Doctor Who: At Childhood’s End

Thirteenth Doctor Novel

De: Sophie Aldred

Narrado por: Sophie Aldred

Past or future, which path do you choose?

Past, present and future collide as the Thirteenth Doctor meets classic Doctor Who companion Ace, in an epic novel written and read by Sophie Aldred.

Once, a girl called Ace travelled the universe with the Doctor - until, in the wake of a terrible tragedy they parted company. Now, decades on, she is known as Dorothy McShane, the reclusive millionaire philanthropist who heads the global organisation A Charitable Earth.

But Dorothy is being haunted by terrible nightmares in which she’s abducted to an alien world. Nightmares that begin just as scores of young runaways are vanishing from the dark alleyways of London. Could the disappearances be linked to sightings of sinister creatures - part man, part rat - lurking in the city shadows? Why has an alien satellite entered a secret orbit around the Moon? And how has Dorothy become a target for the victors in an interstellar war?

Investigating the satellite with Ryan, Graham and Yaz, the Doctor is thrown together with Ace once more. Together they must unravel a malevolent plot that will cost of thousands of lives. But can the Doctor atone for her past incarnation’s behaviour - and how much must Ace sacrifice to win victory not only for herself, but for the Earth?

Sophie Aldred, who played Ace in the BBC TV serial, reads her own thrilling novel.

Written by Sophie Aldred with Steve Cole and Mike Tucker

Storyline by Sophie Aldred, Steve Cole and Mike Tucker

Text copyright © Sophie Aldred 2020

Reading produced by Neil Gardner Recorded at Ladbroke Audio Ltd

Sound design by Simon Power for Meon Sound

Executive producer: Michael Stevens

©2019 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2019 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

What fun!

Sophie was not only one of my favorite Doctor Who companions as Ace, she’s also a talented storyteller! This book was so much fun I had a hard time putting it down. Well done Sophie you have brought a wonderful era back to life.

For Whovians

Sophie Aldred is an Outstanding author and narrator. Thank you for sharing this story and for being a great companion.

Soooo Good!!

This is the first 13th Doctor story I’ve listened to, it was totally worth it! A really great plot that tied up some loose ends from a few recreations past. I enjoyed every minute.

voices were Ace!

pun intended.

Sophie Aldred did a fantastic job narrating. Sometimes it sounded to me like she mixed up the voices a bit, used the wrong voice, but overall I was really impressed.

The story is also really interesting. I confess that I've never seen the original series, so it was pretty rad to get a glimpse into it and to meet some of the characters. Especially given that Ace will be making an appearance in 13's finale this fall!

I recommend this title.

Sophia nails it

I am very impressed! Sophie Aldred totally hits the mark with this story. Proves to me that Ace needs to make a cameo with the 13th Doctor. The story and writing is exceptional and Sophie’s performance is on point. Her impression of the 13th Doctor is impressive. I thought several times that Jodie Whittaker was part of the reading.

FANTASTIC!

This book is appsolutly fantastic! 10 out of 10! the best Doctor Who story I've read in a while.

Awesome!

Great stories and perfect narration! I love these Doctor Who books!!! I will continue listening to them, especially ones written and narrated by Sophie!

Ace!

Sophie Aldred's character Ace is arguably my favorite classic Doctor Who companion. I loved her opposite Sylvester McCoy's 7th Doctor - on TV, as well as in those unlicensed BBV "Professor and Ace" audio dramas of the 1990's, and in 20 years (and counting!) worth of official Doctor Who audio dramas from Big Finish Productions. So I went into this with high hopes.
Thankfully I was not disappointed. Her storytelling, plot development, and prose style are all quite good, and her knowledge of the Doctor Who universe is excellent. This is truly one of the better Doctor Who novels out there. And what better way to experience it than to listen to it read by Sophie herself! In addition to still being able to perfectly channel Ace, she does a cracking good 13th Doctor, and handles the other voices with skill as well.
One of the clever things this novel does, is find a way to sort of reconcile all of the various post-TV futures for Ace. Because in addition to Ace's future in the Virgin New Adventures books, there are also the not-completely-consistent futures in the various audio drama series' by Big Finish - their 7th Doctor adventures, their "Lost Stories", and their Gallifrey series. It isn't explored in great depth, but this novel, at more than one point touches on the idea that young Ace was at one point was given glimpses of all of these as possible futures. Doing it this way, skillfully sidesteps having to declare allegance to any one specific timeline.
"At Childhood's End" also successfully tackles explaining why Ace and the Doctor stopped travelling together in the first place - something otherwise never really explained in any of the post-TV books/audios - and allows the two of them to figuratively revisit that, and work it out.
This is all not to say that the book is all about drumming up the past. It's also a rather good, brand new adventure for the current Doctor and her companions, that could easily have been adapted for television.
I'm really hoping this isn't just a one-off for Sophie. She clearly knows her character, as well as the Doctor Who universe, and how to tell a compelling story. So hopefully this sells well enough for her to consider writing another. C'mon, Sophie! More!

Great into to prior Dr Who's & Companions. are my

Best 13th DR. WH0 ever ,great writing sns audio to fall asleep to. Starting over night after night'snjfinding finish it tonight.

Ace can tell a story

A great story that blends old and new who. Sophie has a great reading voice. very enjoyable