"Now, you may or may not have noticed, but we appear to be on fire..." On a windswept Northern shore, at the very tip of what will one day become Scotland, the islanders believe the worst they have to fear is a Viking attack. Then the burning comes. They cannot run from it. Water will not stop it. It consumes everything in its path - yet the burned still speak. The Doctor is just looking for a game on the famous Lewis chess set. Instead he encounters a people under attack from a power they cannot possibly understand. They have no weapons, no strategy and no protection against a fire sent to engulf them all. Add in some marauding Vikings with very bad timing, a kidnapped princess with a secret of her own and a TARDIS that seems to have developed an inexplicable fear of water, and they all have a battle on their hands. The islanders must take on a ruthless alien force in a world without technology; without communications; without tea that isn't made out of bark. Still at least they have the Doctor on their side... Don't they? A thrilling new adventure starring the Doctor, as played by Matt Smith.
Doctor Who: Dark Horizons
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well-written, amusing and Colgan perfectly captures Matt Smith's on-screen delivery in the dialogue., A terrific tale with some surprising twists and turns - more please! 8/10, a great story, told with flair and action to keep the fans glued to the pages.
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The Doctor encounters a ruthless alien force on a remote Scottish island - from the bestselling BBC Books Doctor Who fiction range
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
The latest in this seemingly occasional series of hardback 'guest author' Doctor Who books- from authors who are already famous for their non-Whovian novels- is a very welcome treat.
It isn't as much of a departure from the familiar as some of the other books have been- it's more or less on the same level as the BBC Books standard range, with possibly a slightly more adult leaning, but definitely accessible to younger teens. There's very mild horror, but nothing worse than you've seen in the TV series.
It's a nicely evocative windswept Viking story, not dwelling too much on the traditional 'horned helmets' images (yes, I know they didn't) and instead portraying a strong image of primitive isolated people struggling to survive in wild Northern landscapes. There's also a thick sense of humour running through things, for example in the brief addition of farm boy Henrik as a 'companion' in the conventional Who sense, one who is rather underwhelmed by the Doctor's un-seaworthy TARDIS.
The story overall doesn't break any particularly new ground- we've seen pretty much all the constituent parts of it in other Who stories- but it rattles along very nicely and entertainingly, with a couple of neat twists that keep you reading.
So while there's nothing revolutionary here, this is nevertheless an excellent addition to the 'slightly more grown up' side of the Who range.
It isn't as much of a departure from the familiar as some of the other books have been- it's more or less on the same level as the BBC Books standard range, with possibly a slightly more adult leaning, but definitely accessible to younger teens. There's very mild horror, but nothing worse than you've seen in the TV series.
It's a nicely evocative windswept Viking story, not dwelling too much on the traditional 'horned helmets' images (yes, I know they didn't) and instead portraying a strong image of primitive isolated people struggling to survive in wild Northern landscapes. There's also a thick sense of humour running through things, for example in the brief addition of farm boy Henrik as a 'companion' in the conventional Who sense, one who is rather underwhelmed by the Doctor's un-seaworthy TARDIS.
The story overall doesn't break any particularly new ground- we've seen pretty much all the constituent parts of it in other Who stories- but it rattles along very nicely and entertainingly, with a couple of neat twists that keep you reading.
So while there's nothing revolutionary here, this is nevertheless an excellent addition to the 'slightly more grown up' side of the Who range.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By T. Donbavand
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
The Doctor likes playing chess. But, how he's alone in the TARDIS, challenging himself to the occasional match is starting to get a little stilted. Time to find an opponent... Landing in the Outer Hebrides in the 12th century, our favourite Time Lord discovers much more than he bargained for - including rampaging vikings, a furious princess on her way to an arranged marriage, local villagers eating pre-cooked turtles, a backstory for the Lewis Chessmen, and an alien life-form which lives, breeds and kills through fire. This isn't going to be the quick stop-off the Doctor first imagined.
JT Colgan (in reality, top romantic comedy author, Jenny Colgan) has written what is one of the most exciting 11th Doctor adventures to date (and I told her so last night, via Twitter!) In Dark Horizons, she captures Matt Smith's portrayal of the Doctor perfectly, introduces us to some wonderful new characters (Henrik being a particular favourite), and even allows us a glimpse (from a distance) of a holidaying 4th Doctor, Sarah Jane and K9! Add to that quite possibly the most exciting TARDIS sequence you'll ever read (I won't say where it takes place - spoilers, and all that) and you've got a timey-wimey historical romp that will keep you gripped, page after page.
Very highly recommended!
JT Colgan (in reality, top romantic comedy author, Jenny Colgan) has written what is one of the most exciting 11th Doctor adventures to date (and I told her so last night, via Twitter!) In Dark Horizons, she captures Matt Smith's portrayal of the Doctor perfectly, introduces us to some wonderful new characters (Henrik being a particular favourite), and even allows us a glimpse (from a distance) of a holidaying 4th Doctor, Sarah Jane and K9! Add to that quite possibly the most exciting TARDIS sequence you'll ever read (I won't say where it takes place - spoilers, and all that) and you've got a timey-wimey historical romp that will keep you gripped, page after page.
Very highly recommended!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Stuart Burns
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
Vikings. If there's one great untapped human sub-culture in Who history, it's Vikings, as though since The Time Meddler somewhat covered their contemporary history and The Curse of Fenric somewhat their legacy, they've been thought best left alone which is a fifty year long mistake because who doesn't love Vikings? Well, the peoples they marauded and pillaged of course but as the underrated versus astronauts film Outlander (featuring Sophia Myles) demonstrated there's long boats full of mileage in showing these relatively primitive beard growers in an exciting adventure with aliens. Add to the list J.T. (Jenny) Colgan's Dark Horizons.
As the author herself described to this very blog, Colgan's approaches Vikings through the mystery of the Lewis Chess men, who created them and their purpose. The Doctor bumps into these beautifully carved objects whilst travelling alone and searching for someone to have a game with. He pitches up in primitive Scotland in the middle of a Viking attack, which is quickly overcome with flames, a St Elmos Fire which almost destroys both attackers and attackees, generated by an alien force that typically the Time Lord finds utterly beautiful but can't be reasoned with (not unlike some of his companions).
In other words, it's a kind of celebrity historical with an important artefact in place of Alexander Graham Bell or some such, though the chess set really is more of a jumping of point. The real interest is in Freydis, a kidnapped princess and one of the islanders, her captor Henrik, who're the Doctor's temporary companions, providing an analogue of Amy and Rory's rapport, she with the acerbic temper, he the streak of nobility.... Read more ›
As the author herself described to this very blog, Colgan's approaches Vikings through the mystery of the Lewis Chess men, who created them and their purpose. The Doctor bumps into these beautifully carved objects whilst travelling alone and searching for someone to have a game with. He pitches up in primitive Scotland in the middle of a Viking attack, which is quickly overcome with flames, a St Elmos Fire which almost destroys both attackers and attackees, generated by an alien force that typically the Time Lord finds utterly beautiful but can't be reasoned with (not unlike some of his companions).
In other words, it's a kind of celebrity historical with an important artefact in place of Alexander Graham Bell or some such, though the chess set really is more of a jumping of point. The real interest is in Freydis, a kidnapped princess and one of the islanders, her captor Henrik, who're the Doctor's temporary companions, providing an analogue of Amy and Rory's rapport, she with the acerbic temper, he the streak of nobility.... Read more ›
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By R. C. McGinlay
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
J. T. Colgan, better known as "chick-lit" author Jenny Colgan, was a surprising choice to pen a "Doctor Who" novel. However, given the fact that new "Who" is as much about Earthling emotions as it is about alien invasions, Colgan is an eminently suitable choice.
Much of her narrative dwells on human relationships, such as that between a widowed chieftain and his rebellious teenage son, and the one that develops between the feisty princess Freydis and the farm-boy-turned-Viking Henrik. However, balancing these interludes are the threat of a fiery extraterrestrial menace and some exciting TARDIS antics both on and beneath the waves. Colgan keeps the reader engaged by switching the action from a Viking longboat to a Scottish island to another Viking ship to a particularly exciting encounter on the seabed.
The tone of the novel is roughly the same as that of the modern television series. There are some gruesome deaths and references to sexuality, but nothing "adult" in an X-rated sort of way, so this book is suitable for all ages. It's not tremendously challenging or earth-shattering, but the author throws in some cool historical details that should interest the "Horrible Histories" generation and older readers alike, such as references to the Lewis Chessmen and the fact that the Vikings had no single, simple word for the colour blue.
The Eleventh Doctor is well characterised as an ancient yet youthful being, child-like and looking for fun, but burdened by responsibility. In a particularly beautiful moment (on page 221), Colgan puts her finger on the reason why the Time Lord lies: "The Doctor paused. He hated lying to children. But not as much as he hated scaring them.... Read more ›
Much of her narrative dwells on human relationships, such as that between a widowed chieftain and his rebellious teenage son, and the one that develops between the feisty princess Freydis and the farm-boy-turned-Viking Henrik. However, balancing these interludes are the threat of a fiery extraterrestrial menace and some exciting TARDIS antics both on and beneath the waves. Colgan keeps the reader engaged by switching the action from a Viking longboat to a Scottish island to another Viking ship to a particularly exciting encounter on the seabed.
The tone of the novel is roughly the same as that of the modern television series. There are some gruesome deaths and references to sexuality, but nothing "adult" in an X-rated sort of way, so this book is suitable for all ages. It's not tremendously challenging or earth-shattering, but the author throws in some cool historical details that should interest the "Horrible Histories" generation and older readers alike, such as references to the Lewis Chessmen and the fact that the Vikings had no single, simple word for the colour blue.
The Eleventh Doctor is well characterised as an ancient yet youthful being, child-like and looking for fun, but burdened by responsibility. In a particularly beautiful moment (on page 221), Colgan puts her finger on the reason why the Time Lord lies: "The Doctor paused. He hated lying to children. But not as much as he hated scaring them.... Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
So perfectly Eleventh in style it should be in the DVD box
One of the best Doctor Who novels I've read in a long while and certainly the most satisfying of this recent range of 'event novels' by well-known authors. Read more
Published 1 month ago by G. Preston
5.0 out of 5 stars
doctor who
i love it i was drawn into the book and i could not put it down i wanted to read the story to find out what the doctor was going to end
Published 2 months ago by nottsnorm
4.0 out of 5 stars
Doctor Who Dark Horizons HC
"Now, you may or may not have noticed, but we appear to be on fire..." On a windswept Northern shore, at the very tip of what will one day become Scotland, the islanders believe... Read more
Published 2 months ago by kk
3.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent for kids...
My 9 year old son read this and told me have great it was, if a bit gruesome, and that I had to read it.
From my perspective it's a bit odd. Read more
From my perspective it's a bit odd. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Richard Kelly
5.0 out of 5 stars
Did not disappoint!
Having been a fan of J.T.Colgan for some time (in her other incarnation as Jenny Colgan) I was most intrigued to see what she would do with Doctor Who. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Mr. M. L. Marshall
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not so much Geronimo as GeroniNO!
This did not reflect the performance given by Matt Smith in any shape or form for me I'm afraid. Slow story line and a poor monster make up a book I was glad to get to the end of.
Published 6 months ago by David J Wheeler
3.0 out of 5 stars
Easy, light read with odd gruesome moments that seemed a bit extreme
My 13 year old snaffled this first and wolfed it down (probably 4* read for him) but I must admit I found the style a little mixed with a higher death count than many Who stories... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Arkgirl
2.0 out of 5 stars
Dark Horizons
The Doctor arrives on wind swept North islands of Scotland at the time of the Viking raids and is flung into an adventure with mysterious aliens, hording Vikings and the local... Read more
Published 8 months ago by R. Thomas
4.0 out of 5 stars
A nice addition to the Dr Who canon
An island people, viking marauders, a princess and a terrifying flame that comes out of the water. What more could you ask for from Dr Who? Read more
Published 8 months ago by E. E. Hughes
3.0 out of 5 stars
Eric the Viking
I've always rated the novel adventures of Doctor Who higher than the TV series. Literature allows the creator to ignore any budgetary restraints and send the Dr and his companions... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Sam
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