Camera Obscura (Doctor Who)

Rating:
Summary: What a ride...
Review: CAMERA OBSCURA is a very good novel. It's not as good as Lloyd Rose's previous offering, CITY OF THE DEAD, as it lacks that story's rich attention to detail. On the other hand, while it may be lacking overall in comparison, it has some brilliant individual sequences that surpass the first book, and rival anything seen so far in Doctor Who book fiction. It has a few problems, but what the book does well more than outweighs the novel's few missteps.

I found many passages in CAMERA OBSCURA to be completely riveting, surprising and fantastic. There are sequences in which it is absolutely impossible for the reader to attempt to put down the book. And yet (and I do feel a little greedy for complaining about this) I'm not quite sure that the book flowed as well as it could have. Loads of the individual set pieces are amazing, but the glue holding them all together just feels a little lacking. Instead of the portions combining together to a gigantic crescendo at the conclusion, it seemed as though the book was forever starting and stopping, without really building on any of the brilliance. Again, this does feel a little unfair of me, because those standout pieces are indeed fantastic, but overall I couldn't help but believe that the sum was just a tiny bit less than all of the parts, given how wonderful some of those parts were.

As for what those wonderful parts were. Well, there are some absolutely fantastic sections of prose here. Chapter Twenty (the Doctor's decent) is as magical as anything I've ever read in Doctor Who. The Doctor's conversations with Sabbath, while occasionally coming across as gimmicky, are nevertheless penetrating in their insight as to how the two men see their place in the universe. The setting adds a lot to the story, although it doesn't feel quite as overwhelming as the New Orleans of CITY OF THE DEAD did. The carnival sequences work, not only because of their description, but, more importantly, because of the way the outlandish freaks and geeks react to the Doctor.

The humor in this story is something that I haven't seen much written about, but there were a handful of sequences that had me laughing out loud, and that's a wonderful thing that happens all too infrequently in Doctor Who books. Overall, this is a really good book that comes recommended. Comparisons to Rose's previous book are no doubt inevitable, and while I found CAMERA OBSCURA to be vaguely lacking in contrast, that doesn't take away from the book at hand. Occasionally magical, and never less than enthralling, its minor flaws don't stop this from being a required read.

Rating:
Summary: What a ride...
Review: CAMERA OBSCURA is a very good novel. It's not as good as Lloyd Rose's previous offering, CITY OF THE DEAD, as it lacks that story's rich attention to detail. On the other hand, while it may be lacking overall in comparison, it has some brilliant individual sequences that surpass the first book, and rival anything seen so far in Doctor Who book fiction. It has a few problems, but what the book does well more than outweighs the novel's few missteps.

I found many passages in CAMERA OBSCURA to be completely riveting, surprising and fantastic. There are sequences in which it is absolutely impossible for the reader to attempt to put down the book. And yet (and I do feel a little greedy for complaining about this) I'm not quite sure that the book flowed as well as it could have. Loads of the individual set pieces are amazing, but the glue holding them all together just feels a little lacking. Instead of the portions combining together to a gigantic crescendo at the conclusion, it seemed as though the book was forever starting and stopping, without really building on any of the brilliance. Again, this does feel a little unfair of me, because those standout pieces are indeed fantastic, but overall I couldn't help but believe that the sum was just a tiny bit less than all of the parts, given how wonderful some of those parts were.

As for what those wonderful parts were. Well, there are some absolutely fantastic sections of prose here. Chapter Twenty (the Doctor's decent) is as magical as anything I've ever read in Doctor Who. The Doctor's conversations with Sabbath, while occasionally coming across as gimmicky, are nevertheless penetrating in their insight as to how the two men see their place in the universe. The setting adds a lot to the story, although it doesn't feel quite as overwhelming as the New Orleans of CITY OF THE DEAD did. The carnival sequences work, not only because of their description, but, more importantly, because of the way the outlandish freaks and geeks react to the Doctor.

The humor in this story is something that I haven't seen much written about, but there were a handful of sequences that had me laughing out loud, and that's a wonderful thing that happens all too infrequently in Doctor Who books. Overall, this is a really good book that comes recommended. Comparisons to Rose's previous book are no doubt inevitable, and while I found CAMERA OBSCURA to be vaguely lacking in contrast, that doesn't take away from the book at hand. Occasionally magical, and never less than enthralling, its minor flaws don't stop this from being a required read.

Rating:
Summary: A rose, by any other name, would still be a great author
Review: Lloyd Rose's debut Doctor Who novel, City of the Dead, was a magical adventure with such lyrical prose as had not been seen in a Doctor Who book for a long time. The question would be whether or not she could follow up such a stunning debut novel and avoid the dreaded sophomore jinx. I'm pleased to say that she does an excellent job. Not only is Camera Obscura just as good, but it's good in a much different way. Gone is the mysticism that City of the Dead had in spades. Gone is the magical reality. Gone is the New Orleans atmosphere. However, she captures the atmosphere of Victorian England with vivid descriptions and the same style as she did in the first book. It all adds up to a wonderful book.

Back in The Adventuress of Henrietta Street, the Doctor had one of his two hearts taken away, supposedly for his own good. It was the heart that was linked to Gallifrey, a planet that had been destroyed by his own hand and then wiped from his memory. His sometimes ally and sometimes enemy Sabbath removed it to save his life, but implanted it in his own chest so that he could time travel too. Both he and the Doctor have been on a mission ever since to heal the wounds in of the timestream that were caused by the destruction of the Time Lords, to police the time travel that they used to police. A rogue time machine has appeared in Victorian England, the use of which has already caused some temporal disruptions. Whoever has used it has been fractured in different ways. One person has been split into eight separate but equal beings, all sharing the same mind and perceptions. Another has been split into two individual beings, one good and compassionate, one dark and mutated. And one has been split inside her own mind, with multiple personalities inhabiting one body. The Doctor is trying desperately to stop the machine before it's used again. Sabbath has the same goal, but for much different reasons. The Doctor has discovered that the heart Sabbath stole has created an inseparable bond between them. Through that bond, the Doctor discovers Sabbath's horrifying vision of the timestream, causing the Doctor to have yet one more person to watch out for.

Rose has quite the way with words, both dialogue and description. Her England oozes atmosphere, with a mad chase through dank and dark Dartmoor or a dark and eerie mansion that somebody's trying to break into. You can feel the darkness of the dungeon the Doctor is kept in, almost feeling claustrophobic despite being in a well-lit room reading a book. The streets of London are just as crowded as they are in the 21st century, but this time with horses, carriages, and boys paid to run through the streets and pick up dung. Everything is quite vivid.

The characterizations are wonderful as well. This is the Doctor and Sabbath's book, and everybody else takes second billing. The banter between the two is electric, trading barbs and trying to convince each other of the rightness of their cause. The Doctor is horrified when he finds out what Sabbath ultimately wants to do to safeguard time itself, refusing to believe that the ends justify the means. The Doctor is at his most compassionate, almost crushed when he realizes that he's led someone to his death. Sabbath accuses the Doctor of the ultimate arrogance while demonstrating that he's even more so. The book is filled with these scenes, and I don't think there was one false note in them. They realize that they need each other this time and that they have to put all of their past animosities behind them. The final act gives Sabbath a human quality that he's lacked the last few books he's appeared in, an act of compassion that also, as always, has an ulterior motive.

The rest of the characters fulfill their function but aren't anything special. Rose does just enough to avoid making them caricatures without making the reader that interested in them. Unfortunately, both Fitz and Anji fall into this category. Don't get me wrong. They're characterization is spot on, but they are relegated to the sidelines and have almost nothing to do with the entire story. They're bit players that take up screen time, do some small part to move the storyline forward, and then run offstage. The Doctor is not telling them what's going on, which isn't really anything new. This time, however, it makes them surprisingly ineffective. They show up to point the Doctor in the right direction once or twice, set events in motion that will result in the Doctor's rescue occasionally, but that's it. Ultimately it doesn't matter, though. Rose captures the Doctor and Sabbath so well that it doesn't matter that nobody else does anything much of interest.

I really enjoyed Camera Obscura. Despite the fact that it was about the nature of time itself, I found it to be a lot clearer then City of the Dead. While Rose handled that magical realism very well, I think she excelled even more doing a science fiction story this time around. The plot is straightforward, though it's never boring. It's a lot easier to understand, and it has the added benefit of not annoying those Doctor Who fans who don't want even a hint of magic in their Who. While it is part of the ongoing Eighth Doctor storyline, Camera Obscura could easily stand on its own feet if it happened to be the first Who book you've read. So what are you waiting for?

David Roy

Rating:
Summary: A rose, by any other name, would still be a great author
Review: Lloyd Rose's debut Doctor Who novel, City of the Dead, was a magical adventure with such lyrical prose as had not been seen in a Doctor Who book for a long time. The question would be whether or not she could follow up such a stunning debut novel and avoid the dreaded sophomore jinx. I'm pleased to say that she does an excellent job. Not only is Camera Obscura just as good, but it's good in a much different way. Gone is the mysticism that City of the Dead had in spades. Gone is the magical reality. Gone is the New Orleans atmosphere. However, she captures the atmosphere of Victorian England with vivid descriptions and the same style as she did in the first book. It all adds up to a wonderful book.

Back in The Adventuress of Henrietta Street, the Doctor had one of his two hearts taken away, supposedly for his own good. It was the heart that was linked to Gallifrey, a planet that had been destroyed by his own hand and then wiped from his memory. His sometimes ally and sometimes enemy Sabbath removed it to save his life, but implanted it in his own chest so that he could time travel too. Both he and the Doctor have been on a mission ever since to heal the wounds in of the timestream that were caused by the destruction of the Time Lords, to police the time travel that they used to police. A rogue time machine has appeared in Victorian England, the use of which has already caused some temporal disruptions. Whoever has used it has been fractured in different ways. One person has been split into eight separate but equal beings, all sharing the same mind and perceptions. Another has been split into two individual beings, one good and compassionate, one dark and mutated. And one has been split inside her own mind, with multiple personalities inhabiting one body. The Doctor is trying desperately to stop the machine before it's used again. Sabbath has the same goal, but for much different reasons. The Doctor has discovered that the heart Sabbath stole has created an inseparable bond between them. Through that bond, the Doctor discovers Sabbath's horrifying vision of the timestream, causing the Doctor to have yet one more person to watch out for.

Rose has quite the way with words, both dialogue and description. Her England oozes atmosphere, with a mad chase through dank and dark Dartmoor or a dark and eerie mansion that somebody's trying to break into. You can feel the darkness of the dungeon the Doctor is kept in, almost feeling claustrophobic despite being in a well-lit room reading a book. The streets of London are just as crowded as they are in the 21st century, but this time with horses, carriages, and boys paid to run through the streets and pick up dung. Everything is quite vivid.

The characterizations are wonderful as well. This is the Doctor and Sabbath's book, and everybody else takes second billing. The banter between the two is electric, trading barbs and trying to convince each other of the rightness of their cause. The Doctor is horrified when he finds out what Sabbath ultimately wants to do to safeguard time itself, refusing to believe that the ends justify the means. The Doctor is at his most compassionate, almost crushed when he realizes that he's led someone to his death. Sabbath accuses the Doctor of the ultimate arrogance while demonstrating that he's even more so. The book is filled with these scenes, and I don't think there was one false note in them. They realize that they need each other this time and that they have to put all of their past animosities behind them. The final act gives Sabbath a human quality that he's lacked the last few books he's appeared in, an act of compassion that also, as always, has an ulterior motive.

The rest of the characters fulfill their function but aren't anything special. Rose does just enough to avoid making them caricatures without making the reader that interested in them. Unfortunately, both Fitz and Anji fall into this category. Don't get me wrong. They're characterization is spot on, but they are relegated to the sidelines and have almost nothing to do with the entire story. They're bit players that take up screen time, do some small part to move the storyline forward, and then run offstage. The Doctor is not telling them what's going on, which isn't really anything new. This time, however, it makes them surprisingly ineffective. They show up to point the Doctor in the right direction once or twice, set events in motion that will result in the Doctor's rescue occasionally, but that's it. Ultimately it doesn't matter, though. Rose captures the Doctor and Sabbath so well that it doesn't matter that nobody else does anything much of interest.

I really enjoyed Camera Obscura. Despite the fact that it was about the nature of time itself, I found it to be a lot clearer then City of the Dead. While Rose handled that magical realism very well, I think she excelled even more doing a science fiction story this time around. The plot is straightforward, though it's never boring. It's a lot easier to understand, and it has the added benefit of not annoying those Doctor Who fans who don't want even a hint of magic in their Who. While it is part of the ongoing Eighth Doctor storyline, Camera Obscura could easily stand on its own feet if it happened to be the first Who book you've read. So what are you waiting for?

David Roy

Rating:
Summary: 8 out of 8 for Octave
Review: Unbelievable! A good 8th Doctor book. Even more unbelievable, after literally years of bland, boring and/or just plain bad BBC books, two excellent books (Camera Obscura & Suns Of Caresh) come along in the same month.

Camera Obscura has a plot. Well written, interesting characters that have a purpose - they drive the plot, they don't just go with the flow, wherever the plot may take them. A great setting. Doctor Who always seems to fit so well into Victorian London. In this case Lloyd handles the period extremely well. I could almost believe I was at the Crystal Palace? This book was generally a joy to read.

It was nice to read a book that can surprise me. I'm referring here to the 'unique' character of Octave. I assumed he was 'flitting about in time' for his stage act. The revelation of his true nature was quite a shock - obvious in hindsight. Unfortunately this brings up my first criticism of the book - I can understand the need for the different Octaves to take differing routes to and from the theatre. He can't afford for anyone to know there are more than one of him! But all 8 versions of him are living together in a small apartment, and none of the neighbours noticed? Again, all 8 Octaves are at the theatre every night and no-one noticed? Ridiculous.

Oh dear. Making the Doctor 'unable to die' (just because his 'old' heart is still beating elsewhere) is a bit far-fetched! But it gets even worse.

How to ruin a good book in one easy lesson, Get the Doctor to purposely get himself killed, so he can go to hell and ask the dead Dr Chiltern where the live Dr Chiltern may be hiding the time machine, knowing that since he can't die, he'll be resurrected by Sabbath's new heart (his old one), then go to the destination told to the Doctor by the dead Chiltern, only to find it's a wild goose chase, so go back to London and uselessly waste 2-3 chapters on a ludicrous premise that Hell actually exists and the Doctor is immortal!

Simple, wasn't it?

Do yourself a favour, when you read the book, skip the 2-3 chapters immediately following where the Doctor gets stabbed. They serve no purpose and the book is much better off without them.

9 out of 10. Read without the two offending chapters, 10 out of 10.

Rating:
Summary: 8 out of 8 for Octave
Review: Unbelievable! A good 8th Doctor book. Even more unbelievable, after literally years of bland, boring and/or just plain bad BBC books, two excellent books (Camera Obscura & Suns Of Caresh) come along in the same month.

Camera Obscura has a plot. Well written, interesting characters that have a purpose - they drive the plot, they don't just go with the flow, wherever the plot may take them. A great setting. Doctor Who always seems to fit so well into Victorian London. In this case Lloyd handles the period extremely well. I could almost believe I was at the Crystal Palace? This book was generally a joy to read.

It was nice to read a book that can surprise me. I'm referring here to the 'unique' character of Octave. I assumed he was 'flitting about in time' for his stage act. The revelation of his true nature was quite a shock - obvious in hindsight. Unfortunately this brings up my first criticism of the book - I can understand the need for the different Octaves to take differing routes to and from the theatre. He can't afford for anyone to know there are more than one of him! But all 8 versions of him are living together in a small apartment, and none of the neighbours noticed? Again, all 8 Octaves are at the theatre every night and no-one noticed? Ridiculous.

Oh dear. Making the Doctor 'unable to die' (just because his 'old' heart is still beating elsewhere) is a bit far-fetched! But it gets even worse.

How to ruin a good book in one easy lesson, Get the Doctor to purposely get himself killed, so he can go to hell and ask the dead Dr Chiltern where the live Dr Chiltern may be hiding the time machine, knowing that since he can't die, he'll be resurrected by Sabbath's new heart (his old one), then go to the destination told to the Doctor by the dead Chiltern, only to find it's a wild goose chase, so go back to London and uselessly waste 2-3 chapters on a ludicrous premise that Hell actually exists and the Doctor is immortal!

Simple, wasn't it?

Do yourself a favour, when you read the book, skip the 2-3 chapters immediately following where the Doctor gets stabbed. They serve no purpose and the book is much better off without them.

9 out of 10. Read without the two offending chapters, 10 out of 10.