The Sands of Time

 

"The figure in the coffin, dead for over four thousand years, was Nyssa."

Writer: Justin Richards

Format: Novel

Released: May 1996

Series: Missing Adventures 32

Featuring: Fifth Doctor, Nyssa, Tegan

Synopsis

'If Sutekh had escaped, no power in the universe could have stopped him wreaking havoc and destruction. This time, it's worse.'

Arriving in Victorian London, the Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan run straight into trouble: Nyssa is kidnapped in the British Museum by Egyptian religious fanatics; the Doctor and Tegan are greeted by a stranger who knows more about them than he should and invited to a very strange party. 

Why are rooms already booked for the Doctor at the Savoy? How can Lord Kenilworth's butler Atkins be in Egypt and London at the same time? What is the history of the ancient mummy to be unwrapped at Kenilworth's house? And what has all this got to do with Nyssa?

The Doctor's quest for answers leads him across continents and time as an ancient Egyptian prophecy threatens 1990s England. While the Doctor attempts to unravel the plans of the mysterious Sadan Rassul, mummies stalk the night an ancient terror stirs in its tomb.

Verdict

The Sands of Time was an excellent novel! I really enjoyed this one and whilst I do thoroughly enjoy Pyramids of Mars, I personally think it is a bit overrated in fandom folklore. That being said, the idea of a sequel is exciting but I think this was more of a sister story than a sequel and that was absolutely fine. In fact I think I quite preferred it that way and the absence of Sutekh as a character was actually refreshing and allowed Nephthys to shine as the Egyptian-Osiran figure that wanted to wreak havoc and destruction on the universe. I liked the timey-wimey nature of the book and having the Doctor, Tegan and Nyssa land in London a day after they were already known was intriguing and the way that later played out was a lot of fun. I was surprised that Nyssa was taken so early as I just didn't expect her to not feature in a traditional role for pretty much all of the novel! She was a crucial feature though which was magnificent and I have to say that the revelation at the end of chapter one with her being revealed as the woman beneath the mummy robes that had been preserved for four millennia was outstanding. I didn't see that coming and it put a huge smile on my face as that was quite the issue to try and resolve! Tegan had a really strong story as companion and it was nice dynamic to make this basically a two-hander with her and the Fifth Doctor given Nyssa's absence. She was worried about her friend which was nice to see and I liked that the Doctor wasn't exactly helping matters, once again highlighting the frosty relationship between the pair. I thought the characterisation of Peter Davison's fifth incarnation was excellent throughout and the era was really well captured in prose. I thought the movement around the settings of London and Egypt and the 1890s and 1990s was very good and kept some freshness going. I particularly enjoyed the little historical inserts as well with the likes of Napoleon in the eighteenth century and then even going back to 5,000 BC. It was a really good format that was educational and given the Egyptology on show, I think that was necessary. Atkins was a very good character and the humour that came with him having been in both Egypt and London during an expedition was terrific, especially when both version of him was questioned on the alternating events! The return of the Osiran service robots was magnificent and I thought they were described really well and just made for a great presence. Sadan Rassul was the main villain of the piece and I really liked that he wasn't trying to revive Nephthys just because he was devoted to following her. He'd only end up being killed after achieving her return, so it was terrific that he was also trying to revive his daughter. Nessa being a clone of Nephyths was a great development and the links between her and Nyssa and the similar names was well done. The Kenilworth House setting for much of the book was really good and I enjoyed that we had a basis for our main characters. Tegan's desire to save Nyssa before she had gone missing and into an eternal coma was brilliant and the Doctor's trying to explain about Time and how events were established was magnificent. The passage when they had to order what they already knew they had was fun because Tegan tried to change things by ordering ham, but she ended up with the lamb cutlets anyway much to her chagrin. Rassul's boasting towards the end of proceedings when the temple replication and the star alignment was in place was great, especially when the Doctor hadn't quite clocked onto the particulars and timing. However, the way things turned when the Doctor revealed he'd had a plan all along and claimed that Nyssa had been slightly awake since 1926 which meant she'd aged and the mind of Nephthys was already gone and lost was outstanding. The way that was rectified as well with Lady Cranleigh and the links to Black Orchid was majestic and I liked how the little two-page insert with the Cranleigh household and wedding came into play. It was just really well done and I loved that he hid the truth from Tegan to ensure a genuine reaction that would convince Russal and end up destroying him into dust as Nephthys ventured back and forth between times and aged to death. Overall, a really great read!

Rating: 9/10