| LOVE AND WAR by Paul Cornell |
| Story 9 Synopsis: The Doctor takes Ace to the funeral of an old friend of hers, Julian, and then on to the planet Heaven, where he's looking for a rare book, The Papers of Felsecar. Whilst Ace falls in with a band of Travellers, and in love with one in particular, Jan, the Doctor finds his book missing, and meets an archaeology professor, Bernice Summerfield. Heaven is a neutral world where the humans and Draconians send their dead, but there is something evil manipulating the Church of the Vacuum. Old enemies of the Time Lords, the Hoothi Consciousness, use white filament spores to infect people and take them under their control, including the dead. The Doctor desperately tries to keep Ace safe, but she is aghast when Jan is taken over by the infection. Bernice has his missing book, but it merely helps translate the Heavenite language. The Doctor tries to reason with the Hoothi, but finds he has already been infected. The Hoothi attack, and just as their Sphere comes close to landing, the Doctor contacts Jan, who was a pyrokinetic, and uses his fire-power to incinerate the Sphere, breaking the Hoothi hold on their victims. Ace realises that the Doctor knew Jan would die, and was relying on it, so decides to leave him. Bernice takes her place aboard the TARDIS, as her expedition has come to a halt. |
| Review:- Heaven is a fateful name for anywhere, and especially so when there's nasty aliens with a virulent plague to play with... Here, the New Adventures took their first decisive step in a new direction, writing in a new companion, and writing out the old one, albeit temporarily. Professor Bernice Summerfield is probably the best place to start in a review of this book, as she is the best thing to come out of it. She's a well-rounded character with depth and interest to a reader, and is a good new friend for the Doctor to make, particularly at a time when going through such turmoil. Her interest in the 20th century also allows for endless smug references in books to come. She's not in this series to find love, and is thus a far more adult character than comes out of most books. As for Ace, she is saddled with yet another acquaintance from her sad old life, in this case the unfortunate Julian, who died too young, and returns as an unwilling victim of the Hoothi. This plot contrivance doesn't do the book any favours, by the way. Ace's past contrasts with her present, where she instantly hits it off with the Traveller, Jan, and can already see her future ahead, regardless of the effect it may cause to others. But the Doctor already knows it won't last, and she suffers twice over as a result - losing Jan, and realising the Doctor needed Jan dead to make his plan work out. Her rejection of him at the end allows her a (temporary, as it turns out) way to leave him. This motive is also impressively adult, though diminished by her inevitable return. As for the Doctor? Well, his old enemy from Gallifrey is cunning, and via its nebulous fibres, able to convert masses at a time, with little chance of comeback. He has to take huge risks to bring the Hoothi to their demise, and suffers good and bad luck on the way. His behaviour here is partly explained in Deceit, but its difference from his usual manipulative stance is so negligible that most would probably not realise there was anything odd about it. Jan is one of many thinly-shaded characters whom a reader is expected to care for automatically. His fate, whilst tragic, does at least give him the chance to save everyone. There seems a distinct parallel between the Hoothi infection, and diseases such as AIDS, and inasmuch as the book makes the laudable point that anyone can be infected by them, then it's a fair point to make. Of course, solutions are less tidy in reality, but there is at least a message of hope when the suffering is over. Though a readable, and entertaining book, there's not really a lot to it beyond its frequent heavy-handed tone, and clunking plotting. |
| Disclaimer: I own a copy. |