Dreamstone Moon (Doctor Who Series)

Something the BBC was clearly trying to do in its New Doctor adventures was developing some kind of continuing narrative so that readers got the feeling that the character was changing and that some kind of progression was taking place, as opposed to each book just being random adventures of the Doctor (which I think all outside the hardcore would have been okay with, but I have no idea what audience the BBC was trying to sell to). This isn't too radical an idea, as many of the original 1960s stories were treated as serials, with each story bleeding right into the next. Virgin tried the same thing and managed it a bit better than the BBC did, as they were able to hint at arcs while still managing to tell a complete story in every novel. At this point, the BBC still hadn't gotten it quite right. Thus far we've seen the Doctor and Sam get separated and while Sam got to sit out the last book, here the focus is more on her, with the Doctor running around in the background trying to put things back together. Sam finds herself tagging along with a mining crew who are dredging up dreamstones from the planet, pretty rocks that help people dream. But strange things are starting to happen and people are getting killed. Meanwhile, dream artist Anton finds that they give him nightmares and travels to find out why. Putting Sam front and center is not as hideous as one might expect, judging from past experience. The author writes her as slightly less annoying, although his favorite word in describing how characters talk appears to be "bawled", unless it's just more popular among the Brits. But she spends most of the time stumbling from set piece to set piece while other people explain the plot to her. In some instances she makes things worse but then that's believable considering she's only seventeen or so. I messed up a lot of stuff at that age, too. Fortunately she's paired with an alien that seems more human than some of the actual human beings and gives a slightly more mature counterpoint to the setting. The Doctor, of course, is the Doctor and while the Eight Doctor hasn't quite made his mark like his predecessors yet, he certainly has all the hallmarks. Keeping him off to the side hurts the book a little bit, as he apparently figures out the problem about halfway through but then we never see him until near the end so he can explain it. The book makes for a light read, it's certainly chockful of action but in the end it's all so much noise and running around, with a few moments of humanity or brutality to help distinguish it. The explanation behind the dreamstones probably won't surprise anyone who's read "Solaris", although it's not clear what the artist has to do with any of it, and for the most part it's shooting and shouting until people are convinced to stop shooting and shouting. And the "Missing Sam" arc isn't resolved here anyway, so it's like when the page count runs out, everyone just packs up and goes home. There's no "to be

This is the first time that the Dr. showes his real feelings when he losses his one of his time travelers (Sam). I feel that the change from the 7th Dr to the 8th Dr. has ment a change in the way he views the events in his life. The books takes you to a planet called Dreamstone moon where people use special rocks to inhance their lives. He spots Sam several times while he is on the planet. But is never able to rejoin her. This book is a real easy read and I have read it more then once. When you have read this one you need to read Seeing I. This is the story where the Dr. and Sam finally find each other and are reunited. I hope that you enjoy this book as much as I did and I suggest that you add this one to your Dr. Who collection.

This book is a easy read. You get to know about Sam. To me the book is nonstop fom the moment that Sam finds herself on an alein ship to the time that you start to realize that the planet is an living entity. This is one of the first times that one of the companions (Sam) thinks that she is alone when she thinks that the Doctor has been killed. It is a very good book and one that I think every Dr. Who fan should read. It was the first time that I have seen these types of novels have a sequence. After Reading this you will want to read Seeing I. I hope that everyone enjoys reading this as much as I did. I love the New Doctors personality and style and Sam links it together..

This was an enjoyable book; the characters were well-written and sympathetic. There was plenty of action, but everything flowed organically.