The Bodysnatchers

"You killed my people, Time Lord... Now I kill you!"

Writer: Mark Morris
Format: Novel
Released: August 1997
Series: EDA 03

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Sam

Synopsis

It is London, 1894. Amid the god, cold and degradation, a gruesome business is being conducted. The bodies of the dead are being stolen from their graves - men, women and children alike - for the sinister purpose of a very mysterious gentleman.

When the Doctor and Sam arrive, they are witness to a horrifying scene in the evil-smelling fog: something rises up from the filthy waters of the Thames and devours a man - a man terrified for his life and on the run from the devil himself...

Teaming up with an old friend, pathologist Professor George Litefoot, the Doctor is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. Together with Sam, they discover there is a far graver threat facing London than just earthly grave robbers. Deadly alien beings the Doctor has encountered before are at work, and they bring a whole new twist to the word 'bodysnatchers'...

Verdict

The Bodysnatchers was an outstanding novel and a superb continuation of the Eighth Doctor Adventures. Sadly my plan to crack on with this series of books hasn't quite taken off as it's nearly been two years since I read the previous release but hopefully this can be something of a mini revival for now. This novel saw the return of Zygons in thrilling fashion and pitting them against an unfamiliar Doctor was very exciting. I loved the way their presence was revealed and whilst there were many hints as to who the Doctor was up against this time, the timing that went into their arrival to the book was excellent. The obvious references to Terror of the Zygons were made but I really liked how this was set prior to that so these Zygons had no knowledge of who the Doctor was. I thought the writing of the Eighth Doctor was sublime and you could really tell that this had a feeling of 'new' about it. One of the book's undoubted highlights though was Sam as companion. She really was wonderful throughout. Her relationship with the Doctor was intriguing and whilst they did have their differences - she really didn't like being talked down to or thought of that she couldn't do something - when things got difficult there was mutual respect. As if this pairing wasn't enough, we had the bonus of Professor George Litefoot reuniting with the Doctor five years after the events of The Talons of Weng-Chiang. Sadly, Jago didn't feature alongside him but Litefoot was terrific throughout. The Doctor's story about him being a colleague of the Fourth Doctor was quite humorous and it was quite a shame that he didn't know he had been reunited with the same man. Emmeline was another standout character and I really liked the reveal when she was a Zygon - even if I had worked it out. Her being distraught at her father's recent actions, particular towards her mother, was distressing as she would have no idea that it was just a Zygon duplicate. The moment she was reunited with her father was fantastic. Balaak made a very good leader of the Zygons and I thought it was intriguing to learn that the skin colour of a Zygon depicted rank. Tuval was a good character and the way he helped the Doctor was very good, even if he had been placed in a time loop in the TARDIS. The way the Zygons were killed was quite disturbing and the Doctor was deeply saddened by his own actions. He had only intended on putting them to sleep but got his calculations wrong and accidentally wiped them out. It was not at all what I expected and was a genuine shock. It was sublime writing. The damage that the Skarasens then caused was devastating and I appreciated the realness of the quite graphic descriptions of their devouring. They really were wreaking havoc! Sam couldn't hold back her emotion and was vomiting at what she seen and I liked how she was upset that she somewhat damaged her confident image. I'm hugely excited to read the development of her character as I really think she's great. She challenges the Doctor which I adore. The conclusion was well paced and I loved the picture in my head of all of the Skarasens being lured into the TARDIS, securing Earth's safety. The epilogue was lovely with the Doctor going back to get his magazine and pay a final goodbye to Litefoot but I was quite interested by his reaction to his asking of Sam's condition. I sense something bad will happen to her in due course which will be a shame. But for now she's fantastic and helped make this a superb novel. Overall, a truly brilliant book!

Rating: 10/10