Review: Peacemaker

In the American West, a mysterious healer is travelling from one town to another, providing a miraculous cure for smallpox. However, after he leaves, horrifying nightmares plague his patients' minds. And to make matters worse, two outriders with energy weapons are searching for the healer, and anyone who stands in their way will be killed. It's up to the Doctor and Martha to find the healer, stop the outriders, and solve the mystery.

Often, the "Wild West" setting is tired and cliched through parody and over-use, so I was sceptical about its appearance in Peacemaker - but unnecessarily so. The locations are vibrant and complement the storyline, and the characters are fun and well-formed. It's a mark of the story's success that, as the novel drew to a close, I wanted Martha and the Doctor to hang around in this particular environment for longer.

Swallow is not afraid to surprise his audience - compared to other New Series Adventures books, Peacemaker can be rather dark and shocking. Shortly after introducing two new characters and getting the reader to engage with them, one is massively injured and the other has seen their father die at the hands of a ruthless outrider! Not even the regulars are safe, and Martha's injury still carries with it substantial suspense and drama, even though we know she'll be alright in the end.

It seems that the larger-than-life personality of the Tenth Doctor is easy to reproduce on the page, with the majority of writers in this series doing so successfully, James Swallow included. Where Swallow particularly excels is in his pitch-perfect portrayal of Martha, unmistakably the more confident and capable companion of episodes like Human Nature, written brilliantly and faithfully.

Assorted fan-pleasing references to other Who adventures add an extra level of enjoyment without being distracting, and the pace is consistently fast with only a couple of exceptions. All in all, Peacemaker is a fine example of the better New Series novels. Sharp dialogue, exciting plotting and engaging writing combine to form a fantastic read.