Doctor Who: Salvation

Past Doctor Adventures #18

by Steve Lyons

New York, 1965. A time of conflict between ideologies, races, generations and genders, when crime runs rife and an unpopular war drags on in a distant land. In the midst of this turmoil, people cry out to their gods. And now, it seems, the gods have answered their call. Walking the slums and tenements of downtown Manhattan, demonstrating extraordinary powers, five strangers are gathering a growing crowd of worshippers.

Steven wants to believe in miracles, but the Doctor is more skeptical. What are the strangers' real motives, and why does history make no mention of these events? As New York begins to tear itself apart, the Doctor's non-interventionist principles are tested to their limits.

Genres: Doctor Who, Science Fiction, Fiction, Doctors

274 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Steve Lyons is a science fiction writer, best known for writing television tie-ins of Doctor Who for BBC Books, and previously, Virgin. The earliest of these was Conundrum in 1994, and his most recent was 2005's The Stealers of Dreams. He has also written material for Star Trek tie-ins, as well as original work.

Reviews

[Ken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fitting in seamlessly between the TV stories The Massacre and The Ark, Lyons gives the new companion Dodo some much needed back story.

Set in 60’s New York and looks at gods and religion.
It’s an interesting story with great character development. An enjoyable First Doctor story.

[Daniel Kukwa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of those books where the characters easily outshine the plot. The story itself is an attempt to create a present-day style adventure in the manner of early attempts such as "The War Machines", but I found it fairly hum-drum...and the less-said about the disturbing experience Dodo has with one of the characters in the novel, the better. That felt particularly out of place. But plot aside, the actual characters shine...especially the regular cast. Steve Lyons has a great command of the First Doctor, but he also performs a miracle in giving Dorothea (Dodo) Chaplet -- one of the most forgotten and cardboard companions in the canon -- an actual character identity.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘You can open your mind to the miracles, not just of one world, but of a
universe. You can believe that, if your God can fashion an
infinite number of snowflakes and still make each one unique,
then he can also create a beautiful life form on a dead rock
circling a distant star. Expand your faith, man, or you will
remain blind to so much that is beautiful.’

I never fail to love a first Doctor story! Although some parts were a bit slow and boring and I remembered just how annoying and stupid Dodo's character was, in general this was a very enjoyable read! <3

[Gareth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Steve Lyons is known for exploring ideas that appeal to fans, and he does so here in a subtle way, expanding the arrival of companion Dodo from the hasty epilogue she got on-screen to a full adventure. Dodo herself becomes more interesting in the process, and while that’s going on we’re also exploring how the Doctor responds to the new arrival, and how Steven is dealing with the fallout from the episode where she turned up. All the characters are captured well.

The plot is a fairly bonkers mix of elements, with a modern day setting (rare for the era) and the apparent existence of a pantheon of gods, walking around New York and granting miracles. What they really are and what should be expected of them is the focus of the plot. It’s a very interesting problem but there aren’t many specific twists and turns once that becomes the focus, so for all its creativity, the book drifted by for me somewhat.

Still, worth a look for Hartnell era fans.

[Frank Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took ages to kick into gear for me, it was 40+ pages and an attempted alien rape before we even got to the TARDIS. After that the story picks up and the plot gets slowly more interesting, it'd make a reasonable First Doctor episode, but I found the story telling rough.

It's nice to have a bit of Dodo's background but I think it could have been handled better.

[Hidekisohma · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am not entirely certain what it is about writing for the 1st doctor, but i find it that most of the stories written for him...well they're not very good. This is my 6th 1st doctor novel and i can say the only real GOOD one was "City at World's End". It's sad because Ian and Barbara are some of my favorite companions ever, but i figured i needed to give some of his other companions a try, so, i gave Steven and Dodo a shot.

I was a little hesitant going in, as I'm not exactly the biggest fan of Dodo as a character, but i figured "well, it couldn't be worse than Eleventh Tiger". And how did it work out? Well.. it honestly wasn't terrible.

The short non-spoilery version of the plot is that the doc and steven end up in new york in the 60's and there's a bunch of aliens that are pretending to be gods.

Something i found interesting about this story is apparently when Dodo joined the TARDIS in the show, she just kinds of appears. This novel goes into her origin about her backstory and how and why she joined the doctor in the first place. and i have to say, that in itself was pretty interesting.

The doctor was very in character and even had his patented fumbling over his words which was neat. His characterization and logic were fine and i had no real problems in the scenes he was in.

Ah. those are the key words "the scenes he was in". Because he was not in a LOT of this book. This was a VERY heavy Dodo book and they didn't want you to forget that.

That was the problem with this novel. There were a LOT of side characters. a LOT of them. I lost track of a bunch of them after a while. i was like "so there's the manager, the reporter, the general, the soldier, the..." but my brain had a hard time remembering who was who at times. There was too much going on with too many people and sadly, one of the major players in the story completely slipped my mind until the end when i went "oh yeah, he WAS a guy wasn't he?"

This caused the story to slump in the middle. from page 80-180 was a bit of a schlog, but towards the last 50 or so pages it got better and more actiony.

In both of the first doctor books of his i've read, Steve lyons seems to have this weird anti-religion thing going on as Witch hunters also put religion in a very poor light. I know Who kinda has this underlying "anti-religion" feel going on, but it's not usually OVERT. Steve lyons is right in your face about it and it can definitely be a little offputting at times.

Overall, the book was better than some of the other more awful 1st doctor novels, but it wasn't great. It's definitely a smack dab in the middle 3 out of 5. Not bad, not great. Just...kind of right there.

3 out of 5.

[Steven Andreyechen · Rating 5 out of 5]

As can be assumed from the title, this book tackles the idea of religion and human spirituality through the lens of science fiction. In this regard it is quite similar to Steve Lyons other first Doctor book “the Witch Hunters” though in this one both the thematic through line and alien plot points are much more explicit.

This book likewise creates a wonderfully rich and lived in depiction of its settings, in particular New York. It does not shy away from any of the unsavoury elements of life in the United States in the 1960s especially with regard to race. This is something that plays a small but still significant role in the story’s progression.

The characters are very well realized. Dodo in particular is the highlight and is essentially the main character. There is a refinement to her characterization that is missing the actual show, where she is a bit generic. Lyons has probably done more to flesh her out as a character than any other writer. The other characters, ie Steven and the Doctor feel exactly as they should for when this story is set.

Overall this is an incredibly interesting book that, although it pushes suspension of disbelief with its premise, is very well written and enjoyable.

[Billy Martel · Rating 2 out of 5]

**WARNING** I did not finish this book.

It’s possible that my review would be kinder if I had actually finished it. But I only got up to page 69 (nice) before the terrible prose style finally took me out.

The perspective shifts between characters roughly 6 times per chapter, characters speak in character motivation rather than dialogue.

I really liked how intense the horror aspects were, and the character development they gave to Dodo was greatly appreciated. Again, maybe it was going somewhere, but I just got sick of it. Reading is difficult enough for me with my ADHD I don’t need to waste my life reading something as poorly edited as this.

**note: read a plot breakdown of the rest of the book online to see what I missed. A character who attempts rape in the part of the book I did read is made to be a cute love interest for the character he attempted rape on. Fuck that.

[David Layton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Steve Lyons has written another excellent book. The basics are fairly straightforward. Lyons has written the backstory behind Dodo's first appearance in the TARDIS. She is running away from a confused alien who has taken over the body of man in her neighborhood and has kept her hostage for several days. Unbeknownst to her, these events are tied into a series of UFO incidents in Britain and the US. The Doctor takes Dodo to New York City, where it seems, the action is heating up. This involves a group of aliens who look like angels and gods and seemingly have the power to grant people their wishes. Things start to get out of hand when these alien-gods try to establish a cult to themselves in New York. It's a strange plot, but the novel is the most direct interrogation of something that has been on Lyons' mind, given what his other novels are about.

There are a few things to quibble about before getting to the essential work. Most of my quibbles revolve around Lyons' portrait of America. His New York is really London with different names for places. Likewise, his portrayal of the American military makes it more like the British military. General Marchant talks more like an Englishman than an American. He carries a swagger stick, which is not all that popular in the American military. Other American characters also fall into English rather than American diction, such as "keep to" rather than "stick to."

The essential novel more than makes up for these errors in rendering the setting. The issue here is religion. Lyons is not particularly concerned with questions of whether one or the other religion is "right" or "wrong." His novel is concerned with what motivates people to get religious in the first place. More generally, this becomes a matter of dedicating oneself to a concept.

The gods in the story are not gods, but aliens with weak psyches, little imagination, and tremendous power in manipulating reality and perception. They absorb the ideas of other minds and mold themselves and reality to fit these ideas. Thus, they appear to be gods because this seems to be what the people around them want. They start acting like the gods that the people want them to be. Instead of the religion molding the people, the people mold the religion. However, once a multitude of people start joining, they bring a multitude of desires and expectations. What started out as a simple message of peace to everyone becomes a confused cacophony of doctrines and pronouncements. The gods become angry and vengeful. Love turns into destruction. The whole process is a miniature enactment of the historical process of religion, or at least one interpretation of that process. The gods are really ideas made manifest. When the ideas start conflicting, so do the gods. Thus, factions are born.

Lyons writes in general about how dedication to ideals warps people's perceptions and ethics, taking their focus on where he thinks it should truly be, which is the ethics of person-to-person relations. Lyons displays the consequences of not following Immanuel Kant's dictum, that the source of ethics is in treating people as ends in themselves and not as means to ends. One has the example of General Marchant, dedicated to his idea of national security and America first every bit as much as a religious zealot is dedicated to his/her religious ideas. This drives Marchant to break all communications with his daughter. Even after they temporarily must work together, he cannot make the loving connection he ought, and turns her out of his life once again. There is the example of Steven, who is so desperate to find an idea to believe in, a cause that would in his view give meaning to his life, that he breaks away from the Doctor and even temporarily joins the new cult. Lyons shows in these examples how raising ideals above people breaks the personal connections that make life bearable. On the opposite side of this is the Dodo-Joseph story. The reader sees that Dodo's attachment to Joseph, even though he is an alien, brings him around. Through the emotional bond they share, Joseph can see how badly astray his fellow "gods" have gone. The gods, and Joseph too, are using people for their own ends, which is to give themselves identity and purpose. They cannot help themselves, and this is their danger to any intelligent species that has contact with them. Only through his connection to Dodo can Joseph see this and learn to do the right thing.

A reader can see these themes in other Lyons books, stories of the terrible consequences derived from people's giving up free will to the cause, whatever it might be. In "The Final Sanction," the loss of an entire intelligent species results from dedication to ideals and the resulting loss of ethical compass. Similarly, "The Witch Hunters" shows that the Salem witch trials were largely caused by the same impulse, that the idea one believes wholly in, whatever it is, is more important than the life of any person.

Lyons' explorations of these themes, and his technique of demonstrating them through plot rather than telling them through dialogue, is what I believe sets him apart as a writer from most the other writers of Doctor Who novels. It is what makes his books so popular and highly praised.

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This and other Steve Lyons books reviewed here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.com...

[Adrian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn’t struck by any of the voices, and certainly not convinced about this being Dodo’s introduction. Low effort cover - not feeling it

[Dan Hodges · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why do so many of these 90s Doctor Who books feature female companions getting sexually assaulted? Seriously, it's getting disturbing. It's always just so irrelevant and unpleasant. Well, apart from that, this is a perfectly solid book that explores some thoughtful ideas of religion, faith, Gods, and spirituality. It's not the best 1st Doctor book, but it's engaging enough, though it begins to drag as it goes on.

[Ffion Horrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great First Doctor story which acts as an introduction to Dodo's character. While the story arc was fairly simple and at times slow moving, I found the character developments, particularly those of Dodo and Steven, more than made up for it. I found the book thoroughly enjoyable and very engaging. 9/10

[James Barnard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third time I've read ‘Salvation’ and it continues to impress. It is a shame the novel isn't better remembered, because I can’t help but think it’s not only one of the best BBC Books, but also one of the best Doctor Who stories of any medium.

Steve Lyons does not get enough credit for his approach to Doctor Who. The perception seems to be that he’s the author of overly humorous, fluffy stories. This isn't the case, and certainly doesn't apply here. ‘Salvation’ is set in New York in a very dark period of history – the midst of the Vietnam War – which is rarely mentioned in Doctor Who and yet which must surely have subtly underpinned the show’s formative years. Times of crisis will often see people calling for their gods – and ‘Salvation’ gives a chilling picture of what might happen if that call were to be answered.

The aliens are fascinating creatures, as much for what they are as what they represent – and the terrifying mirror they hold up to 1960s America (and Britain). One can understand their confusion about the dichotomy between what humans say they want and what is best for them to have, and one can’t even attribute this to them meeting the wrong people to start with since everyone seems equally culpable. Well, everyone except the TARDIS crew, of course.

And it’s the depiction of the TARDIS crew that really puts the icing on the cake. Steven is exactly the right mix of heroism, cynicism and loyalty, with his capacity to fall for the wrong type of woman very much in place. The Doctor is note-perfect, with his mannerisms and speech patterns beautifully intact. And then there’s Dodo Chaplet – perhaps the least loved TV companion – who finally gets the introduction story she never had on screen. Lyons takes pains to iron out and rationalise the character’s inconsistencies and to fill in her back-story. Amazingly, it works. Inconsistent accent? It’s a symptom of her trying to fit in. Different explanations of her family status? That’s because she told different people different versions of the truth. And then there’s the fact that, by the time of her first full story – ‘The Ark’ – Steven refers to having told her many times about the dangers of blundering into situations: *of course* there’s a gap there. And ‘Salvation’ fills that gap perfectly.

Track it down and give it a read. You won’t be disappointed.

[Nicholas Whyte]

http://nhw.livejournal.com/810487.html?#cutid1[return][return]At the end of the televised story The Massacre, Dodo wanders into the TARDIS while it is parked briefly on Wimbledon Common in 1966; by the start of the next story, The Ark, she is perfectly happy to believe that the TARDIS has taken them to a different part of contemporary England, but has difficulty grasping the possibility of time travel. Also (to the mockery of generations of fans) her accept has completely changed, from something rather north of England to something more uncertainly southern. Salvation rewrites Dodo's first scenes in the TARDIS as part of an encounter with godlike aliens in 1966, which takes her, the Doctor and Steven to New York. Lyons has invented vast amounts of back-story for Dodo here, all of which makes the character (and her accent quirks) much more believable; he does the same to a lesser extent for Steven, catching Peter Purves' characterisation of him perfectly while also adding to his background. And his Doctor is very Doctor-ish, taking charge of the confused officials trying to deal with the situation, confronting and defeating the bad guys while also determined to minimise casualties. The exploration of humanity's relationship with gods, and with belief, is a bit pale compared with Neil Gaiman, but then isn't everything? My biggest criticism is that while Lyons gets New York's physical geography, he does not really capture the city's vibrant multi-ethnicity very well; most of the American characters might as well have been English, which is a bit ironic given that he saves the phenomenon of Dodo's accent.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have not read a first doctor novel since a target TV tie in title 'and the Crusaders' sometime in the seventies this book however is a different proposition as its a first doctor novel with a modern feel.
The characterisation is fine and the characters of the Doctor and his companions read well..the scope of the adventure however is above anything they could have patched together in the sixties CGI not being standard then!!
The book asks some questions about God's too really..it's that age old question did God create man or did man create God?..the God's in question being somewhat a reflection of the people's belief in them.
I enjoyed this novel it was a stronger read than some of the more recent doctor who novels I have read and showed in the fact it wasn't just dispatched in a single sitting.

[Andy Simmons · Rating 3 out of 5]

‎I have to admit that was not overly impressed by this book. The writing is okay and the characterisation seems pretty but the book, as a whole, was not as strong as some of the other Dr Who novels I've read.

Mr Lyons obvious knows his Doctor Who history as he presented the Doctor, Steve and Dodo very well as the characters from the series. He expanded u‎pon Steven's background to nicely assist in the story and the antagonists in this book are very well thought out.

Unfortunately this book plods through the first half and the story is very slow in developing. To me it felt like it had rewritten to set it in New York as a good number of the characters felt quintessentially English; especially the General who was written as a classic sterotypical British officer.

Once it gets past the halfway point, however, it is a decent story and quite enjoyable.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dodo faces an alien and runs to a police box for help. This is her first adventure, set mostly in America it looks as what is religion, and is it always good for people to get what they want. This is a really good character read. Steven is still upset with the Doctor and slightly rebels. Dodo's strange accent is explained. The baddies are well written and quite clever invention. A very good read.

[Ivana Richards · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not quite as good as 'The Witch Hunters' but still very enjoyable, until the end when it all gets rather silly. Yet again, Lyons focusses more on the companions than the Doctor and gives Dodo a nice back-story, something the tv show failed to do. All 3 central characters are well-written, however the aliens are missing a sense of threat in the main - they just sort of arrive and do very little until the end. Not the best of the 1st Doc novels, but nowhere near the worst either.

[Val · Rating 4 out of 5]

An intriguing effort to flesh out one of the most forgotten Doctor Who side characters, companion Dorothea "Dodo" Chaplet. Apart from a rather appalling scene where she's almost assaulted, the character work for Dodo in this book is mostly good and succeeds at the task of giving her a bit of life. The main plot about aliens posing as gods is interesting as well. On the whole I'd say it's a worthwhile read for fans of the series.

[Travis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very uneven, but it features some good character development for the Doctor and Stephen, an interesting setting and a different kind of menace.

The stuff with Dodo wasn't terribly interesting, but it was fun seeing the First Doctor in a 'modern' setting as they didn't do much of that on the show.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good ideas about people's expectations of their God (or in this case Gods)and appreciation of why a God should not and cannot accede to all prayers. Interesting science fiction setting for this message.
Of course the real "God" like figure is the Doctor.
Good to see some detailed characterisation of Dodo. I got to know more about her in this book than in "Bunker Soldiers".

[Joseph Teller · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of those rare First Doctor Novels, it gets the characters right but is too modern in feel for a first doctor story.

[Denis Southall · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but found it frustrating at the same time. the characters were well portrayed and it fleshed out the companions story a little. the plot felt clunky to me. slow in the first half of the book and then disjointed towards the end. the concept of god's being amongst us and responding to our desire and direction for the period it was set in, the mid 60s, had lots of potential.