Roy Gill (1)

This box set comprises 4 full-cast stories featuring Michelle Gomez as Missy, the incarnation of the Master that squared off with Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor.

A Spoonful of Mayhem, by Roy Gill (3.5/5): Some literal LOL moments as Missy does a Mary Poppins: crossbreeding dogs and squirrels into a creature that chases itself up trees for kicks. Also I immediately guessed that Dan Starkey was the Warden. I like the idea of Missy being subject to exile like the Doctor was in the 1970s. Boy does she chafe at those restrictions. But also boy does this story highlight how sociopathic she is. The kids were rather stilted, and I couldn’t tell if that was their characters or the actors.

Divorced, Beheaded, Regenerated, by John Dorney (4/5): This was totally bonkers and I loved it, even as there was a LOT of scenery-chewing (especially when the Meddling Monk and Missy were trying to out-villain each other). I did not know how it would turn out, and there are some great LOL moments (but to say more would spoil them).

The Broken Clock, by Nev Fountain (3.5/5): This story begins with a highly amusing read on true crime documentaries (hyperbolic narration, constant repetition of information) and becomes a somewhat meta, mildly confusing in places involving time loops real and imagined. Americans may find the satire of Americans somewhat over the top (the theme tune for the documentary had what sounded like the opening line of “Yankee Doodle” Morse coded into it as a motif), and the American cops seemed to speak through clenched square jaws and take everything seriously, including their quipping. I did find myself surprised by the turns the story took, so well done.

The Belly of the Beast, by Jonathan Morris (2/5): I could buy the general premise (Missy sets up some sort of exploitative mining operation), but I still don’t really understand why the mining needed to be literally inside a beast; it didn’t add anything to the story. There was also an awful lot of screaming and yelling, which I should probably expect from a Missy story, but it felt OTT and meant I couldn’t listen to it in public because I was constantly adjusting the volume.

Overall rating: 3.25/5… (meer)

Cameron is a young teen who has just lost his father, and his mother left when he was even younger, so he's very thankful when his grandmother takes him in, even though he doesn't know her at all because for some reason, his father wouldn't let him have anything to do with her when he was growing up. When she tells him she can bring his father back from the dead with his help, he's over the moon. She explains to him that there is a world parallel to ours, called the Daemon parallel, and that he has magic and can help her obtain all of the things needed to perform the ritual to bring his father back. This sets Cameron off on a quest that involves werewolves, daemons, and even humans, and puts him in danger from an unexpected source.

I enjoyed this book very much. Cameron was a very likeable young man, and the friends he makes along the way are just as likeable. The interesting thing is that the ones you think will be evil sometimes aren't, and the ones you're supposed to trust are sometimes the ones you should be running away from the fastest. It keeps you on your toes!

The plot was well written, and moved along at an easy pace. The world building was phenomenal due to a very interesting setting. The human world and the Daemon parallel were described very well, which made them easy to imagine. The ending was a great twist, as well.

In summary, I enjoyed this book very much and look forward to reading the next book in the series.

Highly recommend to MG readers who like a little paranormal in their stories.

5/5 stars.

I received a copy of this book free of charge through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.… (meer)