Cyberman 2

Cyberman #2

by James Swallow, Mark McDonnell (Narrator), Hannah Smith (Narrator)

2.1 'Outsiders'. Earth has fallen to the Cybermen, but the war has only just begun.... Across the planet the silver legions stand impassive in every city; mankind has sacrificed its freedoms for the sake of a distant conflict against its android creations, and now the price must be paid. On the streets and in the depths of space, a web of lies and deceit draws ever tighter, and the lines between human and android, between enemy and ally, are blurred. One choice remains - resist or surrender.... 2.2 'Terror'. A secret war is raging - a war with no soldiers, only casualties.... Two species - one organic, one synthetic - face the greatest challenge to their the cold logic and ancient power of the Cybermen. Earth lies trapped between oppression and destruction, and the future is shrouded in darkness. Plans are drawn, and choices are made; but the hidden truth that lurks in the shadows may be more terrible than anyone could imagine.... 2.3 'Machines'. All war is deception. As the conspiracy of hate and distrust brings death in its wake, the sinister plans of the Cybermen are revealed, and events move on a collision course as the invaders prepare for the final phase of their rebirth. Only a handful of rebels, human and android, stand ready to confront their common enemy; but if they cannot trust themselves, then the battle is already lost.... 2.4 'Extinction'. In the war for the future, fear is the only weapon. The Cybermen are triumphant; nothing can stand in their way. First they will absorb mankind and obliterate their android spawn; then they will stride the stars once more, to transform the galaxy into an empire of icy, flawless logic. The battle must end; only one race will emerge victorious.

Written by James Swallow and directed by Nicholas Briggs.

Genres: Doctor Who, Science Fiction, Audiobook

Audible Audio

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

James Swallow is a New York Times, Sunday Times and Amazon #1 bestselling author and scriptwriter, a BAFTA nominee, a former journalist and the award-winning writer of over sixty-five books, along with scripts for video games, comics, radio and television.

DARK HORIZON, his latest stand-alone thriller, is out now from Mountain Leopard Press, and OUTLAW, the 6th action-packed Marc Dane novel, is published by Bonnier.

Along with the Marc Dane thrillers, his writing includes, the Sundowners steampunk Westerns and fiction from the worlds of Star Trek, Tom Clancy, 24, Warhammer 40000, Doctor Who, Deus Ex, Stargate, 2000AD and many more.

For information on new releases & more, sign up to the Readers’ Club here: www.bit.ly/JamesSwallow

Visit James's website at http://www.jswallow.com/ for more, including ROUGH AIR, a free eBook novella in the Marc Dane series.

You can also follow James on Bluesky at @jmswallow.bsky.social, Twitter at @jmswallow, Mastodon at @jmswallow@mstdn.social and jmswallow.tumblr.com at Tumblr.

Reviews

[Rick · Rating 3 out of 5]

(2.1) Outsiders - This initial chapter for the second series seems to be off to a good start. The previous series really just felt like a reworking of the themes and narrative elements from the Dalek Empire but substituting the Cybermen for the Daleks. This one feels like it’s taking stuff in a different direction.

(2.2) Terror - Another exciting chapter, the intrigue, subterfuge and menace grows.

(2.3) Machines - Things building toward a thrilling, and inevitable, climax.

(2.4) Extinction - Well, that wraps it up. I suppose. Although, it felt like it’s still got some possibilities for a Cyberman 3. Maybe. Who knows. My take away here though was: “the truth will set you free” or that “the assimilation will continue” - take your pick.

[Jan Dercon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great continuation from the earlier 4 part story.

This also has 4 parts.

Listened to the 'behind the scenes' and enjoyed that as well :D

Maybe there's room for a Cyberman 3, I at least hope so.
Really loved the story.

Available on Spotify

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this better than the first book. Loved the logic bomb used at the end very much like something Captain Kirk would do to make a robot explode.

[Graeme O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

An eerie, atmospheric Cyberman thriller without a Doctor to swoop in and save the day. High stakes and excellent character work make this a riveting listen.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my Cyber Monday listen. Quite the time investment, but the acting is as intense as it needs to be.

[Jamie Revell · Rating 5 out of 5]

The much-delayed sequel to Nicholas Briggs's Cyberman, this is another 4-part audio mini-series set in the Doctor Who universe. Notably, it does not include, or even mention, the Doctor, or any other characters from the TV series. While some might find that off-putting, to me, it's an excellent example of how the DW universe can be bigger than the one character it's undeniably built around.

The story is set a few centuries into the future, during the early days of the first Earth Empire, when a number of off-world colonies exist, but the bulk of the human population remains on Earth. The plot has two main strands, with one following the only surviving protagonists of the first mini-series, and the other following taxi driver Hazel as she becomes reluctantly involved in the resistance against an increasingly dictatorial Earth government.

The tone of the story is darker and grittier than typical DW fare, in some respects being closer to Torchwood. A major theme is the distrust between humans and their android creations, a distrust that is being exploited by the Cybermen (who, if anything, feel even less kinship to the androids than to the humans - there being no organic parts to cyber-convert).

It's clear from the beginning that the ending is not going to be an entirely happy one, and the cold logic of the Cybermen is played up as much as the body horror of cyber-conversion. In this respect, it's also notable that the Cybermen here are apparently the "Mk II" variant seen in TV stories like Tomb of the Cybermen, whose voices are more inhuman than those of the '70s and '80s.

In giving this 5 stars, I would have to admit that I'm comparing like with like, rather than saying this is up to the standards of the greatest science fiction novelists of our age. But I did find it a refreshing and very different take on the DW universe, a type of story that really couldn't be told if the Doctor was anywhere nearby. Within that context, it's a successful and grimly atmospheric tale. If there is a comparison to be made with the TV series, we'd have to go back to the early days when the Doctor was not yet the force of nature he would later become, and say that this is reminiscent, perhaps, of The Dalek Invasion of Earth.

[Debra Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great continuation of the Cyberman series. They failed the first time but that doesn't stop them from trying again. And the humans fight till the very end with help from an half human half synthetic entity. Enjoy the the very end.

[Lauren · Rating 2 out of 5]

Contains four audios: Outsiders, Terror, Machines, and Extinction.