Doctor Who: The Crawling Terror: A Novel (Doctor Who) (Doctor Who (BBC))

by Mike Tucker

"Well, I doubt you'll ever see a bigger insect."

Gabby Nichols is putting her son to bed when she hears her daughter cry out. 'Mummy there's a daddy longlegs in my room!' Then the screaming starts... Alan Travers is heading home from the pub when something rushes his face - a  spider's web. Then something huge and deadly lumbers from the shadows... Kevin Alperton is on his way to school when he is attacked by a mosquito. A big one. Then things get dangerous.

But it isn't the dead man cocooned inside a huge mass of web that worries the Doctor. It isn't the swarming, mutated insects that make him nervous. It isn't an old man's garbled memories of past dangers that intrigue him.  

With the village cut off from the outside world, and the insects becoming more and more dangerous, the Doctor knows that no one is safe. Not unless he can decode the strange symbols engraved on an ancient stone circle, and unravel a mystery dating back to the Second World War.

• ISBN10: 0804140901
• ISBN13: 9780804140904
• Publish Date: 9 September 2014
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Crown
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 256
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780804140904

Reviews

[lindsey]

(I received a copy of this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review.)

Giant insects have started terrorizing a normally peaceful village, and the Doctor attempts to get to the bottom of it. After closer inspection, it seems that the creatures are being created at the local science park, and the number one suspect is the mask-wearing scientist who works there.

I enjoyed this Doctor Who title more than the last one I read. There was a good bit of action, and though character development for non-recurring characters is not usually a priority in the Whoverse, I enjoyed most of the ones introduced in this novel. We got a bit more insight into Clara's relationship with the newest incarnation of the Doctor, and it stays true to their characters, especially in light of the recent season finale.

Including a bit of time travel (of course), a little telepathic transference, and some military involvement (which the Doctor isn't happy about), The Crawling Terror fits well in the current Whovian canon.

A personal anecdote: While reading this book, I looked up to see a huge spider on my kitchen wall. Of course it would be the one thing out of the book that I wouldn't want to come to life. I would much rather have the TARDIS materialize in my kitchen, but I digress.

In short, I believe fans of the Doctor Who novelizations will enjoy this book.