Doctor Who – The Tenth Doctor Adventures, Volume 1 [Books]

I’ll preface this by saying I am absolutely loving Audible. Not only am I able to access awesome audiobooks through it, but I really enjoy the podcasts too. And I was so excited to test out some of the Doctor Who content on there. I’ve heard a lot about the Big Finish productions, and the full voice casted dramas are proving to be excellent.

Donna isn’t one of my favourite companions (admittedly, Rose and Clara are –  I think I have a thing for companions travelling with multiple doctors), but Catherine Tate is brilliant, Doctor Number 10 is my favourite Doctor, and this volume of adventures was a lot of fun to listen to.

Technophobia sees the pair travelling to a future London, going to the London Museum of Technology. But people are acting strange, and it soon becomes clear they’re scared of the everyday machinery around them.

Time Reaver sees Donna and the Doctor on a spaceport where anything goes. But there are those who are trying to install some sense of order, and they soon discover there’s an illegal weapon on the streets, one which kills its victims in a drawn-out, agonising process.

Death and the Queen sees Donna planning a literal fairytale wedding, in what looks like a fairytale kingdom. Excited by the idea of getting married, she ignores the signs that something isn’t quite right, and like a fairytale princess, gets caught up in something much larger than herself.

These three stories all have three vastly different locations, and it really made me miss the way the new doctors used to actually explore the universe, rather than everything taking place on Earth. Or…”This is a new planet! Wait…no, it’s Earth.”

(I adore the Thirteenth Doctor. I’d just like to see a bit more done with her than just having her constantly on Earth)

These audio adventures really capture what made the RTD Era of Doctor Who so great, and why the revival was such a success. The relationship between Tennant and Tate – and therefore the Doctor and Donna – works so well, and even without seeing the settings, the sounds behind the dialogue really bring these vastly different places fully to life.

This is a fantastic production, with excellent voice acting. Death and the Queen I particularly enjoyed, with its rich, vivid, fairytale setting and intriguing side-characters. Though the same can really be said for all three stories. In each one, Donna is really given some brilliant moments to shine, whether it’s trying to stop a runaway being hurt, guiding a young woman through a dangerous situation, or acting as queen to a kingdom, it reminded me why she is such a fan favourite.

Honestly, if you like Doctor Who, I really do recommend this audiobook, and I will definitely be checking out other adventures available at some point in the future.