Arbie's Unoriginally Titled Book Blog
It's a blog! Mainly of book reviews.
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Doctor Who: Harvest of Time, Alastair Reynolds
I attended a book signing for this work, at Toppings, a delightful independent bookstore in Bath, that hosts many events of this nature.
Reynolds turned out to be a very down-to-earth, friendly and approachable bloke, though not a great (nor terrible) live reader. He talked about how he came to write this book, his Who-fan status and various other topics. He also answered many audience questions before signing our books - drawing a Tardis in them, too!
The book opens in pure Reynolds grotesque-Gothic mode on an alien world before lurching off to Earth where sinister events and people are coming to the attention of UNIT. Some funny scenes follow - scenes that are more straightforwardly humourous (rather than grimly/perversely/grotesquely so) than any I remember from elsewhere in the Reynolds ouevre. It's not obvious for a long time precisely how events of the opening connect to events the Doctor is investigating on Earth, but the book is at its best when things start to make sense and go wild near the end. The final third represents the best blend of typical Who and typical Reynolds and is worth persevering for even if you find yourself slightly underwhelmed towards the middle.
I can safely recommend this to both Whovians and Reynolds fans, though the latter will probably find it fluffier than the typical Reynolds novel.
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