The Murder Game

"Do hand-held energy weapons come as standard issue for hoteliers these days?"

Writer: Steve Lyons

Format: Novel

Released: July 1997

Series: PDA 02

Featuring: Second Doctor, Polly, Ben

Synopsis

The faded glamour ion a hotel in space, spinning in an all-but-forgotten orbit round the Earth, is host to some unusual visitors this weekend – including a party that claim to travel in a batter blue police box...

It is the year 2146. Answering a distress call from the dilapidated Hotel Galaxian, the TARDIS crew discover a fames enthusiast is using the hotel to host a murder-mystery weekend. But it seems someone from this motley group of guests is taking things a little too seriously. 

While the Doctor, Ben and Polly find themselves joining in the shadowplay, it becomes clear that a real-life murderer is stalking the dark, disused corridors of the Galaxian. But worse than this, there's a sinister force waiting silently in space for events to unfold. A terrible secret is hidden on board the Galaxian, and if it is discovered nothing – least of all murder – will ever be the same again. If this is a game, the stakes just got higher.

Verdict

The Murder Game was a fantastic novel! As far as Past Doctor Adventures go, this was a terrific read and based upon my notes containing my ratings for all original novels, this was the best Second Doctor original book I have read! So that's quite the feat so far. I really enjoyed the premise of the plot with the idea of a futuristic murder mystery in space being very appealing! The Hotel Galaxian setting made that work brilliantly well and we were rapidly introduced to a number of characters and they would all play a big part. I did like that aspect of the story in that there weren't really any minor characters and everybody meant something to the mystery of the murder. I thought the likes of Daphne and Henry Mace were really good and I enjoyed the latter's turn towards the end. Hornby was a good character and he must have been revelling in the fact he was playing the part of an affair with Polly. The insinuation there was good and the sexual tension without mentioning it was evident in a big way in this book, especially with the relationship that developed between Ben and Terri. I thought that was excellent and I loved that Polly was looking on with jealousy. Ben was clearly interested and attracted to her, but he felt guilty because of his feelings to Polly which were so much more than mere looks. The mutual feeling between the pair and the way they came to embrace at the end of the novel was superb. Their characters and relationship as a whole was written fantastically well. Ben's initial reaction to taking part in a role playing game was good and what I'd expect, but one of the highlights came with the Doctor taking on the role of Lucy - Ben's character's fiancé! The image of the Second Doctor adorning a dress was magnificent and fitted in really well with the placement between The Power of the Daleks and The Highlanders. It was interesting to get a new tale without Jamie accompanying this trio as it's quite a rare occurrence so expanding on the time between television serials is something I always endorse. The Adlers were very good characters and the way their true identities were slowly revealed worked really well. I thought the death of Matlock provided a good basis for a true murder mystery and the concept of a role playing game turning into the real deal was terrific, even if that's exactly what I anticipated. I loved that a novel by this book's title made its way into the story and actually had quite a big role. Melrose's death was an intriguing development and from there it seemed that no character was safe! The Selachians were ruthless and I really liked the concept of them being aquatic creatures who had not only mastered land, but beyond and into the realm of space. They were utterly devastating and the moment they murdered in cold blood in front of a large party showed they meant business. Everybody was at risk and the demeanour in the Doctor clearly changed from that point. The writing of the second incarnation was terrific. The basis of the mystery hinging on the disks containing the ultimate weapon of programmable death was excellent and seeing it in action was really good. It was almost bulletproof in terms of delivering a result, but the inclusion of failsafes meant that it would only kill its chosen target and that came into play in a big and fun way. The Doctor essentially concocting the very first sonic screwdriver was something I loved and the suggestion that this might be where he also picked up the John Smith pseudonym suggests this adventure is pretty important in Doctor Who history! I was surprised that Terri attempted to kill Ben towards the conclusion as that was an unexpected final twist, but despite her protection from the weapon she met her fate. Ben's reaction to realising he had been used all along only for Polly to iterate that there was a semblance of feelings from Terri towards him was great stuff. But Ben deserved better apparently. The suggestion earlier on that Polly and Ben had the same descendants was magnificent. I thought the continuity from adventures set after this was fantastically done with the likes of T-Mat and the Doctor's dealings at UNIT featuring. The events of The Tenth Planet being mention was also terrific and I loved how Polly and Ben used the experiences with computers in The War Machines in this story. The conclusion on the Selachain ship and the passages under water were tense and Ben's final moments heading to the TARDIS and tricking the programme into destroying the entire Selachian ship was excellently done. That tied up everything very neatly. The use of the TARDIS in the book was a lot more extensive than what we would see on television at this point, but it's refreshing to see its full capabilities used during this era. Overall, I thought this was a brilliant book!

Rating: 9/10