Story: In a house called Shadowfell, Mysterious Forces abound. These forces cause the TARDIS to be redirected to the cellar of this old house, and relieve the machine of its power. So, our three heroes are forced to explore their surroundings, using that old fashioned plot expander: to seperate the three characters to allow more hjinks to prevail! Bernice is the first person to run into someone – a deranged lunatic locked in a basement room. He proceeds to give her quite a scare, as well as confusing her thoroughly. The Doctor and Ace, realising that Bernice is missing, decide to search for her by going upstairs, thus increasing the running-into-weirdoes factor to 10. The Doctor runs into a dottery old gardener, who has a green thumb for meat-eating orchids. And Ace of course runs headlong into trouble, fists a-swinging, meeting up with a man wearing a strange wooden mask. (Now if that isn’t creepy…)
Review: Just when you think all has gone awry, the author twists and turns you through the ever-changing rooms of the house, tormenting residents and readers alike. Also, the continued use of a dead companion in the furthering of the story is both unusual, and well done…Bernice is quite good in this role. Death becomes her! (Oh, how I wish it was Ace that died…)
I will not give away how this book ends, but events culminate in a battle of wits, pitting the twins against the grey man, the Doctor against the twins, dead Bernice against the twins, the twins against The Doctor, Ace, Bernice, and Professor Winterdawn…whew!
This is not your typical Doctor Who book. The Doctor being terrified at events, brooding, and even crying, do not really wash with me. What ever happened to the lapel-grabbing, defiant Doctor of old? Hidden secrets never revealed…Always one step ahead…anyway, you can’t have everything. And when you think, that this book is actually, in some warped way, a sequel to Black Orchid, you realize that perhaps expanding certain elements of that story were quite well done. Still, do not be put off by the sheer girth of this book! It moves well, and it produces curiosity about who the main antagonists really are. (I’m always hoping it’s the Valeyard! Will we ever see him again?) Still, “Falls The Shadow” gets 7 out of 10 on my sliding review scale, whatever that is supposed to mean to anyone…
Year: 1994
Author: Daniel O’Mahony
Publisher: Virgin
Pages: 288
