Doctor Who: Fear of the Dark

Past Doctor Adventures #58

by Trevor Baxendale

In the year 2382 archaeologists land on Akoshemon's only moon, searching for evidence of the planet's infamous past. But when the Doctor, Tegan and Nyssa are drawn into the lunar caverns they find more than a team of academics -- and help uncover much more than ancient history. Something is lying in wait, deep inside the labyrinth of caves: something that remembers the spiral of war, pestilence and deprivation that ruined Akoshemon. Something that rejoiced in every kind of horror and destruction. An age-old terror is about to be reborn. But what is the hideous secret of the Bloodhunter? And why does Nyssa feel that her thoughts are no longer her own? Forced to confront his own worst fears, even the Doctor will be pushed to breaking point -- and beyond.

Genres: Doctor Who, Science Fiction, Fiction, Time Travel, Horror, Fantasy, Novels

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 6, 2003

About the author

Trevor Baxendale is a novelist who has penned several Doctor Who tie-in novels and audio dramas. He lives in Liverpool, England with his wife and two children.

Reviews

[Ken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easily one of the scariest Doctor Who stories ever written, with such a claustrophobic atmospheric feel throughout this adventure really pushes this TARDIS team to the limits.

Set just after Tegan’s return in Arc of Infinity as the trio land on Akoshemon’s only moon, whilst their they join a group of archaeologists as they explore the dark caves.

Not only is the setting dark but the Doctor’s companions also experience a tough time, Tegan is anxious about her time away from the TARDIS whilst Nyssa has recurring nightmares of Traken.
All three are perfectly captured and this really felt like an extension to the televised series.

As well as a very companion driven narrative this story also has a very strong alien threat that adds to a thrilling final act.

This easily one of the best novels to feature the Fifth Doctor, it’s not surprising that this story was reprinted to represent this incarnation for the 50th anniversary of the show.

[Stephen Robert Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everybody at some time in their lives fears the dark..Close your eyes what do you see Darkness but it's are worst fear to be alone in the darkness of fear.
This set in 2385 after Earthshock & Snakedance during season 20.So there is no ghastly Adric to spoil it .No Turnough just Tegan & Nyssa who is having bad dreams of Traken & a ghastly bearded man in black laughing.
Alone in the dark digs of Akoshemon's only moon searching for the past & finding horror in the deep darkness is ghastly evil hiding in the cold darkness .Tegan is also dreaming of dark snakes.
In the nightmares of your mind is the fear that's what this about Like Mira in Snakedance playing on mankind's greatest enemy his imagination & their dreams bad ones.
Then they find a door to hell & an abandoned lab full of bodies sucked dry as if a Vampire had drunk them dry in the darkness .
Vegan perfect name for a mole man alien (ghastly pun on vegetarianism )& the Bram joke.This a give you willies good old fashioned creepy Poe style Raven Nevermore Nevermore rapping rapping at my Tardis door came at tapping at my Tardis door Nevermore.

[Branwen Sedai *of the Brown Ajah* · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Fear of the dark is really just a fear of the unknown. What can't be seen. Like the future. But I don't fight the future... I fight for the future. And I protect it from the things that thrive on the unknown. Fear. Hostility. Cruelty. Injustice. I don't rejoice in death. I don't believe in violence or cruelty. Where I can, I try to save life..."

The Fifth Doctor and his companions Teagan and Nyssa join an archaeological team who are mining the moon of the ruined planet Akoshemon. But there is more than this situation that meets the eye. For the archaeological team are up to more than just studying the past. And Akoshemon has a whole horde of murderous secrets it has waited a long time to display to the world. And the Doctor and his companions have been caught in the middle. And no one is safe in the dark.

I know I said that The Last of the Gaderene was my favorite Doctor Who book I read thus far, but after reading this I may have to amend that statement! This book literally just blew me away. First of all, just as stories go, this one is just brilliant. It was scary and intense and thrilling and I didn't want to put it down, even for a second! And it was also such a beautiful rendition of the fifth doctor. I loved every second of this book!

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not too familiar with the Fifth Doctor’s adventures. I enjoyed this book and it made me want to check out his season. This book gave me Aliens vibes. The Dark as a character was very creepy. The Doctor was very fallible in this story.

[F.R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

An alternative title for this could have been ‘Primal fears’; or perhaps the much more unwieldy ‘A Lot of Stuff Doctor Who Does, but Done Very Well’. We have a mining operation (Doctor Who has always been a sucker for a mining operation, battling ancient evil raised from the earth itself is it most blatant and frequent hat-tip to Lovecraft); we have humourless authority figures (The Doctor’s most reliable enemy – even more than The Daleks, The Cybermen and The Master – is an intransigent authority figure who just won’t smile); we have space pirates (there actually was a serial called ‘Space Pirates’ and pirates/mercenaries are a big part of Doctor Who, particularly in this period), and we have a lot of running down corridors (well corridors and caves. On TV this was a staple as it was cheap and filled up time, but here it’s rendered particularly effectively in prose). All of this stuff is the very stock and trade of Doctor Who and in other hands may have just been a compendium of the cliché, but Baxendale actually does a cracking job – giving us a sci-fi/fantasy tale which opens with an explosion and builds from there.

We’re with The Fifth Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan, battling an ancient enemy and intransigent authority figures and pirates on a miserable planetoid at the arse-end of the galaxy. It feels very much like a TV story of this period, but one with far more ambition than an actual TV story of the period and far more competently done.

[Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a dark Doctor Who novel, literally and figuratively, like my goodness, this actually gave me shivers along the way. Despite with the lack of light and only completely taking one place, it’s rather a really atmospheric story, and the deaths are gruesome. A perfect Halloween story!

[Ari S. Gans · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was possibly the best Doctor Who novel i've ever read, starring the 5th Doctor. I would definetly recommend it even if you are not a fan of the series.

[Michael Battaglia · Rating 5 out of 5]

As much as I like to mock the designers of the covers of these books, I have to give them ample credit for managing to do the unthinkable . . . turn boyish Fifth Doctor Peter Davison into someone creepily unsettling. Whatever you might think of the contents of the book, you have to admit that its an effective cover.

The Past Doctor Adventures haven't garnered much in the way of a good reputation lately, veering off the rails of quality to the point where achieving the level of bad parody might be a marked improvement. Baxendale, fortunately, has written some decent Eighth Doctor adventures and for one reason or another decided to try his hand at this story. It works here as a Fifth Doctor tale in a way that wouldn't have sufficed as an Eighth Doctor story. Like most of the Past Doctor Adventures, it has this sense of simplicity that would be fitting for the televised stories, lacking the layered complexities and experiments that the Eighth Doctor books might attempt. Here, what we see is what we get. And what we get is dark.

Once again, a force breaches the TARDIS and Nyssa finds herself being invaded by something that feels utterly evil. Landing on the dark moon of a dark planet, the team run into a bunch of archeologists that turn out to not quite be archeologists and may have more to do with the possibilities for mineral mining that could be going on. However, like every planet where nobody ever goes and where mineral reaches are plentiful and there for the taking, a great evil lies beneath the surface. So before you can say (all together now!) "from the dawn of timmmeeee!", it gets right down to business and starts to diligently off the crew in horrible ways that leaves dessicated bodies and helpless screams. Which of course means that everyone starts to split up.

It shouldn't take long when reading this one that you can decide whether you're going to like it or not. Its a fairly standard adventure with some creepy moments that winds up being solidly told for those who enjoy that kind of thing. But it makes no attempts to rise above its own cliches or stereotypes. Of course the head miner doesn't want to listen to reason and abandon her stake, despite the rising body count. Of course the character who talks about his family all the time is ultimately doomed. Of course two characters are buddies. Its not exactly a problem to populate your cast with stock characters as long as the story itself is solid and as long as you don't expect any surprises it will do the trick.

However, lack of surprises can lead to a lack of excitement. To his credit, Baxendale attempts to jazz up the proceedings with some twists (people in suspended animation! Bloodhunters!) that gives the plot more of a shelf life than you would think. But then he has the one spaceship from the local government that does show up be captained by a former lover of one of the miners (small world, space is, eh?) and it reminds you of how artificial this can feel at times, going through its own motions and looking good while it does so, but not doing anything that's going to make you sit up and notice even if you were actively engaged in the material. It does do a good job of conveying an oppressive atmosphere but the idea of an evil lurking in the center of the planet feels a little too close at times to "Planet of Evil" that it starts to feel like a retread. You start getting a horror movie that the Doctor has happened to walk in on, without subverting any of the genre conventions in the process, which can make a comfort food type of read, but not one that is going to move you in any way.

It does fall flat when it comes to the entity that lies at the heart of all this. Confronted with the embodiment of the forces of evil, now called the Dark, what was borderline creepy becomes utterly ridiculous when the timeless aura of all that is evil starts talking like a grade Z serial villain, personifying the worst of "Doctor Who" in both the sense of cheesy acting and the notion that its not even trying. It makes the climax lack almost all impact that even the author can't disguise it with a mounting body count. All the complexities that are attempted to be layered on top of the tale can't distract from the standardness of the whole affair.

Still, it has its moments and charm. He captures the regulars quite nicely. Nyssa as usual gets the task of having horrible things done to her but gets some moments to shine. Tegan remains Tegan and Baxendale gets the bystanderish nature of this Doctor without making him seem like a complete sap. Its a story crafted to deliver moments and in those moments it becomes effective. However, a story can only be strong as its weakest link and when the plot is merely okay, the best you can probably say is that it wasn't a terrible experience. Which is a step up from where we were, believe it or not.

[Grendel 23 · Rating 3 out of 5]

The classic 1980’s time traveling team of the Fifth Doctor, Tegan, and Nyssa find themselves running for their lives with a secretive band of treasure hunters masquerading as an archeological expedition. When a dark, bloodthirsty menace is unwittingly unleashed, and the body count grows, they all must fight to survive against a seemingly unstoppable alien force.

All of the characters are well written, but Tegan is depicted with the most realistic emotions. There’s terror of course, but also ample evidence of her courageous, brave heart. There are nostalgic callbacks to previous people and events in her life that round out the realism. In between racing from one danger to the next, it’s also nice to see her enjoy a few moments of normalcy, before all hell breaks loose again. This is a hero that has consciously chosen to travel with The Doctor, to try and make a difference despite the constant danger.

Nyssa, the last daughter of Traken, is there too. She’s frequently incapacitated, which in all honesty, isn’t too different to her TV counterpart. She’s also an alien, which translates her wooden and expressionless delivery on camera into a Spock-like persona, driven by calculations of logic that can come across as cold and emotionless. That she suffers repeated, serious head trauma in the course of the book is probably only one reason for her few, clunky bits of expository dialogue.

The Doctor sounds and acts like he should in that uncanny way that each line and gesture recalls innumerable episodes from Pater Davidson’s run. He’s got that easy balance of hopeful exuberance and ageless wisdom that even the modern era of Who has had difficulty finding. There’s also moments where dire circumstances force the Doctor to show hints of his own dark ruthlessness.

In general, the story is tense and fast paced, with a growing sense of dread with each passing chapter. The back half of the book is a sprint, as the body count rises and one villain is traded for an even more powerful one. Things wrap up way too quickly in the final pages, but with a finality that’s satisfying.

Last, not to nitpick, but there’s a glaring typo on the back of the 50th Anniversary edition. Here’s the last line from the back cover summary: “Forced to confront his own worst fears, even the Doctor will be pushed TO BREAKING POINT - and beyond.” That missing “the” bugs me every time. It just isn’t consistent with the high quality makeover these 50th editions received.

#WhoReview / 5 of 13 / 12 months. 13 Doctors. One 60th Anniversary

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fear of the Dark is the fifth book in a special anniversary run of Doctor Who books, one for each Doctor (through the Matt Smith version).

This one features the fifth Doctor (naturally), and two of his companions - Tegan and Nyssa. In the timeline, this story takes place sometime after the death of Aldric. All three were companions of the fourth Doctor and stayed with him after he regenerated into the fifth.

The premise of this book is that the TARDIS comes to a moon as a small group of miners are scanning the moon for precious minerals. They discover the remnants of a science outpost, and a great evil called The Dark starts killing off the crew one by one. How do you stop a creature that only exists as shadow?

I found the first half of the book to be a bit dry. I had trouble connecting with the Doctor where in the first four books I felt like it was those particular doctors. I kept finding myself picturing David Tennant (tenth Doctor). Maybe this is partly my fault though - while I have seen at least a couple of stories from every Doctor, at the time I had stopped watching Doctor Who after the fourth and then picked it up again when the BBC revived the show with the ninth. Therefore my experience with the fifth through eighth doctors is pretty limited.

The book does finally click in the final quarter and the book itself is not long so readers of the series can power through. Me - a low three star rating but will keep the book to maintain the series.

[Danny Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow just wow, what an incredible story with some dark disturbing stuff and 3 dimensional characters making this story the most excellent horror story you could read, highly recommended to those who love spine crawling stories! 10/10

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fear of the Dark marks another solid, enjoyable entry into Davison's incarnation of The Doctor. In this story, he and his companions, Nyssa and Tegan, along with the Tardis, are pulled to the futuristic planet of Akoshemon where a mining operation is taking place. Very quickly they determine all is not is as it seems, as mummified bodies are discovered, miners go missing (and turn up dead) and Nyssa and The Doctor undergo psychic attacks from an unseen entity. The situation gets more and more macabre as the story spirals to its dark and gruesome end.
One thing you can rely on Trevor Baxendale for is body count, body horror, and dark, scary circumstances that the characters must maneuver their way out of. Davison's Doctor finds himself pushed to the limits in this story, threatened at every turn by the loss of his companions and the entity grasping control of his mind and his Tardis. There are times where he does lose his cool, but finds himself again through the help of those around him. A lot of character growth happens here, and watching 5 triumph is something I would happily read again and again.
Be sure you're in a good headspace before you dive into this one- it certainly lives up to its name, but also gives a chance for the main players to be challenged, overcome, and shine through it all.

[John Parungao · Rating 4 out of 5]

"There are some corners of the Universe, that have bred the most terrible things"

-Doctor Who: The Moonbase

As part of the celebration of Doctor Who's 50th anniversary, this "past Doctor" novel was reissued. I missed it the first time it was in print, but am glad I got to read it this time around. For a series which takes pride in sending viewers "behind the sofa" It dosen't always do horror well. There have been homages to horror classics like the mummy movie( See Tomb of the Cybermen, and Pyramids of Mars). If this book has anything in common with horror, I'd compare it with Alien or Predator. There's a genetically engineered monster dubbed "The Blood Hunter" by The Doctor hunting down everyone on the moon orbiting the planet Akoshemon. Warning: THE BODY COUNT IS HIGH! It's similar to Tomb of the Cybermen in that respect. However, more in keeping with Star Trek then Doctor Who many of the deaths go unseen, only to be discovered later.

There's something else I noticed about this book. It shares plot elements with some of the Fifth Doctor's TV episodes. An evil entity trying to manifest in our universe by bonding with the Doctor(see Arc of Infinity), the same entity trying to influence a companion through mind control(see Snakedance & Kinda). Don't let that fact stop you from reading. There's still a lot that's good about this novel. Most notable, the characterization of the Doctor. The Fifth Doctor has often been portrayed as more vulnerable than previous incarnations. Author Trevor Baxendale does a great job portraying this, deconstructing the Doctor and leaving him a cowering mess toward the end of the novel, but also slowly building him back up, so that by the end of the book, he's glibly trading insults and jabs with the evil entity known as "The Dark". Playing for time while trying to figure out how to defeat The Dark. In the end it takes great courage and sacrifice to win against The Dark.

[Lissibith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read a good few tie-in novels for various franchises over the past few years, and I think this may be the first I loved as a book first and as a version of a series I love second. Some people will probably find the plot overly simplistic, the repetition of the same series of actions boring or the portrayal of the Doctor himself to be off-putting, but I found the whole thing compelling and unsettling by turns, and ultimately, terribly relateable.

The Dark is going to get you. That childhood fear? It's founded in an animal memory far older than conscious thought. And when miners find an old abandoned science facility (or is it?) they find that the wisest thing to do is to forget what your parents taught you - you SHOULD be afraid of this Dark.

I enjoyed this as a borderline horror book, but I think my favorite part was the portrayal of the friendship between Teegan and Nyssa. I really enjoy reading or watching these two ladies, and seeing the devotion they have to one another, their friendship, really made the book for me. The Doctor was more or less himself, though as the story goes along there are some moments - plot-induced, I think but still - where it just started to feel wrong. Weird. But for me, it was in a good way.

[Koen Crolla · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Fifth Doctor always struck me as bland and ineffectual, but he had some of the best companions, two of which accompany him here. Unfortunately, Fear of the Dark serves them poorly.

It's not that the plot is so awful, though it's a bit uninspired; the thing that really grates after a while is the author's unrelenting sexism.
I don't care if it's subconscious or not—I don't even know how you can have two female companions and a prominent female secondary protagonist and still not pass the Bechdel test. That secondary protagonist, who started out so strongly, even spends the entire second half of the book just pining after her handsome captain, breaking her established character, such as it is, to gush over him to Tegan, who herself is reduced to a useless exposition device. Even more blatantly, in a novel that's full of gratuitous deaths, Nyssa is the only one that actually gets the shit kicked out of her, for really no particular reason. (To be fair, there's a guy who gets his arm ripped off, but it's a bionic arm and the action isn't described nearly as gleefully.)

I don't know what it is about the 21st century that brings out the casual misogyny in DWU writers, but I had hoped it was more or less constrained to Moffat. Apparently not.

[Devin Harvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first Doctor Who book I've read and it was totally amazing. The author writes the Doctor, Tegan and Nyssa so perfectly you can almost hear them talking to each other, and the setting is one of the most creepy and awesome settings in all of Doctor Who in my opinion. A moss-covered moon made almost entirely out of Lexium, an extremely rare mineral, with a horrible secret at it's heart. On the outskirts of a Planet destroyed by it's own people's greed and hatred and turned into a planet of boiling mud and lava. It's just such a cool idea. And of course the whole idea of 'the Dark' was just so cool, i can't say much without giving it away. The only disappointment I had was that the romance that forms near the end of the book feels forced and kind of awkward to read, but as it goes along it gets a bit more bearable, even if a bit cliche. I already know i'm gonna have to reread this again it was so great!

[Stephen Osborne · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was nice re-visiting the Fifth Doctor, especially with this entry of the series. The author not only had the characters down pat, but delivered a cracking good story as well. The book is extremely well written, peopled with vivid characters and loads of action. Baxendale manages to convey his world well, without over describing things. Pretty dark overall, so not for someone seeking a light adventure.

[Justin Rees · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely fantastic and chilling 5th Doctor story if I've ever read one. This was an excellent follow up to 'Arc of Infinity' and I loved the return of Tegan to the TARDIS gang :). Definitely recommended to anyone who is a fan of the 5th Doctor as it captures him perfectly in a wonderfully dark and creepy story.

[Daniel Kukwa · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredibly disturbing, freaky alien-tinged-ghost story, with as spot-on a depiction of the 5th Doctor, Tegan & Nyssa as I've ever encountered. One of my personal "stranded on an island with only one book" choices.

[Christian Spließ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kurz, nachdem Tegan in Amsterdam das TARDIS-Team wieder verstärkt, landet der 5. Doctor auf dem Ashkemon-Mond. Dort stößt er auf eine Team, das momentan den Asteroiden wegen eines seltenen Metalls untersucht - und eines, dass zudem alle reich machen könnte. Allerdings wird rasch klar, dass der Mond ein sehr dunkles Geheimnis hat.
Ein Asteroid. Eine illegale Schürfaktion. Ein uraltes böses Wesen. Das klingt nach einer klassischen "Basis unter Belagerung"-Folge des 2. Doctors. Und nachdem man diese Konstellation beim Doctor mehrmals schon gehabt hat, könnte der Roman durchaus langweilig werden. Glücklicherweise ist er das nicht. Auch, wenn die Twists ein wenig vorhersehbar sind - es sind die Charaktere, die die Geschichte tragen. Und die Selbstzweifel von Tegan, die sich kurz nachdem sie wieder an Bord der TARDIS ist fragt, ob sie die richtige Entscheidung getroffen hat. Zudem: Es ist ein Roman, der sehr an den Fundamenten des Doctors selbst kratzt. So dunkel und so düster war wohl kaum je eines seiner Abenteuer. Alles in allem: Ein Roman, der nicht unbedingt wegen der Geschichte selbst wert ist gelesen zu werden, aber der 5. Doctor ist genauso gut getroffen wie Tegan und Nyssa und zudem sind auch die Nebencharaktere allesamt glaubwürdig.

[Justin Partridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

“You’re thinking of Adric again,” Nyssa said.
The Doctor looked up sharply but didn’t reply. He didn’t need to say anything, because the answer was plain to see in his troubled gaze: I am always thinking about Adric.”

FIVE ⭐️s for Five!

This thing was a total blast. Not only a tremendous outing for this particular TARDIS crew, but also jam packed with some especially gnarly set pieces and a belter of a monster!

This one always seemed to be highly regarded by the people that were into this range and now I can absolutely see why. I think it’s sold me too on Davison’s incarnation (which is really the only Doctor besides the Third that I don’t have that much contact with). He’s so kind and noble and FUNNY (“I can’t believe I’ve been beaten up!”) even while he’s on the ropes for basically the whole of this book.

This thing is also VERY VERY Tegan/Nyssa heavy and provides all sorts of terribly sweet and achingly sad moments between them both. It’s nice to see Baxendale is fully on board with that particular ship.

This one might be one I revisit sooner rather than later! I’m certainly going to recommend it as much as I can.

[▫️Ron S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fan favorite, in that it's well-regarded enough to have seen a couple of print runs - it's easy to see why this is a popular Past Doctor Adventure.
Tegan returns to the TARDIS some years (Doctor and Nyssa time) of absence, and boy does she return in the thick of it.
A dark and depressing location, with a dire and truly threatening circumstance. The Doctor faces one of (if not THE) most "evil incarnate" of the foes he's met in his long and storied franchise. This story does not skimp on the gore and horror, and when you have the Doctor pointing a loaded gun at people - you know you're in a different frame of mind that your typical DW.
I liked it a lot, but the death and destruction became something beyond the boundaries of Doctor Who (beyond the boundaries of Stephen King, in fact) - you know - to sell it to an audience that needs so much sensory input as to be electrified at all times.
I'm a big fan of Nyssa and Tegan, and both are very well represented -- and I think we get the most beat-up Fifth Doctor we're ever likely to see, while also maintaining very good characterization.
Recommended, but not representative of the franchise.

[Elizabeth (Miss Eliza) · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Special Content only on my blog, Strange and Random Happenstance during I ♥ ♥ The Doctor (October-December 2013)

The Doctor and his companions, Tegan and Nyssa, are aboard the TARDIS when a malign influence infiltrates Nyssa's dreams. The fact that there is something that could breech the protections of the TARDIS worries The Doctor and he decides they must track this evil to its source. Arriving on the small moon of the benighted Akoshemon, the travelers stumble upon a mining operation masquerading as an archaeological dig. Stoker and her men are hoping to get a jump on the mining Consortium that is pushing honest pirates out of work. Thanks to a hot tip this planet could be Stoker's biggest payday ever, making her and her team millionaires if the Lexium deposits turn out to be as wealthy as supposed. Yet one of her team, Vega Jaal, who comes from a sensitive race of miners, feels that something dangerous is lurking in the depths of the moon and that they should abandon their mission. Nyssa and The Doctor also feel the danger, but there appears to be no way to convince Stoker of the danger.

Then the first death happens. Then they find the door. There is a subterranean lab that appears to have been used for studying suspended animation. But the next two deaths force one of Stoker's team, Bunny, to go behind her back and issue a distress beacon. Of course the only chance of rescue they have is from the Consortium, the very last people Stoker wants to see. They could override her claim on the Lexium find. Yet when they do arrive, it's the Captain that has a bigger effect on Stoker. It's her lost love, Lawrence. As the death toll mounts and the dangers increase, there appears to be a darkness, "the" darkness, that is manipulating events and people to it's own end. Could the destruction that reigned down on Akoshemon happen to the rest of the universe if The Doctor doesn't succeed?

Fear of the Dark is dark in name and dark in nature. This book is so dark that if you're looking for a good time with The Doctor, well, stay well clear. Now this isn't a criticism of the book, far from it, the story and the emotions that play throughout are interesting, terrifying, gut wrenching, and tearful. This book is packed with an emotional punch. Yet like how Houdini died (he didn't have time to prepare for the blows) if you aren't prepared for the depths this book will take you to, well, it will be a rough ride. It mines the depths of human despair, suffering, and loss. I kid you not that death upon death is in your
future if you pick this book up. The fact that Baxendale made you care for each character before then killing them shows what a good job he did, that sadistic bastard. At one point I was hopeful that someone other then our core three whose fates weren't in Baxendale's hands would survive... but no. There is no hope. There is no chance of survival. The Doctor's success might save the entire galaxy... but not those he meets on this desolate moon. No chance. No chance at all. Why, you might be asking am I telling you this? Because it was the false hope being ripped out from under me that undid me the most, emotionally. You need to prepare yourself for this book. So you are now hopefully prepared.

As for the 5th Doctor... I've always had such a warm spot for him, and Baxendale captures him and his companions perfectly. What's even more perfect is that this is after Adric's death. Yes Adric, I do hate you so, I'm smiling as I think about your death. Blue star my ass. Ok, back to The Doctor and his companions that are still living... for some reason I must have blocked out Time-Flight (which I'm sure my friend Paul would complement me on) because I didn't realize that Tegan was away from the TARDIS for a year before rejoining The Doctor and Nyssa. Which does play into the story kind of significantly. Which makes me wonder, yet again, who would read these books but die hard fans? I mean, yes, the story does a nice job of kind of explaining what was going on with Tegan and what happened, but even I was a little confused. Now someone who'd never seen any of this series? Well, they'd be lost. But on the plus side, they wouldn't be hearing Tegan's voice in their head during her dialogue in the book, which isn't as annoying by the way as hearing Peri's voice in your head, just fyi. While I'm still dwelling on The Doctor I would like to also compliment Baxendale on creating a book that has not just captured THIS Doctor, but a basic Doctor core. I could just as easily see this story staring 11 and the Ponds.

As for things I really liked, well, Baxendale takes us straight into the action. There is no lenghty set-up. We see The Doctor working among Stoker's team and get flashbacks to how they all met much later on. I can't tell you how refreshing this was. Usually it's tons of time going about explaining that it's just "Doctor" and that he just dropped by and everyone is suspicious until they finally see he's there to help. Instead, bam, he's there, he's helping, he's trusted. Short track to success, switch things up. Two big thumbs up. Of course, the fact that each of the three sections of the book could have used severe editing and seriously, they typos were appalling... plus the depressive nature of the book, well, it did cost the book a star. But way to bring your "A" game Baxendale. And now... for the monster. The writers of Lost should have taken note, this is how you make an unsubstantial monster terrifying. Seriously, The Dark would have that smoke monster pissing himself. Of course, no monster is perfect and his little substantial minion kind of took away a bit of the mystique of this malign nothingness... but no book is perfect, but this is a huge step up from the previous book. Faith restored in this series... onto 6 and Peri...

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a toss up between 1 stars and 2 stars so I gave it 2 to be nice and because there were some part of the book I liked but not many at all. In fact the overall plot of the book is pretty bad. I find the story, the writing and the ending quite lazy. I didn't feel the Fifth doctor was portrayed all that well. I am surprised at so many of the other reviews that say his characterization was spot on because it's really not. Only Tegan seemed to have an accurate characterization and maybe that's why her parts of the book were the ones I enjoyed the most. I'm honestly surprised at how much the book bored me (to the point that I almost didn't finish it) considering the same author wrote Prisoner of the Daleks and I loved that book. If you're a huge fan of Peter Davison's Doctor than I would say you may want to give this book a read but otherwise, pass it by because there are so many more better written Doctor Who books.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the story was good, but I’m about to follow up with a lot of opinions on why it wasn’t.
I feel like the story was padded in some places. Something was off with the pacing in some parts and it felt like it was dragging along.
There were a lot of characters introduced, but then they were gone. They had a setup like they were important, but then offed for nothing.
The Doctor had a mean, rough side to him here. Like some of the Tenth Doctor stuff. I don’t like it with 10 or here. It doesn’t sit right.
There is an ending, but it is definitely not a happy ending. But the epilogue tried to wrap it up like a regular happy weekly adventure ending.
My overall complaint is that it was not a happy sci-fi adventure romp like I have come to expect my Doctor Who fiction to be. It was a scary story with fear and imperfect characters. A good story, but not what I usually want from Who. But there was a detailed ship crash. I enjoyed that immensely.

[Phil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Going in I was told that this was as close to a Doctor Who horror movie as you could get, and I think I realise why. While perhaps the most psychological thriller the franchise, there are plenty of Horror themes to enjoy, surprisingly on the gore end of the genre. Thematic blood letting, a hidden evil, the imagery of long, dark tunnels and a dangerous creature lurking ready to pounce.

The writing for this one is excellent. It flows so well and really pulls you into the story. The characterisation is perfect, you can really hear the Doctor, Tegan and Nyssa coming out of the page, and the secondary characters like Stoker and Bunny Cheung are really well thought out. My only problem was trying to get my head to 'voice' the younger Peter Davison. But, that's my problem; I've gotten a bit used to him these days when he voices the Big Finish stories.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

ターディスで移動中、外部からの得体の知れない干渉によりニッサがひどく現実感を伴った悪夢を見る。ターディス内、しかも移動中に外部から干渉を受けるという尋常ではない事態にドクターは原因を調べるため、ターディスに干渉してきた精神波の出元に向かう。しかしターディスを出て探索を始めた途端、発掘調査団が仕掛けた発破に巻き込まれる。ニッサが大怪我を負ってしまう。調査団に救助されたドクターは調査団とともに洞窟の探索に参加するが、そこで大量のミイラと化した死体を発見する。調査団のリーダーであるストーカーのほんとうにの狙いは鉱山資源の発見にあり、この地に大量のレアメタルが眠っていることがあきらかとなり大喜びするが、クルーの1人が何ものかに襲われ、ミイラと化す。その死体があった洞窟の奥には実験室があり、巨大タンクの中に1人の男が冬眠していた。男によると不老不死の研究のためアコシモンの古いDNAを採集再生したというが、それが恐ろしい吸血生物となって研究所の科学者をおそったという。その吸血生物がストーカーのクルーを次々と襲っていく。クルーの1人のがストーカーの反対を押し切って救助信号を発信。救援隊の助けで吸血生物を殺すことに成功するが、ドクターは問題は解決していないと感じていた。加えて、その背後にひそむ恐ろしい闇にひそやかに精神を支配されつつあることに恐れを覚えていた。


太古に他の宇宙からこの宇宙に侵入してきた"闇"。こちらの世界で存在するためには実体化する必要があり、そのためにタイムロードでるドクターを必要としていた。精神感応で相手に気がつかせず影響を与えることが可能であり、ドクターでさえも操られはじめ、わかっていてもそれを止めることができない。
あまりにも大勢の登場人物が容赦なく吸血化け物と闇の犠牲となっていき、ドクターもあわやとりこまれる寸前まできて、なんとか倒すことができたもののそこには後味の悪さしかない。
起こる悲劇を過去に戻って食い止めることももちろん禁忌でありできず、誰1人救うことのできなかったドクターの無力感が悲しすぎたお話だった。

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

is it grim-dark?? yes. is it still one of the most captivating doctor who stories I've ever read?? yes. fantastic side characters, a brilliant understanding of the main cast, and a delightful and dark (no pun intended) premise and doom laden atmosphere across each page. two things let it down slightly for me; nyssa gets sidelined for a lot of it, which seems a shame and more like baxendale was more interested in tegan; and the ending kinda removes a lot of the intrigue built up before and the doctor moves on, not seemingly registering the traumatic events that just occurred, just like the transition from earthshock into timeflight. but I've never been more upset by character deaths before. absolute brilliance across most of this book

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a good story, well written but there was something slightly off. It was about this dark creature, something existing beyond time, that was trying to gain access to proper space time. It was a bit complicated, but interesting. There were several side players, a group of independent miners seeking "fortune and glory". A ship full of company men who threaten the independent miners' claim. A team of scientists working on stasis chambers and a man with an hereditary mission. I think I know what is wrong, but I can't say it without giving anything away. The biggest problem, without giving anything away, is Rosie. But I can say no more. Still, it was an engaging story, worth the read.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is genuinely one of my favourite books, even beyond the realm of Doctor-Who-affiliated books. I love how Baxendale unravels the mysteries of Akoshemon - it feels neither rushed, nor slow, and he still finds time for the more intimate and carefree character moments that I adore. Fear of the Dark is the book that introduced me to the Fifth Doctor, as well as the piece of media that made me fall in love with the era. I also loved the way Baxendale brought Akoshemon to life, making it feel like a character in its own right - a menacing, sinister presence as well as a setting. In conclusion, I would die for this book.