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The Eleventh Doctor and Amy land at an archaeological site to battle a goddess who feeds on human greed…

Contrary to some reports (and early versions of the cover), the full version of this early story for the Doctor and Amy maintains the casting from the preview release in The Guardian in February, with Clare Corbett stepping in for Karen Gillan to play both Amy and the granddaughter of one of the protagonists. It’s an unusual format for the series – closer to Big Finish’s Companion Chronicles in many ways – but although Amy’s scenes are written from her perspective, those narrated by Matt Smith are objective, rather than from the Doctor’s viewpoint.

James Goss’s story worked well without benefit of sound effects in the Guardian’s freebie, and they add an extra element to an already-spooky tale. There’s a little bit of duplication of theme with Martin Day’s The Jade Pyramid and the recent release of the Tom Baker story The Stones of Blood (apparently immobile guardians who come to life under divine instruction) but Goss provides an extra twist which sets this apart.

Verdict: An enjoyable standalone story from a period before everything went insane for the Doctor and Pond.  7/10

Paul Simpson

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