Doctor Who: Shakedown by Terrance Dicks

Doctor Who:

Shakedown

by Terrance Dicks

***Some Reviews may Contain Spoilers***

Virgin Publishing / BBC Books:  1995, 1999, 2014

ISBN:  9781849907668

This is an okay novel for what it is actually is.  This is based mostly on the story written and produced by Doctor Who fans, and since they had no access to the property rights, the movie was loosely based in the Doctor Who Universe and initially did not feature the doctor.

The story in this book had some additions made, including some doctor scenes intertwined in the original story.  It is basically a focus on the Rutan-Sontaran War where the Sontarans are attempting to stop the Rutans from using a space yacht to carry out a deadly plan of destruction.  It is not a bad story idea but with such a minimal Doctor presence, it feels like a general science fiction novel.  A good attempt, and it honors some great fan efforts to add to a favorite universe., so it is a good addition to a die hard fan's library.  This book was also written by not only a regular author of Doctor Who but one of the original / classic show writers.  Having basically no legal access to the original movie, this is most likely the only way some fans can access this Doctor Who Unofficial yet popular story.

A must read for all die hard fans.  For those not so into Doctor Who, a good one to read a summary about.

Rating:  1 out of 5 stars

"Star Trek: A Child of Two Worlds" by Greg Cox

Star Trek:

Child of Two Worlds

by Greg Cox

***Some Reviews may Contain Spoilers***

Pocket Books:  December 2015

ISBN:  9781476783253

Being a fan of Greg Cox makes it hard to find problems with the novel's that this author produces. "Star Trek:  Child of Two Worlds" makes it worse as it is also a story that contains one of the better Captain's, Christopher Pike, of the prime universe.

The book is very well written and fast paced in it's delivery.  We find Spock, young and early in his career, having to start to deal much more deeply with his two ancestral backgrounds of human and Vulcan on an inner emotional level.  A similar conflict plays outward in an alien whom was taken at a young age to be Klingon.

The story will pull in the reader, as at the very least it is up in the air on how it ends with what choice will a couple of the characters make.  Spock's character is explored much in the way you expect, with the highlight being his inner emotional conflict.  His actions being governed by such make for some interesting suspenseful moments.

In the subplot, which tied nicely into the main story, the crew was struggling with the fever plaguing the ship.  It was good to see Captain Pike struggle with maintaining his composure when all he wanted to do was pass out from his high fever.  In addition, we learned just a tiny bit more about the mysterious character of Number One.

All in all a great adventure.  While expansion of the inner conflict around Spock could have been much more improved, it was a great read especially for this time of year.  It was a welcome change to see the crew of the Enterprise from Pike's era and a smart move to show us what could be the introduction to the inner turmoil that develops from Spock trying to be Vulcan in a human environment while being half human himself.

Rating:  4 out of 5 stars.