Doctor Who: Unnatural History (Mass Market Paperback)

The great thing about these novels is that there is no budget for special effects. Imagine the effects it would require to create about a hundred different types of mythical creature, or to create an impossible unfolding chest in which Fitz gets trapped (oops - spoiler there!), or indeed the sheer magnitude of the whole of san fransisco being sucked into a scar in the space time continuum...

The story begins with the doctor trying to convince an alternative brown-haired version of his companion sam to come with him to put right what he has accidentally wronged. He slowly gains her trust, only to lose it again and gain it back many times. You see, theres this thing called "The hunt" which changes Sam's "Biodata" - which changes her history, and future and memories... which makes her doubt whether things in her life have actually happened.

I especially enjoyed Faction Paradox and the little boy. There was a small boy who was very cheeky, but also very clever. His sole purpose was to medal with time and create paradoxes. An example of this was when the doctor was creating a scientific fluid to summon the boy - the boy was actually in the room trying to put him off conjouring him - if he'd have succeeded there would have been a small paradox.

Anyway, I'm giving way too many spoilers away... but if you liked the movie starring McGann's eighth doctor, you'll like this as it links in very well. A word of warning though, it starts well and ends well, the middle is heavy going, but stick at it, you won't be disappointed.

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Two years after the millennium, a scar has opened up in space/time in San Francisco. The Doctor did something unethical in a previous visit, and now he has to clear up the pieces. Unfortunately, the scar has attracted all sorts of alien flotsam, including a certain Miss Jones, who is sucked into the scar. In order to stabilise the scar, the Doctor plugs it with the TARDIS. Sam Jones may be gone, but why is she also living in London? Where has this alternate Sam come from and what is she to do with the scar? The Doctor must find out, and release the TARDIS, but there's something nasty in Golden Gate Bay and old enemies appear to stand in his way. They're the sort of people who revel in chaos, but the Doctor's biggest concern is someone with a more rational mind...

A lot of delicious ingredients have gone into this pudding, along with a few juicy one-liner sultanas, but the mixture never gets too rich to be unpalatable. There seems to be a lot more continuity operating in the BBC books nowadays, and there have been subtle hints in previous books about a particular danger of time travel. There are also teasers which make you hungry for more. For instance, Kate and Jon seem to address the vexed question of whether Benny exists in the BBC universe. The extracts from Eldin Sanchez's 'Interesting Times' are also well thought out and provocative. And, much more importantly, 'Unnatural History' is far more entertaining than Kate and Jon's previous San Francisco outing, 'Vampire Science'. Don't gorge yourself all at once.

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