DOCTOR WHO: DREAMS OF EMPIRE

Ever since the relaunch in 2005, I've been a fan of Doctor Who (and have later gone back to watch the classic series as well). And when I discovered there were a ton of novels based on the show as well, I knew I had to check them out. All of them have different writers, and all of them vary in degrees of quality. But all of them still capture the spirit of the show; playing out like actual episodes, while being able to utilize things that would be extremely difficult to create on the show (in terms of special effects).Taking place during the time of the Second Doctor, he and his companions, Jamie and Victoria, arrive on a barren asteroid that's become the prison for Kesar--a once mighty leader who was on the losing end of his planet's civil war, and is now being detained indefinitely to prevent him from becoming a martyr. But even with the worst of the war over, his detractors plot to kill him, while his supporters attempt to rescue him. Amidst all this high stakes political intrigue, the Doctor and company find themselves caught in the middle as they try to make sense of the attack being launched on the prison. In a situation where nothing and no one is as it appears, can our heroes figure out who is trustworthy and who is a traitor to the empire?These books are pretty much just for fans of Doctor Who, as there's plenty of references to various episodes of the show, so the writing pretty much expects you to already know who the Doctor and Jamie and Victoria are, what the TARDIS is, and so on. These books pretty much play out like a professionally published fan fiction, and all the main characters behave and sound like they would on the show proper. After reading so many books that took place during the 9th and 10th Doctor eras, it's nice to go back and read something pertaining to one of the "classic" Doctors. And considering how hard it is to find any complete serials of Patrick Troughton's tenure as the Doctor, reading this was a bit of a treat. The Second Doctor is one of the trickier incarnations to peg down, since he's a super genius pretending to be a simpleton to fool his enemies, so when he has a foolish moment, you're never quite sure if he's putting on an act or if he really IS having an absentminded moment. But the author manages to capture his personality and mannerisms perfectly as he solves the mystery of who's plotting to sabotage the station, and if Kesar is about to be killed or rescued. Jamie and Victoria are written just as well, though sadly, they're given very little to do, and seem to just be shuffled from place to place. Arguably, more time is spent with the secondary characters---setting up their planet's political system and who's against who, and who's related to what.And this is where the plot becomes a bit of a mixed bag. As the author explains in the introduction, Kesar and his planet is basically supposed to be a stand in for Julius Caesar and the Roman Empire; presenting a "what if" scenario in which Caesar wasn't killed. There's also a large emphasis on the game of chess, with certain plot points and discoveries being compared to chess pieces and how the game is played. And while this is all well and good...I only have a very basic knowledge of the history of Caesar, and I know absolutely nothing about how to play chess, so no doubt there were a few references and comparisons that went over my head. The story's not completely inaccessible---I could still mostly follow along just fine. But someone who has an avid knowledge of Roman history and/or chess will definitely understand and appreciate the story more than someone like me.So while I can recognize the well crafted writing and interesting characters and plot twists, the fact that it's a political thriller with comparisons to subjects I'm shaky in just doesn't do it for me. But I don't fault the author for that---the problem's with me and my own personal tastes.

I hate to be critical, but the Doctor is a parody of himself in this book. It has a complex, believable plot with the Man in the Iron Mask premise, and a great deal of character is built into the OC's in a relatively quick time... but the Doctor is too often a bumbling idiot. I was offended that he blew his nose into his hanky and then used it to wrap up a sandwich! And having a sandwich stuck to his bottom LONG after the moment was over is hardly a credit to the character. We agree with the author that people were always left guessing on if he was a fool or not--there are two moments in which the Doctor shows himself to be something serious, sober...and just a little scary. But those are two moments in the whole book. Also, Jamie and Victoria aren't given enough time as characters. This was a close little family, but I read much more warmth and companionship in the novelization of THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMEN than I did in this book. The problem is, the author created a very well-scripted and dark, almost Byzantine world in a very murky point in Galactic History--and he managed the almost impossible feat of demonstrating the inevitable consequences of power and conquest without being preachy about it. I'm still amazed at how well he pulled it off. You saw the world through the view of the loyal soldiers on both sides, the loftier, slightly chillier view of the political leaders playing chess with each other (in every sense of the word), and you have the TARDIS crew. Perhaps the best use of Troughton's Doctor is, this Doctor (when he isn't being an embarrassing fool), is playing chess with everyone in a quiet plot to salvage as many lives as possible...and also, let the involved peoples come to their own solutions without his interference. I'm going to have to read this book a few more times, and I plan to.

The book was in excellent condition, looking forward to reading it.

A little slow at the beginning but kicked in nicely, classic second doctor style twist and resolution. Good supporting characters

Good read

I loved everything about this book. I really liked the fact that it combines old and New and I thought that the Doctor's character was portrayed very well. A must buy for any Whovian!

I loved it so much I think I will read it again some day soon. You should buy it now.

Which player is really wearing the mask, what is under it and what game are they playing?Dreams of Empire is an entertaining read but does not make a strong enough impact on the reader to be memorable. That said, Justin Richards manages to do the hard things in writing a Who really well; delicately conveying a political space opera come base-under-seige story whilst keeping it fresh and exciting (especially for a Second Doctor story) is an achievement that many DW novels fail to do.When the TARDIS crew arrive momentarily after a murder has been committed, it was a breath of fresh air for the Doctor Jamie and Victoria to be ruled out quickly and not drag on as a tedious plot device of proving their innocence.Dreams of Empire is a culmination of many different elements; Julius Cesear, The Man in the Iron Mask, Murder mystery plot and a Chess theme all thrown into a science fiction setting in a Doctor Wo story. Sounds like a classic Who formula right?Unfortunately on the downside the easy parts are not achieved as effectively as they could be; the villains are mediocre at best and the Doctor is portrayed far too comical and relatively ineffectual as well as Jamie and Victoria. You could just about shoe-horn in any Doctor and Companion combo in and have the same result (Perhaps a seventh Doctor may have been better?).Overall Dreams of Empire has a solid narrative with some great themes that run deep but can't help feeling that with a bit of tweaking it could have gone from being a solid story to one of the best Second Doctor novelisations out there.

This book, originally published in 1998, has been republished as part of the 50th anniversary celebrations of Doctor Who, and epitomises the Second Doctor story of choice for those celebrations. Justin Richards has written a lot of books, including a lot of Doctor Who novels.In the canon of Doctor Who, this story is set to occur after The Ice Warriors, and features the Second Doctor with Jamie and Victoria. The Doctor and his friends land on a prison planet, where the prisoners and the guards have their own routine. But that's all about to change, as the politics of a large and powerful Republic impinge on honour and glory, and ambition and greed come to the fore. But, as with all Doctor Who stories, nothing is ever quite as it seems, and this story has plenty of twists and turns before it all comes to a satisfactory end.The humour of the Second Doctor is nicely captured in this story, as are the gestures and mannerisms that Patrick Troughton so neatly put into his characterisation. This is a really good Doctor Who story, and one I'm glad I had the chance to catch up on. Totally recommended.

This was a pretty gritty, second doctor story. Lots of good characterisation and action.The plot was a novelty blend of I Claudius, The man in the Iron Mask and various space marine movies.I'm catching up on many of the older Dr Who novels and it was good that this chap warranted a reprint for the 50th anniversary.

Great to read. Enjoyable 2nd Doctor adventure

like anything doctor who

Really good story.