Doctor Who The Glamour Chase by Gary Russell

I’ve read a couple of Gary Russell Doctor Who novels before that haven’t impressed me a great deal, but I found The Glamour Chase to be an absolute delight from start to finish. Gary has the characterisation of Matt Smith’s Doctor spot on, and his portrayals of Amy and Rory are very convincing too. The story is very gripping also, with the depiction of a massacre in Little Cadthorpe being especially chilling. Although I’m not sure how the Doctor manages to fall into some sheep dip – he’s not usually that clumsy! Gary Russell has come up with some ingenious monsters for The Glamour Chase, especially the Weave, who seemed to be composed of some form of fibrous material like wool. Admittedly, their practice of shape shifting, which involves the kidnapping and imprisoning of the people they impersonate, is not particularly original, as the Zygons used this same method in the classic series (albeit for more devious purposes). The Glamour itself doesn’t appear to be too dissimilar to the Enamour that featured in Una McCormack’s recent Doctor Who book, The King’s Dragon. However, the fact that the two writers employed such similar devices is most likely down to coincidence, rather than collusion, and besides, both novels have rather different settings and stories otherwise. In the end, it’s a human threat that the Doctor has to deal with. The fact that the human at the centre of it is so likeable and compelling is a testament to how good a storyteller Gary Russell can be when he puts his mind to it.