Who Reviews Death Riders by DJ Forrest

Written by Justin Richards

For BBC Children’s Books

Published 2011

You can tell pretty much from the off that this book is directed at children, as oppose to adults. The font is larger, it’s a shorter story in comparison to other novels, and much of the story telling is for a younger age group – but that doesn’t make it any less enjoyable. In fact, given that this is the 11^th Doctor, which appealed, I think, more to the younger groups, it’s Amy, and indeed Rory, that keep the story going with their ever-witty comebacks.

You can tell also by the names of some of the characters, that there’s a child feel to the story. Perpetual Pete, the health and safety guy, who from the outset put me in mind of Stinky Pete from Toy Story, and was probably crafted from that very character – who knows!

The story does have that grizzly Who factor about it. It’s set on an asteroid, and inside the mining tunnels lies creature’s hell bent on escaping their Perpetual chamber, by the music chords from a harmonica, but it’s certain musical chords which will release them.

To be honest, it’s a craft of engineering how this story comes together, and how in the final desperate attempts to ensure the creatures never escape that had me almost run late for work one morning, as Amy and Rory battled against the Drexxon (wiry wool creatures with savage teeth and claws, but look like soft space monkeys), as they climbed out of the rollercoaster ride about to plummet into the bright light from the chamber.

The Doctor, for all his wit and charm, didn’t own the story in perhaps the same way as he’s owned many of the other novels I’ve read over the past few months. It was the work of the companions that pulled the story together, only giving the Doctor one moment of triumph, when he realised who was controlling who – but I shan’t give everything away in this novel.

Justin Richards, has Who stamped right through the middle of him. He’s written so many novels and fact files, that I’d be pushed to list them all, and I’ve read a fair few of them. I’ve loved nearly all of them, and I’d probably admit that, despite there being a little bit of the Doctor involvement in this story, it was still an enjoyable story to read, even if the ending was a little cringy.

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