By Naomi Alderman

BBC Books, new edition out July 19

 

Andrew Brown spends his life as a slave to time – there’s never enough of it – and so he’s drawn towards Mr Symington and Mr Blenkinsop who make him an offer that he can’t resist, realising too late just what exactly he’s signed up for.

Naomi A Alderman’s 2011 11th Doctor hardback original novel gets a paperback reprint by BBC Books, complete with new cover, as part of the imprint’s ‘Year of the Female’ Doctor Who strand, and what a treat it is. To date, this is the only Doctor Who story that the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction winner has had published, and it packs in enough ideas for half a dozen.

Without wishing to state the obvious (but here I go anyway) for me the greatest USP of the series is its use of time. The travel to distant planets is all well and good, but the complexities and consequences of messing around with time are irresistible, and Alderman  has done something really neat with it here, turning it into a commodity. For once, the attention is less on the Doctor and his companions – though the author brings them to life with TV-authentic dialogue – and more on the intricacies of borrowing time and paying it back.

Having just rescued the Ponds from a romantic getaway that turned bad, the Doctor pilots the TARDIS to Lexington International Bank, and with a flash of the psychic paper – he’s Dr Schmidt, an auditor from Zurich – the crew are investigating just why workers are collapsing and productivity is going through the roof. It’s soon discovered that those wishing to get ahead have signed up to a special device, a Time Harvester, that allows you to turn back the clock, but with the understanding that it must be paid back with interest.

Aside from the fun sci-fi runaround and some great loan sharks Symington and Blenkinsop (literally sharks!) Alderman really brings to life the reality of debt, getting in over your head, and realising that by not reading or understanding the Terms and Conditions you find yourself in a downward spiral. The effects of compound interest are spelt out large, with even Amy succumbing to temptation and becoming addicted to the short-lived thrill of ‘free’ free time, before realising the actual cost.

Verdict: Exciting, easy to read and with something of substance to say, this was (and remains) one of the best Doctor Who writing debuts. The author has made it known that she’d love to write for the TV show – I really hope she’s on Mr Chibnall’s radar. 9/10

Nick Joy

Click here to order Borrowed Time from Amazon.co.uk