![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
48) Justin Richards -- Doctor Who: The Deviant Strain
Fourth of the new series tie-in novels. This one has Rose and Captain Jack as the companions, in a story set in a remote Soviet naval base abandoned after the end of the Cold War. The nuclear submarines were simply abandoned to rot as the cheapest method of dealing with them, as were the people from the village that had been there since before the base was built. The last real link with an unheeding government is the research institute which still receives limited funding and supplies. At least until something very odd is spotted by a satellite, and a Russian Special Forces team is sent to investigate.
The Tardis crew show up as well, because Jack has unthinkingly answered an emergency beacon's signal. While there is some suspicion from the Russian group, this is because Nine's psychic paper ID has declared him to be from a rival agency, and Jack is considered to be the sort of Intelligence agent who wouldn't know a real fight if he saw it. The two groups manage to work together reasonably well in spite of the tensions, investigating a series of mysterious deaths that show all the hallmarks of a mythical monster.
Enjoyed this one a lot, and not just because it has Captain Jack (who does not get to be on the cover). There's a good science fantasy mystery here, with the Special Forces team being more than just foils to show off how clever the Doctor is.
LibraryThing entry
Fourth of the new series tie-in novels. This one has Rose and Captain Jack as the companions, in a story set in a remote Soviet naval base abandoned after the end of the Cold War. The nuclear submarines were simply abandoned to rot as the cheapest method of dealing with them, as were the people from the village that had been there since before the base was built. The last real link with an unheeding government is the research institute which still receives limited funding and supplies. At least until something very odd is spotted by a satellite, and a Russian Special Forces team is sent to investigate.
The Tardis crew show up as well, because Jack has unthinkingly answered an emergency beacon's signal. While there is some suspicion from the Russian group, this is because Nine's psychic paper ID has declared him to be from a rival agency, and Jack is considered to be the sort of Intelligence agent who wouldn't know a real fight if he saw it. The two groups manage to work together reasonably well in spite of the tensions, investigating a series of mysterious deaths that show all the hallmarks of a mythical monster.
Enjoyed this one a lot, and not just because it has Captain Jack (who does not get to be on the cover). There's a good science fantasy mystery here, with the Special Forces team being more than just foils to show off how clever the Doctor is.
LibraryThing entry
