Doctor Who: Big Bang Generation

Or, should I say "big bust"? No, I didn't dislike it that much. As someone who knew River Song long before I read this book, I kept thinking that, 'God, Bernice is a rip-off," but I'm getting ahead of myself.

So, Big Bang Generation features a pyramid appearing in Sydney out of nowhere. It stars the Doctor as played by Peter Capaldi and some older, lesser known characters out of the Doctor Who universe, Bernice Summerfield and her gang.

The book was entertaining enough. It definitely wasn't the best Doctor Who novel I've read. Definitely not the best I've read from this author, Gary Russell. It kept me reading to the end, but at times that push was quite tenuous.

Why? Again, I know and love River Song. I'm relatively new to Who, so this Bernice Summerfield character seemed to be an obnoxious rip-off. I know now that Bernice pre-dates River. I know how Bernice fans felt when River came along.

The first 90 pages were a chore for someone who is not familiar with Bernice and frankly doesn't care for her. Yes, 90 pages, that's almost half the book, was spent on background before the pyramid ever even landed in Sydney. If you love Bernice, you might like the background. If not, it makes for a difficult read.

[Spoiler alert]: I would have preferred if the story started with the Bavarian couple hunting in the woods. It would have been a bit of a fun mystery. And I guess that statement wasn't much of a spoiler at all. Oh, well.

I'd give this book 3 stars out of 5. Not horrible, but definitely not the best. It's difficult to read a book where the first 90 pages are just annoying and you really don't like one of the characters.

I got to read this book through Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review. I love Blogging for Books, they offer an excellent opportunity for bloggers like me to get free books to blog about.