- Paperback: 288 pages
- Publisher: BBC Books; paperback / softback edition (3 July 2000)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0563538090
- ISBN-13: 978-0563538097
- Product Dimensions: 17.6 x 11 x 2.2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 479,175 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Vanessa Bishop, Doctor Who Magazine, July 2000
Essential... A surprising success, achieving in one volume what the Interference arc failed to deliver in five... Destined to be a novel both loved and loathed.
Richard McGinlay, DreamWatch magazine, July 2000
The lasting impression left by this book is that of a genuinely stunning instalment in Who fiction... some astonishing and spectacular revelations.
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book is a true epic. I could not put the book down and finally finished it in bed at 4:00am one morning. Think I could sleep after that! No chance! Not only resolving the prevous story arc this one sets up the next. However will events in this book make it difficult for any future series? This book is a credit to the fans, the series and not least to the authors. The future of Doctor Who has only rarely been as eagerly anticipated as it is now.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Stephen Cole was a bold BBC Books editor. He rescued the BBC Books range from its dreadful start, and, by judicious use of real talent such as Lawrence Miles, Kate Orman and finally Paul Cornell, ensured that something actually happened in this range of Dr Who books that was a little more than your standard monster of the week runaround.
With this book, Cole ties up a long series of wandering plot lines and supplies an epic conclusion. Cole and Angelhides may not be the series' best authors, but this is considerably better than Cole's previous book (the completely unmemorable Parallel 59).
It has a great plot, a ripping sense of pace, and An Awful Lot Happens.
This is one of those books that is very consciously Epic. There are genuine twists, a few real surprises, and some great use of other people's characters.
The writing itself is disappointingly lacking in humour or flavour (Cole's Romana is nowhere near as good as Paul Cornell's, and Fitz is as annoying as ever), but for once this doesn't actually matter much.
The plot, the events, and the sheer, gobsmacking sense of style override the flat prose and stale characters. This is a completely gripping and deeply fascinating book, and, above all, a great idea.
If you've steered clear of the BBC Books (and, frankly, that's often no bad thing), then read Alien Bodies, Unnatural History, Interference, Shadows of Avalon, and this. They'll make you proud to be a Doctor Who fan.
Format:Paperback
For the uninitiated: Between 1997 after the Doctor Who TV movie and 2005 when the new TV series started, BBC Books published a range of novels featuring the Eighth Doctor as played by Paul McGann. As with the Virgin Adventures before them, the novels were a chance to take Doctor Who into much more complicated story-telling, featuring new companions and enemies never seen on TV.
One of the appealing things about the series was that there were several Story Arcs that sometimes ran for over a year. This book is a crucial turning point in the biggest Story Arc that ran through these books, namely the Faction Paradox. So if character names like Fitz and Compassion mean nothing to you, this book will leave you totally and absolutely stumped- and you'd best start at the beginning of the arc, which is (pretty much) "Unnatural History" by the brilliant writer Kate Orman.
So this book is EPIC in terms of what it accomplishes and how it changes the Doctor's situation (it's difficult to explain without spoiling it). But in a way that's its downfall, as it is trying to accomplish too much, take on board and tie up too many plot lines, kill off too many characters (!). So you're left with narrative that's a bit confusing and at times contrived. Fitz is the only character that gets a proper voice throughout and otherwise it is just too dense.
Sadly I felt the same about "The Gallifrey Chronicles" at the very end of the Eighth Doctor series of novels.
An important book to read if you're reading the ongoing Doctor Who Eighth Doctor stories but not one of the best in its own right.
If I had to pick my favourites from the eight-year run of the series, they would include "The Slow Empire", "The Year Of Intelligent Tigers", "Escape Velocity", and "Father Time".
One of the appealing things about the series was that there were several Story Arcs that sometimes ran for over a year. This book is a crucial turning point in the biggest Story Arc that ran through these books, namely the Faction Paradox. So if character names like Fitz and Compassion mean nothing to you, this book will leave you totally and absolutely stumped- and you'd best start at the beginning of the arc, which is (pretty much) "Unnatural History" by the brilliant writer Kate Orman.
So this book is EPIC in terms of what it accomplishes and how it changes the Doctor's situation (it's difficult to explain without spoiling it). But in a way that's its downfall, as it is trying to accomplish too much, take on board and tie up too many plot lines, kill off too many characters (!). So you're left with narrative that's a bit confusing and at times contrived. Fitz is the only character that gets a proper voice throughout and otherwise it is just too dense.
Sadly I felt the same about "The Gallifrey Chronicles" at the very end of the Eighth Doctor series of novels.
An important book to read if you're reading the ongoing Doctor Who Eighth Doctor stories but not one of the best in its own right.
If I had to pick my favourites from the eight-year run of the series, they would include "The Slow Empire", "The Year Of Intelligent Tigers", "Escape Velocity", and "Father Time".
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Thank goodness its over
I was sorely disappointed with this book, the first half is unremittingly dull. In the second half, the action starts to pick up but storyline alone is not an excuse for poor... Read more
Published on 20 Feb 2001
Is That IT?
Well the Faction Paradox story finally comes to an end and what an end. In fact only read the last thirty pages of this book. The first two hundred odd are very repetitive and dry. Read more
Published on 30 Jun 2000
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
