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Telos Doctor Who Novellas #15
Doctor Who: The Dalek Factor
When a Thal platoon arrive on a hostile planet investigating reports that Dalek artifacts have been detected, they are unprepared for what they find. In an underground room is a stranger, a Professor, or so he claims, with no member of who he is or why he is there, With death and horror their only companions, the Thals make their way with the Professor into the heart of a crumbling Dalek citadel in search of answers-only to find that the Daleks are the least of the horrors they must face. The Dalek Factor is the last of the licensed Telos "Doctor Who" novellas to be published. Copies of all available editions will continue to be available from Telos Publishing until the end of June 2004.
145 pages, Hardcover
First published March 18, 2004
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127 people want to read
About the author
Simon Clark
212 books299 followersBorn, 20th April, 1958, Simon Clark is the author of such highly regarded horror novels as Nailed By The Heart, Blood Crazy, Darker, Vampyrrhic and The Fall, while his short stories have been collected in Blood & Grit and Salt Snake & Other Bloody Cuts. He has also written prose material for the internationally famous rock band U2.
Raised in a family of storytellers – family legend told of a stolen human skull buried beneath the Clark garage – he sold his first ghost story to a radio station in his teens. Before becoming a full-time writer he held a variety of day jobs, that have involved strawberry picking, supermarket shelf stacking, office work, and scripting video promos.
He lives with his wife and two children in mystical territory that lies on the border of Robin Hood country in England.
Raised in a family of storytellers – family legend told of a stolen human skull buried beneath the Clark garage – he sold his first ghost story to a radio station in his teens. Before becoming a full-time writer he held a variety of day jobs, that have involved strawberry picking, supermarket shelf stacking, office work, and scripting video promos.
He lives with his wife and two children in mystical territory that lies on the border of Robin Hood country in England.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 8, 2024
Despite how many Doctor Who novels are out there, it's surprising how there haven't been many novels or short stories with The Daleks. So to have a well-established horror author giving The Doctor's oldest foes a go is exciting and nerve-racking. The Daleks have been done amazingly in Big Finish but aside from Prisoner of The Daleks, they've had quite the poor offering when it comes to them being written for novels. This is my first Telos Novella, I've been meaning to read one of these for a long while now so it's about time I did something about that.
On a mysterious planet in a small galaxy, a platoon of Thal soldiers arrive after detecting a trace of a Dalek presence on this hemisphere. It's a dangerous jungle planet filled with poisonous plants, curious creatures, and the remains of dead Daleks. Jomi has a story to tell of the day he met The Doctor. Except the man about to change his life forever, doesn't seem to remember who he is or how he arrived here.
Simon Clark has written an engaging and atmospheric Dalek story that is surprisingly lacking with Daleks, but there's a reason for that. It's a really unsettling story with a terrific grasp of world-building, plenty of horror, an amnesiac Doctor, and Daleks sculking in the shadows. It's a story that will have you guessing every step of the way and thankfully it all pays off when all the pieces come together. It's a very unusual Doctor Who story, not only because of the way it's written but how unique the ending is. I quite liked the conclusion to this story but it will definitely be hit and miss with fans.
Overall: It's a solid Dalek story that despite lacking in Daleks for a chunk of its narrative, still manages to make them really unsettling and dangerous. 8.5/10
On a mysterious planet in a small galaxy, a platoon of Thal soldiers arrive after detecting a trace of a Dalek presence on this hemisphere. It's a dangerous jungle planet filled with poisonous plants, curious creatures, and the remains of dead Daleks. Jomi has a story to tell of the day he met The Doctor. Except the man about to change his life forever, doesn't seem to remember who he is or how he arrived here.
Simon Clark has written an engaging and atmospheric Dalek story that is surprisingly lacking with Daleks, but there's a reason for that. It's a really unsettling story with a terrific grasp of world-building, plenty of horror, an amnesiac Doctor, and Daleks sculking in the shadows. It's a story that will have you guessing every step of the way and thankfully it all pays off when all the pieces come together. It's a very unusual Doctor Who story, not only because of the way it's written but how unique the ending is. I quite liked the conclusion to this story but it will definitely be hit and miss with fans.
Overall: It's a solid Dalek story that despite lacking in Daleks for a chunk of its narrative, still manages to make them really unsettling and dangerous. 8.5/10
May 30, 2025
Book 333 - Simon Clark - The Dalek Factor
The nebulous nature of Doctor Who means that we can have a thrillingly terrifying story with all the mainstays of the series - The Doctor, the Daleks, the TARDIS and the Thals - but in a fresh and unique way.
The Thals are slowly wiping out the Daleks, sector by sector… and on landing on a planet where they have received a signal… a Dalek signal… they are faced with deadly plants… horrific insects and there are deaths…horrible deaths.
As for the Doctor or the Professor as he is known for much of the tale…he is trapped… doesn’t know who he is…doesn’t know where he is and doesn’t know why he is there.
It is a maze within a puzzle…hidden in a conundrum that is all in plain sight. This nondescript Doctor is lost without his toys… and as the walls begin to close in, the horror of what writer Clark and the Daleks have put in place is just awful…almost out of place in a Doctor Who … with as downbeat an ending I have ever come across.
It is brilliant in its finality and brutality… wow
The nebulous nature of Doctor Who means that we can have a thrillingly terrifying story with all the mainstays of the series - The Doctor, the Daleks, the TARDIS and the Thals - but in a fresh and unique way.
The Thals are slowly wiping out the Daleks, sector by sector… and on landing on a planet where they have received a signal… a Dalek signal… they are faced with deadly plants… horrific insects and there are deaths…horrible deaths.
As for the Doctor or the Professor as he is known for much of the tale…he is trapped… doesn’t know who he is…doesn’t know where he is and doesn’t know why he is there.
It is a maze within a puzzle…hidden in a conundrum that is all in plain sight. This nondescript Doctor is lost without his toys… and as the walls begin to close in, the horror of what writer Clark and the Daleks have put in place is just awful…almost out of place in a Doctor Who … with as downbeat an ending I have ever come across.
It is brilliant in its finality and brutality… wow
November 30, 2023
An interesting look at the possibilities of dalek evolution. The doctor was kind of meh, I didn't like his character that much in this, probably because he didn't remember who he was for half of the book.
December 6, 2013
Well that was just rude. I get that the series got cancelled and you guys were bitter but there was no need to end it like that.
Once again, it's really just a novel with the end missing. You can't just leave the Doctor there like that! You can't!
The Thals were interesting characters and the Daleks were properly terrifying. I'm 98% sure that was the Eighth Doctor, but only because of the amnesia and the bubbly energy.
If you love the Doctor and don't mind a story with a painfully open ending, go ahead and read it.
Once again, it's really just a novel with the end missing. You can't just leave the Doctor there like that! You can't!
The Thals were interesting characters and the Daleks were properly terrifying. I'm 98% sure that was the Eighth Doctor, but only because of the amnesia and the bubbly energy.
If you love the Doctor and don't mind a story with a painfully open ending, go ahead and read it.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews