Another book gets squeezed into the dubious gap between the television stories Resurrection of the Daleks and Planet of Fire - will it finally plug the gap for good?
Another book from the prolific author Christopher Bulis, and again it is of the same poor standard of his last effort, City at World's End. It starts off well, looking like it's leading into a reasonably crafted novel. Instead it ends up as Who-by-numbers, ending with an uncharacteristic Fifth Doctor and a plot device use of Kamelion.
The novel opens by introducing a previously unseen and never mentioned part of the TARDIS - the Time Safe - which is immediately removed from the story, until the end. The safe's contents, a diary, introduces The Doctor and the reader to events already taking place - and in The Doctor and Turlough's case, about to take place.
The actual idea of The Doctor having to choose between timelines is an interesting concept, but this novel doesn't really enact upon the set up of the situation, instead, pushing it aside except to mention it occasionally to remind the reader of this dilemma facing The Doctor.
Many people on-line have jokingly suggested that Christopher Bulis is a computer, this book may just prove it to them. It is really easy to spot what will happen next and uses stock characters - ie, the by the book commander who refuses to change when the situation is beyond him, the crewman ahead of his time etc.
Of the main secondary characters, Halliwell and Emily, they are very well crafted, but extremely predictable. The space vixens are old hat and their use in this novel proves it, right down to their last moments, and the final twist revealed about them.
As the novel progresses, so does the reader's boredom, as they know what is coming up. For instance, I cheered at the start of Chapter 16, knowing what was going to be the result of that chapter, and I was rewarded with my prediction becoming true, with the slaughter of very overused stock characters, killed of in via stock methods.
The novel ends with an uncharacteristic Fifth Doctor engaging in acts of violence, and choosing the right part of history, along with a another formulaic use of Kamelion. The Time Safe is reintroduced, to lead into the beginning of the novel, and everything tidies up nicely, making this novel very boring and easy to predict.
So, in closing, if you a looking for an easy to read, very formulaic Doctor Who novel, then I can recommend Imperial Moon to you. If you are looking for a Fifth Doctor story that engages the reader, then don't look here.
6.7/10
Next time: The Fourth Doctor and Romana face death and a theme park ride...