Doctor Who: Genocide

Eighth Doctor Adventures #4

by Paul Leonard

A Doctor Who story in which Jo Grant is asked to join a project 1.5 million years in the past, to observe the evolution of the human species at first hand. The Doctor learns of this only when he visits Earth in 2109 and finds the peaceful Tractites - but no trace of the human race.

Genres: Doctor Who, Science Fiction, Fiction, Ebooks, Fantasy, Novels, Science Fiction Fantasy

288 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1998

About the author

Paul J. Leonard Hinder, better known by his pseudonym of Paul Leonard and also originally published as PJL Hinder, is an author best known for his work on various spin-off fiction based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.

Leonard has acknowledged a debt to his friend and fellow Doctor Who author Jim Mortimore in his writing career, having turned to Mortimore for help and advice at the start of it. This advice led to his first novel, Venusian Lullaby being published as part of Virgin Publishing's Missing Adventures range in 1994. Virgin published three more of his novels before losing their licence to publish Doctor Who fiction: Dancing the Code (1995); Speed of Flight (1996) and (as part of their New Adventures range) Toy Soldiers (1995). Following the loss of their licence, Virgin also published the novel Dry Pilgrimage (co-written with Nick Walters) in 1998 as part of their Bernice Summerfield range of novels.

Leonard also wrote for the fourth volume of Virgin's Decalog short story collections. Following this, he was asked to co-edit the fifth volume of the collection with mentor Jim Mortimore.

Leonard's experience in writing for Doctor Who led to him being asked to write one of the first novels in BBC Books Eighth Doctor Adventures series, the novel Genocide. This led to four further novels for the range, of which The Turing Test received particular acclaim for its evocative use of real-life historical characters and first person narrative.

Leonard has also written short stories for the BBC Short Trips and Big Finish Short Trips collections.

Reviews

[Jacob Webb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well well well, we’re back on track, aren’t we?

At least for the time being.

After skimming ahead to the point in Bodysnatchers where we encounter the ever endearing George Litefoot, I’ll admit I had to shake myself from reading on out of a Labrador like combination of curiosity and commitment, but I’ve resolved to go back to it when the dust has settled, and I feel more secure in the world of the Eighth Doctor. And frankly I was rewarded immediately, from the moment I began reading Genocide I was reminded how fun a good Who novel can be. Paul Leonard’s writing (in my experience) has always been hallmarked by a commitment to the minor characters, the innocent bystanders, to be blunt the cannon fodder, those who die cruelly and often pointlessly, cheated by fate. Time is taken to endear us to these bit players, to let us know that they were people. This, most of all for me, distinguishes literature from pulp fiction and trash, an especially fine line in the world of scifi.

As for the plot of the book, it’s an interesting one. I enjoy stories in which time travel proves an important part of the plot, rather than a framing device, and this is my first Who novel in which this has been the case (barring The Eight Doctors I guess), and any concerns that I only enjoy contemporary-set stories have been beaten back, if not yet vanquished. The moral issue at the heart of the story is also unusual, and whilst i’ll admit it didn’t exactly probe me into wondering if the human race ought to be sterilized for the good of the marshlands and such, it was still a well presented issue, with many subtle shades of grey. You could seem the emotional weight, and conviction that brought Sam to her (ill thought out) conclusions. Even the maniac Hynes bordered on the sympathetic, frustrated with ineffectual environmentalist new-agers. He was, in fact, an excellent character, his clearly cracked mind teetering on the brink of being quite endearing, but ultimately coming down on the side of unnerving instead. In the end it’s a little sad that the moral question is marginalized by the paradox it necessitates, and the lesson becomes ‘Time travel is dangerous’, rather than ‘Genocide is never justified, even if it builds a cleaner world’. But paradoxes happen.

The world/character building with regards to the Tractites (as individuals and as a race) was superb, and I think without it the whole novel would have felt much more hollow. Mauvril was both endearing and unnerving, and Kitig had much solemn dignity. Gavril never got fleshed out really, the explanation for his presence was only mentioned in passing, and he didn’t get any resolution (is he still wandering around 90’s Tanzania?) but then you can’t catch every thread. Actually, speaking of loose threads, Jo’s plot never got a proper conclusion, no tearful second goodbye with The Doctor, just a little argument and then cut to epilogue really. That’s a shame, it feels an odd thing to leave out, and something of a downbeat note to end on. but I’m unphased, because as far as I’m concerned The Doctor (perhaps because he felt she’d lost her way) did what he could to realign her timeline and keep her marriage afloat. Sadly erasing his only encounter with her ‘til her 60s from her memory. Heartbreaking.

Last but not least, Sam & Doctor Watch (diddle-diddle-deee): Well, I think that the Eighth Doctor was excellently portrayed in this adventure, sweet, sad, so young and yet so old, and every inch the Time Lord sensing temporal chaos like smoke in the air, and tracking it to source quite easily. I’m starting to realize i’m going to be with him for the long haul, and I’ll know him very well by the end. As for Sam… she was Sam. Very much the same young lady from Vampire Science; forthright, contrary, unsure of herself, but more sure of her instincts than of The Doctor’s. It’s frustrating to see her mistrust him, there’s a sense of betrayal, but since I have some sympathy for her reasoning she’s yet to go in my bad books. But I’m yet to read a compelling story in which she and The Doctor aren’t at loggerheads, and I don’t know how soon I will.

So all in all an excellent novel with good writing, characters, and plot. And it’s mention of little allusions to it’s predecessors finally give the impression of a story that’s content not to be the first EDA.

[Gareth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Frequent Doctor Who readers may know what to expect from a Paul Leonard book, and happily this one delivers both his usual interesting take on an alien species (here the Tractites, horse-like beings with multiple sets of eyes) and thoughtful character writing (here Sam, more nuanced than usual, and the Doctor, an almost malevolent force).

Genocide, as the name suggests, concerns a fairly big event, that being the sudden switch of all intelligent life on Earth from human to Tractite. Something has changed and it can’t stay that way, which is bad news for the Tractites. Leonard has this weigh interestingly on Sam, and explores his themes in some exciting ways, although a few of the concepts and characters can slip through his fingers at times. It’s a mostly excellent effort.

3.5

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was fine, but it really wasn't great. After coming off of the high that was Bodysnatchers (the previous book in this series), Genocide is a real let-down. It's convoluted and confusing for no good reason, involves side characters just to swiftly kill them, and felt the need to pull in Jo Grant, her only purpose to ensure that Sam survived the adventure. This entire book is a 'what-if' scenario; what if another species populated and evolved on Earth instead of humans. It's an unstable future, one which the Doctor has to rectify before the whole universe implodes. The Doctor doesn't play much of a part in this installment at all. He feels vulnerable and not in control of the situation in the least, and things are happening to him instead of him actively attempting to rectify the problem. His companions do much more than he does, and that doesn't sit right with me. The only good this novel services is showing Sam's evolution as a companion. Vampire Science showed her wrestling with her feelings about the Doctor, Bodysnatchers showed her how to run and think and survive as a companion, and this installment taught Sam that she can't always fix everything or keep her hands clean. Other than that, it's not that great of a Doctor Who story. Here's hoping the next is better.

[Ken · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Doctor and Sam arrive in 2109 only to find history has changed, whilst in the present day former companion Jo Grant receives a call for help.

A middling story in the series, there’s lots of interesting elements including the alien Tractites.
It’s a slight shame that Jo is underused though.

Short fast paced chapters helped the story along, an enjoyable Timey-Wimey adventure.

[April Mccaffrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full review later to come but I can't remember the last time I read a book from start to finish.

Loved it.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Admittedly, it's possible that I was put off by this book before I began, by the simple fact that the author was arrogant enough to split his story into four "books". I'm sorry, when your story takes less than two hundred pages to tell, you barely qualify as a single book, let alone before. Doctor Who books are novellas at best.

*coughs* Sorry. Onto the actual review.

So apparently it's not only possible, but easy to the point of silliness to go back in time and change *all* of history. I thought the mechanics of time didn't work like that in Doctor Who, but not according to Paul Leonard. Humans, being the shitty people we are, commit near-genocide and cultural-extinction on a race of otherwise-gentle beings... who then turn around and go back in time to stop humanity from ever existing. The premise is quite preposterous, and only barely tolerable by the notion that the whole situation is unstable and that the new reality may collapse at any time. I'm cool with that. But apparently in collapsing it would take all of reality with it. Which makes destroying the universe relatively simple for any two-bit nihilist with a time machine... and time machines are sort of a dime a dozen at this point in the Doctor Who universe. I'm much less cool with that.

You'll notice that I gave this three stars, and not the zero stars it sounds like I think it deserves. {Truthfully I'd be more inclined to give it two and a half if I could, but I can't, so three will have to do.} Well, although the premise is shit, the writing is actually very good. {Odd, I'm much more used to finding good stories told by bad writers than the other way 'round.} More than that, the characterizations are superb. I think I love Leonard's Sam more than any other version thus far, and the Alien-Companion-of-the-Week was also very quite wonderful. Both of them felt quite alive and full of depth. The same, I'm sad to say, could not be said for Jo Grant and Sgt. Benton [and why is that poor man still a sergeant after twenty years?!], who felt like they were included without real reason. They could have been deleted from the story and virtually nothing would have changed. The other two human characters involved were likewise nearly irrelevant, although not quite as bad as Jo and John. Alas.

You know... for all the good that there was, in Kitig and Sam, and in the caliber of writing... there's simply too much bad in contrast. No, I think after all I will round this one down rather than up.

[Harry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book that I’m going to find difficult to review. The question is where the hell do I even begin?!

I’ll start by talking about the characters. I really enjoyed the doctor and Sam in this book as well as the return of much loved companion Jo Grant. Despite being outrageously over the top, I also liked the character of Jacob Hynes.

Even though it was lovely to see Jo Grant interact with a new version of the Doctor, I felt like you could’ve had any companion from Earth in her place and the story wouldn’t change. I’m guessing the writer just really liked the character of Jo Grant so he put her in the story because he could.

One thing about the story that people seem to criticise it for is it’s complexity, which I completely understand as it’s very mad in terms of its structure and the plot is very wild and can be hard to follow. I somewhat understood what was going on to an extent but I can see why people might struggle with this. I think because of its bizarre nature I personally really enjoyed how the story moved along as I felt there was always something interesting going on.

I thought the Tractites were a really interesting species and I really enjoyed the Tractite characters in the book, they are basically horses with arms and they can speak.One of the villains in the book who is a Tractite I thought was brilliantly written and quite a bastard of a villain in my opinion. One that you really wanted to see die as she does some horrible things to the doctor.

Not really sure what else I can say on this book without spoiling it but I would recommend this as it’s very different to what I’ve read before in the vast world of Doctor Who books. A very interesting, bizarre, psychedelic and enjoyable book and one that I would also recommend if you’re an eighth Doctor fan. This is also one that you can read stand alone as it’s not part of an arc as far as I’m aware.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read that many people found this book to be a slow starter. I completely agree. There's a lot of stuff going on and the way it all ties together is a mystery for some time. However, as soon as the book gains momentum, it hardly loses it, and it most certainly earns it.

The villains in this book were slightly hard to visualize, their anatomy not making a ton of sense at all times. The world they lived in seemed almost too fantastical, and the way they would read books took a bit of a stretch of the imagination. This isn't a negative really, which really is the wonderful aspect of Doctor Who. It's easy to accept a city of crystal and lickable books when the main character flies in a police box. They were still very creative and Paul Leonard really makes you interested in them quite brilliantly by making the reader take Sam's perspective. In fact, all of the characters are beautifully realized. I would not say there was a single death in this book that didn't upset me to some degree.

I also have to give Leonard a bit of praise in earning what little sentimentality he had in the book. No gushy goodbye with Jo Grant. He reels it in to keep a tight ending without losing sight of his forward momentum.

[8thdoctor · Rating 3 out of 5]

What's life like after you travel with the Doctor? Jo Grants thoughts: 'First she'd saved the universe with the Doctor; then she'd saved the world with Cliff; now she was raising her son in a two-bedroomed flat in Hackney with two jobs and a bedroom that needed decorating and a roof that needed retiling and hadn't life been supposed to get better?' Good simple time travel story with a good moral dilema.

[Lela · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed this 8th Doctor novel though it was a more difficult read to get into. I didn't find it all that interesting until the last third of the book or so. Still a good read.

[Tom Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Doctor Who EDA Books #4

To my surprise, Genocide was a fairly enjoyable book. Nothing mind blowing by any stretch of the imagination, but I found it moving and well paced.

The novel is well described by many reviewers as "convoluted" or "complex" I'd disagree with this. It's more about keeping attention with the book and not getting distracted. I think people say it's complex in reviews just to sound smart. XD

The title of the book is very fitting, and you can kind of tell how the plot is going to turn out with the Humans and the Tractites, and the title of the book alone. During the last quarter of the book, it 100% hit it's peak.

For some problems, I personally feel Jo didn't need to be featured, and most of her involvement and actions in this novel could of been for Sam. Jacob Hynes, (or the over the top "All humans must die!" guy) , I found poorly done. Again, the story could of done just fine without him.

It took ages to read this book, not because I found it drag, but life getting in the way. However, with that I still followed it without much trouble.

It just hits a 7/10.

Not a strong 7, but a 7 it hits. Or in Goodreads rating terms: 3 1/2 out of 5. But the sake of the rating system on goodreads, I push for four stars. (Being slightly generous.)

Next is the continuity crazy shitstorm of "War of the Daleks" This should be fun.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you find Saving The Whales, The Rainforests and ecology a boring subject, don't bother with this book. But, if you care, even a little, read on! An odd book that brings back Jo Grant and UNIT. It is interesting to see how the Doctor's companions have fared after falling back into their old lives. Seems the life of anyone the Doctor touches is changed by it somehow or other. If you travel in the Tardis, you're never the same. Jo Grant is a typically unhappy member of the human race as a divorced single mother. When the chance to work with the Doctor comes up again after several decades she grasps at it like a life saver to a drowning victim. The horse-like society that is wiped out is fascinating. You find yourself wishing there was some way of saving it and that the Doctor didn't have to be such a stickler for the Proper Flow of Time. The only problem is with the way the narrative goes back and forth. The story starts near the end, which is a good way to start. You wonder how in the world the Doctor got into such a state! This will hook you into staying with the story; and you will need to be hooked because it sometimes becomes boring and predictable. Still, it is an original story creating a wonderful new race of beings. Good show!

[Peer Lenné · Rating 1 out of 5]

Von den ersten vier Büchern der Eighth Doctor Adventuress ist Genocide für mich das mit Abstand schlechteste. Das Thema und die Geschichte haben grundsätzlich ein riesiges Potenzial, aber leider schafft es Paul Leonard nicht mal im Ansatz dieses zu nutzen.
Sein Erzählstil ist holprig und sein Schreibstil oft stichwortartig, so dass beim Lesen überhaupt kein Spaß aufkommen kann.
Die Hauptfiguren sind uninteressant und oft nur da, um ein bestimmtes Ereignis auszulösen. Danach sind sie dann einfach nur noch unnütz, was dann auch teilweise dem Autor aufzufallen schien und er sie einfach einen brutalen, aber völlig sinnlosen Tod sterben lässt.
Motivationen der Protagonisten werden teilweise nur angeschnitten oder überhaupt nicht erklärt (einige Ausnahme Mauvril, bei der es nach einer Weile aber nur noch nervt).
Ganz besonders übel fand ich diesmal Sam. Wie kann man nur so strunz doof sein?
Ich könnte noch ewig weitere negative Punkte aufzählen (positive fallen mir leider gerade nicht ein), aber ich schließe einfach damit, dass ich davon abrate dieses Buch zu lesen, wenn man nicht unbedingt die komplette Reihe der EDAs lesen möchte.

[Michel Siskoid Albert · Rating 3 out of 5]

This early in the Eighth Doctor Adventures, there seemed to be a push to include continuity implants as if to say THIS COUNTS AS MUCH AS THE NEW ADVENTURE DID! So in Paul Leonard's Genocide, we get Jo Grant, just as the previous book had Professor Litefoot and the Zygons. Unfortunately, Jo isn't used ENOUGH. To be fair, if her acreage is low, the novel itself is possibly the shortest in the line. Hard to get into at first - the aliens are extra weird, the structure of the book takes a minute to get, the prehistoric background creates yet another strange POV, and the plot is timey-wimey - Leonard makes good use of time travel as a plot device, and his imagination is going full blast. Had the book been a little longer, I think he could have gotten a better ending out of it, however, but he's determined to create a no-win scenario for the characters. Speaking of which, these early books all have to contend with Sam and how to put meat on her bones. Leonard's style allows for a lot of interiority - he's very POV-driven - but somehow, Sam gets all the stupidest thoughts. I'm not sure how much this is helping. So a good effort, but a little under-cooked in my opinion.

[Carol · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not a big fan of stories that start "Here we are. Now let me spend several hours telling you how we got here".

I do understand that some stories work better that way, but it seems to be used irritatingly often, even with the ones that don't. So that was a point against this book before I got past page one.

And then there's Sam. I already found her annoying, and if anything she was worse in this book. She always seems to think she knows better than the Doctor. In fairness, he's not always right, but for a seventeen year old human to constantly think she's cleverer than him gets a bit wearing. Maybe that's the point. Hopefully she'll acquire a Clue eventually. Or get eaten by a Drashig. I wouldn't object to either, frankly.

Add to this the casual ableism - Rowenna thinking she's lucky to be allowed on the expedition because her disability causes logistical issues - the sympathetic characters introduced for the sole purpose of killing them off and making the Doctor sad and the the pathetic, incompetent human villain and I pretty much only bothered finished reading this book for continuity with the rest of the series. Hopefully the next one will be better.

[Scott Cresswell · Rating 2 out of 5]

The fourth book in the EDA range is Genocide, written by Paul Leonard.

The Story: The Doctor and Sam end on Earth in 2109, where humanity no longer exists and the world is now inhabited by an alien race who believe the Doctor to be the Uncreator. Meanwhile in the past, Jo Grant returns to UNIT and a mysterious agent is creating a virus to destroy humanity before its inception.

My Thoughts: The idea of Genocide's plot is excellent. You really can imagine a bleak, mysterious, and creepy story where the Doctor and Sam investigate an Earth devoid of life. However, Leonard inserts an uninspiring and dreary alien race on Earth that adds little to the story's progression. The scenes with Jo Grant may be enjoyable as it is intriguing to see how her character has transformed with age, but it doesn't feel like her story goes anywhere. After an engaging build-up to who the real villain may be, the final chapters are a disappointment, and the potentially dramatic conclusion is haphazardly handled.

Overall, Genocide may have a good idea with some decent moments, but the execution lets it down, it fails to be scary, and the characters are uninspiring.

[B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was starting to expect mid-quality stories from this series, and then I hit this one. I don't know if it's genuinely crafted much better or if it's just way more suited to my sort of sci-fi, but I liked this book a lot!

I thought the plot was interesting, the worldbuilding and aliens were really well done, and the one-off characters were great for the most part. Sam didn't get much character work in this one, but that's okay because Jo was there. I love Jo. Also, it ended with a great spark of internal conflict for Sam's long-term character arc, so I'm excited to see how that plays out. Kitig & Axeman were really lovable one-off allies, and Jacob was a really hateable one-off villain.

There were just a few little things I didn't like about this book keeping it from a five star - the only one big enough to really note here was how the character of Rowenna was approached. That may have flown with readers in the 90s but now, anyone can realize how ableist a lot of her writing was.

[Amanda Rubio · Rating 3 out of 5]

i liked this one, even if the whole thing with the animals and the habilines and pretty much everything with Jacob was a bit overkill. it was very nice seeing Sam stand up for herself and make decisions, but one thing that got me was that the stakes in this particular case were just so immense that i wanted to shake her and yell “girl, this is not the time to doubt the Doctor!!!” in the beginning of the story. but it was very nice that she got to do what she believed in, and was allowed to make mistakes as well. i hope we see more of her coming to terms with what happens at the end of the story. she’s seen a lot of death so far, and this was intro to war. the next entry is ‘war of the Daleks’, so i’m guessing her pacifist nature is going to be confronted with rash reality once again. and once again i must say: Doctor, she’s too young!!! take her home!!!

other notes: the tractites, nice horse people, were a very interesting race, and i liked pretty much everything about then. also Jo Grant was there?? not sure how necessary that was (especially considering her role at the end there), but lovely to see her!

[Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Human Race has been Exterminated but not from the Daleks.

This story is about the Doctor and Sam landing in the Future Earth but notice that there is no sign or trace of Humans but instead, Earth is being inhabited by an alien race called the Tractites.

This kinda feels all over the place, and I quite understand when people say that this book is confusing as in the first act, scenes jumping from Human extinction era to the time when the Human Race is still around and it goes back and forth and there is this whole multiverse thing when the Human Extinction takes place in an Alternate Reality or is an Alternate Reality, but what I like about the Book is that how the Doctor and Sam's morals are put into a test.

[Vonnie Rice · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very clever and engaging sci-fi story, with only a couple hiccups. Jo is likely present to tie many of the environmental themes of this novel back to her era of the TV show which often tackled similar subject matter - but in practice, she comes across as a mostly irrelevant side character that makes you wonder why she's even Jo and not just a one-off ally. Some stuff surrounding the character of Rowena could also be read in a somewhat iffy way, but I personally didn't detect any outright ableism as some readers have said in the past. Maybe some odd pacing here and there as well, most notably the somewhat rushed ending.

Despite its faults, however, I did enjoy this book, and would recommend it to fans of alien cultures, "what-if" scenarios, and horses that can shoot guns.

[K · Rating 5 out of 5]

雑誌のバックナンバーを買うために2109���のロンドンを訪れることにしたサムとドクター。しかし、ターディスの外に出ると、そこにロンドンの気配どころは人のすがたもなかった。代わりに、トラシティスという馬のような姿のエイリアンが平和に暮らしていた。
ドクターはトラシティスという種族を知ってはいたが、彼らがパラクラティスとよぶこの星は間違いなく地球だ。彼らの歴史を調べると確かにトラシティスは太古の昔にこの星に移住してきている。
この世界は太古の昔、まだ人類が出現していない時代に何かが起こり、その結果生まれたパラレルワールドだった。タイムラインを正しく戻せば存在しない世界。
トラシティスの善良性惹かれたサムはこの世界を存在しないものにしてしまうことが正しいことなのか疑問を抱く。じつは遠い未来、トラシティスは人間に滅ぼされる。大虐殺をされたトラシティス。その未来を防ぐために、人類の祖先を抹殺し、人類自体が存在しないことにするという計画がひそかにすすめられていた。

三代目ドクターのコンパニオン、ジョーが登場。
ドクターは今回も囚われの身に。
拷問されるは、餓死させられそうになるはの受難の回。
侵略、虐殺、報復、戦争、不毛な負の連鎖を断ち切るためにはどうすればいいのか。

サムがなかなかドクターを信じきれないところが事態をどんどんと悪化させていくのがもどかしく。多くの命をまた救えなかったドクターの傷心ぶりが胸に痛い。

[emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

I agree with others - the rating wobbles, but sets down with three stars.

SPOILERS!

This is where we start to see Sam's true difficulty, as a companion. She just has not got the characterisation we needed. Why is she so convinced she needs to kill humans, when the Doctor has clearly explained that the alternate universe is unstable - there is NO alternate Earth, in fact? Why is Jo a poor divorcee? Why have we got 2 separate antagonists?

The concept is fantastic. The execution falters a little.

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really found this one hard to muscle through. I had to force myself to finish reading it.
I feel like they only put this book out to have Jo in it like a return of companions, it's just not a vibe. I like the ending which is why it's a 4/10 but it's just boring and runs on. I think they just spent too much time regurgitating the same things and not adding any development. All in all the ending was pretty predictable.

[Mia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Genocide provoked interesting thoughts of morality and the coexistence of multiple species, and what exactly the right decision to make was when one entire world could be wiped out.

I strongly disliked the characterisation of Jo in this novel, and I felt there was no emotional weight at all behind her character or her reunion with the Doctor. She and Sgt. Benton didn’t need to be there, and they definitely deserved a much better reintroduction.

[Tilde C · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was surprisingly enjoyable! It reminded me how creative this franchise can be with time travelling shenanigangs when it wants to. I also enjoyed the return of some old school companions. The only negative was a very rushed ending, but otherwise it was quite fun and engaging.

[Olivia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Possibly the problem is on me for expecting 90s sci-fi to be normal about either women or disabled people.
There were some good moments, but enough bad ones for my 3-star "pretty good with a weak plot resolution" rating to get knocked down to a 2-star "Jesus Christ, man".

[Qualia Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

This Doctor Who story goes a bit beyond who, to become some great Sci-Fi

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actually a very good book. Thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish

[Macey · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was okay. lowkey kind of predictable but i liked the tractites & how their books work on smell & taste & how the tardis translations work when one party doesnt have spoken language

[Tommy · Rating 3 out of 5]

two whole universes and all we get? gay piglet. 🐴