Product Description

The Doctor and Peri materialize on island named Dorsill, which has recently been purchased by a DNA scientist named Sheldon. At first the villagers are unconcerned by a few local deaths. Little do they realize that they are now part of Sheldon's closed experiment.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #664207 in Books
• Published on: 2000-05-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 288 pages

Customer Reviews

"Grave matter - simply the best new doctor who story so far!
This story is excellent, with a great start where we follow the doctor and peri around the island confronted by mystery upon mystery: Who is the starnge man missing a hand rambling madly, where are they, when are they, and why are the animals and children behaving so strangely!

The plot whizzes along, and the reader is met with cliff hanger after cliff hanger, with excellent action and horror in the old Tom Baker/John Pertwee mould.

Colin Baker was one of my favourite doctors who seemed to be let down by weak scripts and stories, but I'd have loved to have seen this on the telly! must for any fans of Doctor who. What are you waiting for? BUY IT!

Quite an accomplished little tale...
A sinister and chilling story, well constructed, and with a little more to think about than usual. Some similarities to Coldheart and Deep Blue in its' portrayal of an alien invasion from within and transformation of human beings, but this story manages to rise above both of these with its' compelling storyline and characters. Justin Richards keeps the story going with several unexpected twists to the plot, and the sixth Doctor and Peri are brought vividly to life in a story that seems almost made for them. It's quite a fun story in places too, in some ways almost like an adult Scooby Doo adventure. Overall, a great read, with some truly memorable moments.

The Sixth Doctor the way he should have been
This is, without doubt, the best Doctor Who story I've read, outside the broadcast stories. For me to say that is quite a feat, when I confess that the Sixth Doctor was probably my least favourite! Justin Richards has not only captured the characters of The Doctor and Peri, but manages to improve on them, making them more likeable and "real" than they appeared on TV. The dialogue is perfect, particularly for the Doctor: you can hear Colin Baker's voice every time, but again I have to emphasise that the Sixth Doctor in this story is a far more rounded character than the "Doctor Whooligan" we saw on TV - he has affection for Peri and cares about the people involved in the "Grave Matter" of the title. Peri, too, does not spend the entire story moaning at The Doctor or moping about - she's in there, investigating the mystery with (and without) The Doctor. If that wasn't enough, the story's rather good, too! Borrowing elements from various Hammer horrors in order to enhance the sinister mood, but explaining the horror in Doctor Who/SF terms, the book succeeds on every level. Richards also has a very easy, authoritative writing style - the first two chapters in particular I found unputdownable! You've probably realised from the cover that this can be summed up quickly as "Doctor Who Meets the Zombies", but it's more than just that. When I think that I hesitated when deciding whether or not to buy this... Do yourself a favour and read it soon!