Despite having been a Doctor Who fan since the early 1980s, it was only recently that I read one of the DW novels from the time between the show going off the air in 1989 until its resurrection in 2005. During that time Virgin Publishing and then BBC Books published dozens of novels featuring all eight Doctors. I lost my virginity here to the BBC Past Doctor book Grave Matter, a Sixth Doctor story featuring Peri that takes place after the TV story "Vengeance on Varos".
The story begins with the eldritch thoughts of someone unknown. This person is locked away in a room but eventually finds a way to freedom. The cell is in a mansion and the escape is noticed by a butler who reports it to the lord and lady of the house.
We are then introduced to our heroes who land in a fog-shrouded area. They are on the island of Dorsill, just off the coast of England. Unable to see through the pea soup, Peri nearly walks off a cliff but is saved by a man in tattered clothing with missing fingers. He directs The Doctor and Peri to the village nearby. Upon entering, they encounter a funeral procession. Just as in Dungeons & Dragons information is to be found at the local pub. This scene is just like the one in An American Werewolf in London with the rustic locals wearily eyeing the strangers.
With no electricity and handmade clothing, The Doctor places their arrival somewhere in the Victorian era but clues betray that notion, including the village's latest addition, Dave Madsen, the local doctor who doesn't speak like a Victorian. But, unlike everyone else, he is friendly. The funeral was for Bill Neville who was part of the crew aboard a fishing boat that went under. His was the only body recovered. Eventually the pub's owner, Trefoil, opens up as well. He has a daughter, Liz, who is trading googly eyes with Madsen.
Indeed, we meet many of Dorsill's residents in the opening chapters of the book. In addition to those above, there's Mrs. Tattleshall, the village gossip hound, the mysterious Sir Edward, and Mike, Bill Neville's brother who is quite distraught and angry over his brother's death.
At one point Peri follows Sir Edward after he leaves the pub only to witness him chatting on a cell phone as he wanders down the lane. It isn't the Victorian era after all. Instead it is the 21st century. Dorsill was previously owned by a trust but was purchased by a former native named Christopher Sheldon who was thought to have missed out on his family's fortune. So where did the money come from? And where has he gone?
Without wanting to spoil too much, I will note that there is something afoot at the Sheldon manor – something which involves the dead coming back to life.
Grave Matter was a blast. I've read that many of the Virgin novels explore The Doctor's past and build up a lot of the mythology behind the character. This story as well as the other BBC Past Doctor novels I've read do very little of that kind of thing. Grave Matter took the tried and true DW formula and stretched it out a bit to make a novel but otherwise kept the show's conventions intact. Author Justin Richards does a lot of misdirection here which kept me guessing. For instance, was it the Victorian era with a mysterious anachronism or was it really the 21st century? A few characters are hiding something and Richards does a good job of letting the truth out and letting it out slowly so that one revelation doesn't everything and give the game away. You know that Peri is going to be in danger but by whom? Is it Mike and his strange animosity towards her? Or perhaps the real peril is from Sir Edward.
Richards kept me guessing and I liked that. I also enjoyed the mood he set. The islanders who revel in the old ways are largely cut off from the mainland and Dorsill is always covered in fog. The Doctor is his usual arrogant self while Peri is pretty much Peri although she does show a bit more initiative here than the character did on TV. One nice thing about the novel format is that it allowed Richards a bit more breathing room. There were no time constraints so events and storylines could unfold naturally instead of being hurried to fit a TV schedule. In addition the format gave room for more characters and that means more encounters which adds to the mystery as well as to the peril quotient for our heroes.
Grave Matter is a good old gothic-y Doctor Who horror story in the vein of Horror of Fang Rock with a bit of The Curse of Fenric thrown in for good measure.
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