A Device of Death by Christopher BulisThe Doctor, Sarah, and Harry have been separated due to an intervention from the Time Lords. The Doctor ended up in space near a so-called planet that hides a very dark secret. The Doctor arrives on the planet and is quickly welcomed as a helping hand to the cause `against Averon,' the sworn enemy. He labors with the people in an effort to help the cause against Averon, or so it seems. Throughout his time there, the Doctor investigates suspicions he has as to the true meaning of Deepcity. The Doctor uncovers a plot against the people, that extends to the highest rank of power. But he is caught, and sentenced very quickly to death.
Sarah lands on an Averonian moon, which is home to a slave world. She is quickly taken as a slave, and subsequently worked to the point of exhaustion. She is constantly thinking about escape, and when her moment arrives, terrified, she attempts it and succeeds. She escapes in a cargo ship with is intercepted...
Harry lands on a war-torn planet an immediately puts his medical skills to work and wins over the trust of friends. He joins forces with them as they steal a ship in efforts to test a new tracking device. The intercept the cargo ship which Sarah is on just in time to save her life, as the oxygen was being depleted. Together, they, along with their newfound allies, sneak into Deepcity in time to save the Doctor from execution.
All that has filled their minds up to this point is questions, and the Doctor decides it's finally time to start looking for answers. They escape Deepcity in a new TARDIS mysteriously provided by the Time Lords. They set off for 3 destinations: One of the guardian fortresses orbiting around Averon (which is supposed to have been insurmountable in power; a great reason no one has dared attacked Averon); the planet of Averon itself (which is supposed to be a thriving planet with the most modern technology); and Landor (a planet which was supposed to have been utterly destroyed by Averon some 20 years prior).
What they found was: A guardian fortress which was nothing more than an impressive hoax, with `just an awful lot of light bulbs, essentially'; a dead and desolate planet of Averon; and a thriving and very much alive planet of Landor. I very much enjoyed this book. It kept my interest really well, and it finished up very quickly paced. There is much, much more to it then I've described above, but I wouldn't want to ruin it all for you. A very good story, and one that is very much indicative of the Fourth Doctor, Sarah Jane Smith, and Harry Sullivan. One of the ways I can tell if the story fits the people it's supposed to is if I can hear in my mind the very words being spoken by the actor that spoke them in the television stories. (i.e. Tom Baker, Elisabeth Sladen, and Ian Marter) This was done very well by Christopher Bulis.
Favorite quote: `He (the Doctor) jumped to his feet and began to pace about, gesticulating as he spoke half to himself, "Layers of secrets, lies behind lies. This is an inter-stellar-scale conspiracy at the highest levels and they don't mind how many people die to preserve it."' (pg. 196, paragraph 2)
