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Eighth Doctor Adventures #15
Doctor Who: The Scarlet Empress
Arriving on the almost impossibly ancient planet of Hyspero, a world where magic and danger walk hand in hand, the Doctor and Sam are caught up in a bizarre struggle for survival.Hyspero has been ruled for thousands of years by the Scarlet Empresses, creatures of dangerous powers -- powers that a member of the Doctor's own race is keen to possess herself; the eccentric time traveler and philanderer Iris Wildthyme.
The Doctor and Sam themselves must escape the clutches of the dying Scarlet Empress, and they encounter many strange creatures on their travels -- bearded ladies, humanoid mock turtles, transvestite cyborgs and many more -- but in a land where the magical is possible, is anything really as it seems?
The Doctor and Sam themselves must escape the clutches of the dying Scarlet Empress, and they encounter many strange creatures on their travels -- bearded ladies, humanoid mock turtles, transvestite cyborgs and many more -- but in a land where the magical is possible, is anything really as it seems?
283 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 7, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
June 19, 2015
So here we have the Doctor Who novel as post-modern magic realism.
I’ve made this point before, but it really is worth reiterating: the Doctor Who format genuinely and absolutely allows the writer to do anything. At its most basic it’s a mad man in a box who travels through space and time, but that’s such a loose and elastic format it opens the door to virtually any possible story. From comic romps to gothic horror to love stories to examinations of society – in Doctor Who all things are possible. And here Paul Magrs gives it the full on post-modern literary experience.
In his afterward Magrs makes clear that for him the novelizations of Doctor Who were far more important to him than the TV series. The TV show was a creaky BBC production, while the books – because they required imagination, rather than shaky sets in Shepherd’s Bush – truly stretched the mind. His love and belief in the importance of the written word seeps into every page of his first Doctor Who novel, and as such this is a book impossible to ever imagine translated into TV form. Much more science fantasy than science fiction, it includes mock turtles, guards made of glass, a whale who saves the day by swallowing everyone and story-hungry talking birds. But more than that, it includes shifting perspectives, unreliable narration and the full bag of post-modern literary tricks. Written in what were the then the post TV series era (after the failed Paul McGann film), this is a book which is consciously and deliberately post the TV show.
The Doctor and his companion Sam arrive in the bazaar city Hyspero on a planet also called Hyspero. After finding a kidnapped lizard man, the two encounter Iris Wildthyme, another renegade Timelord, whose Tardis is a London bus that’s slightly smaller on inside than it is on the out. She’s on a quest to bring together a once legendary group of mutant crimefighers, which The Scarlet Empress, the terrifying ruler who keeps Hyspero in a fearsome grip, demands to see. From there the book riffs on The X Man, Alice in Wonderland, Star Wars and many other texts. Putting them all in a blender with Doctor Who itself and whizzing it around to create a fresh and bizarre poo-pourri.
Some people will undoubtedly consider this book poncy and full of itself, indeed this book wears its ponciness of full of itselfness with pride, but I actually liked the ponciness and full of itselfness. If you’ve been an English literature student and have done all that textual analysis and deconstruction and often quite up itself shit, then a book like this can’t help but entrain you. Where it annoyed was in being so ponderous. This is a novel whose playful self-importance means that it sometimes loses itself in admiration of its own wonder and the reader can only drum his fingers impatiently waiting for the plot to push on.
So not a perfect book, but to the right mindset, an intriguing and frequently amusing book. And in Iris Wildthyme was have a truly fantastic character, a walking feminist, high-camp, textual deconstruction of The Doctor, who in her spiky forthrightness is more than just a symbol, but a wonderfully alive and realised character herself.
I’ve made this point before, but it really is worth reiterating: the Doctor Who format genuinely and absolutely allows the writer to do anything. At its most basic it’s a mad man in a box who travels through space and time, but that’s such a loose and elastic format it opens the door to virtually any possible story. From comic romps to gothic horror to love stories to examinations of society – in Doctor Who all things are possible. And here Paul Magrs gives it the full on post-modern literary experience.
In his afterward Magrs makes clear that for him the novelizations of Doctor Who were far more important to him than the TV series. The TV show was a creaky BBC production, while the books – because they required imagination, rather than shaky sets in Shepherd’s Bush – truly stretched the mind. His love and belief in the importance of the written word seeps into every page of his first Doctor Who novel, and as such this is a book impossible to ever imagine translated into TV form. Much more science fantasy than science fiction, it includes mock turtles, guards made of glass, a whale who saves the day by swallowing everyone and story-hungry talking birds. But more than that, it includes shifting perspectives, unreliable narration and the full bag of post-modern literary tricks. Written in what were the then the post TV series era (after the failed Paul McGann film), this is a book which is consciously and deliberately post the TV show.
The Doctor and his companion Sam arrive in the bazaar city Hyspero on a planet also called Hyspero. After finding a kidnapped lizard man, the two encounter Iris Wildthyme, another renegade Timelord, whose Tardis is a London bus that’s slightly smaller on inside than it is on the out. She’s on a quest to bring together a once legendary group of mutant crimefighers, which The Scarlet Empress, the terrifying ruler who keeps Hyspero in a fearsome grip, demands to see. From there the book riffs on The X Man, Alice in Wonderland, Star Wars and many other texts. Putting them all in a blender with Doctor Who itself and whizzing it around to create a fresh and bizarre poo-pourri.
Some people will undoubtedly consider this book poncy and full of itself, indeed this book wears its ponciness of full of itselfness with pride, but I actually liked the ponciness and full of itselfness. If you’ve been an English literature student and have done all that textual analysis and deconstruction and often quite up itself shit, then a book like this can’t help but entrain you. Where it annoyed was in being so ponderous. This is a novel whose playful self-importance means that it sometimes loses itself in admiration of its own wonder and the reader can only drum his fingers impatiently waiting for the plot to push on.
So not a perfect book, but to the right mindset, an intriguing and frequently amusing book. And in Iris Wildthyme was have a truly fantastic character, a walking feminist, high-camp, textual deconstruction of The Doctor, who in her spiky forthrightness is more than just a symbol, but a wonderfully alive and realised character herself.
September 5, 2013
I don't know how anyone could not like this book. (Except for Sam, she's ... more tiresome than I remember.) It's a magical-realism-absurdist adventure that blends myth and a bit of camp and the Eighth Doctor being perfectly himself. Iris Wildthyme is a fascinating new character, here at least, and her bus is ridiculously fun, and I loved every page. Not all tie-in novels should be like this, obviously, but what a magnificent way to make the most of the form! If you're going to read just one pre-Fitz Eighth Doctor Adventure, this should be it.
March 29, 2018
When The Doctor and Sam arrive on the planet Hyspero. Sam soon discovers a number 22 bus signed for Putney Common. A TARDIS owned by fellow timelord, Iris Wildthyme.
She requests The Doctor and Sam to join her on a quest to find the titular Scarlett Empress.
This instalment of The Eighth Doctor Adventures is a bold inclusion, it’s more of a fantasy novel rather than science fiction - which you would expect from Doctor Who.
It certainly stands out amongst the range - I can imagine it being a very marmite book though.
I’m not the biggest fantasy reader, so I did find the final third to slightly drag a little. But I’m glad that it’s part of the series.
My favourite aspect was Iris. Having already appeared in a short story collection, this was her first full novel appearance. Magrs is able to flesh out the character to a brilliant effect.
I’m eagerly awaiting her next appearance...
She requests The Doctor and Sam to join her on a quest to find the titular Scarlett Empress.
This instalment of The Eighth Doctor Adventures is a bold inclusion, it’s more of a fantasy novel rather than science fiction - which you would expect from Doctor Who.
It certainly stands out amongst the range - I can imagine it being a very marmite book though.
I’m not the biggest fantasy reader, so I did find the final third to slightly drag a little. But I’m glad that it’s part of the series.
My favourite aspect was Iris. Having already appeared in a short story collection, this was her first full novel appearance. Magrs is able to flesh out the character to a brilliant effect.
I’m eagerly awaiting her next appearance...
September 2, 2024
I think I have to mark this as a 3 , but note it fits into a 3.5 for me. Just something missing from making it a 4. Though I really like Iris as a character and will certainly seek out some of her other novel appearances.
April 24, 2024
Folks on Tumblr seem to love this one, but it was not for me. Iris is fun, and there were a couple of truly great scenes, but overall, the story is surreal and nonsensical, way too full of references (Star Wars and Star Trek and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, oh my!), with an insane amount of POV-hopping -- first to third and back again, among many different characters: a pet dislike of mine. I will have to agree to disagree with the fandom on this one.
Also who in the BBC books department did Paul McGann pay to push the idea that he's tall? This is the second one of these books that's referred to this man of average to below average height as tall. (As Sam says in the much better book Doctor Who: Seeing I, he seems tall.)
Also who in the BBC books department did Paul McGann pay to push the idea that he's tall? This is the second one of these books that's referred to this man of average to below average height as tall. (As Sam says in the much better book Doctor Who: Seeing I, he seems tall.)
September 20, 2024
Paul Magrs, along with his famous creation/spacefaring nuisance Iris Wildthyme, makes quite a splash in this inaugural Doctor Who novel, which is pretty much a tribute to Arabian Nights spread across the strange planet Hyspero. There’s tons of colour and a lot of ideas racing through it, and Iris - along with the writing in general - leaps off the page. I find the overall story a bit too scatterbrained to love it as much as most do, but I’d still call it an obvious highlight of the range.
3.5
3.5
April 23, 2022
This EDA was different than any other that has come before it. That's a good thing, but also a bad thing. Imagine someone asks you to write a sci-fi novel, and you're stumped where to start- so you brainstorm anything you like or sounds cool on a whiteboard. You stare at it, unsure what to use or what direction to go in. Eventually you say, screw it, I'm using EVERYTHING. That's this novel. There's pirates, dark magic from forbidden books, cyborgs, portals, sentient birds, servant bears, a reptile man, a mock turtle, a giant spider, an insect djinn... the list goes on. There's just so much assaulting you from every page that it becomes overwhelming. It was more fantasy than sci-fi and just NOT what you'd typically expect from a Doctor Who novel. It took me longer to read because the amount of unbelievable things happening was a bit much to swallow- and this is for a Doctor Who book. The writing was fine and easy to follow, and I didn't even mind the inclusion of a new time-lord, Iris. Sam was bearable here too, only just because there was so much else going on that she didn't get a whole lot of page time. The Doctor was spot on character wise, and I always appreciate that of a Who author. I wouldn't normally rate a book like this so high, but it has been the best book in the series, comparatively, since Dreamstone Moon, and for that I have to give it what's due. Hopefully Magrs has gotten the series out of the dredge the last few books have become.
December 8, 2021
Arrivando sul pianeta quasi impossibilmente antico di Hyspero, un mondo dove magia e pericolo camminano mano nella mano, il Dottore e Sam sono coinvolti in una bizzarra lotta per la sopravvivenza.
Hyspero è stata governata per migliaia di anni dalle Imperatrici Scarlatte, creature dai poteri pericolosi - poteri che un membro della stessa razza del Dottore è desideroso di possedere: l'eccentrica viaggiatrice del tempo e cascamorta conosciuta solo come Iris Wildthyme.
Mentre le vere ragioni dell'ossessione di Iris diventano chiare, il Dottore e Sam devono intraprendere un viaggio pericoloso attraverso deserti, montagne, foreste e oceani. Sia amici che nemici si trovano tra spiriti, Djinn, alligatori e orsi d'oro - ma in una terra dove la magia è possibile, è tutto davvero come sembra?
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Ho deciso di leggere questo libro per scoprire un po' di più sulla stravagante Iris Wildthyme, in quanto questo è il primo romanzo in cui compare (non contando una precedente storia breve intitolata “Old Flames”). Purtroppo però preannuncio già che la trama non mi ha preso affatto, facendomi trascinare la lettura per oltre un mese, nel quale nel frattempo ho avuto modo di iniziare e finire almeno altri tre libri.
Il Dottore e Sam sono sul pianeta Hyspero, un'ambientazione arabeggiante con mercanti provenienti da diversi pianeti. Mentre sono lì, si imbattono in Iris, Signora del Tempo con un Tardis a forma di bus a due piani, molto eccentrica e stravagante, con avventure molto simili (o in alcuni casi uguali) a quelle del Dottore, della quale è innamorata. Lei è in una sorta di missione, costretta dalla malvagia Imperatrice Scarlatta a scovare una banda di personaggi improbabili e riportarglieli (un uomo-alligatore, una donna barbuta, una cyborg e una tartaruga). Sebbene il personaggio di Iris sia intrigante, il resto è davvero troppo, troppo assurdo e bizzarro, decisamente fantasy piuttosto che fantascientifico. I personaggi, che aumentano a mano a mano, finiscono in un road trip con il bus di Iris (che è grande all'interno tanto quanto all'esterno), in cui si imbattono in un'avventura più stravagante dell'altra, una serie di favole che si susseguono come i racconti de “Le Mille e una notte” (c'è perfino un capitolo in cui Iris e il Dottore devono raccontare storie ad un gruppo di pappagalli giganti per aver salva la vita) e che diventano sempre più difficili da credere (come quella volta in cui finiscono ingoiati da un pesce gigante, o quando vengono aiutati da un Genio a spingere l'autobus). È talmente fantasy che è quasi impossibile da ricondurre all'universo di Doctor Who, perché nessuna spiegazione pseudo-scientifica viene fornita, e il Dottore semplicemente accetta questo mondo di meraviglie e di mostri senza neanche farsi due domande, semplicemente seguendo la corrente. Inoltre, sia lui sia Sam non sembrano avere un ruolo di spicco sugli altri personaggi, ma spesso passano in secondo piano.
Parlando della narrazione, i punti di vista sono molteplici e da parte di tutti i personaggi, spesso in terza persona, ma a volte, in punti casuali, passa alla prima persona. In alcuni casi si parla addirittura al lettore, mentre alcune scene sono descritte come se fossero videoclip filmati con una telecamera, e non necessariamente inseriti in ordine cronologico. Anche se può essere considerato uno stile di scrittura originale, mi ha reso ancora più difficile prendere sul serio la storia, facendomela sembrare perfino più irreale (ad un certo punto ho pensato che fosse tutto quanto un sogno del Dottore, addormentato mentre leggeva un libro, ma così non è stato).
Considerando trame che si trascinano, riferimenti che sembravano portare a qualcosa ma che invece cadono nel vuoto, e un finale anticlimatico, posso dire che per me è stato una grande delusione, e sono felice di averlo finito per poter passare ad altro.
Hyspero è stata governata per migliaia di anni dalle Imperatrici Scarlatte, creature dai poteri pericolosi - poteri che un membro della stessa razza del Dottore è desideroso di possedere: l'eccentrica viaggiatrice del tempo e cascamorta conosciuta solo come Iris Wildthyme.
Mentre le vere ragioni dell'ossessione di Iris diventano chiare, il Dottore e Sam devono intraprendere un viaggio pericoloso attraverso deserti, montagne, foreste e oceani. Sia amici che nemici si trovano tra spiriti, Djinn, alligatori e orsi d'oro - ma in una terra dove la magia è possibile, è tutto davvero come sembra?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ho deciso di leggere questo libro per scoprire un po' di più sulla stravagante Iris Wildthyme, in quanto questo è il primo romanzo in cui compare (non contando una precedente storia breve intitolata “Old Flames”). Purtroppo però preannuncio già che la trama non mi ha preso affatto, facendomi trascinare la lettura per oltre un mese, nel quale nel frattempo ho avuto modo di iniziare e finire almeno altri tre libri.
Il Dottore e Sam sono sul pianeta Hyspero, un'ambientazione arabeggiante con mercanti provenienti da diversi pianeti. Mentre sono lì, si imbattono in Iris, Signora del Tempo con un Tardis a forma di bus a due piani, molto eccentrica e stravagante, con avventure molto simili (o in alcuni casi uguali) a quelle del Dottore, della quale è innamorata. Lei è in una sorta di missione, costretta dalla malvagia Imperatrice Scarlatta a scovare una banda di personaggi improbabili e riportarglieli (un uomo-alligatore, una donna barbuta, una cyborg e una tartaruga). Sebbene il personaggio di Iris sia intrigante, il resto è davvero troppo, troppo assurdo e bizzarro, decisamente fantasy piuttosto che fantascientifico. I personaggi, che aumentano a mano a mano, finiscono in un road trip con il bus di Iris (che è grande all'interno tanto quanto all'esterno), in cui si imbattono in un'avventura più stravagante dell'altra, una serie di favole che si susseguono come i racconti de “Le Mille e una notte” (c'è perfino un capitolo in cui Iris e il Dottore devono raccontare storie ad un gruppo di pappagalli giganti per aver salva la vita) e che diventano sempre più difficili da credere (come quella volta in cui finiscono ingoiati da un pesce gigante, o quando vengono aiutati da un Genio a spingere l'autobus). È talmente fantasy che è quasi impossibile da ricondurre all'universo di Doctor Who, perché nessuna spiegazione pseudo-scientifica viene fornita, e il Dottore semplicemente accetta questo mondo di meraviglie e di mostri senza neanche farsi due domande, semplicemente seguendo la corrente. Inoltre, sia lui sia Sam non sembrano avere un ruolo di spicco sugli altri personaggi, ma spesso passano in secondo piano.
Parlando della narrazione, i punti di vista sono molteplici e da parte di tutti i personaggi, spesso in terza persona, ma a volte, in punti casuali, passa alla prima persona. In alcuni casi si parla addirittura al lettore, mentre alcune scene sono descritte come se fossero videoclip filmati con una telecamera, e non necessariamente inseriti in ordine cronologico. Anche se può essere considerato uno stile di scrittura originale, mi ha reso ancora più difficile prendere sul serio la storia, facendomela sembrare perfino più irreale (ad un certo punto ho pensato che fosse tutto quanto un sogno del Dottore, addormentato mentre leggeva un libro, ma così non è stato).
Considerando trame che si trascinano, riferimenti che sembravano portare a qualcosa ma che invece cadono nel vuoto, e un finale anticlimatico, posso dire che per me è stato una grande delusione, e sono felice di averlo finito per poter passare ad altro.
March 23, 2022
So after the terribleness that was Vanderdeken, the bar was set extremely low for the next 8th doctor novel. In fact, the bar was set so low that it would have had to have done something incredibly drastic to have been worse. Thankfully, not only did this one step over that line, it did so by quite a bit.
Paul Magrs really seems to be in love with his original character Iris as nearly every single book he writes for Doctor Who has her in it. But luckily, she's not an awful character.
The Doc, sam and Iris travel around this planet trying to find 4 people who used to work for this ruler called the Scarlet empress. Along the way wacky shenanigans ensue. That's basically all you really need to know.
The plot isn't fantastic, but i will say what brings this book up. and that's the fact that it's FUN. The Doctor and sam are having FUN. they're on an adventure where, unlike Vanderdeken, they seem awake for, and unlike Placebo, seem to actually be slightly invested in rather than just going through the motions.
I do actually have to give Iris some credit here as she was a big part of waking the doctor up. Since Seeing I, he seemed to have been in some kind of PTSD stupor, but with the help of a wacky "collect-a-thon" adventure along with a fellow time lord, he was forced to deal with people and start talking as well as seemingly enjoying himself, and, this has been a rarity ever since Longest Day.
I think that's why i actually enjoyed this book as much as i did. It didn't feel depressing or like the doctor was bored. it had an air of him enjoying himself and i really got to feel that in this book.
Not to say this book was fantastic. There were several issues i had, including the fact that, while the beginning and end were bustling, the middle 100 pages dragged a bit to the point where i WAS getting a little bored and wanted the plot to move forward.
Without spoilers, i will say that all four of the people they had to find weren't exactly necessary and made me wonder why they were even finding them in the first place.
One really weird writing thing that the book did was for some reason it would switch into first person for like a page of a random character and then switch back. like it'll be third person, then all of a sudden the doctor will go "oh yes! i guess i'm telling the story now, never did much like 1st person" and then a page later go back to third person. it was a little distracting, but i got used to it after a while once i realized who was talking.
Overall, the story was fine, and the banter between the characters (of which thankfully didn't have 4000 side characters with different perspectives like vander) was funny at times. I was sitting here thinking what to rate it though. it REALLY falls to me like a 3.5/5. However, i cannot GIVE half stars which is ever infuriating, so if i had to pick between a 3 and a 4, i will give this book a 4, just because of the feeling of "thank goodness we're back to having fun and not being a dreary borefest".
While there were boring parts, it was still a fun, indiana jonesish adventure. So far i've liked what paul magrs has written and i hope he continues to be as good in later stories.
3.5/5 rounded up to a 4.
Paul Magrs really seems to be in love with his original character Iris as nearly every single book he writes for Doctor Who has her in it. But luckily, she's not an awful character.
The Doc, sam and Iris travel around this planet trying to find 4 people who used to work for this ruler called the Scarlet empress. Along the way wacky shenanigans ensue. That's basically all you really need to know.
The plot isn't fantastic, but i will say what brings this book up. and that's the fact that it's FUN. The Doctor and sam are having FUN. they're on an adventure where, unlike Vanderdeken, they seem awake for, and unlike Placebo, seem to actually be slightly invested in rather than just going through the motions.
I do actually have to give Iris some credit here as she was a big part of waking the doctor up. Since Seeing I, he seemed to have been in some kind of PTSD stupor, but with the help of a wacky "collect-a-thon" adventure along with a fellow time lord, he was forced to deal with people and start talking as well as seemingly enjoying himself, and, this has been a rarity ever since Longest Day.
I think that's why i actually enjoyed this book as much as i did. It didn't feel depressing or like the doctor was bored. it had an air of him enjoying himself and i really got to feel that in this book.
Not to say this book was fantastic. There were several issues i had, including the fact that, while the beginning and end were bustling, the middle 100 pages dragged a bit to the point where i WAS getting a little bored and wanted the plot to move forward.
Without spoilers, i will say that all four of the people they had to find weren't exactly necessary and made me wonder why they were even finding them in the first place.
One really weird writing thing that the book did was for some reason it would switch into first person for like a page of a random character and then switch back. like it'll be third person, then all of a sudden the doctor will go "oh yes! i guess i'm telling the story now, never did much like 1st person" and then a page later go back to third person. it was a little distracting, but i got used to it after a while once i realized who was talking.
Overall, the story was fine, and the banter between the characters (of which thankfully didn't have 4000 side characters with different perspectives like vander) was funny at times. I was sitting here thinking what to rate it though. it REALLY falls to me like a 3.5/5. However, i cannot GIVE half stars which is ever infuriating, so if i had to pick between a 3 and a 4, i will give this book a 4, just because of the feeling of "thank goodness we're back to having fun and not being a dreary borefest".
While there were boring parts, it was still a fun, indiana jonesish adventure. So far i've liked what paul magrs has written and i hope he continues to be as good in later stories.
3.5/5 rounded up to a 4.
January 28, 2024
Reading Vanderdeken's Children reminded me just how much I love the 8th Doctor and Sam in these novels. A lot of people feel Sam is a very underdeveloped character and whilst I can see what they mean to a degree, I do disagree overall simply because there are quite a few novels that focus on developing her character thoroughly such as Seeing I for example. She's a very underrated companion who to me is an absolute delight to read. The Scarlet Empress is the next one in line and considering it's Paul Magrs' first Who novel I would have been a fool to miss this opportunity to read it!
Arriving on an ancient world where science is practically magic, The Doctor and Sam find themselves pulled into a wild adventure. On the surface, Hyspero is a beautiful world where visitors from across the universe come to visit, but in actuality, the planet is being ruled over by a corrupt and grotesque tyrant known as The Scarlet Empress and she will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Total control, total power. However Iris Wildthyme is also here and she needs The Doctor's help, she is in trouble, and if she doesn't give the empress what she wants in record time she may very well succumb to her fate. No regeneration this time, she will be truly done for!
Paul Magrs has written an incredibly fast-paced and exciting fantasy story where Doctor Who's usual explanations for magic, are thrown out of the window to make way for a unique and bizarre story unlike any other. It's a story filled to the brim with humor, violence, and references. It is in a manner the one Who-related novel during the wilderness years that will suggest perfectly to any new readers what this age of Doctor Who was like, with how experimental, wild, silly, and violent it can get. Luckily it doesn't suffer from the worst elements of this era, but rather excels from the very best.
It's a story with a terrific sense of world-building, non-stop action, and a superb sense of humor. Iris Wildthyme is a force to be reckoned with, a character who is quite simply a terrific parody of both The Doctor and the very essence of the show in the best way possible. An incredibly fun character and even though she has appeared elsewhere before the release of this book, this is a brilliant way to bring her into the Whoniverse.
Overall: It's a hilarious, outlandish, and fantastical novel that kept me on my toes. 10/10
Arriving on an ancient world where science is practically magic, The Doctor and Sam find themselves pulled into a wild adventure. On the surface, Hyspero is a beautiful world where visitors from across the universe come to visit, but in actuality, the planet is being ruled over by a corrupt and grotesque tyrant known as The Scarlet Empress and she will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Total control, total power. However Iris Wildthyme is also here and she needs The Doctor's help, she is in trouble, and if she doesn't give the empress what she wants in record time she may very well succumb to her fate. No regeneration this time, she will be truly done for!
Paul Magrs has written an incredibly fast-paced and exciting fantasy story where Doctor Who's usual explanations for magic, are thrown out of the window to make way for a unique and bizarre story unlike any other. It's a story filled to the brim with humor, violence, and references. It is in a manner the one Who-related novel during the wilderness years that will suggest perfectly to any new readers what this age of Doctor Who was like, with how experimental, wild, silly, and violent it can get. Luckily it doesn't suffer from the worst elements of this era, but rather excels from the very best.
It's a story with a terrific sense of world-building, non-stop action, and a superb sense of humor. Iris Wildthyme is a force to be reckoned with, a character who is quite simply a terrific parody of both The Doctor and the very essence of the show in the best way possible. An incredibly fun character and even though she has appeared elsewhere before the release of this book, this is a brilliant way to bring her into the Whoniverse.
Overall: It's a hilarious, outlandish, and fantastical novel that kept me on my toes. 10/10
February 22, 2023
Does Paul Magrs' The Scarlet Empress really fit the Doctor Who universe? The key is Iris Wildthyme, a character imported from a non-Whoniverse novel, here appearing in her first full-length Who novel. Her metatextual powers make anything possible, and from here on out, you won't believe what the BCC and later, Big Finish, let Magrs get away with. The Doctor's old flame - in my opinion, a direct ancestor of one River Song - has a way of making you think you're really reading one of her diaries (which in this case would also include home video footage), with all the appropriate embellishments. It's Doctor Who has 1001 Nights, with a planet fit for the Arabian Tales, filed with strange, amazing places, characters and things, and told in a variety of voices as Magrs shifts between them, much like a compendium of folk tales collected from different sources might. It's about stories, and the book's picaresque weakness (its essentially rambling plot) thus becomes a kind of thematic strength. Magrs' prose is excellently wordy, and he writes a good Eighth Doctor, but of course, Iris is the standout here. It's a little weird reading her first full Time Lady appearance at this point - since I've read and heard her many times before in later books and audios - I bet it was a bit of a shock in 1998. Outlandish fun. Nice afterword too.
June 15, 2024
Happy pride month specifically to the giant spider and the cyborg whose only biological part is her heart, who fused into one great cyborg-spider hybrid in what may well be Doctor Who's first gay romance. Love wins
The Scarlet Empress is a book that is frequently very pleased with itself, getting all self-referential and metatextual and something a few shades off pretentious at times. Needless to say, I had a great time
Paul Magrs does an excellent job with Sam and the Doctor, and mostly succeeds in juggling all of the different POVs. Iris Wildthyme is a wonderful new character and I'm endeared with the idea of a TARDIS that's slightly smaller on the inside than the out
.
The Scarlet Empress is a book that is frequently very pleased with itself, getting all self-referential and metatextual and something a few shades off pretentious at times. Needless to say, I had a great time
Paul Magrs does an excellent job with Sam and the Doctor, and mostly succeeds in juggling all of the different POVs. Iris Wildthyme is a wonderful new character and I'm endeared with the idea of a TARDIS that's slightly smaller on the inside than the out
.
One of the perks of first-person narration, we could say.
October 16, 2024
legitimately one of my new favourite edas this was really really cool they really just put anything in here. good sense of whimsy that is often lacking from these as well & some really cool stuff. imaginative & fantastical (even bordering into fantasy in a few places) and IRIS WILDTHYME !! really really cool use of unreliable narrator & changing perspectives & they just jump straight into psychoanlaysing the doctor from the very first page i was underlining so much stuff its just oughhghghghghghnhghghgn very very good
January 20, 2025
idk I just don't think, as an Eight fan, I'm built for EDAs. Part DnD campaign, part Guardians of the Galaxy, The Scarlet Empress was not at all what I was expecting going in. While I wouldn't say I loved this book, honestly felt like the 1st 175 pages were a slog, I did enjoy the characters enough to say I liked the book. I just wished it didn't take so long to get to the point where we met all these interesting characters. 3⭐️
September 20, 2025
Apparently, this was the first proper piece of writing to feature Iris Wildthyme. Its a fun fantasy style quest - which is impressive that I liked it so much as I dont usually go for fantasy. Iris is amazingly well thought out in this, I don't think her character has changed much since. My only gripe was that it did feel a little bit over long, but it had a really nice ending nonetheless.
February 19, 2018
This was one of the strangest Doctor Who stories I have ever read. It took me a bit to get into it but it was worth it!
February 17, 2022
An interesting book, at times I really enjoyed it and other times it seemed to drag on. I liked Iris
September 15, 2024
Delicious prose, fabulous Worldbuilding and a hilarious introduction to Iris.
February 13, 2025
world’s shittiest d&d campaign. 1.5.
February 7, 2009
Paul Magrs is, without doubt, my favourite Who author. His sweeps of fancy – more fantasy than SciFi – are visionary, with a richness of detail that’s rare in the EDA’s and truly brings his landscapes to life.
Iris – you either love her or hate her. I think he overuses her in later books - they are supposed to be about The Doctor, after all and at times, you do start to wonder who the star of Magrs show is - but here, where we first meet her, he gets the balance just right. His fellow Time Lord is gloriously amoral, Machiavellian; utterly unpredictable and untrustworthy and an absolute joy.
Magrs world-building is multi-layered with just enough description to make it alive and real, but not so much that the story is lost in a welter of drifting metaphor.
A pre-Fitz, Sam EDA I can wholeheartedly recommend. That’s not something you hear everyday.
Iris – you either love her or hate her. I think he overuses her in later books - they are supposed to be about The Doctor, after all and at times, you do start to wonder who the star of Magrs show is - but here, where we first meet her, he gets the balance just right. His fellow Time Lord is gloriously amoral, Machiavellian; utterly unpredictable and untrustworthy and an absolute joy.
Magrs world-building is multi-layered with just enough description to make it alive and real, but not so much that the story is lost in a welter of drifting metaphor.
A pre-Fitz, Sam EDA I can wholeheartedly recommend. That’s not something you hear everyday.
March 19, 2011
This is the first of Magrs' Doctor Who novels, and also the first to feature the peculiar Iris Wildthyme, who claims to be a the Doctor's girlfriend from the old days in Gallifrey, driving around in a Tardis in the shape of a double-decker London bus. I find Magrs a bit variable but this was a good start to his Who career, a quest narrative set on the peculiar magical planet of Hyspero, with everyone looking for their own particular goals, including a couple of additional companions picked up on the way. The Doctor/Sam relationship is back on form, and the Doctor's dynamic with Iris - combined irritation and affection - works rather well. Having said which, as with all quest narratives, it's a bit episodic and the end doesn't quite flow from the middle. But after a couple of less impressive Eighth Doctor adventures I feel the series was getting back on form here.
August 11, 2009
'This whole thing is enough like being stuck in some ghastly zen parable without your making it even worse.'
I couldn't have put it better myself.
I like a little bit of continuity with my books but I also like a bit of book with my continuity. I could probably go on all day about how bad this was. What was all that with the lamb at the start or did the author just wake up one morning thinking he was Clive Barker only to come to the conclusion by dinner time that he wasn't.
This was the last of the series that I actually paid cash for. I decided after reading this one that the series wasn't producing enough gems for me to continue supporting it. I always buy books from series that I hope will keep producing (I still shell out for the missing adventures quite happily) but I've now become indifferent to the fate of this line. So out comes the trusty old library card.
I couldn't have put it better myself.
I like a little bit of continuity with my books but I also like a bit of book with my continuity. I could probably go on all day about how bad this was. What was all that with the lamb at the start or did the author just wake up one morning thinking he was Clive Barker only to come to the conclusion by dinner time that he wasn't.
This was the last of the series that I actually paid cash for. I decided after reading this one that the series wasn't producing enough gems for me to continue supporting it. I always buy books from series that I hope will keep producing (I still shell out for the missing adventures quite happily) but I've now become indifferent to the fate of this line. So out comes the trusty old library card.
February 8, 2012
This book seemed so promising at first. It was well written, introduced a few fun new characters, and was off on the start of a wonderful adventure.
The element of fantasy in the story didn't really bother me, at least . . . not until all the animals started talking. I don't like talking animals. Now, if the author had done a better job of inventing his aliens (instead of calling them Starfish, Bears, Birds, and Walruses, ect...) it would have been acceptable. But the whole host of talking fauna was slightly disturbing and completely unbelievable.
The giant purple feminist telepathic starfish were particularly disturbing.
I found myself wondering if Mr. Magrs was high wile he wrote.
The end wasn't very satisfying.
Overall, I still enjoyed the book because the Eighth Doctor was well-written, and the scenery was vivid and intriguing.
The element of fantasy in the story didn't really bother me, at least . . . not until all the animals started talking. I don't like talking animals. Now, if the author had done a better job of inventing his aliens (instead of calling them Starfish, Bears, Birds, and Walruses, ect...) it would have been acceptable. But the whole host of talking fauna was slightly disturbing and completely unbelievable.
The giant purple feminist telepathic starfish were particularly disturbing.
I found myself wondering if Mr. Magrs was high wile he wrote.
The end wasn't very satisfying.
Overall, I still enjoyed the book because the Eighth Doctor was well-written, and the scenery was vivid and intriguing.
January 19, 2015
My first introduction to Iris Wildthyme! Some of the, idk, exotification of parts of the planet kind of bugged me, but I distinctly enjoyed all the times Eight got banged up, tore his clothing, got covered in soot, etc. The Scarlet Empress herself and her tattooed soldiers were certainly memorable, and Iris with her bus (the same size on the inside OH NOEZ!) was quite a character. Loved her regeneration at the end and the implication that there was some kind of attraction going on between her and Sam.
April 28, 2013
Fun, but a bit too... meta for me. I had an extremely hard time finishing this for some reason - it took me about two months of on-and-off slogging through a couple pages here and there. Also, I read this in physical form rather than as an ebook, and the text size was EXTREMELY SMALL. It hurt my eyes. I know that has nothing to do with the story itself, but it was really goddamn annoying, so I'm mentioning it here.
December 11, 2013
The Doctor arrives on a planet and happens to bump into an old friend, Iris, a Timelord, who is on a quest. The Doctor decides to help and it all turns into an adventure road trip. This is fun, don't take it too seriously, its supposed to be a jolly old romp around a planet. There's no angst here and it introduces one of the best characters in the books. Iris, who claims to have versions of all the Doctors adventures. A very good read.
December 31, 2014
I wanted to like this, but it was much too long and it really dragged in places. There are some scenes/moments that are worth it, but be prepared for a slog.
The writing was shaky, in a needs-more-editor sense, and the vocabulary was completely out of control. (My writing also tends to be, er, magniloquent, and reading Scarlet Empress made me realize that it's actually a terrible habit I need to stomp.)
The writing was shaky, in a needs-more-editor sense, and the vocabulary was completely out of control. (My writing also tends to be, er, magniloquent, and reading Scarlet Empress made me realize that it's actually a terrible habit I need to stomp.)
August 23, 2013
Wonderfully bonkers. Magrs' brand of unabashed magical realism drops the Doctor and Sam in a visually arresting world that was like something conjured by Rushdie. Loved every twist and turn in this story, especially the scenes that were stolen by Iris Wildthyme, which was all of them. Bless her hearts!
May 2, 2011
I'm not that big into the fantasy side of the geek world...but Paul Magrs' breathless, sweeping prose (almost) turns me into an unapologetic convert. The character of Iris Wildthyme is a creation for the ages -- thank god she returns in future Doctor Who novels and audio adventures.
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