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kandicez's review against another edition
3.0
I want to start by saying that Abnett did a beautiful job of capturing the voices of the Doctor, Amy and Rory. He represented their repartee perfectly. The Doctor has promised Rory Christmas a home, which Rory, simply enough, thinks means Leadworth. Rory, Rory, Rory...how long have you traveled with the Doctor? The Tardis lands on a beautiful, snowy planet that is immediately recognizable as NOT Leadworth. It is Christmas-ish, though. :) Our travelers discover a terraforming colony under attack and proceed to save the day, as only the Doctor and his companions could do. With a lot of frivolity, confusion and finally a kind resolution. The Doctor is nothing if not fair and kind.
The story is not what earned the book only three stars. The problem was that it actually was a BOOK. I've only read one other Doctor Who book and was disappointed, but uncertain why. I love Gibbons' comics, and now, having given a second novel a chance, I think I can put my finger on the shortcoming. Doctor Who is a visual story. It's simply too fantastic to come across on the page. I feel disloyal to myself saying that because I love fantasy and consider my imagination a great one. Doctor Who defies that. For his charm and quirkiness to come across I simply must see him. I think that's why I love the comics, but not the novels. On the page he and his adventures just seem silly.
There was nothing wrong with the story. The fault does not lie with Abnett. If this novel were converted to a script, I'm certain it would be a great episode. We get to re-visit some of the older Doctor's foes - The Ice Warriors. I've seen them in the old episodes. They definitely come across as cheesy, but again, fare better on screen than in print. In print, they don't simply seem cheesy, they actually seem, well...stupid. The descriptions are accurate, but don't do them justice.
I think I will stick to the show and comics for my Doctor fixes from now on.
On a side note, Amy wears a pair of red mittens with elastic running through the sleeves to keep them in place. Abnett mentions them often enough that I would believe he lost a bet and was challenged to mention them as many times as possible in the story. That's my only complaint with his writing, and it's a small one.
The story is not what earned the book only three stars. The problem was that it actually was a BOOK. I've only read one other Doctor Who book and was disappointed, but uncertain why. I love Gibbons' comics, and now, having given a second novel a chance, I think I can put my finger on the shortcoming. Doctor Who is a visual story. It's simply too fantastic to come across on the page. I feel disloyal to myself saying that because I love fantasy and consider my imagination a great one. Doctor Who defies that. For his charm and quirkiness to come across I simply must see him. I think that's why I love the comics, but not the novels. On the page he and his adventures just seem silly.
There was nothing wrong with the story. The fault does not lie with Abnett. If this novel were converted to a script, I'm certain it would be a great episode. We get to re-visit some of the older Doctor's foes - The Ice Warriors. I've seen them in the old episodes. They definitely come across as cheesy, but again, fare better on screen than in print. In print, they don't simply seem cheesy, they actually seem, well...stupid. The descriptions are accurate, but don't do them justice.
I think I will stick to the show and comics for my Doctor fixes from now on.
On a side note, Amy wears a pair of red mittens with elastic running through the sleeves to keep them in place. Abnett mentions them often enough that I would believe he lost a bet and was challenged to mention them as many times as possible in the story. That's my only complaint with his writing, and it's a small one.
ladyzbyrd's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
A new tale with the Doctor and the Pond couple. Dan Abnett knows the characters well and translates their antics and adventures beautifully to page. It makes it so easy to see in your mind!!!
sabregirl's review against another edition
5.0
This is probably now my favorite Eleventh Doctor book! It had a lot of elements of the series as well as bringing in some from the originals. It felt a lot like an original Dr. Who episode with lots of twists and turns, broken up companions and individual missions. I love that the Ice Warriors were featured, they aren't around that often and I always enjoy them when they pop up. The twists in this book were nice ones. Some of them were easy to guess like the Morphan's calling emanual their savior and it just being an electronic manual. Those were easy but the big one with them building the place for their ancestors who were hibernating was a big surprise. Seems like an Old Who twist! The only thing I didn't like is that at a couple of points in the book Eleven seemed to take on Ten's characteristics and he has never shown them before. But still awesome book.
sustainably_lucia's review against another edition
4.5
It was so fun to dive back into the world of the 11th Doctor (my doctor). It was a quick read and a fun adventure.
lordnikon's review against another edition
3.0
Good, if generically plotted. He utterly nails Eleven, Amy and Rory voices better than anyone else I've read.
lizardgoats's review against another edition
5.0
Technically, this is a dual-book review as this Barnes and Noble leatherbound edition contains two television tie-in novels: "The Silent Stars Go By," by Dan Abnett and "Touched by an Angel," by Jonathan Morris.
That being said, I much preferred the first story. In "The Silent Stars Go By" we have Amy and Rory (my favorite companions) with the eleventh Doctor (my favorite reincarnation) trying to make it home for Christmas. Which was unexpectedly seasonally appropriate, since I didn't start reading the book until near the holidays.
However, it's not a typical Christmas story. By which I mean, Christmas wasn't it's primary theme. That's the impetus for the story, but it continues on--as our dynamic trio end up on the wrong planet, in the wrong year--as a story of hope and the meaning of tradition and the truths hidden in history.
And I loved it. Absolutely loved it. Rory is spot-on in his characterization. The story is also told from his primary point-of-view, which I adored. On the show, it can often feel as though Amy is the Doctor's companion, and Rory is Amy's. At least at first. They definitely become equal in that respect as their storyline moves forward.
Which is why the second story, "Touched by an Angel," just wasn't as interesting for me. We still have all the same cast of primary characters, but the characterizations are just a bit off for Rory and Amy. I can't quite put my finger on it, though I have to say Eleven is perhaps larger-than-life. Which suits him.
This story, as I'm sure you can guess, has to do with the Weeping Angels. There's time-travel and morality and difficult choices to make. Honestly, I'm not sure the Weeping Angels work so well on the page as they do on-screen. That tension is missing when the lights flicker out and the next thing you know you're staring at a fanged statue in the face.
I also have wibbly-wobbly problems with the whole idea of the Weeping Angels. TV SPOILERS, but if Rory and Amy get sent back in time, can't they just wait a few years...maybe even a decade...move to, I dunno, Europe...and have the Doctor pick them up in the TARDIS from there? I was never keen with the whole time suck trapped forever plot resolution of the Ponds.
But that's not so much this book as the TV show. Still. I find the Angels problematic.
I still gave this book five stars. Reason #1: It's freaking gorgeous. A shiny, leatherbound, TARDIS-shaped book? Yes, please. Reason #2: Despite minor failings in characterization, the plots to both stories were impeccable and engaging. I enjoyed reading them and would recommend this book to any Whovian.
After all, Rory continually telling the Doctor that his name is not Rory Williams Pond will never get old for me.
That being said, I much preferred the first story. In "The Silent Stars Go By" we have Amy and Rory (my favorite companions) with the eleventh Doctor (my favorite reincarnation) trying to make it home for Christmas. Which was unexpectedly seasonally appropriate, since I didn't start reading the book until near the holidays.
However, it's not a typical Christmas story. By which I mean, Christmas wasn't it's primary theme. That's the impetus for the story, but it continues on--as our dynamic trio end up on the wrong planet, in the wrong year--as a story of hope and the meaning of tradition and the truths hidden in history.
And I loved it. Absolutely loved it. Rory is spot-on in his characterization. The story is also told from his primary point-of-view, which I adored. On the show, it can often feel as though Amy is the Doctor's companion, and Rory is Amy's. At least at first. They definitely become equal in that respect as their storyline moves forward.
Which is why the second story, "Touched by an Angel," just wasn't as interesting for me. We still have all the same cast of primary characters, but the characterizations are just a bit off for Rory and Amy. I can't quite put my finger on it, though I have to say Eleven is perhaps larger-than-life. Which suits him.
This story, as I'm sure you can guess, has to do with the Weeping Angels. There's time-travel and morality and difficult choices to make. Honestly, I'm not sure the Weeping Angels work so well on the page as they do on-screen. That tension is missing when the lights flicker out and the next thing you know you're staring at a fanged statue in the face.
I also have wibbly-wobbly problems with the whole idea of the Weeping Angels. TV SPOILERS, but if Rory and Amy get sent back in time, can't they just wait a few years...maybe even a decade...move to, I dunno, Europe...and have the Doctor pick them up in the TARDIS from there? I was never keen with the whole time suck trapped forever plot resolution of the Ponds.
But that's not so much this book as the TV show. Still. I find the Angels problematic.
I still gave this book five stars. Reason #1: It's freaking gorgeous. A shiny, leatherbound, TARDIS-shaped book? Yes, please. Reason #2: Despite minor failings in characterization, the plots to both stories were impeccable and engaging. I enjoyed reading them and would recommend this book to any Whovian.
After all, Rory continually telling the Doctor that his name is not Rory Williams Pond will never get old for me.
wordsareweapons's review against another edition
4.0
This was a fun romp through loads of ice and snow. I'm not sure if this was an actual episode, my daughter swears she remembers these monsters, but either way it felt very true to the show and the characters. The Doctor was definitely 11 and I found myself reading the book in his voice for the most part lol. There were a few parts that lost my attention for a bit, but for the most part the action was nicely paced out, and the story wasn't drawn out for too long either. I am pleasantly surprised that I'm overall enjoying the books as much as I do the show.
mayoroffailure's review against another edition
3.0
The Silent Stars go By is one of the highest rated Doctor Who books I could find on Goodreads, and I kind of wonder why. It's not that I didn't like the story, I liked it just fine, I just wasn't sure what the praise was about. I think that part of it was the writer, Mr. Abnett. If you don't know who he is then you probably don't know what Warhammmer 40,000 is, Mr. Abnett is rather famous for his work involving some excellent stories about the Imperial army.
I was excited to read the book because I wanted to see what Mr. Abnett was able to do with the franchise, and while I wasnt dissappointed I still have some problems. The best part of the book by far was the characters, Mr. Abnett makes both the Doctor and his companions fully realized through the use of great dialouge. He also does a good job on the use of the sonic, I think that Matt Smith used the sonic the most and he certainly uses it quite a lot in the book. Scenes are also set very well in the book, the villages, the machines, and all of the lore regarding the people are done very well and impressed me with the world building. The flaws, however, aren't too big but they were things that I was really disappointed by.
The Ice warriors are one of my favorite enemies next to the Daleks and Cybermen, but in my opinion they are kind of wasted in the book. Save for their interaction with the Doctor they are pretty much limited to stalking people through the woods, I found myself continually waiting for that moment that brought back my love for the Ice Warriors but it never happened. The story also seemed to be way to small, the plot involves the terraforming of a planet and yet the problem is solved with a flick of a switch. My final problem is with the twist towards the end, and this one is odd because I liked it and didn't like it. I liked the twist because it began to explore ethical concepts that the show does so well, but I didn't like it because it comes so late that theres no room for it to be fully explored. Much like the overall issue the twist is also solved extremely quickly and it left me feeling a bit dumbfounded that Mr. Abnett would put such a great concept in and clean it out so fast.
Ultimately The Silent Stars go By shows great promise for Mr. Abnett's future in the Doctor Who extended universe. There are flashes of brilliance here but it sadly gets undermined at times by some of its flaws. This book is a solid read for fans of the show and if you see it then pick it up, you wont be dissapointed.
I was excited to read the book because I wanted to see what Mr. Abnett was able to do with the franchise, and while I wasnt dissappointed I still have some problems. The best part of the book by far was the characters, Mr. Abnett makes both the Doctor and his companions fully realized through the use of great dialouge. He also does a good job on the use of the sonic, I think that Matt Smith used the sonic the most and he certainly uses it quite a lot in the book. Scenes are also set very well in the book, the villages, the machines, and all of the lore regarding the people are done very well and impressed me with the world building. The flaws, however, aren't too big but they were things that I was really disappointed by.
The Ice warriors are one of my favorite enemies next to the Daleks and Cybermen, but in my opinion they are kind of wasted in the book. Save for their interaction with the Doctor they are pretty much limited to stalking people through the woods, I found myself continually waiting for that moment that brought back my love for the Ice Warriors but it never happened. The story also seemed to be way to small, the plot involves the terraforming of a planet and yet the problem is solved with a flick of a switch. My final problem is with the twist towards the end, and this one is odd because I liked it and didn't like it. I liked the twist because it began to explore ethical concepts that the show does so well, but I didn't like it because it comes so late that theres no room for it to be fully explored. Much like the overall issue the twist is also solved extremely quickly and it left me feeling a bit dumbfounded that Mr. Abnett would put such a great concept in and clean it out so fast.
Ultimately The Silent Stars go By shows great promise for Mr. Abnett's future in the Doctor Who extended universe. There are flashes of brilliance here but it sadly gets undermined at times by some of its flaws. This book is a solid read for fans of the show and if you see it then pick it up, you wont be dissapointed.