BBC Books Slow Decay A Torchwood Novel

Author	Andy Lane
Published	2007

Synopsis: There's a new weight-loss drug on the streets.

• A Review by Shawn Metz

A Review by Shawn Metz 23/5/12

In Janurary of 2007, BBC books released three novels to tie-in with the first season of their new Doctor Who spin-off series, Torchwood. The first was Another Life, followed by Border Princes. Having just finished Slow Decay by Andy Lane, I feel this book was the best of the three. Another Life introduced the concept and characters of the show; Border Princes did its own thing that would confuse any reader who hadn't watched the show and used that book as a jumping-on point; Slow Decay tries to create a connection between the reader and a few of the main characters: namely, Gwen and Rhys.

As with the prior two novels, this book has a theme of possession and shares traits with Another Life in regards to victims who are partially eaten, only in this novel cannibalism is involved rather than an alien feeding off humans.

This book has two plots running through it. The first involves a dietary clinic that offers a fast-acting solution to weight loss, using two pills. One pill is marked "start" to begin the slimming process and the other "stop" to halt it. On the advise of his co-worker Lucie (who is referenced as tying to loss weight in Another Life), Rhys gives the diet plan a try in the hopes of leading a healthier life; however, as this is a Torchwood story, things are not as simple as they appear and the new dietary fad involves a series of cannibalistic murders and an attack on a Weevil, in which the creature's face is eaten away.

The second plot involves the death of five men at a club. The culprit is a device that projects the emotions of its intended target onto the user. When the device is seized by Torchwood, Gwen decides to use it to spice up her relationship with Rhys. Both plots drive forward at a great pace, though the second plot weakens later in the novel after Gwen uses the device with disastrous results. It seems as if Lane is struggling to keep the second plot thread alive when it plays little into the main plot.

Lane is spot-on with all the Torchwood regulars, though Jack does let loose with more wisecracks than usual. Lane especially captures Gwen and Rhys extremely well and I could almost hear the voices of Eve Myles and Kai Owen as I read their dialogue. It was the connection with these two characters and the conflicts they faced that really kept me turning the pages just to find out what happened to them. This is one of the reasons why I enjoy tie-in novels. You get a stronger connection with the characters than you sometimes would on the television (depending on the writer).

Unlike Border Princes , I will not spoil the plot for this one. Highly recommended. 7/10