Kribu
One of those books I appreciated more than I actually enjoyed - I appreciate the writing, specifically the way it managed to really convey a specific time, place and characters (I am a bit unsure, honestly, whether I'd consider a lot of them archetypes or stereotypes .. sometimes the line between the two is muddled), and gave me a vivid, almost movie-like sense of the setting, but on the other hand, I really struggled with liking it, mostly because the characters were realistic enough to be all quite unlikeable (and not in a fun way either).
In all honesty, I don't find these books very well written (could be that it's just not coming off overly well in translation, although there isn't anything particularly off with that as such). But I like the setting and the glimpse it offers into the lives of people far away so I guess that as long as I can borrow the next books and not buy them, I can keep going.
I just really can't stand Ari Thór though. Such an unpleasant, unlikeable young man. (I can deal with unlikeable characters well enough in general but it's hard to keep finding the motivation when they're the main character and I half get the impression we're supposed to like him or at least support him.)
Meh.
Honestly, anything beyond phase 1 hasn't really worked for me, so I'm just reading out of a sense of feeling like I have to see this to the end, but it gets increasingly difficult to pick out the bits of story/plot amidst all the violence and I just can't remember anything from one book to the next any more (or who most of the characters are or whether they're someone from a previous book or not).
I'm glad lots of people are still loving this series - it gave me so much joy for years, and it'll always hold a special place in my heart, but I guess I'm really just not the target audience any longer (not that I ever was but, well, certainly not any more).
For some reason, this didn't capture me quite the same way the other two books in this batch did. Hmph. Maybe if I'd read this one first (but it definitely comes after the other two in the - admittedly not very strict - reading order)...
There's nothing wrong with it as such - interesting enough of a plot, okay characterisation, a fair bit of the Doctor - so ... dunno. Just me not really clicking with it, I suppose.
.... well, what do you know? I enjoyed this one, too! That makes two out of the most recent trio of Twelfth Doctor novels that I've read - and two I've enjoyed.
I don't really know why I'm giving this four stars when I gave Diamond Dogs five. Maybe because .. well, to say it would be to spoil it (best not look at tags), but I guess I'm just a little bit more into space and aliens in my Doctor Who than what this book offered up. But that said, yeah, it was a great, fast read, again with decent characterisation for Bill (who again doesn't get nearly as much to do as the Doctor does but a) she doesn't actually feel side-lined, and b) when we have so little Twelve left, and when there's been so little to start with, I'm really not going to complain about getting relatively more of the Doctor than the brand new companion. YMMV.)
Gah. I love this Twelve. Smug, arrogant, clever, compassionate, courageous, wonderful.
So, yeah.
looks at the star rating
... I think I liked it. :P Obviously, it's not like I'm saying “this is the most amazing book that ever was or ever will be” but .. it's quite possibly my favourite Doctor Who book I've read. And I've read a lot of them. And I've not been over the moon about most of the recent ones, so - between having felt a little let down by the relatively few Twelfth Doctor related offerings there have been in general, and having had to wait such a long time for a new batch, and not even having Clara on board... I was a little apprehensive.
But damn, I'm glad I picked this one to read first out of this brand new trio of S10 tie-in novels. (Not to say the other two suck, I very much hope not - I just haven't read them yet!) Because this (and I pretty much gobbled it down in a couple of hours) was basically everything I could ask from a tie-in book - excitement, a fair plot that moves along, some new characters who actually feel like rounded people with a life and back story, and more than anything else, plenty of awesome action by the Doctor.
Gah. I'm going to miss Twelve so much. I'm just glad he's been around long enough for the writers to finally get a decent handle on him, because I really loved him in this one. So much. all the hearteyes
Also, given that the books had to be written before anyone had actually seen Bill in action (although it's pretty clear the writers have had a fair idea about the first three S10 episodes to work from - so for anyone who prefers to stay in the dark, there's a couple of mentions of things happening in Smile and Thin Ice, although no more than what can be assumed from the trailers), I thought the characterisation - based on what we've seen so far, in The Pilot - was pretty spot-on. She doesn't have an awful lot to do in this book, but neither is she just a bystander, and for me the balance of the focus on Bill and the Doctor was just about right.
Anyway. Yes. Not going to talk about the plot, other than it worked well enough for me, and I've always loved those Doctor Who books that tackle the humans' far-future affairs, this time mining diamonds in the rings of Saturn - which I could just visualise.
Probably my favourite of the Winter quarter, and a good ending to these interconnected stories.
The Doctor felt quite a bit more in character here (for his post-Last Christmas self) compared to the earlier instalments, and there were some really nice character moments both for the Doctor and Clara and for the Doctor in general.
Liked the reading, too - Jemma Redgrave did a fine job.
I was rather putting off reading this volume as I'm still desperately missing Clara and new adventures for Twelve without her just have that bittersweet tinge to them, but once I finally picked it up ... well, I couldn't really put it down until I'd finished both of the adventures in this volume.
So, yeah. The art was consistently excellent in this one, and I really rather enjoyed the stories, too - both the Foxkin-and-punk!Doctor tale (even though it got a bit heavy-handed with the message for my liking in the end but eh, some things probably need spelling out these days) and the mysterious house one. And Hattie made a fun enough temporary companion.
It's a bit hard for me to find words for a review for this, the final book in the Geek Girl series, as I spent a fair bit of time crying just now (I cry easily, depending on my mood, so this isn't necessarily a spoiler), but .. anyway, it's a good end to a series I've enjoyed far more than I perhaps should have, seeing as I'm not really in the target group, being a couple of decades too old.
But I've been .. well, not a Harriet, but young, and awkward, and bullied, so I suppose there's that.
Anyway. I don't really want to go into spoilery details in this review so I'll just say that it's a good book. Perhaps about 75% of it was relatively lightweight (if with an ever-increasing sense of dread over Harriet very, very clearly having misinterpreted something painfully obvious), but the last quarter certainly wasn't. And I liked the way it ties up all the loose endings and provides conclusions in a way that you know that this is it for one stage, one part of these characters' lives, but that they're all embarking on the next stages of their life.
* ARC of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review. Thanks!
I've never actually listened to audiobooks before. Or plays. Or radio plays. Or .. well, basically anything where I need to sit and listen, not since I was but a wee child and all we had was the radio, and even then I far preferred the printed word to the spoken one.
So, yeah. New experience! I was quite wary as I don't do listening well - I cannot multitask at all if I'm to listen to something, because the moment my thoughts wonder elsewhere, I've absolutely no idea at all what I'm hearing (I've had entire albums play while I'm doing something else without me having the faintest idea of having ever heard them). Add to that listening to something in a language that is neither my native tongue nor my first language - I don't have trouble understanding English as such, but I prefer subtitles (English will do) for TV/films whenever possible as it's just so much easier to read than it is to listen - and ... yeah, there are many reasons why I've stayed away from them so far.
Anyway. All the above has nothing to do with this audiobook, except that I love the Twelfth Doctor so much, and I love Twelve & Clara so much, and it's been a long year without my babies, and it's quite clear that it will be a long time (if ever) that we'll ever get new Twelve & Clara content again, so .. here's a stack of four interconnected audio-exclusive stories which I'd bought but set aside for a very long time (because, well, audio). So .. I decided to be brave.
And I actually quite enjoyed this! I did have to focus very, very carefully - eyes closed, headphones instead of speakers - because even looking up made sure I missed something, so in this sense this fairly short story, just one CD's worth, was a good thing to start with.
Story-wise, it was ... okay. Not breathtaking. Some fun moments (especially in the first third of the story). I felt the characterisation of the Doctor was perhaps a little one-note and a bit too stubborn/petulant in ways that didn't strike me quite right for a post-Last Christmas Doctor, but eh, it worked for the story, I suppose.
looks at rating
Yep. Not five stars as in “the best thing in the history of everything, EVER”, but undoubtedly the best Doctor Who short story anthology I've read - anyone who has seen me read short stories before probably knows I grumble a lot as it's a format that, more often than not, just plain doesn't seem to work for me when it comes to published tie-in fiction - and .. basically, I can't really find anything to complain about.
I enjoyed each and every story; some probably a bit more than others, but even the weakest ones (and I'd be hard-pressed to point at which ones they were - Five, Six and Seven, if I must, I suppose) were enjoyable little fully formed, well-paced little tales in their own right.
Favourites? The Third Doctor's story was a wonderful delight, actually making me laugh out loud. The Fourth Doctor story was unexpected and random in a brilliant way. The Twelfth Doctor's was one of the best ones I've read for my favourite incarnation.
And the illustrations! Each by a different artist, so naturally there were some I preferred and other styles I'm not so keen on, but it's such a long time since I've read a book with proper illustrations and, as it happened, the one for the Twelfth Doctor story was just perfect (I'm not kidding; if I could, I'd buy a print of it, frame it and hang it on my wall), so, yeah.
No complaints. I loved this. Such a warm, lovely, collection of clever little stories, kind and Christmassy without being overly sweet or cloying.
This is a tricky book to rate, not the least because - having just finished watching Series 1 of ITV's Victoria - it really, really feels far more like a novelisation of the series (or rather the first five episodes) than an actual novel in its own right.
As a novelisation, I found it very good - it's a very faithful and detailed recounting of the episodes (other than I think it was written, or started, before casting, what with describing both Melbourne and Albert as blond, or greying blond in the case of Melbourne), with just enough added - a few very brief scenes, some inner thoughts of characters - to clarify, and add substance, to some of what we saw on TV.
As a novel ... I think I'd have liked a bit more depth. But it was a fast read, enjoyable both in comparison to the TV series and on its own.
Its greatest strength, and where it adds the most value to the show, is the added clarity to the two central romances. I saw some people insist to the very end that Victoria/Melbourne, as depicted on the show, was quite paternal and platonic; the novel makes it very clear that it's a romance, with more feelings repressed due to the impossibility of things, and a lot of undercurrents, and a dash of UST, and as a lowkey Vicbourne shipper, I appreciated the novel for that very much.
At the same time, the way Victoria's feelings for Albert were handled on the show left me a bit unhappy - it felt very rushed, especially considering her feelings for her Prime Minister, but the book can devote a bit more time to that early development and makes it easier to accept, with Victoria's feelings, and reasons, clarified. And Albert gets fleshed out better, although I never quite managed to warm to him completely either on screen or in the book - but at least I can see why Victoria would have chosen him, and in that short time at that.
Anyway. Certainly recommended to Vicbourne shippers (on the understanding that everyone realises the book does keep true to the series - and, regardless of with how much liberty this interpretation handles the “real” relationship between Victoria and her Prime Minister, it's of course quite certain they, sadly, never eloped and got married and had lots of babies with each other), and those who want to relive the series with some extra detail added. King Leopold in particular is an even more amusing character in the book, and the hints at the reasons why he would have been so determined to push Albert on Victoria were a fine addition.
Oh, how I wanted to love these stories.
I've been so starved for new Doctor Who, especially anything to do with my beloved Twelve (who is being quite poorly served when it comes to tie-in novels and the like, compared to his predecessors), that I couldn't even wait for my long-ago pre-ordered hardback of this book to arrive, so I bought the Kindle version in addition.
Sniffle.
Well. I mean .. I've said this before, but I do struggle with short stories in general. Not so much because I can't appreciate a really good short story but because more often than not, I just find them lacking - poorly paced, lacking in characterisation or background to the extent it bothers me, having too much background and too little story, etc. And this was no exception really. Sigh.
That said, my two star rating (that I wish could be 2.5 because it just feels a bit mean otherwise) means what it says - it was OK. It was a fast and serviceable read, all six of the stories, some weaker and some stronger but none of them a real waste of time, and some had potential I'd have loved to see expanded upon. My real issue was that I didn't really get a sense of Twelve (heck, sometimes I didn't even get a sense of a “generic Doctor”, rather just some bloke with eyebrows, velvet jacket and a sonic screwdriver). I missed Clara. I missed .. well, anything to give Twelve some character. I tried to “hear” the lines delivered in PCap's Twelve voice and I failed, miserably (and I've managed it before, both with some short stories and novels, at least occasionally). I get that Twelve is trickier to get “right” than, say, Ten or Eleven, and in short stories, it's more of a problem than in longer stories, but .. yeah. This set fell a bit short for me.
But hey, these are tough times and I'll take what I can get. And for generic, kid-friendly brand new Doctor Who stories one could probably do worse.
Well. Kinda struggling with what to say, as I mostly do these days, but anyway.
It took me a fair bit of time to get into it / adjust to the language and the concepts, probably not the least because my brain is rather rusty and doesn't handle anything more complex than fanfic or tie-in novels with as much ease as it used to, but in any case, I pushed on and after a while, found myself thoroughly enjoying it. Not hugely so - but enough.
(... I did find my mind wandering away more than once though as I couldn't help but be glad I am not someone tasked with translating this book. I suppose it's reasonably easy with languages that use gender and pronouns in a way similar to English; I'm not at all sure what I'd have done with a language where gendered pronouns don't exist to start with. Probably sworn.)
Anyway, yeah. Some pretty interesting concepts and while I didn't really manage to get into the plot itself, I might just be interested enough to read the next book as well. At some point.
I actually put off reading this for a little while because .. well, I'm fairly sure it's the last even semi-official bit of Twelve and Clara in action that there will be in a long time, if ever. And that is a sad thought that makes me sigh. Sadly.
That said, I rather loved both the main story (The School of Death) and the second, shorter story (the title of which I didn't manage to find anywhere). Rachael Stott's art is fabulous, especially her take on Twelve (can you fancy a comic book character? because hot damn!), and there were bits it in that made me go “aww”, in addition to all the fun running-from-Sea-Devils and running-from-the-Boneless stuff.
... alas, the book ended with another short one where the art was clearly done by someone else and while the story in and of itself wasn't particularly bad, just kinda short and pointless, every panel with the Doctor on it made me wince rather a bit.
Rating: somewhere between three and four stars. I think I'm leaning a bit more towards “liked it” than “really liked it” this time, though.
I'm not entirely sure what exactly didn't work for me as well as usual this time around though - the shorter length of the novella making it feel a bit too condensed? general fatigue? suddenly getting to a point where “comfortingly familiar and fun” starts feeling a bit, well, samey? me just drifting off? a combination of all of those? - but whatever it was, it meant I actually spent nearly two weeks making my way through it when before I've dashed through the novel-length instalments in 1-2 days each.
Anyway. It was fun. And overall I did enjoy it. It was much the same sort of fun as the other books though, and due to the shorter length, lacked the breather bits between all the various mishaps and incidents.
Basically, I doubt anyone who loves the series would be terribly disappointed by this novella, but I really wouldn't recommend it as an introduction to the world of Geek Girl either.
* ARC of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review. Thanks!
Probably my favourite of the lot so far.
This is definitely a series where a lot - well, probably everything - depends on how well one takes to the author's style, though. It's really very, very slow and introspective, which probably wouldn't work for many or when going in expecting a fast-paced thriller or what not, but in my current mood, it suits me just fine and I'm rather growing to love this series.
All in all, I think I enjoyed this one even more than the first book, but ... well.
I think it's ultimately the way the cases seem to be resolved that I don't quite get on with? I mean, I love these books as character studies, as books about the places and the people, with the murders sort of in the background, not really the focus of the books. But even so, for me the way the books meander around and then the resolutions are just presented as a neat narrative in the end ... it's just not entirely satisfying, I suppose.
Also, I'm not sure I really get on with the way everyone is so introspective, and in much the same way at that, probably because it means no one's POV reflects the way I go about the world and people myself, but that's a fairly minor quibble, because I do enjoy it. Sort of, anyway.
It's complicated. :D
Two fairly fun if not particularly amazing two ... well, novella-length stories, I suppose, since I doubt either of them was long enough to be a novel.
I'm not sure really I can say much more. Characterisation seemed largely okay, the pace fine, both stories had plots and just a pinch of danger; The Good, The Bad and the Alien in particular felt like the sort of story that would have worked just fine on screen, too (although as westerns with the Eleven, Amy and Rory TARDIS team go, A Town Called Mercy is probably the stronger one).