Doctor Who: Telos Novella: Time and Relative
Time and Relative timeline code #0B.2
*spoilers*
Its nice to see her having a friend group too being Gillian and John, Susan will go on these random tangents in her diary about people and i love them. The fact its extremely cold in march and been like this for a while is interesting, John even saying these random theories about it. the friendship between the 3 is very cute and feels very genuine. When PE is cancelled I feel there friend ship shines. After class when Susan goes to the Tardis its frozen over. She scrapes her way through. The Doctor is extremely curious bout the cold, on the weekend Susan describes the frozen London its extremely interesting read. That night Susan and Gillian sneak in to a older person meet up even having to hide from Mr Chesterton and Mrs Wright being there, which is a nice touch.
Susan also had a little job of babysitting a boy called Malcom, I love how Susan sicks up for Malcom after the soldiers are racist towards him a 6 year old. Later when Gillian and Susan meet up again to go to the pictures, I love how they doll each other up and Susan describes herself in the funniest way. They decide to go to the pump but run into Zack from the Ton-Up Boys, a motorcycle gang who drive at ridiculous speeds leading to Susan and Gillian falling out. Susan thinking shes become an outsider again, walking home, for a second thinking the Doctor and her where found out to be not from earth but alas they where not.
On Sunday Susan regrets what happened last night and starts to worry bout everything, from Gillian to her Grandfather she heads off to pick up a newspaper for Malcoms mum. The news paper revealing that its not just London that's frozen its the world. World nations arguing who's to blame. On her way back Susan sees the doctor talking to someone, the presents she felt last night. Susan couldn't see who but knew it must have been that. Susan writes a tangent about the rules her and the Doctor must follow the rule of no meddling, as its been drilled into there heads by there people.
On April fools day, Gillian seems to have left Saturday night in the past and makes Susan happy that they are still friends. During break Fransis throws a ball with marbles in it at Gillians head, which leads to a huge fight. The book starting to indicate that Gillian doesn't have the best home life too which is sad to hear. Suddenly Susan goes towards a snowman to see how frozen it is but it comes to life and attacks Francis, leading to Susan and Gillian getting detention and sent straight to the heads office Francis being sent to hospital. Its kind of funny seeing Susan get detention, shes defiantly not the sort of person. She looks at the snowman again and it seems to have grown, Gillian and Susan have a weird fun relationship, like there both the only true friends they have. During detention they both need to melt some ice on the gutters of the school, but its revealed the ice is alive. I love the way its described and how much of a danger they are both in. Gillian breaking the school window to get them both to safety being the only survivors of the detention.
John who hasn't left school yet comes into the room there both in, looking out to the ice army of snowmen wondering what to do nicknaming them the cold knights. Johns dad pulls up and the driver is swarmed johns dad picking up the blowtorch used to melt the ice during detention. Ice is such a fun villain of the story its so creepy. All 4 are now trying to barricade the school hall, sleeping in the boiler room. We really go in on Susans Psyche, later on the 4 try n make there move outside seeing the body of the driver in the jeep covered in a new layer of snow and other students gathering. John and Gillian commanding the playground to go home is an amazing read and how the head has no control of the situation, its one of my favourite parts of the book. They really hammer home that the adults brush things off not taking it seriously. I love how this story seems to take place over a week you can really feel the decent into this ice age attack. The group of 4 Susan, Gillian, John and his Dad try to get home but due to the cold its extremely harder then usual, they start to get chased with an avalanche even the snowman was following them. Gillian is almost a goner but Johns dad throws her to safety. The cold kill Johns father brutally, this book is so dark like a zombie book but with ice instead.
The 3 find a restaurant, the people inside telling them to go but Malcom is also in the Restaurant. He couldn't find his way to school so a woman named Dolly looked after him for a bit. I love the relationship Susan and Malcom have in the book, hes just a small kid the 2 have a cute relationship of the vibe of brother and older sister. The people Susan has wrote about in her diary so far end up being in this restaurant, like Zack from the Ton-Up Boys. I love how Gillian and Zack have this unspoken feelings for each other, its really nice to have that. The group in the restaurant talk about what they think is going on, one mentioning how the bbc mentioned a ice monster last night but everyone thought it was a hoax like the spaghetti trees prank they pulled. Which is a funny detail to add in. Gillian manages to find overalls. Susan and Gillian change into them because they are still in there skirts which I forgot they where still wearing. Anyway Susan, Gillian, John, Zack, Malcom and Dolly all try to leave the restaurant, but Mr n Mrs H go all the mist on the group and grab Malcom blaming the younger generation for the cold knights. I was on edge at this point fully. Dolly and Zack trying to save Malcom, its guess in a way to get the reader to be on side with these characters. When Mrs H stabs Malcom but luckily his toy stopped the blade going in deep I was in full panic. Zack making Malcom laugh by voicing the toy is also a nice add on, showing this biker has layers.
They all head out noticing that Malcom's mum must have stayed home as the shop she ran wasn't open. I love how since Susan has extremely good memory that we get beat for beat what happened and it makes sense. The group of 6 soon become 5, as Dolly is grabbed by the ice testicles and crushed. Its extremely dark for a character we barely know and made me sad, I think because she was so far the only adult who listened to the kids. The cold knights begin to chase the 5. Zack used a Molotov cocktail to get away. The group heading there way to the Pump.
when they get there Gillian being disappointed that its not as classy as she thought was kind of funny as i remember having that experience too. it would be Zack searching for the alcohol to burn but suddenly all of Johns emotions blow up, questioning Susan and thinking shes some spy who is sacrificing people to get to her control or as she says grandfather. We even get a bit of development for Zack and Gillian in this scene. i love scenes like this it really develops the characters and has that flight or fight energy. Zack manages to open the door but its covered in snow. Susan feeling the Doctor near by walks up to the door, the snow melts. The 5 have reached totters lane and the Doctor has made this invention. The 5 walk up to wonder whats going on its revealed the cold where living here on earth first and its not an alien invasion. Love this twist. The cold being angry and wanting its world back. When Gillian questions the Doctor I love how Susan describes how he forgets humans are creatures of intelligence. John is still convinced the Doctor and Susan are aliens saying how the cold is after humans and she isn't one he is right, but Susan tried to keep that a secret to protect him. The rule of not meddling is mentioned again, the Doctor wanting to leave the humans to be extinct by the cold but Susan try's to say they don't deserve it, pointing at Malcom saying hes perfect and this isn't fair. Gillian in desperation grabs Susan in a headlock and says the doctor should help or she will kill her, her friend. The Doctor and her having a good back and forth on who deserves to live its an extremely good part of the book. I adored how interfering is such a huge part of this book and how much conflict it creates in Susan and the Doctors mind, the one rule they haven't broken yet. Susan getting the Doctor to wonder if he should put the cold knight on Pluto but its Malcom and his toy that gets through to him breaking down the walls the most. The Doctor and the group of 5 start to work together to the Doctor using Malcom hold on to two bits of metal and wish, Zack to play the organ and using John and Gillians minds to think of hot things. The plan worked the machine the Doctor made blew up and the cold was thawing and the doctor taking it to its new home Pluto. I loved this it felt like every side character in the group had a purpose to the story and didn't feel useless.
The next day Susan talks about all the people lost in the cold snap, its a nice human moment for her. Malcom is still telling stories of Susan but the other 3 slowly start to drift from Susan they might be friends now but knowing Susan is an alien, the friendship probably wont last leaving Susan an unearthly child at coal hill. The last line being that the Tardis has broken its co-ordination and will now go anywhere at random, the Doctor will have it fixed in no time.
I LOVED THIS BOOK another story i just couldn't stop reading from the Telos Novellas honestly might be my favourite story so far.
My Ranking: 10/10
Next Time:An Unearthly Woman
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