The Monthly Adventures #018 - "The Stones of Venice" by Paul Magrs

Of all the writers in the Whoniverse (I wish there was a better term for that), the one I’ve been looking forward to getting into the most is Paul Magrs. A mad hat, entirely unique and possibly insane writer that has written both the most mental and the most revered stories in Doctor Who, created the beloved (and frankly, perplexing) character of Iris Wildthyme and has made a very loud name for himself in both prose and audio. The Stones of Venice seems to be a more regular story for him, devoid of Wildthymes and Mad Dogs and instead, a somewhat beautiful future-historical hybrid set in a sinking city.

Desperate for a break from all the running, shooting and ducking, the Doctor and Charley land in Venice, on the eve of its demise. But what truth lies behind a curse placed on the city? And what do the revolutionary plots of fishmen and a cult mean for Venice?

(CONTAINS SPOILERS)

The Stones of Venice is unlike pretty much any story I’ve listened to before. A gorgeously realised fairy tale set in 23rd Century Venice, which is beautifully portrayed through some utterly stellar sound design, that presents itself as this mediaeval/futuristic hybrid, with fishmen driving gondolas and aliens putting curses on the city. It's a mashup of genres that I haven’t really seen in Doctor Who before and I adore the whole fairytale vibe it’s going for, which I find reminiscent of something like Series 5, which coincidentally had an episode with fish people in Venice, though it did something a little different with the concept. No, this is a glorious end of days thrillride with the Doctor getting involved in the machinations of a cult worshipping the spirit of the woman who cursed the city and Charley impersonating said woman in order to allow the race of fish people to put a stop to the curse. I love plots where it’s a bunch of different threads that all collide at the end and The Stones of Venice does this wonderfully, both Charley and the Doctor get a good amount of airtime and I enjoy both narratives. This is probably because tagging along with these two is a really enjoyable side cast, everybody here feels like a well-developed character and I, dare I say it, liked a few of them.

If I had to level one complaint at this story, it would be that the middle dragged quite a bit. All the praise I give to this audio is aimed at parts 1 and 4, 2 and 3 are simply not much to write home about. The story really drags in the middle and it can get quite forgettable, but the setting and characters are good enough to keep my interest up until the final part. However, the twist of Mrs Lavish being Estella was somewhat predictable, not the best third act reveal I’ve seen in The Monthly Adventures by a long shot.

The Stones of Venice surprised me, as I liked it a lot more than I expected to. Definitely more fairy tale than science fiction but I don’t think that does it a disservice, the story and characters are interesting and it boasts one of the most unique settings I’ve seen in an audio. It’s just a little forgettable, that’s all.

7/10

Pros:

+ Wonderfully realised future Venice

+ Incredibly constructed and intricate soundscape

+ Complex and interesting narrative that builds to an effective climax

+ Interesting and varied side cast

Cons:

- The middle slows too much and drags its feet

- The final twist was predictable