Venusian Lullaby (The missing adventures) [Paperback]

Paul Leonards debut Who novel is a sure-fire winner thanks to it's incredibly detailed and convincing depiction of the doomed Venusians. This must be one of the most interesting and compelling alien races ever depicted in Doctor Who, and a far cry above the usual stock warlike aliens the Doctor normally encounters. An enormous cast of oddly named inhabitants, but stick with it and you'll be rewarded with rich and rewarding science fiction novel. One of Virgins best Missing Adventure novels.

Paul Leonard's first "Doctor Who" novel is one that I didn't enjoy very much all, though it does look like I'm firmly in the minority on this one.

So why didn't I like it? Well, Leonard has succeeded in writing a 1990s novel in the exact style of a 1960s television serial. This is perhaps the book's greatest strength; perhaps even the reason that it has proven so popular, but unfortunately it is also its greatest weakness as for all the atmosphere and mood that Leonard's writing evokes, it is long, slow and - in my view at least - really rather turgid.

"Venusian Lullaby" starts off reasonably well. The Venusians are conceived as completely alien creatures, not only in their gigantic hexapodic appearance but also in the way that they think; the way that they act; and the things that they value. Admittedly this makes for some breathtaking science fiction, but, as I found with Mark Gatiss's offering "St Anthony's Fire," it also makes the aliens incredibly difficult to sympathise with. And with only two human characters and one humanoid to enjoy the story through, I really found myself flagging around the book's halfway point.

This is a great pity because I love the novel's mischievous premise - long before life ever evolved on our world, a society thrived on Venus. However, as time wore on, the planet became too hot and the Venusians found themselves on the edge of extinction - until an alien race came along to save the day, offering to move the Venusians to the third, uninhabited planet of their solar system: Earth! It's a bit of a pickle for the Doctor, to say the least. Sadly, the threads of this plot don't even start to come together until well over a hundred pages in, by which time I'd completely lost interest in the Venusians and their distinct lack of martial arts proficiency.

However, Leonard does at least handle the regulars beautifully. Bludgeoned into the tight gap between "The Dalek Invasion of Earth" and "The Rescue," this novel deals with Susan's sudden departure at the end of the previous story in a much more satisfying way than "The Rescue" ever did. There are some particularly poignant passages where the Doctor reflects on what will happen to Susan when David gets old and dies, written as if the Doctor knows from experience what his granddaughter is going to go through.

"I am not Susan! Nor am I a piece of her, whatever you've told the Venusians. Neither is Ian. We're people - people who are travelling with you, and through no choice of our own. You have a responsibility to us. If you can't get us home, very well. But at least you can look after us in the meantime. Or if you won't - if you're too busy with your 'mysteries' - then we'll just have to look after ourselves."

Ian and Barbara (when they aren't convinced that they're Venusians) are also afforded a little more depth than they ever were on television - Ian in particular is forced to confront his feelings about his travels in the TARDIS, which I found very interesting indeed.

Altogether though "Venusian Lullaby" is a long, slow grind. It's jam-packed full of authentically alien aliens, each described in immense detail, but sadly it just couldn't hold my attention over the three hundred plus pages. I can see that it's exceedingly well written and I can see why other readers regard it with such esteem, but it just isn't my cup of tea.

Originally published on "The History of the Doctor," 2006. Reproduced with kind permission.

A typical First Doctor story, Venusian Lullaby is the first to bring the TARDIS to the planet Venus - so now we know where The Timelord learned Venusian Aikido!
The Doctor and his travelling companions Ian and Barbara spend most of their time being captured and escaping, with chases and perilous cliffhangers aplenty. As such it is good fun, and worth a read if you can get hold of a copy.