BBC Books Monsters and Villains

Author	Justin Richards
ISBN	0 563 48632 5
Publisher	BBC Books
Published	2005

Summary: For over forty years, the Doctor has battled against the monsters and villains in the universe. This book brings together the best or rather the worst of his enemies. Discover why the Daleks were so deadly; how the Yeti invaded London; the secret of the Loch Ness Monster; and how the Cybermen have survived. Learn who the Master was, and above all how the Doctor defeated them all. Whether you read it on or behind the sofa, this book provides a wealth of information about the monsters and villains that have made "Doctor Who" the tremendous success it has been over the years, and the galactic phenomenon that it is today.

• A great start to the series by Oliver Price

A great start to the series by Oliver Price 8/12/08

I noticed that no-one had reviewed the new series books in the "Non-Fiction" section, so I decided I would oblige and review a few of the new series books, including this one, Monsters and Villains. It is basically a book on the best monsters from the classic series, with the monsters from the new series also in there

This book is definitely the best of the three (I will review the other books in the series at a later date.) One of the best things about this book is the actual selection of monsters, the most important part of any monster guide. Unlike the next two, this book only uses the most memorable monsters, such as the Cybermen and Daleks. With the possible exception of the Haemovoeres (from The Curse of Fenric), there are no bad choices of monsters for the book.

Another major bonus for this book is the layout, a crucial thing in any book. The book uses a fairly simple layout, which prevents the book becoming muddled or cluttered in any way.

I suppose I'd better describe the layout here. Basically, every monster has one page for a labelled picture of the monster itself, with a paragraph about the monster underneath. Then, every story that monster appeared in gets a page of description, giving you all the necessary information about the story. For example, the page about the story The Curse of Peladon would give you information on the Planet Peladon, The Federation, and The Legend of Aggedor.

The book is also full of behind-the-scenes information on how the monsters were made. This is a great plus for the book, with the information naming both informative and, more importantly, interesting.

As well as having a good selection of behind the scenes information, the book is well illustrated and eye-catching throughout. To compliment this, the text given is also informative.

So, in short, Monsters and Villains is a great book, and a great start to the series of monster guides. It may not be the best book ever, but it still is worth the money.

7.5/10