Before I begin this review I would like to say I typically read Doctor Who books digitally but this time around I had the pleasure of reading from a wonderful paperback, courtesy of Who One and my friend Dylan who bought me the book as a gift. Thank you again. Now, this is a story I was quite interested in checking out as Paul Cornell is one of my favourite Who writers. Later on he would write my current favourite Doctor Who book, Human Nature (the only VNA I've read to date) so needless to say the prospect of one of my favourite writers writing for my favourite Doctor. And, well pretty much the story lives up to expectations.

For one the characterisation here is really strong. I am very impressed with how well Cornell has captured the main cast in this book. I would not have assumed Cornell to be a Fifth Doctor fan but with how well he writes the energy and dynamics between characters I now take him for one. The buoyant and youthful energy that Davison brought to the role is translated perfectly; his sharp wit and often sarcastic humour is written with the correct level of levity which avoids the mean spirited tone it could take on in the hands of a less precise writer. His scientific and intelligent side is also portrayed well. I've always thought of Five as being one of the most curious and autodidactic Doctors, it's a side often underrepresented but it's very present here. He's always dashing about, slipping on his brainy specs and conducting experiments. I also appreciate how Five's darker side is shown as the story goes on and the stakes rise. Five is, in my opinion one of the Doctor's with the strongest sense of justice and I love stories that push his character and test how far this sense of justice will take him. While this story doesn't quite push Five as hard as say Caves of Androzani of Fear of the Dark, this does become a more prevalent theme as the story goes on, he even has a moment of Seven-esque manipulation in the last few chapters. Nyssa and Tegan are good here as well. Nyssa is put through the ringer in this story but never once does it break down her optimistic and compassionate side, and while Tegan does get the least to do of the main three, she is still important to the plot and her dynamic is written very well. It can't be said that any of the main cast is wasted.

Now the story itself is really quite fun, if a tad by the numbers. The Vampires in Goth Opera are, well their Vampires. They're just like any other Vampires you've seen in media. This isn't necessarily a bad thing though. Cornell is a very vivid writer and he does a good job of bringing the horror to life. Some scenes at the end of the book are described in particularly gruesome detail. Yarven, the main of villain of the story is a tad bland, a very typical "I will rule the world" type without particularly well defined motivations. Instead all the intrigue comes from his other half, the Time Lord Ruath. Ruath in comparison is very well defined, particularly in her relation to the Doctor. In fact it's her (and therefore Gallifreys) involvement with the Vampires which makes them more interesting threats. I really like how Gallifreyan lore and technology plays a large part in the villains plans. This book has a lot of references and callbacks to previous lore which devoted classic who fans will appreciate. Hell, there's even a whole chapter which is basically it's own short story disconnected from the rest of the plot primarily serving to set up the background of the story and providing fan service, and it's legitimately great. This could get overbearing if harped on too much but I think Cornell finds a good balance.

This book is a really fun read overall. I am very impressed with how well Cornell understands and replicates the dynamics of this TARDIS team as well as how detailed his writing is. This story isn't going to change your life or anything but it is a fun romp with well defined characters and concepts that serves as a great start to the Missing Adventures line. 8.5/10 / 4½ stars.