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Eighth Doctor Adventures #55
Doctor Who: Trading Futures
On an Earth of the not-so distant future, Anji is surprised by the way the world has developed. The EU and US have become rivals, and a situation in North Africa, in which they both have interests that they wish to protect, threatens to turn into full-scale war.
249 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 8, 2002
3 people are currently reading
353 people want to read
About the author
Lance Parkin
84 books96 followersLance Parkin is an author who has written professional Doctor Who fiction since the 1990s. He is one of the few authors to write for both the 1963 and 2005 version of the programme — though much of his fiction has actually been based on the 1996 iteration. Indeed, he was notably the first author to write original prose for the Eighth Doctor in The Dying Days. He was also the author chosen to deliver the nominal 35th anniversary story, The Infinity Doctors, and the final volume in the Eighth Doctor Adventures range, The Gallifrey Chronicles. More recently, he has written for the Tenth Doctor in The Eyeless.
He is further notable for his work with Big Finish Productions, where he is arguably most known for writing the Sixth Doctor adventure, Davros.
Outside of Doctor Who, he has written things like Warlords of Utopia and (with Mark Jones) Dark Matter, a guide to the author Philip Pullman.
He is further notable for his work with Big Finish Productions, where he is arguably most known for writing the Sixth Doctor adventure, Davros.
Outside of Doctor Who, he has written things like Warlords of Utopia and (with Mark Jones) Dark Matter, a guide to the author Philip Pullman.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
August 21, 2014
Light-hearted, rollicking and fast-moving, this certainly doesn’t rank alongside Lance Parkin’s best work. However, if your work includes truly exceptional Doctor Who stories like ‘The Dying Days’, ‘Father Time’ and ‘The Infinity Doctors’, you’re entitled to a complete change in direction if you fancy it – and if ‘Trading Futures’ doesn’t really come close to these lofty heights, that’s probably because it was never meant to.
I did a first draft of this review a couple of weeks ago but decided not to publish it because I was being mealy-mouthed. I criticised Parkin for not managing to paint what for 2002 was the near-future – and for 2014 is the even nearer future – as well as he had for, in publication order, Nazi-occupied Jersey, an unnamed planet in Earth’s future empire, contemporary England, a non-specific period of Gallifrey’s history, or 1980s England. But then, that’s the problem with predictions of the future – they date more quickly than anything else, and predictions of the near-future even more so. We may only be 12 years on from the book’s year of publication – and thus 12 years away from the events the book depicts – but it’s clear even now that the world of a stateless Eurozone at war with the United States, with Russia a spent, barren wasteland, is not going to come to pass.
I have to say, that was clear to me even when I first read it. Anyway, that isn’t the main driver of the book. We’re given more tantalising glimpses of how a cosmos without the Time Lords is shaping up, with a number of factions taking advantage of the situation. The fact that the book is one of the last to do this without linking itself to the at times patience-sapping Multiple Realities saga should have been a point in its favour. It wasn’t seen that way, of course, because one prediction of the future everyone failed to make was how standalone novels like this would soon become the exception rather than the norm.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I remember being very confused at the time at the level of knowledge the Doctor (who is unequivocally Paul McGann) seemed to have about what, for him in his amnesiac state, is uncharted territory. Well, that gap was later filled quite nicely in ‘Fear Itself’ – an EDA which surely slots into a period in the Doctor’s timeline some time before this one. I don’t know if this was a conscious decision on that author’s part, but I like to think it was. And it’s as good a reason as any to be grateful to ‘Trading Futures’.
I enjoyed this, but not hugely. There’s nothing wrong with it – and it’s quite nice to see a rare example of an attempted crossover between BBC Books and Big Finish, before both ranges made a conscious decision to split. But, let’s face it, despite the debt it clearly owes to the recently rediscoverd Troughton story ‘The Enemy of the World’, this doesn’t feel like a Doctor Who story. Characters seem to travel with remarkable ease and speed from continent to continent, emerge unscathed from (un)natural disasters, and seem unfazed by the remarkable levels of coincidence here. But then Parkin’s main influence here – like ‘The Enemy of the World’ – is the James Bond franchise, and on this basis it works well.
I did a first draft of this review a couple of weeks ago but decided not to publish it because I was being mealy-mouthed. I criticised Parkin for not managing to paint what for 2002 was the near-future – and for 2014 is the even nearer future – as well as he had for, in publication order, Nazi-occupied Jersey, an unnamed planet in Earth’s future empire, contemporary England, a non-specific period of Gallifrey’s history, or 1980s England. But then, that’s the problem with predictions of the future – they date more quickly than anything else, and predictions of the near-future even more so. We may only be 12 years on from the book’s year of publication – and thus 12 years away from the events the book depicts – but it’s clear even now that the world of a stateless Eurozone at war with the United States, with Russia a spent, barren wasteland, is not going to come to pass.
I have to say, that was clear to me even when I first read it. Anyway, that isn’t the main driver of the book. We’re given more tantalising glimpses of how a cosmos without the Time Lords is shaping up, with a number of factions taking advantage of the situation. The fact that the book is one of the last to do this without linking itself to the at times patience-sapping Multiple Realities saga should have been a point in its favour. It wasn’t seen that way, of course, because one prediction of the future everyone failed to make was how standalone novels like this would soon become the exception rather than the norm.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I remember being very confused at the time at the level of knowledge the Doctor (who is unequivocally Paul McGann) seemed to have about what, for him in his amnesiac state, is uncharted territory. Well, that gap was later filled quite nicely in ‘Fear Itself’ – an EDA which surely slots into a period in the Doctor’s timeline some time before this one. I don’t know if this was a conscious decision on that author’s part, but I like to think it was. And it’s as good a reason as any to be grateful to ‘Trading Futures’.
I enjoyed this, but not hugely. There’s nothing wrong with it – and it’s quite nice to see a rare example of an attempted crossover between BBC Books and Big Finish, before both ranges made a conscious decision to split. But, let’s face it, despite the debt it clearly owes to the recently rediscoverd Troughton story ‘The Enemy of the World’, this doesn’t feel like a Doctor Who story. Characters seem to travel with remarkable ease and speed from continent to continent, emerge unscathed from (un)natural disasters, and seem unfazed by the remarkable levels of coincidence here. But then Parkin’s main influence here – like ‘The Enemy of the World’ – is the James Bond franchise, and on this basis it works well.
May 25, 2024
When most people draw parallels between Doctor Who and the James Bond franchise it is the Jon Pertwee era’s first three years or so, being mostly Earthbound with a sense of working with the government. Beginning around 2013, the serial The Enemy of the World was also included in this discussion due to its world spanning scale and focus on espionage and action. It’s specifically a tone and stylistic flair similar to the James Bond films over the books by Ian Fleming and their drier, more methodical style. While the BBC Books have often taken direct inspiration from past eras of Doctor Who in terms of the stories that they commission to tell, it was actually quite a surprise to come upon Trading Futures, an Eighth Doctor Adventure that is directly Lance Parkin’s tribute to James Bond and what Doctor Who largely brought from it. There are international organizations, several female characters with utterly ridiculous names, and a plot that at almost every turn provides a twist and turn. Heck, the novel even opens with a cold open sequence that leads into what would be the gun barrel sequence of a Bond film. Surprisingly, especially from what I usually expect from Parkin, Trading Futures is a light affair, dealing with a time travel service that is marketed primarily towards the general public, wrapped up in several prophecies of doom, and dealing with world governments that need to be saved. Okay, that sounds like it could be a dark, political thriller, but Lance Parkin’s prose is incredibly light and there’s this general sense of urgency throughout that makes it an incredibly engaging read. It’s probably helping that despite references to their previous adventures, the four remaining elementals, and Sabbath, Trading Futures is actually pretty friendly to the general reader.
Anji’s plotline is perhaps the one with the most emotional weight, deciding that she can use Baskerville’s services to go back in time and stopping Dave from dying way back in Escape Velocity. There’s been a lot of focus recently on Anji’s grief, especially in Anachrophobia and Hope, but Trading Futures is one of those novels that actively feels as if it punishes Anji for it. Baskerville, it is revealed, is a con artist at his heart, not actually having the ability to transport people back in time and the prophecies are all created by Baskerville and the fulfilment of the fourth is what the Doctor, Fitz, and Anji have to divert. There ais also a fleet of Onihr surrounding the Earth that Fitz gets himself mixed up in. Like Anji’s arc drawing on her grief from Dave, Fitz once again finds himself pretending to be the Doctor, something that even the prose at points acknowledges as a possibility by having several sequences with Fitz without referring to Fitz as Fitz, but just as the Doctor. The Onihr are relegated to comic relief and feel like Russell T. Davies largely drew on them in designing the Judoon, at least visually. The idea is that they wish to be the new Time Lords but are completely incompetent, making them largely easy (ish) work for Fitz to deal with. The Doctor is essentially in the role of James Bond for the novel, and that’s generally one of the weaker aspects of the novel, mainly because the plot keeps putting him in Bond situations and Parkin can’t quite make the commentary on the differences of the Doctor and Bond as respective leading men. There’s also some of the colonialism and imperialism baked into the Bond formula that Parkin doesn’t really reckon with, there is a character called Malady Chang that Anji impersonates which particularly rubs me the wrong way since Malady is East Asian while Anji is Pakistani. The entire plot just conflates cultures and it almost seems like Parkin realizes it but doesn’t do anything about it.
Overall, Trading Futures is a great little Doctor Who novel that works so well because it’s sending up what is essentially the other British cultural touchstone in the 1960s and 1970s which was getting its own, far more successful reboot in the late 1990s and early 2000s. It does have problems, mainly because author Lance Parkin isn’t really examining enough of the formula he is playing with along with the tropes, but it does make for such a good time. 8/10.
Anji’s plotline is perhaps the one with the most emotional weight, deciding that she can use Baskerville’s services to go back in time and stopping Dave from dying way back in Escape Velocity. There’s been a lot of focus recently on Anji’s grief, especially in Anachrophobia and Hope, but Trading Futures is one of those novels that actively feels as if it punishes Anji for it. Baskerville, it is revealed, is a con artist at his heart, not actually having the ability to transport people back in time and the prophecies are all created by Baskerville and the fulfilment of the fourth is what the Doctor, Fitz, and Anji have to divert. There ais also a fleet of Onihr surrounding the Earth that Fitz gets himself mixed up in. Like Anji’s arc drawing on her grief from Dave, Fitz once again finds himself pretending to be the Doctor, something that even the prose at points acknowledges as a possibility by having several sequences with Fitz without referring to Fitz as Fitz, but just as the Doctor. The Onihr are relegated to comic relief and feel like Russell T. Davies largely drew on them in designing the Judoon, at least visually. The idea is that they wish to be the new Time Lords but are completely incompetent, making them largely easy (ish) work for Fitz to deal with. The Doctor is essentially in the role of James Bond for the novel, and that’s generally one of the weaker aspects of the novel, mainly because the plot keeps putting him in Bond situations and Parkin can’t quite make the commentary on the differences of the Doctor and Bond as respective leading men. There’s also some of the colonialism and imperialism baked into the Bond formula that Parkin doesn’t really reckon with, there is a character called Malady Chang that Anji impersonates which particularly rubs me the wrong way since Malady is East Asian while Anji is Pakistani. The entire plot just conflates cultures and it almost seems like Parkin realizes it but doesn’t do anything about it.
Overall, Trading Futures is a great little Doctor Who novel that works so well because it’s sending up what is essentially the other British cultural touchstone in the 1960s and 1970s which was getting its own, far more successful reboot in the late 1990s and early 2000s. It does have problems, mainly because author Lance Parkin isn’t really examining enough of the formula he is playing with along with the tropes, but it does make for such a good time. 8/10.
November 7, 2017
A good and fun book, that is really short, and honestly, just has too many characters and opposing factions for it's own good. It's definitely not a bad book, but it also isn't one of Parkin's best, and both anti and fitz feel underused, though I liked the character of Malady Chang. The general story is quite interesting, what with the time travel con. The twist about the coffee definitely is one I saw coming from the start, but that doesn't mean it wasn't a fun ride. The pacing was also a bit off all in all, with the ending feeling really rushed. As much as I find the Onhirs interesting characters (and let's be honest, they are totally related to the Judoons in one way or the other right?), their plot simply seemed there as a thing for fitz to do and as dues ex machina to deal with Baskerville.
So all in all, a good light hearted book, but definitely not one of my favorite.
So all in all, a good light hearted book, but definitely not one of my favorite.
February 4, 2024
Most of the way thru I was planning to give it 2 stars but in the end once I’d finished it there were too many fun charming moments of characterisation for that. Still, I found it almost impossible to follow the plot and keep up with all the characters, many of whom felt unnecessary, and the genre seemed far more James Bond/action spy fi than is really my thing but that’s just personal preference. The whole thing could have been greatly improved by some streamlining which gives it the vibe of a book edited in a rush. It’s the first of Parkin’s works that I’ve read though and I can tell he’s a good writer and that he understands the Doctor and his companions well. By the end I felt much better disposed towards the book but I can’t tell how much of that was relief.
January 14, 2019
This was an easy read, but just felt average. It's a runaround with a few too many factions (showing the status of the book series at the time, I think). It was fun seeing Fitz being taken for the Doctor, but the Doctor himself isn't James Bond. I'm not sorry I read it, but I wouldn't have missed something special if I hadn't.
April 12, 2018
Pretty fun James Bond-esque caper for the Doctor. Not really sure what the point was but had enough fun reading it that I didn't care at all
January 27, 2022
A very good book. Thoroughly enjoyed it
January 27, 2014
I was close to awarding this action-packed & witty adventure tale four stars, but two things held me back. The first is that the story is from a time when the 8th Doctor novels were going down a path that didn't exactly grab my enthusiasm...and one particular set of characters is inserted into the plot with a rather mechanical feel, for story arc purposes that didn't interest me. The second reason is that (in my humble opinion) this story could work better with another type of Doctor/companion combo -- the 4th Doctor, Sarah & Harry, or the 9th Doctor, Rose & Jack. The McGann Doctor doesn't have the vibrancy here that Mr. Parkin gave him in "The Dying Days"; I'd also become rather tired of Fitz by this point, and Anji is one of several EDA companions that didn't fire my imagination. Overall, I found this a pleasant, but qualified success. If you're looking for Lance Parkin at his best, I'd stick to the glories of "The Infinity Doctors", "Just War", or "The Eyeless".
January 8, 2012
Published in the period when there was no Doctor Who on the tellybox, and featuring the Eighth Doctor as played by Paul McGann, this near-future mash-up of Bond-style shenanigans and Who is... well, fine. Nothing special. A reasonable runaround.There's an interesting political backdrop, with the USA and Eurozone the superpowers of the day, and some reasonable intrigue about a time machine for sale that may not be all it's cracked up to be, and it all passes the time in good humour. On the down side, there's little in the way of real jeopardy for the characters, and while it makes an admirable attempt to blend some Bond nonsense into the usual formula, it doesn't quite suit the Doctor, to be honest. Of the Parkin novels I've read, this is probably the weakest.
July 20, 2014
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2314646.html[return][return]I am not always a big fan of Lance Parkin, but I rather enjoyed Trading Futures. Good old Anji, the longest-running non-white Who companion (Feb '01-Aug '03, compared with Martha's single season run, generously extensible to one and a bit) gets a proper story here where the Doctor and Fitz are rather in the background, and she gets both a James Bond-like storyline and a wee bit of character development. There are various other nods to both Bond and Who continuity, and some deliberately crap aliens. I don't claim it as Great Literature, but I was very entertained.
June 18, 2013
Is this meant to be Doctor Who or James Bond with aliens?
The characters were somewhat disappointingly reduced to fit the continuous action sequences. Fitz's adventure was hilarious though, and I think it tells us a lot about how much he's learned from the Doctor that he basically handled the aliens on his own while the Doctor was busy playing 007. (Though I do question the fact that he basically committed genocide and no one had a problem with this.)
The non-stop action made the story amusing enough. The goofiness was uncomfortable at times. The Doctor has some really good one-liners though.
If you love the Doctor and Fitz, read it anyway.
The characters were somewhat disappointingly reduced to fit the continuous action sequences. Fitz's adventure was hilarious though, and I think it tells us a lot about how much he's learned from the Doctor that he basically handled the aliens on his own while the Doctor was busy playing 007. (Though I do question the fact that he basically committed genocide and no one had a problem with this.)
The non-stop action made the story amusing enough. The goofiness was uncomfortable at times. The Doctor has some really good one-liners though.
If you love the Doctor and Fitz, read it anyway.
April 19, 2016
Another fine and highly entertaining Doctor Who novel by Lance Parkin, featuring the Eighth Doctor, Fitz, and Anji. Trading Futures mixes spy-fi and sci-fi in a not-entirely-implausible near-future setting, with secret agents and other powers competing over a time machine while America and Europe grow ever closer to war. Parkin does a great job giving all three of our heroes their own plotlines (especially Anji), providing us with an interesting supporting cast, and throwing in enough unexpected twists and one-liners to keep things interesting. Fun stuff, and definitely one of the better Eighth Doctor tales. (A-)
July 1, 2008
A decent, if uneven adventure that has excitement, adventure, cool rhino aliens and some clever ideas.
Unfortunately, the main bad guy is fairly weak and all the political scheming gets on my nerves.
Fitz and Anji are both interesting characters, because they are so different from the typical Who companion, but together they bother me. They are both flawed characters. It's too much. The two companion formula works best when you have one normal companion and one 'different' ( Rose and Captain Jack, Rommana and K-9 etc.)
Unfortunately, the main bad guy is fairly weak and all the political scheming gets on my nerves.
Fitz and Anji are both interesting characters, because they are so different from the typical Who companion, but together they bother me. They are both flawed characters. It's too much. The two companion formula works best when you have one normal companion and one 'different' ( Rose and Captain Jack, Rommana and K-9 etc.)
May 8, 2015
Not the best doctor who book, in some ways it was a bit disappointing. The author's portrayal of Paul McGann's doctor was lacking, in my opinion. The story was really exciting in some parts, but mostly it was strange.
August 17, 2016
Fun story.
A fun,lightweight, stand alone adventure for the Doctor. The premise is interesting and the story cracks along at a good pace. It never lags, but neither is it truly great.
A fun,lightweight, stand alone adventure for the Doctor. The premise is interesting and the story cracks along at a good pace. It never lags, but neither is it truly great.
December 3, 2016
A Doctor Who novel that channels the James Bond movies...and mostly, it works. There are even chapter titles such as The Spy Who Shot Me and Tomorrow Never Lies. The books during this period were, for me, going into a dark tunnel that I didn't particularly care for, but this one was pretty good.
February 28, 2014
Another decent story about the 8th regeneration of the wandering time traveler from Gallifrey.
May 18, 2015
Middling Doctor Who novel. Certainly readable but not amazing. Not quite up to my ideal for commuter reading.
February 13, 2016
Natural disasters, time travel chaos, Fitz on the spot and space rhinos, damn fun and exciting mix.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews