The Clockwise Man by Justin Richards
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy Pages: 258
Series: Doctor Who New Adventures
Start: January 5 Finish: January  8

The Clockwise Man by Justin Richards is the first novel in the Doctor Who New Series Adventures, and the first to feature the Ninth Doctor from the revival BBC television series.

In this novel we find Rose and the Doctor on yet another adventure through space and time in the TARDIS (Time and Relative Dimension in Space). They arrive in London in 1924 intending to visit the British Empire Exhibition but find themselves on the hunt for a vicious and inhuman killer. They discover a cat that cannot die, and a masked woman who never shows her true face. It comes down to Rose and the Doctor to solve the mystery. For those unfamiliar with the characters of Rose and the Doctor, here is a quick overview.

The Doctor (9th incarnation):

The Doctor is a Time-Lord, a centuries old alien hailing from a planet called Gallifrey. He travels in his TARDIS; a space ship and time machine which looks like a police box from 1960's London. The
Doctor is a survivor of the Time War which wiped out his people and their enemy, the Daleks. The Doctor often brings companions on his journeys and the first of the Ninth Doctor is Rose Tyler. Underneath the Doctor's jovial, witty, and forthright exterior lies centuries of loneliness and guilt.
 
Rose Tyler:

Rose Tyler is the companion of the Ninth, and later the Tenth Doctor. Before she met the Doctor Rose was working as a shop assistant in London, and lives with her mother Jackie.Rose is the first companion whose family knows about her travels with the Doctor and despite her mother's pleas Rose continues to travel with him.

Because this book was based off of characters of a popular television series characterization was very important to making the story work. In the case of the familiar characters of the Doctor and Rose, I found their portrayal to keep in tune with the series. The only difficulty I came across was that I kept picturing the Tenth Doctor, instead of the Ninth! This may have something to do with the Tenth being my favorite. However, I also feel that the regeneration aspect of the Doctor's character might not work as well for the books as it does on TV.

Overall I really enjoyed reading this book. It's the next best thing for the show and I loved being able to read of another adventure involving the Doctor and Rose. I enjoyed the plot as well and loved the idea of mechanical men and cats running around 1920's London because clockwork creations fit well into that era.

I am looking forward to reading more books from the New Series Adventures. Anyone interested in learning more, or perhaps getting a copy of their own can just click on the book cover above. The link will take you to the Amazon page for the Kindle edition of the book.

Thanks for reading!
Later Days!