| OPTION LOCK by Justin Richards |
| Story 8 Synopsis: Dragged to Earth by a drain on its artron energy, the TARDIS lands in the grounds of Abbots Siolfor, the historic house belonging to Norton Silver. The Doctor and Sam are made his guests, and soon consider the mystery of a missing painting, and some alien flowers. Meanwhile, another guest, Colonel Roskov, returns to Krejikistan, and initiates a scheme launching nuclear weapons at the USA. At the last minute, the Americans are forced to deploy Station Nine, a satellite capable of countering such nuclear attacks. To ameliorate the hubbub caused by its revelation, the Americans decide to hand over control to the UN. The Doctor and Sam manage to find the secret of the painting, and find a lost Khameirian spaceship. The creatures have existed in the Silver family and others for centuries, waiting for the time to gain enough power to be reborn. An apparent nuclear attack from China gives the excuse to put Station Nine into action, but now under a Khameirian-influenced controller. The plan is to use its missiles to impact Abbots Siolfor, releasing enough energy to resuscitate the aliens, as well as devastating England. But the chosen controller is gunned down, so Silver forces the Doctor to take him and Sam in the TARDIS to Station Nine. Silver has some control over Sam, but the Doctor is able to break it a little, and thwarts Silver's plans by confusing the computer controls. The Station self-destructs shortly after the TARDIS leaves, disposing of the Khameirian influence for good. |
| Review:- Yes, it's Fun with Nuclear Weapons! Basically, this is a simple little global thriller using geopolitical disharmony by the by in a plot involving genetic heritage and alien control. Add in endless (and it feels literally endless at times) discussions on what will/would happen in the event of launching nuclear missiles, and presto! One book. There's not really much depth to the story, which might account for the nuclear padding. The brief dealings with the rogue state of Krejikistan could possibly have formed the basis of a story on its own, and this was not Richards' last literary visit to Russia. But once Roskov has achieved his moment, his whole angle disappears. The Khameirian lust for life, and the mystery of Station Nine lead to a drab yet inevitable climax involving nuclear weapons and a base high in the sky. One typical disappointing aspect is the idea that the original 6 who met the landed alien have remained connected over the years so that whenever a new character appears with a relevant name, the reader can tell they're a baddie. This, however, helps not at all when the Doctor takes far too long to twig that Sargent isn't on the side of the angels after all. Similarly, it can't take too long to work out that the exposure of Station Nine is intended to find some missiles to use to release the energy the Khameirian needs. The mystery of the paintings is rather fun, with the amusingly-named Lord Meacher's Clump driving a man to suicide for the thin pretext that its perfection was unreal. But at least it means the missing chapel and spaceship provide a fun diversion at a point when the book needs it badly. Norton Silver is pretty generic as villains go, but his misguided reason for not killing the Doctor sooner is at least credible (for a change). His hapless wife is less tolerable, though. Despite occasional bouts of thickness, the Doctor manages to hold his own, even if he's just a bystander for a lot of the time. Sam does less well, as she falls victim to the dastardly Silver's hypnotic tendency when her mouth gives her away. Though whether a reader would pick up her claim never to have been in the ballroom later on, as that was the place she was got at, is hard to tell. On the whole, it's a fair enough read, but lacking in a sense of vitality. If bland pseudo-thrillers float your boat, then go for it, but otherwise... |
| Disclaimer: I own a copy of the book. |