Genre: Sci-Fi
Publishing Info: BBC Books (2007)
Pages: 256
Back Cover Summary:
Thick black clouds are blotting out the skies over Cardiff. As twenty-four inches of rain fall in twenty-four hours, the city centre’s drainage system collapses. The capital’s homeless are being murdered, their mutilated bodies left lying in the soaked streets around the Blaidd Drwg nuclear facility.
Tracked down by Torchwood, the killer calmly drops eight storeys to his death. But the killings don’t stop. Their investigations lead Jack Harkness, Gwen Cooper and Toshiko Sato to a monster in a bathroom, a mystery at an army base and a hunt for stolen nuclear fuel rods. Meanwhile, Owen Harper goes missing from the Hub, when a game in Second Reality leads to an old girlfriend…
Something is coming, forcing its way through the Rift, straight into Cardiff Bay.
The first official book based on the BBC TV series Torchwood is a success on two fronts. Firstly, it is a great supplement to the early episodes of the show in both its tone and content. It also succeeds at having an interesting plot with a high stakes backdrop that keeps the pacing fast.
I have recently re-watched the first series of Torchwood, and this book certainly captures its essence. The grimy aesthetic is complimented by sequences which take place in the rougher areas of Cardiff. This book is especially grimy, from the body horror described in multiple chapters, to the endless rain. I would go as far as saying that Another Life matches what those early episodes of Torchwood were going for. This is a far more grounded and gritty representation of alien encounters than its sister show Doctor Who. There are sequences that feel plucked straight from the TV, aided by visceral descriptions from author Peter Anghelides. The standouts for me were the rooftop confrontation, the apocalyptic flooding, and definitely the disgusting bathtub discovery. When reading this, I found the book quite cinematic and easily visualised this as an extended TV episode.
Chronologically, this takes place between episode 2 and 4 of Series 1. As mentioned, this book feels like an episode from this run, with one exception; the focal point. The show centred around the newest member of the team, Gwen Cooper, in its early episodes. She is the audience surrogate to this world, and Gwen balancing Torchwood with her home life is a big focus. The other cast members, including Captain Jack Harkness, are mainly fleshed out down the line. Whilst Gwen is an active participant in the story, I don’t consider her the main character. I’d put the case forward that this is an Owen Harper book, and I am delighted with this choice. Owen was handed a pretty rough hand in Series 1 of the TV show. His humour translated well, and he was front and centre in one of the best Series 1 stories. However, he was quite unlikeable in the finale, and was also the subject of an ill-thought out affair. Owen is on a separate trajectory from the rest of the team in Another Life. Reuniting with an old flame on a Second Life-style platform, he is dragged into the plot in an interesting way. The page time between his scenes and the main investigation are fairly even. This B-plot could be argued as non-essential but, for me, it is one of the book’s strongest elements.
Away from Owen’s subplot, the main story takes some interesting turns, which kept the narrative fresh. I think the race-against-time with the rising water levels definitely added to the plot rather than just being window dressing. I do have to question why such an apocalyptic incident has been placed towards the start of the series. In terms of scale, there isn’t anything as big as Cardiff being submerged until the final episode. Maybe books can take more liberties with what happens at which point in the series. Also, not everything plot-related was perfect. The middle chunk sees the Torchwood team going back and forth for their investigation. Whilst there were several moving parts, and therefore such journeys were needed, I think there was one too many. Generally though, I think the various plots, including Owen’s romance, connected well by the close.
The first supplementary book to the BBC TV show Torchwood managed to exceed several episodes from that series. It emulates the tone and grittiness of the show, and has a race against time which pushes the plot on. Best of all, it gives Owen some development, something which was rare on the show. I would recommend this book, particularly to those who liked those early episodes.
Star Rating: 4/5
+ An effective race-against-time which pushes the plot forwards
+ Development of Owen Harper’s character
+ An intriguing plot with several twists
– Too back-and-forth in the middle third
Thank you for taking the time to read my review of Another Life by Peter Anghelides. Please find the link below to the novel’s Goodreads page.
Another Life (Torchwood, #1) by Peter Anghelides | Goodreads
Have you read Another Life? Do you think it is a great supplementary book to Torchwood?
Do you have any recommendations of books you would like me to read and review in the future?
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