Book review
Written by Justin Richards (Martha in the Mirror); Mike Tucker (Snowglobe 7); Dale Smith (The Many Hands)
BBC Books hardback
Release date Out now

The Doctor and Martha visit a haunted castle; global warming and an alien invasion hit the Middle East; and a loch gives up its dead as the Doctor and Martha visit Edinburgh…

It seems as if BBC Books are offering something for everyone with the latest batch of Doctor Who novels.

The first book, Martha in the Mirror, combines the familiar ‘base under siege’ concept with a classic ghost story narrative. It’s a chilling tale that at times recalls the Peladon adventures of the Jon Pertwee years. Unsurprisingly, given his experience writing for the range, Justin Richards’ depiction of the Doctor and Martha is accurate and highly evocative. You can hear David and Freema saying the lines, but he also perfectly captures what is a relatively complex relationship with some comedic banter and moments of warmth that never drifts into overblown sentimentality. Admittedly, the mirror is something of a cliché in the science fiction genre, but Richards uses the device effectively, only occasionally tripping over himself when the story deals with the Mirror World in which reflections take on their own life.

Mike Tucker’s Snowglobe 7 is enormous fun. Dealing with global warming without being preachy and containing a wealth of original and well-realised ideas, this could be Tucker’s best Who novel to date. Judging from the blurb on the back, you’d think that an old enemy is about to return, but the great strength of the novels is that they steadfastly refuse to overly rely on former foes showing up. Tucker’s substitute for the Ice Warriors is a particularly effective new alien race called The Gappa who, despite similarities to the Racnoss from The Runaway Bride, are creepy and horrific in the right measure.

The weakest entry in this batch, Dale Smith’s The Many Hands, suffers from being too much of a horror novel and not containing enough of the elements that make Doctor Who great. The setting is overly morbid and the tone, while effective, is depressing. And after Sting of the Zygons and Tooth and Claw, Scotland is starting to become a little overused as a location. The book hits the ground running, with the Doctor riding through the streets on top of a horse-drawn carriage and Martha chasing at full pelt. It’s an exciting start, but offers an early example of why the book doesn’t always work. As she runs, Martha lists parts of the human lung. It’s a dull way to underline that she is a doctor-in-training, and feels rather clumsily inserted into the story. The Hammer Horror genre can work in Doctor Who - after all the Hinchcliffe era is largely built on the style - but this tale of death and resurrection is just too morbid to feel like Doctor Who. Jonathan Wilkins

VERDICT
Martha in the Mirror: 8/10
Snowglobe 7: 8/10
The Many Hands: 6/10