Forever Autumn

Review: Novel idea or forever ending? One school lets us know!

We asked the pupils of Penistone Grammar School in Barnsley for their views on Doctor Who novel Forever Autumn by Mark Morris. Here's what Lauren, Lewis, Lucy and Sophie had to say:

What is the story about? (Spoilers)

Sophie: It's Halloween in the village of Blackwood Falls in New England and the Doctor and Martha head out into the spooky mist that surrounds the village.
Lucy: A lot of unexplainable things start happening, such as the green mist, crazed cats, and one of the towns-folk loosing his mouth.
Lauren: They find out that a species called the Hervoken has been living under the small town for millions of years and they are planning to kill all the people in Blackwood Falls.

What were the characters like?

Lauren: The Doctor is a charming, intelligent and mysterious man like always and he hasn't changed at all.
Sophie: Martha was funny; always on her toes and ready for danger, but used her knowledge to help herself and others.
Lewis: Rick and his friends are a bunch of normal 12 year-olds whose curiosity lets all hell loose.

What did you particularly enjoy/like about Forever Autumn?

Lucy: I really enjoyed the lifelike descriptions found in the book, as they drew me in and let me imagine the whole thing really clearly.
Lewis: I enjoyed the fact it had a lot of mystery and monsters.
Sophie: I particularly enjoyed the imagination of the writer. The genre of Halloween is such a great subject as there are so many different ways to portray it.

Is there anything about the story that you didn't like?

Lewis: I didn't like the way The Doctor was introduced half way into the book instead of at the very beginning - and that he barely knew a thing about what was going on.
Sophie: There wasn't really a bit of the book that I didn't like, as it is a great storyline and can't really be bad.
Lauren: There was nothing that I didn't like about it.

What did you think of the story as a whole?

Lauren: Pumpkins are always creepy and the writer makes a great spooky atmosphere. I would recommend it to all of my friends.
Lewis: I thought the story altogether was a great story, with just the right amount of scares!
Lucy: It had a really good plot line and once the story got going, I really enjoyed reading it.
Sophie: I thought it was a really interesting story and would definately recommend it to anyone who has an interest in Doctor Who.

Marks out of 10?

The group gave Forever Autumn 9.5/10.

Special thanks to teacher Matthew Lidbury for his assistance.