| THE ROUNDHEADS by Mark Gatiss |
| Story ? Synopsis: The TARDIS lands in London, 1648. The Doctor lets Ben and Polly go off to explore the town, whilst he and Jamie do the same. Ben and Polly go to a pub, but outside are set on by rogues. She is taken back to the pub to talk about what she knows of a plot to behead King Charles. Ben is press ganged and wakes up on a ship leaving the port. The Doctor and Jamie get taken for questioning. They pretend Jamie is a seer, and are taken to see Oliver Cromwell. Polly wanders London, unable to find Ben or the others. So she decides to try the pub again, if they can help. Ben is taken to Amsterdam. Ashore, he meets the captain of a rival ship, Sal Winter, who has a score to settle with the captain of the ship Ben arrived on. He is also concerned that there is some nefarious reason for the trip to Amsterdam. Polly is used in a plot to free the King, and then left unconscious. When she is brought before the Doctor and Jamie, they too seem to be Royalist conspirators. Ben and Winter set sail back for London, but with their foe in pursuit. There is a skirmish, but they still sail on. Winter tries to force a confrontation amongst marshlands, but it's not very successful. Ben tries to escape to London, but gets stuck in the marsh, with Winter also stuck. Ben is saved by Scrope, an unsavoury character who was earlier saved by the Doctor and Jamie. He works for Thurloe, one of Cromwell's men. Ben is saved, but Winter is shot dead. Back in London, the Doctor's connection to Scrope convinces Thurloe that the travellers are not trouble. The Doctor gets Polly to find out where the King is being kept. He and Ben then go to Parliament, to stop a plot to shoot Cromwell. The man brought back from Amsterdam is an assassin, but the Doctor manages to find him, and Ben helps stop him before Cromwell can be shot. Later, Ben avenges Winter's death on her sea rival. All safely back in the TARDIS, they leave. |
| Review:- Gatiss revisits the English Civil War (see Nightshade), but this time writes a drama set during a key time at the end of the war... Historicals were part and parcel of the series until being dropped in 1966. Thankfully, some writers of the recent novels have seen fit to try and redress the balance. Here, Gatiss does so excellently, although it helps to have such useful source material (and a surprisingly little-used segment of history to work with). With a finely balanced drama between Roundheads and Cavaliers, Gatiss splits the travellers up to chivvy the story along from all directions. Whilst the Doctor and Jamie cosy up to Cromwell, Polly becomes an unwilling accomplice to those loyal to King Charles, and Ben is put in a naval drama that seems just a sideshow to begin with, but brings in a vital few characters towards the end of the book. Cromwell has a bad reputation, mainly for how he behaved towards the Irish after the end of the English Civil War. Here, having procured victory over the King's men, he is in the process of changing the power of Parliament in order to prevent a repeat performance of the War. In person, he seems civil enough to tolerate the Doctor and Jamie, until they are suspected of treachery, after which he is less open. But he is presented in the role of hero, or at least that he is meant to come out the winner. Against this we have the Royalist conspirators, who seem to number only a few men in a pub, until the mystery of the Amsterdam "package" is revealed, at which point it becomes more of a high stakes narrative, with the Cavaliers outnumbered. The various plots manage to show a view of England in 1648, whilst not necessarily showing all that much. The Doctor and Jamie's subterfuge hints at the prevalence of superstition, but there's no serious point to make because it's only a ruse anyway. Ben's high-seas hi-jinks present a dramatic twist as it seems he's cast across the waters away from his friends, but this leads into the naval battles of Winter and Stanislaus, whilst drawing attention away from Prince Rupert and Gustav van Leeuwenhoek. Polly gets to handle the romantic subplot, as we get the less-than-original love-across-the-political-divide with a Cavalier in love with the daughter of a Royalist. This brings in King Charles, and then the fun starts. All the time, the narrative maintains reader interest, whilst providing an educational element. It's an enthralling read, and can be easily recommended. |
| Disclaimer: I own a copy. |