Doctor Who: Sting of the Zygons by Stephen Cole

Doctor Who: Sting of the Zygons Reviews

• 
  Branwen Sedai *of the Brown Ajah*

  "While there are stout-hearted men with rested horses and a ridiculous optimism that good will prevail, all is not lost! Allons-y gentlemen-we've got a world to save!"
  
  The Doctor and Martha land in the English countryside in the year 1909. The Doctor is intrigued and alarmed to discover that the local townspeople are being terrorized by a huge scaly monster. Masses of people who seek to hunt the beast are arriving, and rumor has it King Edward VII will be joining them as well. The mystery deepens however when the Doctor and Martha discover that the strange goings on are a result of an ancient enemy of the Doctor. One that is bent on infiltrating the human population and eventually taking over the world.
  
  This was a good book, and I liked reading about the Zygons, since this was the first time I encountered them in book form. I always love it when the Doctor makes trips in England's past, it somehow feels very nostalgic to me. :) It was well written, and actually I really enjoyed the fact the issue of race and how Martha was received by the 18th Century townspeople was realistic and interesting and gave a good opportunity to develop Martha as a character more, which the author did splendidly, in my opinion. There was ALOT of action in this story too, which was nice as well.
  
  All in all, this was an enjoyable Doctor Who read. Just not anything that set it apart from some of the better ones I have read so far.
• 
  Polly Batchelor

  "You may have got the moves and mannerisms, but the real Doctor would never have forgotten her."
  
  "And yet I think, perhaps, for the Doctor and Miss Jones, the impossible is their proper place."
• 
  Jim C

  Actual rating is 3.5 stars.
  
  This is a book that is based on the television series featuring David Tennant as The Tenth Doctor and Martha as his companion. In this one, they travel to the early 1900's and discover a group of Zygons are planning to infiltrate the government of England.
  
  This book brought a smile to my face as this gave me Doctor Who vibes throughout. It isn't serious literature. It is meant to entertain and it does that. I had no problem picturing David Tennant as the Doctor. As for the portrayal of Martha, this book was written before the author really got a chance to see Martha on the screen so he did not have a lot to work with. That being said, it is a very good portrayal. The aspect that gave me the television show vibes was the adventure. We have an alien race that The Doctor is trying to stop, a lot of running around, and The Doctor employing the people around him to help find the solution. This could have been easily an episode for the television series. In typical Doctor Who fashion it also hints at a real life phenomena that was nicely done.
  
  This book provided exactly what I want from these books. Provide me with an adventure with characters that are no longer on the screen. The only flaw with this book was there were a lot of minor characters that were not totally differentiated from each other. That is why I could not give this four stars. That being said, this is still a book that provided a good time that would be enjoyed by all fans of the television show.
• 
  Jayaprakash Satyamurthy

  Plus points:
  
  Another classic monster comes to grips with a new Doctor!
  
  Edwardian countryside goings-on.
  
  Very good dialogue for the Doctor and Martha, and some of Martha's on-screen guts, compassion and sense of wonder comes through although I always felt Martha got short shrift as far as characterisation went because they thought 'make Rose educated, more posh and less teary. Oh and she's black'. And mostly left it at that.
  
  Hectic tension and action!
  
  Minuses:
  
  It's all a bit too harum-scarum at times, with distinct signs of padding in the middle act and the end. There's just too much running back and forth across that Edwardian countryside and the supporting cast isn't very well characterised - there's the young upper class man, the Lord, the boy, the dog, Frenchman...can't really tell the rest apart.
  
  At other times, too much is packed in by way of ideas and plot elements. The Doctor is dumped 'in media res' of an ongoing story and it feels like forever before we get to know everything that is going on.
  
  All in all a decent novel, a good fix for someone who wants more Ten and Martha adventures between the televised adventures, but not incisive and memorable enough to be essential.
• 
  Brooklyn Tayla

  Awe that was awesome! It captured my interest from the word go, and was 100% canon to Martha and Ten. I loved the reference to the Loch Ness Monster too, and the zygons were written perfectly! They were terrifying throughout, and this adventure was action packed. Though I suspected what was to come, it was still a fantastic book and I could see it all in my mind as I read, it was like watching an episode in my mind!
• 
  Ken

  I’d been eagerly awaiting The Tenth Doctor to face the Zygons, it’s a great way to introduce the classic monsters to a new audience.
  This is the historical story of the latest batch of books as The Doctor and Martha arrive in the Lake District during the early 1900’s.
  
  It’s a great fun read, one of the standouts in the range.
• 
  Anja von "books and phobia"

  Die Zygonen sind los ….
  
  Doch nicht allein, denn auch ihre Skarasen stifteten ordentlich Unheil und sorgten im ruhigen Westmorland für reichlich Chaos. Verständlich, denn zu Anfang des 20. Jahrhunderts war der Anblick eines Reptilien-Cyborg doch noch etwas befremdlicher als heute. Die große Frage war nun, warum dies alles geschah und ob man es aufhalten kann. Ein Glück, dass die Tardis den Doktor und Martha genau an diesen Ort brachte.
  
  Bevor es mich jedoch ins Buch zog, musste ich mich tatsächlich erstmal über die Zygonen informieren. Ich wusste so gut wie nichts von ihnen, da ich mich auch nicht daran erinnern konnte, sie in der Serie gesehen zu haben. Was ich dabei erfuhr, klang für mich mächtig spannend. Zusammen mit dem Bild auf dem Cover verschlug es mich schließlich ins Buch.
  
  Hier beeindruckte mich zuerst das Vorwort von Stephen Cole, in welchem er einen gleich einmal über den Stachel der Zygonen aufklärte. Das allein war schon spannend, da ich die Vorgehensweise der Zygonen nicht kannte. Dabei zeigte sich auch gleich, dass ich mit dem Schreibstil des Autors hervorragend klarkam. Seine Erklärungen und Beschreibungen hatten eine angenehme Mischung aus Wissen und Humor, was aus meiner Sicht perfekt zu Doctor Who passte.
  
  Dies bestätigte sich auch in der Geschichte, welche vor Humor und interessanten Ereignissen nur so sprühte. Besonders gelungen fand ich hier die Rolle des Doktors, in welcher ich eindeutig David Tennant als 10. Doktor erkannte. Auch Martha wurde gut dargestellt, auch wenn dies nicht so markant wie beim Doktor erfolgte. Doch was ist mit den Zygonen? Dies waren einfach nur wundervoll in die Handlung gestrickt. Man erfuhr nicht nur etwas über ihre Art, ihre Ernährung und ihre Verwandlungsmöglichkeiten, sondern zeigte, dass sie eben nicht abgrundtief böse waren. Tatsächlich benahmen sie sich wie eine Rasse, die Angst vor der Ausrottung steht, weswegen die Handlung fast schon etwas emotionales innehatte. Dazu kamen dann aber noch überraschende Wendungen und ein interessantes Ende, so dass ich dieses Buch eindeutig als Lesehighlight einstufen kann.
  
  Fazit:
  
  Auch wenn ich mit den Zygonen anfangs nur wenig anfangen konnte, wurden sie im Laufe der Geschichte immer mehr zu interessanten Wesen, die mich des Öfteren sogar überraschten. Autor Stephen Cole schaffte es dabei nicht nur die Zygonen, sondern auch den Doktor und Martha toll in Szene zu setzen, sodass man am Ende eine packende Handlung bekam, die sich fließend lesen ließ und einfach Spaß machte.
• 
  Michael

  For the past three seasons, it seems that every year we get a rumor the Zygons will make an appearance in the upcoming season.
  
  And why not? We've had the Macra and we've overused the Cybermen and the Daleks? Why not bring back the Zygons?
  
  The alien race returns in this 10th Doctor novel that is, for the most part, an update of the classic story "Terror of the Zygons." The Zygons are trying to figure out how to regain control of the Skarasan and need the Doctor's help to do so. And there are lots of people who are Zygons in disguise.
  
  It's not a terribly complex story and as I said before, it's highly derivative of the original "Terror of the Zygons." There are one or two nice surprises in the story but in the end I was left feeling like I wanted to go back and re-watch the classic four-part story again....
• 
  Sarah Brehm

  "'I should have guessed when you didn't know who Clara was,' she [Martha] said. 'You may have got the moves and mannerisms, but the real Doctor would never have forgotten her.'"
  
  I'm just going to leave that there.
  
  
  
  
• 
  Mircea Țara

  It's unbelievable how much I enjoyed this story. It helped a lot that I could hear David Tennant's Doctor in my ear all the while. It has quite a few unexpected plot twists and a lot of running - well, it's Doctor Who after all.
• 
  Danny Welch

  A solid fast-paced adventure that isn't exactly original but certainly has some very engaging characters, a nice come back for The Zygons in a historical setting, with some very nice moments and a very good conclusion to the story. 8/10
• 
  Pip Watson

  3.5
  
  I've been in a reading slump since October and this is the first novel that isn't for school that I've read this year. I actually really enjoyed this! Dr who is my all time favourite tv show, and i really enjoy series 3 (when this book is set), so I knew that I was going to enjoy this.
  
  the author got the voice of the characters in the show correct, which was really important to me going into this. the zygons were done well! martha was great!
  
  some of the description and lines from characters apart from martha and the doctor were kinda cringey but I still enjoyed it.
  
  Also there were moments where some things weren't believeable but overall I enjoyed it!
  
  I'm gonna read some more dr who books!!
• 
  Zuzana Be

  Zygoni boli asi jedni z najškaredších alienov, aké v Doctorovi kedy boli.
• 
  Shawna Finnigan

  My review of this book is up on my YouTube channel:
  https://youtu.be/2LdKo-8kSfw
• 
  Shelley

  Surprisingly strong plot (even for those like me who never saw a Zygon episode) and even more surprisingly, good characterization. Not only was it specifically and obviously the Tenth Doctor, but it was clearly Martha, as well - given that these were written before they saw Freema in the role, that's no mean feat. Engaging, fun, and just a little scary, as it should be.
• 
  Wendy

  This is a quick, fun read. Nothing earthshattering, but it does a reasonably good job of capturing the characters of the Doctor and Martha, and is good fun for old school fans who have fond memories of the Zygons from the Tom Baker days.
  
  A pleasant enough way to get your Doctor Who fix while waiting for Season 4 to arrive.
• 
  Chris

  Interesting story that kept me turning the pages.
• 
  Daphne

  Still can't decide if I like Martha as much as Rose, but I suppose that's the same for most.
• 
  Kimberley

  Unfortunately, this book for me did not go well. Firstly there were so many characters! Far too many for the length of the book and it just made things more confusing. None of the characters were really fleshed out and they just become more names rather than people so I didn't have a connection to any of them (well except the dog but there's only one dog so its easy to keep track of).
  
  The story...was also not that great (sorry), I found that there was a lot of running backwards and forwards between a few places and there was a lot of confusing alien figuring out (they can shapeshift into humans, normally ok but when you already have a lot of characters having some as aliens aswell makes it even worse). I just couldn't really get into the story because if you take out the running then there's almost nothing happening (things that would probably last about 30 pages, if that).
  
  Overall this was not a good book for me, I found there were too many characters, the story was mainly characters running round and I didn't find it particularly engaging. So if you're desperate for more Ten and Martha stories then pick this up but other than that maybe leave this one alone
• 
  Hasselhh

  Honestly, if it hadn’t been part of the monster collection I wouldn’t have read this book, as I don’t like New Who’s way of dealing with Zygons, but I’m really glad that I gave it a go anyway. In the introduction, the author explains that he wrote this book before Martha episodes has aired, and that knowledge helped me understand the small inconsistencies in her character, but in that context he really has nailed her awesomely.
  I enjoyed how the story way viewed from various people who did not know the whole picture, that worked really well. For me, however, animals being molested is always a big minus, and I really had to force my through those parts (really just ½ a page two places, but I REALLY have an issue with people harming animals!!). Other than that, it is the best New Who Zygon story (including the 50th anniversary), so do read it and enjoy a kickass Martha (who isn’t in love with the Doctor and how awesome is that!!) and the Tenth Doctor just as you know and love him.
  
• 
  Nicola Michelle

  An enjoyable adventure with The Doctor and Martha, and this time, with added Zygon!
  
  I also love that this was set in the Lake District, although it didn’t always feel like it when I was reading it, but I loved the Edwardian vibes of this. I always love launching into a Martha story, as I feel like she was a much maligned companion and reading her adventures I think is always great to explore her character more.
  
  It was a good story and an intriguing one, if a little twisty and turny at times. I never knew where the plot was going and eagerly read to the end to find out what was going to happen and how The Doctor was going to save the day. Which we all know is the ultimate end goal!
  
  It played out like an episode you’d see on TV and had all the good natured banter, fun doctor shenanigans and drama you’d expect on the show. I always love reading who stories as it gives me a quick hit of nostalgia which this one also delivered. Allons-y !
• 
  John Naylor

  When dealing with novels based on television shows a good indication of how I will rate something is how well I could read the dialogue in the voices of the characters. This had some believable 10th Doctor dialogue but also some that just wouldn't fit his voice. Martha had some reactions and words that didn't fit her character.
  
  The plot had some good ideas but also probably too many ideas. It overcomplicated certain things (maybe as a tribute to the TV show but to the detriment of the book). Some things were either rushed or not explained fully too.
  
  I feel this is worth reading as a fan. The Zygons have made a comeback since this was published and there are some things here that the series didn't cover about them. Probably worth a look just for that.
• 
  Samael Kovacs

  The second novel I've read from Stephen Cole and its sadly another dud. An improvement over the last one but still a waste of a novel really.
  
  I did not give a single shit about the supporting charchters and there are just so many of them here I lost track with what going on half the time.
  
  Why can't we see this more from The Doctor's perspective instead of these boring characters I've already forgotten about?
  
  Love the zygons as monsters but they were basically the same the terror of the zygons nothing has changed. Nothing new learned.
  
  I wouldn't recommend this one.
  Read the Pirate Loop or Sick Building.
• 
  Joanne

  An adventure in the Lake District where Zygons make an appearance and Martha and the Doctor must help stop their takeover of Earth.
  
  An interesting premise but I often found my attention wandering with this story - it feels a little all over the place with lots of characters introduced but not many really contributing to the story. The Doctor and Martha are written fairly well and it is entertaining to see Zygons acting as humans and not knowing who to trust. However I wasn't gripped by the story which could have been more in depth and explored more of the relationship between Zygons and humans.
  
  Sadly, I'm not that keen on this story.
• 
  K

  1907年のベルリンを訪れたつもりが1909年のイギリス湖水地方にたどり着いていたドクターとマーサ。立ち往生しているクラッシックカーの"オペル10-18"を助け、その持ち主のビクターから湖水地方で化け物が頻出し、村人が行方不明になっていると聞かされ、異星人の気配を嗅ぎつけたドクター��マーサはビクターに同行。ドクターはその化け物の正体がザイゴンという異星人が所有するスカラセンという有機サイボーグであることを知る。ザイゴンはあらゆるものに姿を変えることができる能力を持ち、行方不明になった村人達に成りすまして人間社会に紛れ込み、スカラセンを処分している事実に気がついたドクターはその目的を探ろうとするが、逆にザイゴンに捕らえられ、スカラセンをコントロールする機械を作成するよう命じられる。
  
  ザイゴンがあらゆるものに化けるという設定のおかげで、一体誰がニセモノでどの時点まで当人だったのかということがだんだんこんがらがってきてしまった。ドクターがなかなか反撃できず、優位に立てたかと思った途端、裏をかかれ、また捕まってしまう率がいささか高すぎたような印象もありつつ、それが萌えポイントであったような、萎えポイントだったような、何やら微妙な印象。
• 
  James Kinsley

  Not an unreasonable adventure, plenty of running about from place to place, and capture/escape/recapture, before the inevitable face-off and victory. Pretty much what you expect from Who. Underlines how underdeveloped Martha was as a companion, and how irritating Tennant's iteration of the Doctor was. The weaknesses of the book, therefore, echo the weaknesses of the era, so that said, a decent enough effort.
• 
  TheGeekProblem

  "Martha Jones, you're a Star!"
  
  I really didn't know how to appreciate Martha the first time I saw the show, I was still too hurt from Rose's departure and I didn't have it in me to like Martha.
  Returning to the show this past year and finally getting around to read the novels has given me a new perspective of her.
  
  The plot is simple and I don't know if I like the Zygons as villains, still, it was quite enjoyable and I got to see more of Martha than what I saw in the show.