Review: The Thirteenth Stone 

Preceding similar releases from the Doctor Who and Torchwood ranges, The Sarah Jane Adventures makes the transition into the audio medium with a pair of exclusive original stories. The first is The Thirteenth Stone, written by Justin Richards.

Narrated by Elisabeth Sladen in character as Sarah Jane Smith, the story sees the eponymous journalist accompanying her young friends Maria, Luke and Clyde on a school trip. They're intrigued by an old stone circle which is shrouded in a mysterious legend, but things take an unexpected turn when a scientific investigation of the stones causes the old stories to come true.

After a book range comprised entirely of novelisations, it's fantastic that fans have finally been treated to an original SJA tie-in adventure, but it's also nice that this story is subtly different from the TV series. As well as being that bit longer (running for just under seventy minutes), it's told entirely from Sarah Jane's perspective, whereas the children are typically the identification point for viewers of the show. When Luke is in danger, it's all the more horrifying because we experience it from his mother's viewpoint, and this adds an extra level of jeopardy and excitement.

As the narrator, Elisabeth Sladen is as strong as you'd expect. She doesn't try too hard to imitate the other regular cast members, which is a sensible choice, but she creates nice recognisable identities for some of the one-off characters. She also puts a lot of emotion into her performance, really selling the more personal and heartfelt moments of Richards' story. Having her read first-person is a brave choice, and she carries it off flawlessly.

The only thing that niggled me slightly about the story was Richards' inaccurate interpretation of the younger characters. I don't know anyone of Clyde's age who uses the word "random" to the same excess (or in the same contexts!) that Clyde does here, to give just one example. Elements of the school trip doesn't quite ring true either - parent helpers at a secondary school? - and there are moments when it feels like the author is writing down to his audience, which is something the television series has managed to avoid doing.

That said, Richards doesn't make any sacrifices elsewhere: tonally, there are some quite dark and scary moments. When the results of the scans of the stones are revealed, this audiobook is genuinely very chilling, and Luke's possession leads to some quite horrifying scenes.

Overall, this is a great little adventure, highly recommended for all fans of the television series. Good stuff.