don’t care for the way the 12th dr gets portrayed in the novels (not just this one). I feel like the descriptions aren’t doing justice to the personality and flare capaldi brought to him. And none of the narrators seem to be making more than a minor attempt to voice his accent (and in most, Clara comes off more whiny toned than she is in the show.) but this title seems to be a better job of it.
I enjoyed it for sure.
I must say I don’t care for the way the 12th dr gets portrayed in the novels (not just this one). I feel like the descriptions aren’t doing justice to the personality and flare capaldi brought to him. And none of the narrators seem to be making more than a minor attempt to voice his accent (and in most, Clara comes off more whiny toned than she is in the show.) but this title seems to be a better job of it.
I enjoyed it for sure.
March 22, 2024
Actual rating 2.5 stars
Confusing and filled with forgettable characters. The villain was very basic and cartoon-like (wearing a Phantom-of-the-Opera-esque mask of all things) and the monsters were just okay. Pacing was off with too much clustered on the last 25 pages or so. Interesting ideas but didn't love the execution.
Confusing and filled with forgettable characters. The villain was very basic and cartoon-like (wearing a Phantom-of-the-Opera-esque mask of all things) and the monsters were just okay. Pacing was off with too much clustered on the last 25 pages or so. Interesting ideas but didn't love the execution.
January 9, 2025
A solidly entertaining Twelfth Doctor and Clara adventure, which compares with the best of their first series together. Extra points to the author for rendering the Twelfth Doctor so well, despite this being a very early novel for that incarnation. (B+)
August 8, 2024
I NEED THIS TO BE A MOVIE!!!
June 18, 2023
So it had been a long time since i read a 12th doctor book and decided to give this one a try since it was one of the ones in my collection and......yeah this one wasn't very good.
Essentially there's giant evil bugs attacking a small town and the doctor has to find out what's up. There's Nazis and portals and.....it just feels DULL. That's the problem with this.
To me, this book feels like the author reached into a hat and pulled out nouns and cobbled together a story.
*reaches into a hat* let's see..... "Giant Bugs" .... "Ley Lines"... "Nazis". Okay cool, i can work with that. This story felt like the author was going through the motions but there was no heart in it. Definitely felt like a paycheck book.
The doctor..was..KIND of in character at times, but other times felt more cold and callous than usual while Clara just seemed moderately annoyed at the situation rather than worried or afraid or anything. This felt more like a late Clara episode rather than an earlier one from the beginning of Capaldi's run.
That's what i would call this book. An episode. a very average/meh episode. Maybe somewhere along the lines of... 'In the Forest of the Night' or "Flatline". Not one of the greats, or even the GOOD. Just a big fat unmemorable, meh.
All the side characters started to meld together for me and the weird desire to focus on the army characters was an odd decision i really didn't care for.
The villains were generic "i want to take over the world" Lobster bug aliens. Something you'd see from like Pertwee's era. and you could just imagine how stupid they would look.
When all's said and done, this book is definitely a less than good experience that i can't in good conscience give a 3 to. I would give it a 2.5 as it reads fine, it just felt like the book would never end despite only being 250 pages. and yet, that 250 pages took me NINETEEN DAYS. So, that being said, i'm giving this book a 2.5 out of 5 rounded down to a 2. Can we PLEASE have ONE MORE decent 12th doctor book besides Silhoutte? PLEASE?!
2.5 out of 5 rounded down to a 2.
Essentially there's giant evil bugs attacking a small town and the doctor has to find out what's up. There's Nazis and portals and.....it just feels DULL. That's the problem with this.
To me, this book feels like the author reached into a hat and pulled out nouns and cobbled together a story.
*reaches into a hat* let's see..... "Giant Bugs" .... "Ley Lines"... "Nazis". Okay cool, i can work with that. This story felt like the author was going through the motions but there was no heart in it. Definitely felt like a paycheck book.
The doctor..was..KIND of in character at times, but other times felt more cold and callous than usual while Clara just seemed moderately annoyed at the situation rather than worried or afraid or anything. This felt more like a late Clara episode rather than an earlier one from the beginning of Capaldi's run.
That's what i would call this book. An episode. a very average/meh episode. Maybe somewhere along the lines of... 'In the Forest of the Night' or "Flatline". Not one of the greats, or even the GOOD. Just a big fat unmemorable, meh.
All the side characters started to meld together for me and the weird desire to focus on the army characters was an odd decision i really didn't care for.
The villains were generic "i want to take over the world" Lobster bug aliens. Something you'd see from like Pertwee's era. and you could just imagine how stupid they would look.
When all's said and done, this book is definitely a less than good experience that i can't in good conscience give a 3 to. I would give it a 2.5 as it reads fine, it just felt like the book would never end despite only being 250 pages. and yet, that 250 pages took me NINETEEN DAYS. So, that being said, i'm giving this book a 2.5 out of 5 rounded down to a 2. Can we PLEASE have ONE MORE decent 12th doctor book besides Silhoutte? PLEASE?!
2.5 out of 5 rounded down to a 2.
dnf
June 2, 2017This is why I prefer watching sci-fi to reading it.
I bored for about 30 pages of this book . And don't get me wrong I love Doctor Who (I'm a Whovian after all. That was the reason why I bought it from the first place !!). I should have considered the plot before buying this book.
I bored for about 30 pages of this book . And don't get me wrong I love Doctor Who (I'm a Whovian after all. That was the reason why I bought it from the first place !!). I should have considered the plot before buying this book.
September 10, 2014
Being a Doctor Who fan these days is interesting. What was once a more solitary fandom has now become more social. Where it was once just me enjoying my VHS copies of the stories and haunting my local bookstores for the latest novel, it seems like these days you can't turn around twice without seeing Doctor Who merchandise for sale everywhere.
It's become so pervasive that there were copies of "Deep Breath" for sale in Wal-Mart the other day. Wal-Mart! It appears we're in a golden age for tie-in merchandise to my favorite series.
And with a new Doctor arriving on the scene, it seems that the BBC is doing all it can to capitalize on fan enthusiasm, starting with the release of three new Peter Capaldi Doctor stories this week. Thanks to the kind people at NetGalley, I was able to secure ARC copies of the books a week or so before Capaldi made his debut on our screens. But being the obsessive fan that I am, I couldn't bring myself to crack the digital covers of the books until I'd at least seen his debut story. I didn't want to unintentionally spoil myself on details of the first story or to create any more notions of what I wanted from the Capaldi Doctor.
First up in the reading list was Mike Tucker's The Crawling Terror. The Doctor and Clara arrive in a small town that is literally crawling with giant, potentially deadly insects. Investigating further, the Doctor uncovers unnatural experiments taking place that could have a tie to British and German experiments from the second World War and a potential alien invasion just waiting to happen.
While the concept of an alien invasion of our planet through the U.K. isn't necessarily the most original Doctor Who plot, Tucker throws in just enough references to the classic and new series and gives it just enough of a twist that I didn't necessarily mind that much. I'm also impressed with how well Tucker had translated Capladi's take on the Doctor to the printed page. There are many instances where I could hear Capaldi delivering the dialogue that Tucker gives the Doctor. Clara is also well served by the story and feels authentic as well.
It makes me curious how much background material Tucker and his fellow authors were given to the early episodes. Did they read scripts or see test footage?Was it BBC sanctioned or did they have to get the scripts and footage via alternate means (since the first five scripts and working prints of a couple of episodes leaked to the Internet).
Whatever the case, Tucker does a solid job with The Crawling Terror. The story is effective and creepy.
As I said before, I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
It's become so pervasive that there were copies of "Deep Breath" for sale in Wal-Mart the other day. Wal-Mart! It appears we're in a golden age for tie-in merchandise to my favorite series.
And with a new Doctor arriving on the scene, it seems that the BBC is doing all it can to capitalize on fan enthusiasm, starting with the release of three new Peter Capaldi Doctor stories this week. Thanks to the kind people at NetGalley, I was able to secure ARC copies of the books a week or so before Capaldi made his debut on our screens. But being the obsessive fan that I am, I couldn't bring myself to crack the digital covers of the books until I'd at least seen his debut story. I didn't want to unintentionally spoil myself on details of the first story or to create any more notions of what I wanted from the Capaldi Doctor.
First up in the reading list was Mike Tucker's The Crawling Terror. The Doctor and Clara arrive in a small town that is literally crawling with giant, potentially deadly insects. Investigating further, the Doctor uncovers unnatural experiments taking place that could have a tie to British and German experiments from the second World War and a potential alien invasion just waiting to happen.
While the concept of an alien invasion of our planet through the U.K. isn't necessarily the most original Doctor Who plot, Tucker throws in just enough references to the classic and new series and gives it just enough of a twist that I didn't necessarily mind that much. I'm also impressed with how well Tucker had translated Capladi's take on the Doctor to the printed page. There are many instances where I could hear Capaldi delivering the dialogue that Tucker gives the Doctor. Clara is also well served by the story and feels authentic as well.
It makes me curious how much background material Tucker and his fellow authors were given to the early episodes. Did they read scripts or see test footage?Was it BBC sanctioned or did they have to get the scripts and footage via alternate means (since the first five scripts and working prints of a couple of episodes leaked to the Internet).
Whatever the case, Tucker does a solid job with The Crawling Terror. The story is effective and creepy.
As I said before, I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
April 23, 2021
This book had a bunch of problems for me-- especially near the beginning. It really picked up near the middle but slacked off again near the end.
Part of my problem with this book is wrapped up in this is very solidly Moffat era Who and also very early on in 12s run; so finding out who he is, especially coming over from 11 and his new chemistry with Clara can be difficult. It also suffers again from choices that I don't agree with, like 12's mad hate -on for soldiers. (and while I can understand his hate-on for the military en masse, I dislike the idea that the individual soldier is someone to be hated on) Though I didn't think 12's attitude to the military really had to extend outward through other characters.
As for the book itself. Mostly in the beginning it suffered from the characters being flat and throughout most of the characters were flat. Charley really came into his own but even now I don't remember much about the others other than them being roles in the adventure.
Clara wasn't given much to do but wander around and find things, be the answer procuring exposition fairy and be damseled. While she did get some action in, the majority of her role was to be there and provide information and to be rescued by the Doctor. As stated their chemistry was pretty non-existent. Granted she had just made the transition from 11 to 12 but aside from that mention, it was difficult to tell how she felt about him if anything. (Aside from the usual affection and oh the Doctor is the best and can do anything and I have complete faith in him etc that is super typical of the Moffat era)
On the technical side of things, the writing was a bit bare bones and had insects roaring and bellowing anger and pain
Finally the Doctor was a bit bland in the beginning. But near the middle you can really start to hear his voice and it remains solid near the end.
Him and Charley have a great dynamic, as well as him and the mainish antagonist. It wasn't entirely clear. I really sort of got the feeling that writing female characters was not a particular strength as they came off fairly flat to me.
I think I would read this book again. I probably wouldn't give it away. But I wouldn't call it good. Nor would I call it bad. It's just okay. Had potential to be better, but was hamstrung by what it had to work with.
Part of my problem with this book is wrapped up in this is very solidly Moffat era Who and also very early on in 12s run; so finding out who he is, especially coming over from 11 and his new chemistry with Clara can be difficult. It also suffers again from choices that I don't agree with, like 12's mad hate -on for soldiers. (and while I can understand his hate-on for the military en masse, I dislike the idea that the individual soldier is someone to be hated on) Though I didn't think 12's attitude to the military really had to extend outward through other characters.
As for the book itself. Mostly in the beginning it suffered from the characters being flat and throughout most of the characters were flat. Charley really came into his own but even now I don't remember much about the others other than them being roles in the adventure.
Clara wasn't given much to do but wander around and find things, be the answer procuring exposition fairy and be damseled. While she did get some action in, the majority of her role was to be there and provide information and to be rescued by the Doctor. As stated their chemistry was pretty non-existent. Granted she had just made the transition from 11 to 12 but aside from that mention, it was difficult to tell how she felt about him if anything. (Aside from the usual affection and oh the Doctor is the best and can do anything and I have complete faith in him etc that is super typical of the Moffat era)
On the technical side of things, the writing was a bit bare bones and had insects roaring and bellowing anger and pain
Finally the Doctor was a bit bland in the beginning. But near the middle you can really start to hear his voice and it remains solid near the end.
Him and Charley have a great dynamic, as well as him and the mainish antagonist. It wasn't entirely clear. I really sort of got the feeling that writing female characters was not a particular strength as they came off fairly flat to me.
I think I would read this book again. I probably wouldn't give it away. But I wouldn't call it good. Nor would I call it bad. It's just okay. Had potential to be better, but was hamstrung by what it had to work with.
August 18, 2014
READ IN ENGLISH
Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!
Publication Date: September 9th 2014
I anticipation of the new Doctor Who series (where we'll finally get to know the new Doctor) I'm reading/reviewing a few of the new Doctor Who Books. If you want to catch up, you can read my reviews for Touched by an Angel (Weeping Angels) and The Engines of War ("Ex-ter-mi-nate!"), featuring my two favourite Doctor who monsters.
The Crawling Terror is a new kind of book for me on a number of levels, for it is the first Doctor who novel I've read that featured either Clara (I don't like her), the 12th Doctor, or adversaries that are not already iconic, like the Daleks for example.
Do you like insects? And spiders? Then you're just going to love this story, as some massive insects and spiders feature in it. Giant spiders are nothing new of course (think for example Harry Potter, or Middle Earth) but they never fail to freak people out. I, myself was scared by the thought of giant mosquitoes, as I always try to stay away from even the little ones.
The TARDIS brings Clara and the new Doctor to a little village in England, under attack by said insects and arachnids. It looks like the local science park might be responsible, but just what has it all to do with an alien species and a military experiment completely gone wrong?
The story started quite creepy actually, something I don't always experience in Doctor Who. There was a rising tension as the villagers tried to run from the attack. The second half or so of the story is more bizarre as everything (well, almost everything, but no Daleks) gets thrown into the plot, like Nazis, time travel and aliens. What's a good story without them?
It didn't always feel like this was a different Doctor during the novel. This is most likely due to the fact we've only seen so few of him, that I wouldn't know how to describe him except that he's older than the last few Doctors. I'm sure this will all be solved after the new series starts. I still don't like Clara, but that's not the fault of the book.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read, but perhaps a bit too bizarre for me at times. It still read as an episode from the series, which I think is precisely what one wants when reading these books. For my little Doctor Who project I've got two more books that will be read in the coming week(s): The Blood Cell and Silhouette.
Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!
Publication Date: September 9th 2014
I anticipation of the new Doctor Who series (where we'll finally get to know the new Doctor) I'm reading/reviewing a few of the new Doctor Who Books. If you want to catch up, you can read my reviews for Touched by an Angel (Weeping Angels) and The Engines of War ("Ex-ter-mi-nate!"), featuring my two favourite Doctor who monsters.
The Crawling Terror is a new kind of book for me on a number of levels, for it is the first Doctor who novel I've read that featured either Clara (I don't like her), the 12th Doctor, or adversaries that are not already iconic, like the Daleks for example.
Do you like insects? And spiders? Then you're just going to love this story, as some massive insects and spiders feature in it. Giant spiders are nothing new of course (think for example Harry Potter, or Middle Earth) but they never fail to freak people out. I, myself was scared by the thought of giant mosquitoes, as I always try to stay away from even the little ones.
The TARDIS brings Clara and the new Doctor to a little village in England, under attack by said insects and arachnids. It looks like the local science park might be responsible, but just what has it all to do with an alien species and a military experiment completely gone wrong?
The story started quite creepy actually, something I don't always experience in Doctor Who. There was a rising tension as the villagers tried to run from the attack. The second half or so of the story is more bizarre as everything (well, almost everything, but no Daleks) gets thrown into the plot, like Nazis, time travel and aliens. What's a good story without them?
It didn't always feel like this was a different Doctor during the novel. This is most likely due to the fact we've only seen so few of him, that I wouldn't know how to describe him except that he's older than the last few Doctors. I'm sure this will all be solved after the new series starts. I still don't like Clara, but that's not the fault of the book.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read, but perhaps a bit too bizarre for me at times. It still read as an episode from the series, which I think is precisely what one wants when reading these books. For my little Doctor Who project I've got two more books that will be read in the coming week(s): The Blood Cell and Silhouette.
August 21, 2014
Mysteries from WWII, giant insects, alien consciousness, and small towns in the English country side.
Sounds like an episode of Doctor Who to me.
Actually, The Crawling Terror by Mike Tucker will almost never be made into an actual episode because the CGI cost would be too high, however, with a good imagination Tucker's book is the next best thing or perhaps even better for book loving Whovians.
I was highly impressed with Tucker's offering.
First because he did such a beautiful job of structuring his plot and characters.
I mean, this was the first of the three Whovian novels I was given that actually describes the Doctor's new face. Furthermore, not content to leave his readers there, Tucker explores the changing nature of Clara and the Doctor's relationship now that 11 is gone. The delight Tucker seemed to take writing nuances into his story whether they were character traits, sarcastic quips, or plot points worthy of an episode made me feel that someone who respects Who was behind the novel (I have no idea and should probably go look up Tucker's background).
Secondly, Tucker presented an amazing story because, although I love stories set in England and especially ones that bring in WWII, I am equally against stories that feature giant, mutant insects that take over towns. Somehow, despite my own crawling terror up and down my back (I really hate bugs) I was riveted throughout the story. It takes an excellent story to override my distaste for bugs and keep me wanting more so for that I salute you Tucker.
As far as the bones of this story go, I acknowledge my copy may end up slightly different after final edits but the flow, structure and pacing all felt comfortable. For those familiar with the show the surprises were in content not in jarring literary techniques. I think this contributed to my enjoyment of the book as Doctor Who, even in its most uncomfortable always seems to follow the same flow and core rules, it feels like a friend and that's how this book read.
4.5 out of 5 stars.
I received this book from NetGallery in exchange for my honest review. The opinions are my own. Also posted at http://kindredspiritsandeverydayfairy...
Sounds like an episode of Doctor Who to me.
Actually, The Crawling Terror by Mike Tucker will almost never be made into an actual episode because the CGI cost would be too high, however, with a good imagination Tucker's book is the next best thing or perhaps even better for book loving Whovians.
I was highly impressed with Tucker's offering.
First because he did such a beautiful job of structuring his plot and characters.
I mean, this was the first of the three Whovian novels I was given that actually describes the Doctor's new face. Furthermore, not content to leave his readers there, Tucker explores the changing nature of Clara and the Doctor's relationship now that 11 is gone. The delight Tucker seemed to take writing nuances into his story whether they were character traits, sarcastic quips, or plot points worthy of an episode made me feel that someone who respects Who was behind the novel (I have no idea and should probably go look up Tucker's background).
Secondly, Tucker presented an amazing story because, although I love stories set in England and especially ones that bring in WWII, I am equally against stories that feature giant, mutant insects that take over towns. Somehow, despite my own crawling terror up and down my back (I really hate bugs) I was riveted throughout the story. It takes an excellent story to override my distaste for bugs and keep me wanting more so for that I salute you Tucker.
As far as the bones of this story go, I acknowledge my copy may end up slightly different after final edits but the flow, structure and pacing all felt comfortable. For those familiar with the show the surprises were in content not in jarring literary techniques. I think this contributed to my enjoyment of the book as Doctor Who, even in its most uncomfortable always seems to follow the same flow and core rules, it feels like a friend and that's how this book read.
4.5 out of 5 stars.
I received this book from NetGallery in exchange for my honest review. The opinions are my own. Also posted at http://kindredspiritsandeverydayfairy...
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