The Deviant Strain

Pick up a distress call, push a button on the TARDIS console. What could possibly go wrong? Well, you could end up at an abandoned Soviet naval base in the frozen Novrosk Peninsula, where a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines are slowly rusting and falling apart. Plus the locals inhabitants are being killed off by someone or something. The Doctor, Rose and Captain Jack soon find out the danger isn't the nuclear reactors or the Russian special forces team that arrives. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, because it has all of my favorite heroes and more. The plot takes twists and turns you won't expect, plus a new villan and you get a better understanding of Captain Jack. Besides, don't you want to know who pushed that button on the TARDIS console? Torchwood: Another Life Torchwood: Slow Decay Torchwood - The Complete First Season Doctor Who - The Complete First Series Doctor Who - The Complete Second Series Doctor Who - The Complete Third Series Another Side Anything Goes

Justin Richards writes pretty entertaining Doctor Who novels. This one, featuring the 9th Doctor, is not as complex in plot as his The Burning, but it has its moments. Campy, featuring glowing, tentacled monsters and the living dead, he and Rose once more work their magic in solving a mystery and saving the world from destruction. Opening with Captain Jack responding to a distress signal, the three become "morally obliged" to find the source of the problem and help those in trouble. The signal leads them to an isolated village in northern Russia not long after the fall of the Soviet Union. It's a time of paranoia following another time of paranoia, with weapons lying about from the latter. However, the ensuing struggle is not one over opposing ideologies, unless one includes the simple desire to survive. More like a novella, The Deviant Strain is a quick read, fun and sometimes witty. These small BBC hardbacks are fun to have, although often hard to come by in local bookstores. For those who enjoyed the TV production with the 9th Doctor, they continue the adventures we've grown fond of.

This, like all the ninth doctor books is a quick read. It moves along at a pretty good pace (sort of like an extended episode), won't bore you with too many details (i.e. the science behind stuff), and let's you get a little more Capt. Jack. This one takes place in modern times and has the most "X Files" feel to it then the previous ones. I do like that they are mixing up eras in the books, and visiting more different planets then the series. If you like the series, you'll enjoy the books.

I was never a really big fan of Who books, prefering the tv series instead. But my brother has the newer books-and a few old ones-and got me back into the 'verse of Who novels. This book is a great read, passing into post-Cold War Russia. Captain Jack is, as always, a great laugh, not afraid to show off for humans and aliens alike. Rose shows that not all of the Doctor's female Assistants and Companions scream, run or faint at the sight of something with a third eye or slightly too big a head. The perfect model for the modern girl. The Doctor shows yet again his happy, somewhat 'bouncy' way of handling things, that leaves most people who don't know him stumped. A great read and a must have for all Who Fans.

Justin Richards has written a good solid Who novel that at times contained moments of brilliance, but other times were Same old, same old Who bits of running away from the monster over and over down long corridors. The Doctor is written well, and Rose is really starting to grow on me. Capt. Jack is lots of fun to. Set in a far away part of Russia, this book had a setting different enough from other who novels to make it interesting. My biggest problem that bothered me through the whole book is that the Doctor has some sort of magical paper that gives him credintials in any situation. Boy, would this have solved a lot of problems over the last 40 years of Who stories. I don't know if this is something from the new TV show, or just an invention of the author, but it really is a cop out to the age old Who problem of showing up and immediately being thrown in jail. Anyway, a good Who novel that I paid to much for, but I love the new hardback books. Enjoy!