Love and War

I always felt ambivalent towards this particular Doctor Who novel.

I love sad stories, and this was very sad: the Doctor apparently betrays Ace, by letting her new boyfriend be killed by the enemy, and she leaves him in a fit of rage. Now the other side of the coin. I detest this novel, because:
-Paul Cornell introduces explicit sex into Doctor Who for the first time, leading me to eternally consider him tasteless.
-Like Kate Orman, Cornell portrays the Seventh Doctor, in his manipulations, as both contemptible (he lets Jan die) and pathetic (there are strong indications that he did it just because he's jealous of Jan and doesn't want Ace to leave him). Love and War is one of many Doctor Who novels written by obnoxious fans-turned-authors; show more you get used to it. show less

This one has a reputation. The Doctor, pitting his wits against the Hoothi ends up betraying those closest to him in a bid to save an entire world(maybe even worlds(plural)). Does one man, even such a man as the Doctor have the right to trade one single life for countless? He certainly seems to think so.

If you only read one Doctor Who novel in your entire life, make it this one.

http://nhw.livejournal.com/1095536.html

This is the debut adventure of Bernice "Benny" Summerfield, one of the more memorable companions of Who spinoff fiction - future archaeologist, hard drinker, unsuccessful lover, heroine of numerous spinoff books and audio plays in her own right. The Seventh Doctor and Ace arrive to explore the planet of Heaven; Ace falls in love with a Celtic crusty; the Doctor has difficulty distinguishing her from Susan and, of all past companions to pick, Dodo; and religious cults and various other locals and visitors are dealing, whether they know it or not, with a horrible intelligent fungus which is infecting their bodies.

Quite apart from Benny, whose debut is as memorable as I hoped it would be, this is a show more good novel for Ace, whose doomed love affair, recollections of her youth in Perivale, and tentative renegotiation of her relationship with the Doctor combine to make her much more interesting and compelling here than she ever was on screen. Some of the familiar Paul Cornell motifs are here - people trapped in a church or local equivalent; owls - but there are some very pleasing nods to the space opera future portrayed in Pertwee-era Who (the Draconians; the IMC) and the planet itself, and the gruesome invasive fungoids, are convincingly attention-grabbing. One of the better New Adventures, I suspect (not that I have read many of them). show less

This is my 3rd Doctor Who New Adventure, and it's one that has a notably good reputation among diehard Doctor Who fans. In this story, the Seventh Doctor and Ace - who is grieving over the death of a childhood friend - go to the planet Heaven. The entire planet is a cemetery for the people of Earth and the Draconians who die in the Dalek Wars. Ace falls in with a group of Travellers encamped on Heaven, and begins a romance with a young man named Jan. The Doctor seems to disapprove of Jan, and Ace begins to drift away. This is only a preamble for an act of betrayal that will push Ace out of the Tardis for good.

Apart from the tragic situation that divides the Doctor and Ace, this novel has a number of interesting attributes. It introduces show more the archaeologist Berenice Summerfield who will go on to be a regular companion of the Doctor. It also features the creepy villains the Hoothi, who are kind of a sentient fungi. On the downside there's a whole subplot involving virtual reality in something called Puterspace. And like Timewyrm: Revelation, the narrative jumps quickly among a large number of characters and stories, making it a challenge to read. All and all, an imaginative and influential Doctor Who story. show less

Again, nothing really to say about this one. The plot has sort of fizzled away in the time since I read it. i understand its one of the more well-loved in this series.