Doctor Who: Feast of the Drowned Book

I downloaded this audiobook from Audible.com to listen to on a road trip I never got to take, thanks to one of the aftershocks of Snowpocalypse '10. I was absolutely crushed over the cancelled trip -- mostly, I confess, because I had so many awesome audiobooks lined up -- so I started listening to this over my trip-less days off in an effort to cheer myself up.

It rather helped.

I love David Tennant, and his portrayal of the Doctor, rather unequivocally, and so getting to listen to the Doctor actually reading the story to me is pretty much as good as it gets -- at least for the Whovian for whom the Tenth Doctor is HER Doctor. I'm sure lots of the audiobooks in the New Series Adventure line are fun (in particular, I'm looking forward to listening to ones read by Freema Agyeman and Catherine Tate) -- but having them read by Tennant himself adds an extra dimension of delight. Hearing the Doctor's lines actually delivered by _the Doctor himself_ makes this less of a tie-in novel and more an audio adventure of the actual show.

It's not just as the Doctor that Tennant is delightful, either. The man may have missed his calling as a voice actor; his changing voices are _phenomenal_. He does an outstanding job with the canon characters (just LISTEN to his spot-on voice for Mickey Smith!), while also giving unique voices to each of the original characters (I particularly enjoyed Vida and Crayshaw, the latter of whom doesn't even sound like Tennant, so different does he make his voice). The guy also _acts_ the parts -- he's not just reading, he's making the story come alive. It was like having my own professional storyteller along for the car ride.

(And he reads all the narrative bits in his native Scottish accent!! ... I could go back and make that sentence less squealing-fangirl, but I don't want to.)

The story itself is a good one, good enough that I'd like to buy the book in order to read the bits I missed (this is an abridged audio, alas; I do appreciate the Monk audios being unabridged). Shipwrecks are a favorite story concept of mine (surprise!), and the idea of aliens who use the power of love and relationships as a weapon is a fantastic, chilling devise. The Doctor, Rose, and Mickey were all spot-on, characterization-wise, and I quite enjoyed the new additions. And for some reason, the scene with the Doctor, alone, fighting off the waters ("I -- AM -- NOT -- *HUMAN*!!") was just _wonderful_.

Highly recommended to any Whovian!