Review: Doctor Who: Books: A Big Hand for the Doctor

By Eoin Colfer

Puffin eBooks, Out now

The first Doctor and Susan have to deal with Soul Pirates who have already caused the Doctor major injury…

I love Eoin Colfer’s Artemis Fowl series; his adult crime novel was very enjoyable, and I’m looking forward to the next one; I even was a supporter of his Hitch-hikers’ novel. (And for full disclosure, he was kind enough to redo an interview recently when the recorder died part way through). The sense of fun that permeates all of those is present in his contribution to the Doctor Who canon – as is his idiosyncratic way of looking at things.

There are some swashbuckling moments, links to a children’s classic, and amusing crossovers with Colfer’s own series. If you want to be very fannish about things, it looks at the William Hartnell incarnation through the prism of Remembrance of the Daleks: the Doctor we meet here could easily have arranged for the Hand of Omega to be buried while he was on Earth.

Colfer’s First Doctor is a bit more of a hero and a schemer than the first season of the show indicated he was, and there are some interesting ideas thrown around about the Doctor’s own family. These may make some veteran fans throw up their hands in horror: but if you want a recreation of that era, look to The Flames of Cadiz. If you want a light, quick read that celebrates it, then you’ll enjoy Colfer’s quirky take.

Verdict: An interesting approach and based on this, I suspect that this series may throw up some radically different versions of our favourite Time Lord.  7/10

Paul Simpson

 Click here to order the Kindle version of Doctor Who: A Big Hand For The Doctor from Amazon.co.uk