| ENDGAME by Terrance Dicks |
| Story 39 Synopsis: London, 1951. The Doctor is depressed, and a friend, Oskar, believes he is being followed. The Doctor doesn't believe him, but saves him from a kidnapping. A second attempt is more successful. But he has passed on a vital document to the Doctor. When an attempt is made on his life, and he finds his blue box stolen, he follows a lead to Kim Philby, who suspects someone is trying to foment global crisis. He asks the Doctor to help another double agent, Donald Maclean, escape to France, and in the process, Guy Burgess goes with him. The Doctor saves them from assassination twice, and then returns to Philby in Washington. He suspects that someone is trying to influence President Truman, and when he learns of a top secret operation, Project Kali, he draws more clues together. He secures Truman's authorisation to pay the Project a visit, where he finds that a group called the Players are behind the Project, and the attempts to kill Burgess and Maclean. The Doctor writes a report advising the President to shut the Project down. But Philby tells him that he is needed in Russia, where Stalin will be facing a similar project. On his arrival there, the Doctor meets the Countess, who has a hold over the Russian dictator. She recognises him, and offers to restore his memory, but he refuses in terror. Aggrieved, she accords with his request to stop influencing Stalin. The Doctor returns to Washington, where Truman has gone to Project Kali. The Doctor goes to help, but it is the Countess who makes the right moves, killing the other Players. Threat over, Philby returns the Doctor's blue box to him. |
| Review:- Still on Earth, and now facing a threat of global annhilation, a reluctant Doctor is forced to get involved... As with his earlier Players book, Dicks wraps up a minor global conspiracy with his nefarious baddies. This time, we get to meet Burgess, Philby and Maclean, as well as brief sights of Truman and Stalin. Well, if you're going to think big... The central story works pretty well, and as usual, the book is childishly easy to read, but unfortunately, the ending cannot justify the means. The flaw of the Players is that their aims are so weak, and their powers so great, that they should really achieve their games in very short time, and the Doctor is unable to stop them. Especially his amnesiac version, as here, who is a dab hand at fisticuffs, but outwitted by Philby and bussed around the world like a puppet. The only positive for him in the book is that his cold attitude at the start warms up by the end (perhaps a slight parallel with the Cold War itself, which thaws a bit as the threat of the Players is stopped). The drama is pretty thin, although the idea of moving the story to Washington in the middle of the book works nicely, as does the following shift to Moscow. And then back again for a stab at a proper ending. Whilst the struggles of communism and capitalism are rather too great to be studied in a book like this (especially one as short as this), at least some attempt is made to show that Philby and the others weren't traitors in an evil sense. Overall, though, this book passes the time but doesn't really engage the brain. |
| Disclaimer: I own a copy. |