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zmull's review against another edition
4.0
Just to get it out of the way, anyone wondering how Mann and BBC Books deal with the fact that John Hurt's incarnation of the Doctor is quite specifically not called "the Doctor" can stop wondering. I'm here to answer the question. They ignore it. They just call him the Doctor, both in the narration and in the dialogue.
That fact, combined with a first act so generic you could replace the War Doctor with any other incarnation with only a few minor changes, left me wondering if BBC had any daring in them at all. Fortunately, with the second act the story kicks into gear, with the intrigue, politics, and universe scale threat you could reasonably expect from the first Time War novel. Mann's Time War is not the galaxy splitting psychedelic freak show of Russell T. Davies imaginings. It's a lot closer to the more conventional glimpses in Stephen Moffat's "Day of the Doctor." Still Mann presents an intriguing take on the war. His take on the War Doctor, here in his first wack outside of DOTD, is fairly safe. I finished the book without a sense of what makes War different from the rest.
If all of this sound very fannish and inaccessible, well, it is. The Engines of War serves as a prequel to both "the End of Time" and "The Day of the Doctor" and a knowledge of those will come in pretty handy. It's also, surprisingly, very much a continuation 1983's "The Five Doctors." Add to that a few important reference to "Genesis of the Daleks" and you've got a steep curve for a reader new to Doctor Who to climb. I can't decide if I'd like to see more War Doctor novels or not. Part of the appeal of the Time War is imagining it for yourself. I'm open to the idea, especially if the War Doctor is giving a bit more of his own personality.
That fact, combined with a first act so generic you could replace the War Doctor with any other incarnation with only a few minor changes, left me wondering if BBC had any daring in them at all. Fortunately, with the second act the story kicks into gear, with the intrigue, politics, and universe scale threat you could reasonably expect from the first Time War novel. Mann's Time War is not the galaxy splitting psychedelic freak show of Russell T. Davies imaginings. It's a lot closer to the more conventional glimpses in Stephen Moffat's "Day of the Doctor." Still Mann presents an intriguing take on the war. His take on the War Doctor, here in his first wack outside of DOTD, is fairly safe. I finished the book without a sense of what makes War different from the rest.
If all of this sound very fannish and inaccessible, well, it is. The Engines of War serves as a prequel to both "the End of Time" and "The Day of the Doctor" and a knowledge of those will come in pretty handy. It's also, surprisingly, very much a continuation 1983's "The Five Doctors." Add to that a few important reference to "Genesis of the Daleks" and you've got a steep curve for a reader new to Doctor Who to climb. I can't decide if I'd like to see more War Doctor novels or not. Part of the appeal of the Time War is imagining it for yourself. I'm open to the idea, especially if the War Doctor is giving a bit more of his own personality.
breakfastgrey's review against another edition
3.0
Quick read that starts off quite weak but really shines whenever it is on Gallifrey. The writing is particularly weak with sections of the book so paint by numbers that I repeatedly finished a page without actually reading it and needed to restart it. Mann has the Doctor’s voice down perfectly, though, and I enjoyed getting a peak into an unexplored era of the mythos.
draculaura21's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
3.25
If you're a Doctor Who fan, you will enjoy this book. It's not simply a telling of one of the many adventures of the Doctor, but it recounts the last days of the Time War, the days leading up to The Day of the Doctor episode, and the dreadful burden the War Doctor must bear. There are even hints at the episode itself (because timey wimey).
Structurally speaking, it flowed very much like an episode of Doctor Who: the introduction of the companion, the beauty of humanity, the inevitable guilt and fury of the Doctor. I did find a number of typos, but I'm not sure if these were British turns of phrase (completely foreign to a Yank like me) or if they were actual oversights. Either way, they didn't detract from the story and I easily absorbed this book in the span of 4 days.
This was the first time I've read any accompanying lore to a beloved universe (be it Star Trek, WoW, Halo, Star Wars, etc.). I thoroughly enjoyed it and am willing to seek out other Doctor Who novels in the near future.
Structurally speaking, it flowed very much like an episode of Doctor Who: the introduction of the companion, the beauty of humanity, the inevitable guilt and fury of the Doctor. I did find a number of typos, but I'm not sure if these were British turns of phrase (completely foreign to a Yank like me) or if they were actual oversights. Either way, they didn't detract from the story and I easily absorbed this book in the span of 4 days.
This was the first time I've read any accompanying lore to a beloved universe (be it Star Trek, WoW, Halo, Star Wars, etc.). I thoroughly enjoyed it and am willing to seek out other Doctor Who novels in the near future.
vickyposts's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
I loved this Doctor Who story so much! We need more stories with the War Doctor. Cinder was wonderful, the Time Lords and the Daleks were scary. It was a great read that I couldn't put down. I give it 5/5 stars, I loved this adventure!
For my full review with spoilers check out my blog vickyposts.wordpress.com
For my full review with spoilers check out my blog vickyposts.wordpress.com
amerasuu's review against another edition
4.0
This was a lot of fun, narrated by Nicholas Briggs, AKA the guy who does the Dalek voice. I had a lot of driving to do and listened to this in the car. I love the character of Cinder.
tandemjon's review against another edition
4.0
A good Doctor Who war doctor story giving some background to this period of the doctors many lives.
dantastic's review against another edition
3.0
While leading a flotilla of Battle TARDISes against a Dalek fleet, the Doctor is shot down on the planet Moldox and befriends a human girl named Cinder. The Doctor and Cinder find their way back to Gallifrey and must defy the Time Lords, who plan on using a doomsday weapon to destroy twelve inhabited worlds in order to stop the Daleks. But the Daleks have a super weapon of their own and mean to erase the Time Lords from history. Can The Doctor thwart the Daleks and the Time Lords? Of course he can! He's the Doctor...
I got this from Netgalley.
The Engines of War is the first Doctor Who novel featuring the War Doctor, aka the Doctor played by John Hurt in Name of the Doctor and Day of the Doctor. That may be the reason for the problems I'll be pointing out a little later.
George Mann did a pretty good job with what little information we've been given about the War Doctor during the Time War. The Time Lords and Daleks have been committing untold atrocities upon one another for years, escalating to unbelievable degrees at this point in the Time War. The Doctor is caught between a rock and a hard place and does some good Doctoring with Cinder in tow.
There is a lot of action and a lot of cool concepts, like mutant Time Lords powering the possibility engine, the Dalek's new magic eraser weapon that wipes people from existence completely, to the Time Lords and their super weapon. Mann dips into Who history, touching upon adventures from the fourth and eighth doctors, as well has seeing hints of his own future. While he's wearing a different skin, he's still The Doctor we all know and love...
... And therein lies the rub. There isn't enough in the story to distinguish the War Doctor from any other Doctor. I get a sense of world weariness from him, much like the Eleventh Doctor, but apart from not wanting to be called The Doctor, he's pretty much still The Doctor. When the War Doctor first appeared, I got the feeling that he did a lot more than use The Moment to end the Time War. Apart from punching someone in the jaw in this one, there's nothing particularly edgy about him.
Like I said, Mann did the best he could with what little background he had to work with. I'll be reading future novels featuring the War Doctor. 3.5 out of 5 stars.
I got this from Netgalley.
The Engines of War is the first Doctor Who novel featuring the War Doctor, aka the Doctor played by John Hurt in Name of the Doctor and Day of the Doctor. That may be the reason for the problems I'll be pointing out a little later.
George Mann did a pretty good job with what little information we've been given about the War Doctor during the Time War. The Time Lords and Daleks have been committing untold atrocities upon one another for years, escalating to unbelievable degrees at this point in the Time War. The Doctor is caught between a rock and a hard place and does some good Doctoring with Cinder in tow.
There is a lot of action and a lot of cool concepts, like mutant Time Lords powering the possibility engine, the Dalek's new magic eraser weapon that wipes people from existence completely, to the Time Lords and their super weapon. Mann dips into Who history, touching upon adventures from the fourth and eighth doctors, as well has seeing hints of his own future. While he's wearing a different skin, he's still The Doctor we all know and love...
... And therein lies the rub. There isn't enough in the story to distinguish the War Doctor from any other Doctor. I get a sense of world weariness from him, much like the Eleventh Doctor, but apart from not wanting to be called The Doctor, he's pretty much still The Doctor. When the War Doctor first appeared, I got the feeling that he did a lot more than use The Moment to end the Time War. Apart from punching someone in the jaw in this one, there's nothing particularly edgy about him.
Like I said, Mann did the best he could with what little background he had to work with. I'll be reading future novels featuring the War Doctor. 3.5 out of 5 stars.
yourfriendryanj's review against another edition
4.0
I liked this one a lot. Short, fun, featuring a doctor I wanted more stories from. Grab it if you're a Whovian
rebelbelle13's review against another edition
4.0
This was honestly a very good, very fun read. I've known about this novel for awhile but put it off because I thought it would be depressing, and quite honestly, not very interesting. I'm really glad I gave it a shot, because I wanted to know more about the Time War- as it's been referenced often in New Who, and of course we got to see the very end of it in Day of the Doctor. But of the 400 years the time war actually raged on, we know very little. Engines of War goes into detail about how battles were fought, what weapons were used, and how strategies and plans of attack were developed on both sides. We also get a bit of a companion dynamic here with Cinder, a teenage girl who is wrapped up in the war on the planet Moldox fighting the Daleks. She's certainly capable and plays the role of reminding the Doctor who he used to be, and what kind of person he should be in the future.
One thing I will say that surprised me- there is an arc that you should watch before getting into this story (besides, of course, Day of the Doctor) and that is The Five Doctors (with Peter Davison). Borusa, the villain from that arc, plays a major role here, as does the Game of Rassilon, and the tomb of Rassilon. You can certainly read and enjoy this novel without watching that special from the 80's, but it helps for context and visual clarity, so in that sense, I'd recommend it.
Timing-wise, this novel takes place right before the 50th anniversary special.
I really had fun with this, and enjoyed seeing the War Doctor in action, more than just chastising his future counterparts, and actually fighting the war. If you loved Day of the Doctor and want to see more of John Hurt's incarnation, and the Time War itself, I'd heartily recommend it.
One thing I will say that surprised me- there is an arc that you should watch before getting into this story (besides, of course, Day of the Doctor) and that is The Five Doctors (with Peter Davison). Borusa, the villain from that arc, plays a major role here, as does the Game of Rassilon, and the tomb of Rassilon. You can certainly read and enjoy this novel without watching that special from the 80's, but it helps for context and visual clarity, so in that sense, I'd recommend it.
Timing-wise, this novel takes place right before the 50th anniversary special.
I really had fun with this, and enjoyed seeing the War Doctor in action, more than just chastising his future counterparts, and actually fighting the war. If you loved Day of the Doctor and want to see more of John Hurt's incarnation, and the Time War itself, I'd heartily recommend it.