Only Human

✅88%

😄Superb!

👍🏼Highly recommended!

Thworping through time and space, one adventure at a time!

MY DATE WITH A NEANDERTAL!

The prologue and opening chapters of Only Human do a great job of setting the premise (what is a Neanderthal man from 28,000 years ago doing in modern-day Bromley?) and getting the plot going effectively. The pace and style of the prose fit a revival-era Doctor Who episode very well. The story quickly takes a surprising turn, though, as the majority of the narrative takes place in the Stone Age rather than the present.

In this one, the past, present, and future blend in interesting ways: there are culture crashes between Captain Jack from the future and Das the Neanderthal, as well as between Rose from the present and the Osterberg people from the future (and, later on, between Rose and the Stone Age human tribe), with the Doctor acting as a meddler between the different times.

There's something inherently interesting about a Neanderthal having to cope in a modern world (even if Das speaks and thinks a lot like a modern human). This allows the author to explore perfectly normal everyday things and concepts from an outsider’s point of view. And what makes it even better is the fact that Das isn't dim-witted as we might expect, and he takes to the new world with surprising ease, which goes a long way towards displaying that the Neanderthal people weren’t crude simpletons. Das’ diary entries, where he describes the modern world and his views on it, form a B-plot that runs the length of the novel and makes for the most interesting parts of the book. Similarly, Captain Jack's mission reports help flesh him out as a character, as he is constantly flabbergasted by the simple and dated ways of the 21st century.

It's also interesting how the book depicts a possible future society that isn't familiar with some concepts or words that are perfectly normal to us. This society uses drugs to remove negative emotions and thoughts, commonly referred to as "wrong feelings," resulting in a flat and monotonous society. Although it's a traditional concept, its use in this context is striking and eerily believable.

The Doctor feels a lot like Nine in this one, and I like how he is hindered by the drugs he is forced to take, which adds tension to the story. Although the brief union with the human tribe feels somewhat unnecessary, Rose's characterization remains recognizable. Jack is very pointedly written, especially when interacting with the Doctor and Das, but his role is sadly minimised to acting as a babysitter to the latter, so he only appears in person at the beginning and end of the novel and otherwise through his mission reports.

Das is instantly a likeable, fun, and memorable supporting character, and definitely my favourite Neanderthal in the franchise (we also meet them in Ghost Light and Timewyrm: Genesys). The other prehistoric humans aren’t quite as interesting, but they all have distinct personalities. While the Osterberg people don't particularly stand out, the manipulation they are exposed to to remove their wrong feelings makes them intriguing.

Chantal Osterberg isn’t the most original Doctor Who villain, but she is the best one in the NSA range yet, and she has believable motives. The Hy-Bractors are great monsters, though, even if they are not used to full effect. They have a creepy design and walk a fine line between being scary and tragic, so they are engaging.

This book can turn surprisingly violent and graphic at times, which makes it feel more like a VNA than an NSA. I also love how it genuinely tries to do things we would never have seen on TV, such as the sequence towards the end where Rose spends some time with her head separated from her body. While there isn't a lot of action, the setting and characters keep the story interesting, and it feels surprisingly close to a TV episode. There are also many genuinely good pop culture references and jokes in the text that maintain a good balance between suspense and lightheartedness.

RANDOM OBSERVATIONS:

Bold of the author to suggest we haven't invented time travel by 2076!

Knowing what we know about John Barrowan and his beauvoir today, the scene where he stages a distraction by running around stark naked feels very wrong.

The Doctor doesn't seem like a fan of Coldplay!