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{{Infobox Story
{{Infobox Story SMW
|name = The Sands of Time  
|image        = <gallery>Ma-22.jpg|1996 edition
|image = Ma-22.jpg  
The Sands of Time ebook cover.jpg|2004 edition
|series = [[Virgin Missing Adventures]]  
Dw sands of time 600.jpg|2014 edition
|number = 22  
</gallery>
|doctor = Fifth Doctor  
|series       = [[Virgin Missing Adventures]]
|companions = [[Nyssa]], [[Tegan Jovanka|Tegan]]  
|range        = Virgin Missing Adventures
|enemy = [[Nephthys]], Sadan Rassul
|number in range = 22
|setting = {{il|[[Nephthys' Pyramid]], [[BC|2000 BC]]|[[Nephthys' Pyramid]], [[September]] [[1896]]|[[Nephthys' Pyramid]], [[1996]]|[[Cranleigh Hall]], [[Oxfordshire]], [[1926]]|[[British Museum]], [[London]], [[1896]]|[[British Museum]], [[London]], [[1996]]|[[Great Pyramid of Giza|Great Pyramid]], [[Egypt]], [[1996]]|[[James Norris]]'s House, [[1996]]|[[Kenilworth House]], [[9 November|9]] to [[10 November]] [[1896]]|[[Kenilworth House]], [[1996]]|[[Great Pyramid of Giza|Great Pyramid]], [[1798]]|[[St Helena]], [[1821]]}}  
|number       = 22
|writer = [[Justin Richards]]  
|doctor       = Fifth Doctor
|publisher = Virgin Books  
|companions   = [[Tegan Jovanka|Tegan]], [[Nyssa]]
|release date = [[16 May (releases)|16 May]], [[1996 (releases)|1996]]
|featuring    = [[Ann Talbot|Ann]]
|format = Paperback Book, 256 Pages  
|enemy        = [[Nephthys]], [[Sadan Rassul]]
|isbn = ISBN 0-426-20472-7
|setting      = {{il|[[London]] [[9 November|9]]-[[10 November]] [[1896]]|[[Egypt]], [[September]] [[1896]]|[[Kenilworth Hall]], [[November]] [[1996]]}}
|prev = The Eye of the Giant (novel)
|writer       = Justin Richards
|next = Killing Ground (novel)
|cover        = [[Alister Pearson]]
}}
|publisher   = Virgin Books
'''''The Sands of Time''''' was the twenty-second novel in the [[Virgin Missing Adventures]] series. It was written by [[Justin Richards]]. It featured the [[Fifth Doctor]], [[Nyssa]] and [[Tegan Jovanka]].
|release date = 16 May 1996
|format       = Paperback Book; 19 Chapters, 256 Pages
|isbn         = ISBN 0-426-20472-7
|prev         = The Eye of the Giant (novel)
|next         = Killing Ground (novel)
}}{{store variant data|var=2004 ebook|release date=2004}}{{prose stub}}
'''''The Sands of Time''''' was the twenty-second novel in the [[Virgin Missing Adventures]] series. It was written by [[Justin Richards]] and featured the [[Fifth Doctor]], [[Nyssa]] and [[Tegan Jovanka]].


== Publisher's summary ==
== Publisher's summary ==
=== 1996 Virgin Books edition ===
=== 1996 Virgin Books edition ===
:"If [[Sutekh]] had escaped, no power in the universe could have stopped him wreaking havoc and destruction. This time, it’s worse."
:"If [[Sutekh]] had escaped, no power in the [[universe]] could have stopped him wreaking havoc and destruction. This time, it's worse."


Arriving in [[Victorian]] [[London]], the [[Fifth Doctor]], [[Nyssa]] and [[Tegan Jovanka|Tegan]] run straight into trouble: Nyssa is kidnapped in the [[British Museum]] by [[Egyptian]] religious fanatics; the Doctor and Tegan are greeted by a stranger who knows more about them than he should and invited to a very strange party.  
Arriving in [[Victorian]] [[London]], the [[Fifth Doctor]], [[Nyssa]] and [[Tegan Jovanka|Tegan]] run straight into trouble: Nyssa is kidnapped in the [[British Museum]] by [[Egypt]]ian [[religious]] [[fanatic]]s; the Doctor and Tegan are greeted by a stranger who knows more about them than he should and invited to a very strange [[party]].


Why are rooms already booked for the Doctor at the [[Savoy Hotel|Savoy]]? How can Lord [[Kenilworth]]’s butler [[Atkins]] be in [[Egypt]] and London at the same time? What is the history of the ancient [[mummy]] to be unwrapped at [[Kenilworth House|Kenilworth’s house]]? And what has all this got to do with Nyssa?  
Why are rooms already booked for the Doctor at the [[Savoy Hotel|Savoy]]? How can Lord [[Kenilworth]]'s [[butler]] [[Atkins (The Sands of Time)|Atkins]] be in [[Egypt]] and London at the same time? What is the history of the ancient [[mummy]] to be unwrapped at [[Kenilworth's house]]? And what has all this got to do with Nyssa?


The Doctor’s quest for answers leads him across continents and time as an ancient Egyptian prophecy threatens [[1990s]] England. While the Doctor attempts to unravel the plans of the mysterious [[Sadan Rassul]], mummies stalk the night and an ancient terror stirs in its tomb.
The Doctor's quest for answers leads him across [[continent]]s and [[time]] as an ancient Egyptian [[prophecy]] threatens [[1990s]] England. While the Doctor attempts to unravel the plans of the mysterious [[Sadan Rassul]], mummies stalk the night and an ancient terror stirs in its tomb.


=== 2014 BBC Books edition ===
=== 2014 BBC Books edition ===
The Doctor is in Victorian London with Nyssa and Tegan - a city shrouded in mystery. When Nyssa is kidnapped in the British Museum, the Doctor and Tegan have to unlock the answers to a series of ancient questions.
The Doctor is in Victorian London with Nyssa and Tegan — a city shrouded in mystery. When Nyssa is kidnapped in the British Museum, the Doctor and Tegan have to unlock the answers to a series of ancient questions.


Their quest leads them across continents and time as an ancient Egyptian prophecy threatens future England. To save Nyssa, the Doctor must foil the plans of the mysterious Sadan Rassul. But as mummies stalk the night, an ancient terror stirs in its tomb.
Their quest leads them across continents and time as an ancient Egyptian prophecy threatens future England. To save Nyssa, the Doctor must foil the plans of the mysterious Sadan Rassul. But as mummies stalk the night, an ancient terror stirs in its tomb.


== Plot ==
== Plot ==
 
''to be added''
The TARDIS materializes in Victorian times in the Egyptian wing of the British Museum, and the Doctor discovers that it has been drawn off-course by an Osiran lodestone sarcophagus. While he and his friends are exploring, however, Nyssa is kidnapped and carried out of the museum by unidentified attackers. As the Doctor and Tegan search vainly for her in the gaslit streets outside, they are contacted by a butler named Atkins -- who seems to know them already, and who gives them an invitation to a mummy-unwrapping party at Lord Kenilworth’s home the next afternoon. Atkins seems to believe that the Doctor and Tegan are staying at the Savoy, and when they investigate they find that rooms have already booked in their names and the hotel staff seem to know them already. One waiter in the dining room is particularly rude to Tegan, due to the displeasure she expressed the previous night when he served her cutlets. Puzzled, the Doctor and Tegan attend the party the next afternoon, where Lord Kenilworth thanks the Doctor for his help on the expedition. The mummy is then unwrapped -- to reveal Nyssa, who has been in a deep metabolic coma for over four thousand years. The Doctor tries to wake her, but realizes that it will take a hundred years for her metabolism to get back up to speed. Lord Kenilworth promises that he and his family will watch over her in the meantime, and takes half of the Doctor’s invitation to the party; in a hundred years’ time, his descendent will deliver the mummy into the care of the man who arrives with the other half.
 
The Doctor and Tegan return to the Museum, but after they leave, Kenilworth realizes that he’s forgotten to ask whether it’s important for the sarcophagus lid -- now on loan to the Museum -- to be replaced. He thus sends Atkins after them to inquire, but just as Atkins catches up they are attacked by Nyssa’s assailants -- Egyptians led by Sadan Rassul, who recognizes Atkins even though the butler has never seen him before. Rassul has already used the lodestone to send Nyssa back in Time, and he now seals the Doctor, Tegan and Atkins in what he assumes to be another sarcophagus and drops it into the Thames to prevent them from interfering further. Fortunately, the “sarcophagus” is actually the TARDIS, and the Doctor is thus able to follow Nyssa’s trail through Time back to Ancient Egypt. Atkins has no choice but to accept that he’s travelled in Time, and he accompanies the Doctor and Tegan as they head for the nearby pyramids to investigate further. They are too late to save Nyssa, who has already been placed in a coma by the high priest of Nephthys -- Sadan Rassul. The burial ritual involves the ceremonial breaking of a canopic jar, and a handmaiden who had befriended Nyssa as she was prepared for sacrifice explains to the Doctor that the jar used to contain the essence of the goddess; however, it cracked some time ago, and Nyssa has thus been chosen as the new host.
 
The Doctor takes the TARDIS to Victorian-era Egypt to join Lord Kenilworth’s original expedition, and although Kenilworth is surprised to see his butler Atkins in Egypt, Atkins convinces him to listen to the Doctor. Kenilworth, impressed by the Doctor’s knowledge of enthusiasm, and when the Doctor offers to lead Kenilworth directly to the lost pyramid he’s seeking, Kenilworth agrees to let him join the expedition. When they arrive, the Doctor finds it disturbingly easy to open the pyramid, but inside, the expedition members are sealed inside the entrance tunnel and confronted by two Shabti, automaton guardians carved to resemble a beautiful young woman. The ceiling of the tunnel is illuminated with a pattern of lights, and the intruders are ordered to select the missing point. Nicholas Simons identifies the pattern of lights as the position of the Great Pyramids along the Nile, but the Doctor recognizes that they are also stars in the constellation of Orion. The missing point represents the location of the Sphinx, or of the planet Phaester Osiris, and when the Doctor touches the space where it should be, the doors of the tomb open up -- releasing a blast of psychic energy which kills Simons before he can get to shelter with the others.
 
Over the course of the next few days, most of the artefacts in the tomb are excavated, although the Doctor is pained by the archaeologists’ casual belief that it’s better to move the artefacts to Britain than leave them in context in the sands of Egypt. While spending time in the tomb she knows to be her friend’s, Tegan finds a secret panel which opens up to reveal another tomb with a second mummy inside. The Doctor becomes concerned when he sees that the cartouche on the tunnel wall identifies this as the resting place of Nephthys, and he secretly alters Kenilworth’s notes to ensure that the second mummy will not be discovered. As the expedition wraps up and prepares to set off, however, Rassul arrives, reanimates Simons’ corpse and activates a number of Osiran service robots disguised as mummies; although he intends to let Kenilworth take Nyssa’s mummy back to England, some of the artefacts he’s taken must be returned to the tomb to ensure that its psionic potential does not degrade. With the Doctor’s help, the expedition members fight off the attack with few casualties, and retreat to Cairo with a number of artifacts still in their possession.
 
The Doctor, Tegan and Atkins accompany Kenilworth back to London, but since Atkins is unable to return to Kenilworth’s home while his younger self is there, he waits in the TARDIS while the Doctor and Tegan help prepare for the mummy-unwrapping party. When Kenilworth arrives at home, he’s surprised to find Atkins waiting there, claiming that he never left. The Doctor books rooms for himself and Tegan at the Savoy, where Tegan tries to defy destiny by ordering ham and subsequently loses her temper with the waiter when he mishears her order and serves her lamb cutlets. The Doctor tells Kenilworth to deliver an invitation to him outside the British Museum at midnight, and returns to the TARDIS with Tegan, having ensured that events will proceed for him as they did before.
 
The Doctor, Tegan and the elder Atkins then travel forward in time to 1996, to wait for Nyssa to awaken. The Kenilworth family home is now owned by a geneticist named Aubrey Prior, and has undergone extensive renovation following a fire which gutted its interior. When the Doctor supplies Prior with his half of the invitation, Prior invites him and his friends to attend his daughter Vanessa’s 21st birthday party. There, they meet her fiancé, a young architect named James Norris, and recognize Vanessa’s ring as one of the artifacts from the tomb.
 
Prior has developed an interest in Egyptology due to his legacy, and he shows the Doctor and Tegan that he’s surrounded Nyssa’s mummy with plasterboard recreations of the original tomb walls... including the cartouche of Nephthys which the Doctor erased from the expedition’s notes. The Doctor is beginning to fear that he’s made a terrible mistake in reviving Nyssa. He explains to Tegan and Atkins that much of Egyptian culture was shaped by the Osirans, aliens with godlike powers whose terrible war with the renegades Sutekh and Nephthys finally ended on Earth. The Osiran leader, Horus, cruelly imprisoned the renegades with the means of their escape just barely beyond their grasp. The Doctor has already fought Sutekh and won, but according to legend, Nephthys was even more cunning, devious and dangerous. The Doctor is unsure just how Nephthys was imprisoned, but he believes that Nyssa is somehow involved -- and it’s very possible that by breaking her coma, the Doctor may have inadvertently provided Nephthys with the means by which to free herself.
 
Over the past century, the artifacts from the tomb have passed into the hands of private collectors. When one such collector is murdered and the artifact stolen from his collection, the Doctor realizes that someone is gathering together the psychic foci required to restore Nephthys to life. There are only two remaining in private hands -- Vanessa’s ring, and a jade cobra belonging to James Norris. The Doctor sends Tegan to warn Norris of the danger, while he and Atkins visit contemporary Egypt to find out how Prior learned about the “missing” cartouche. There, they learn that Prior led an expedition to the pyramid some years ago, and removed the second mummy and tomb’s original walls, claiming that they were to be reassembled in the British Museum. The Doctor explains to Atkins that the tomb is useless where it sits now; the Sphinx and the Great Pyramids are part of a psionic relay system which the Osirans used on Earth, but over the past five thousand years, Earth’s position relative to their constellation has shifted, and the relay system should no longer be able to draw power from their homeworld.
 
Tegan arrives at Norris’ country home just as an entranced Vanessa tries to steal the jade cobra. Norris tries to restore Vanessa’s sense of self, but she still feels odd compulsions pulling at her mind, and loses consciousness. An Osiran service robot commanded by Rassul then breaks into the house, knocks out Tegan and Norris, and takes away both Vanessa and the cobra. When Norris recovers, he explains to Tegan that he originally brought the cobra to Prior for identification, and subsequently fell in love with Vanessa when Prior hired him to redesign his house after the fire. But over the past few days she’s been behaving strangely, and while trying to get a passport for their honeymoon, Norris found that there were no records of her birth on file, and no legal papers indicating who her mother was. The Doctor and Atkins then return and reveal that, having researched Egyptian mythology in the TARDIS library, they now believe they know how Nephthys was imprisoned. Her mind was split in two, her intellect and reasoning stored in a canopic jar while her instinct and intuition were stored in an innocent, unsullied human mind. Rassul was given eternal life in order to guard her tomb, but when the canopic jar was cracked during a failed tomb robbery, centuries after her imprisonment, some of Nephthys’ influence was released, and Rassul fell under her influence. He thus selected Nyssa to host the other half of Nephthys’ mind -- choosing a prison which Nephthys knew she would be able to escape.
 
The Doctor departs to collect the equipment he needs for the final battle, and travels to 1926 to ask a favor of an old friend. Tegan, Atkins and Norris confront Prior, only to find Rassul waiting. He used to be Horus’ high priest, until Horus selected Rassul’s daughter to host Nephthys’ instinctive half; Nephthys thus used his guilt to bind him to her service. When Prior returned from Egypt with the second mummy, he ran a CAT scan on the body, and in so doing released enough of Nephthys’ psychic potential for Rassul to enslave him. Under Rassul’s influence, Prior took tissue samples from the second mummy, and created a clone -- Vanessa. He also set his own house on fire so he would have an excuse to rebuild it into the shape of a pyramid. Over the years, as Earth’s position has shifted, the focal point of the Osiran relay has moved from the Sphinx to this house. Vanessa’s mind has now been entirely subsumed beneath Nephthys’ instinctive half, and when Nyssa awakens Nephthys’ mind will be fully restored -- as, Rassul hopes, will be the original host, his daughter.
 
Rassul shoots and kills Norris, and leads the subdued Tegan and Atkins to the cellar, where the Doctor is waiting for them. Vanessa kills Prior, and waits for Nyssa to awaken -- but when Nyssa rises from her resting place, the wrappings fall away to reveal a ninety-year-old woman. The Doctor announces that she’s been in a waking trance since 1926, ageing while remaining dormant, and that over time Nephthys’ reasoning side has dispersed. Unable to locate any trace of herself in the woman before her, Vanessa/Nephthys uses the sarcophagus lodestone to travel back to 1926, believing that she will become complete when Nyssa wakes. However, when she arrives in 1926 she finds Nyssa still in a deep coma, from which she will not awaken for 70 years. Acting entirely on instinct, with no intellect or reason to hold her in check, Nephthys repeatedly travels back and forth between 1926 and 1996, between the sleeping Nyssa and the aged woman -- but although each journey takes moments she still ages seventy years, and eventually she crumbles to dust, having aged beyond the lifespan of even an Osiran. Rassul and the mummies fall to dust at the same time. The Doctor then reveals that the aged woman is in fact their old friend Lady Ann Cranleigh, Nyssa’s exact double, whom they met in 1926. The real Nyssa is in the TARDIS, and the Doctor uses a canopic jar which he stole from the British Museum and modified to entrap Nephthys’ intellectual side when Nyssa awakens. The Doctor buries the jar in the sands of Egypt, near the original pyramid, and returns Atkins to his home with a newfound appreciation for adventure and life.
 


== Characters ==
== Characters ==
*[[Fifth Doctor]]
* [[Fifth Doctor]]
*[[Tegan Jovanka]]
* [[Tegan Jovanka]]
*[[Nyssa]]
* [[Nyssa]]
*Lady [[Ann Cranleigh]]
* [[Ann Talbot|Lady Ann Cranleigh]]
*Lord [[Kenilworth]]
* [[Kenilworth|Lord Kenilworth]]
*[[Atkins]]
* [[Atkins (The Sands of Time)|Atkins]]
*[[Sadan Rassul]]
* [[Sadan Rassul]]
*[[Nephthys]]
* [[Nephthys]]
*[[Aubrey Prior]]
* [[Aubrey Prior]]
*[[James Norris]]
* [[James Norris]]
*[[Vanessa Prior]]
* [[Vanessa Prior]]
*[[Nicholas Simons]]
* [[Nicholas Simons]]
*[[Shabti]]
* [[Shabti]]
* [[Napoléon Bonaparte]]


== References ==
== Worldbuilding ==
=== Individuals ===
=== Individuals ===
* [[Nyssa]] is chosen as the host for [[Nephthys]].
* Nephthys is released when the [[canopic jar]] containing her reasoning is broken while robbers are plundering her [[pyramid]].
* Nephthys is released when the [[canopic jar]] containing her reasoning is broken while robbers are plundering her [[pyramid]].
* The Doctor makes a passing reference to [[Scaroth]] and his involvement in the construction of the Pyramids of Giza.
* [[Marcus Scarman]] arrives for dinner at Lord Kenilworth's in [[1896]].
* The final passage of the book has [[Marcus Scarman]] arriving for dinner at Lord Kenilworth's in [[1896]].
* Tegan tells the Doctor that her sense of adventure died in [[Amsterdam]].
 
=== Species ===
* Further history of the [[Osirian]]s is detailed.
 
=== Time travel ===
* The death of [[Adric]] is discussed several times by Tegan and the Doctor, specifically why the Doctor cannot use the TARDIS to save him and the emotional impact it has had on them.


== Notes ==
== Notes ==
* This novel continues many of the themes in the television story ''[[Pyramids of Mars (TV story)|Pyramids of Mars]]'' and functions as both a prequel and a sequel.
* The story was released as an e-book on the BBC website in 2004, with the book remaining on the website until 2010. It contained illustrations by [[Peter McKinstry]] and added an alternate ending to the story. The alternate ending was added into the story by having a character called [[the Chronicler]] run a simulation of the events of the ending of the novel "if things had gone differently".
* This novel was reprinted and released as an ebook by [[BBC Books]] on [[6 March (releases)|6 March]] [[2014 (releases)|2014]] as ''The Monster Collection Edition''.
* The phenomenon of the [[Web of Time]] and the Doctor's inability to change history despite his limitless ability to travel in time is central to the novel. It is discussed several times by the Doctor and Tegan. The Doctor does mention that he has seen history changed, but that it requires "fantastic power" and is often disastrous.
* The phenomenon of the [[Web of Time]] and the Doctor's inability to change history despite his limitless ability to travel in time is central to the novel. It is discussed several times by the Doctor and Tegan. The Doctor does mention that he has seen history changed, but that it requires "fantastic power" and is often disastrous.
* Despite this, Tegan attempts to change history in a minor way. However, events end up not being changed at all - something that doesn't surprise the Doctor.
* Despite this, Tegan attempts to change history in a minor way. However, events end up not being changed at all — something that doesn't surprise the Doctor.
* This novel was reprinted and released as an ebook by [[BBC Books]] on [[6 March (releases)|6 March]] [[2014 (releases)|2014]] as ''The Monster Collection Edition''.
* Further history of the [[Osiran]]s is detailed in this story.
* This story is set between ''[[Arc of Infinity (TV story)|Arc of Infinity]]'' and ''[[Snakedance (TV story)|Snakedance]]''.


== Continuity ==
== Continuity ==
* This novel continues many of the themes in [[TV]]: ''[[Pyramids of Mars]]'' and functions as a prequel and a sequel.
* The Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan first met [[Ann Talbot|Lady Ann Cranleigh (neé Talbot)]] in [[Cranleigh Hall]] in [[Oxfordshire]] on [[11 June]] [[1925]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Black Orchid (TV story)|Black Orchid]]'')
* The Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan first met [[Ann Talbot|Lady Ann Cranleigh (neé Talbot)]] in [[Cranleigh Hall]] in [[Oxfordshire]] on [[11 June]] [[1925]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Black Orchid (TV story)|Black Orchid]]'')
* Tegan mentions that she lost her sense of adventure in [[Amsterdam]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Arc of Infinity (TV story)|Arc of Infinity]]'')
* Tegan mentions that she lost her sense of adventure in [[Amsterdam]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Arc of Infinity (TV story)|Arc of Infinity]]'')
* The Doctor refers to [[Scaroth]] ([[TV]]: ''[[City of Death (TV story)|City of Death]]'') and the [[Zero Room]] ([[TV]]: ''[[Castrovalva (TV story)|Castrovalva]]'').
* The Doctor refers to [[Scaroth]] having been manipulated by the Osirans. ([[TV]]: ''[[City of Death (TV story)|City of Death]]'')
* He also mentions the [[Zero Room]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Castrovalva (TV story)|Castrovalva]]'')
* Tegan sketches the dig site in Egypt. ([[TV]]: ''[[Four to Doomsday (TV story)|Four to Doomsday]]'')
* The death of [[Adric]] is discussed several times by Tegan and the Doctor, specifically why the Doctor cannot use the TARDIS to save him and the emotional impact it has had on them. ([[TV]]: ''[[Earthshock (TV story)|Earthshock]]'')
 
== Illustrations ==
The BBC e-book of ''The Sands of Time'' contained several illustrations by [[Peter McKinstry]].
 
<gallery position="center" captionalign="center" hideaddbutton="true">
File:Sands of Time Prologue.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">"She was hardly more than a girl, her eyes betraying her fear as she shivered in the warm rain. The Priests stood either side of her holding her arms out from her body. Their heads were lowered - perhaps in shame, perhaps in an effort to keep them dry."</div>
File:Sands of Time Chapter 2.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">"Nyssa was being drawn closer, into the kaleidoscope of light. She clasped her hands tightly over her shoulders as the blackness closed around her and Rassul's laughter faded into the hazy darkness."</div>
File:Sands of Time Chapter 4.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">"The tree quivered and shook as a heavy object washed up against it, jamming hard in the mud. In a moment it was quiet again. Just the river, the breeze, the reeds and the tree. And the solid blue box of the TARDIS stuck fast in the muddy bank of the ancient river Nile."</div>
File:Sands of Time Chapter 5.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">The excavation was a huge pit in the desert, at the base of a sandy mound. On the side of the pit below the mound, the wall of sand was interrupted by the shining black marble of the pyramid side."</div>
File:Sands of Time Chapter 6.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">"Each of the figures was seven feet tall. Heavy legs moving the body stiffly forward with a rolling motion that transferred the weight of the mummy from one leg to the other as the figure twisted its way forwards towards the central dais."</div>
File:Sands of Time Chapter 7.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">"Simons lifted his hands slowly to her neck and sher closed her eyes, lifting her head towards his. She tried not to flinch when the stench grew stronger as he leaned forward, pushing her back on to the bed."</div>
File:Sands of Time Chapter 10.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">"Her hand was on the light switch when she saw the rows of specimen jars. She was already in the process of turning out the light as she began to realise what the shapes floating inside the discoloured fluids might be."</div>
File:Sands of Time Chapter 11.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">"'Exactly.' the Doctor smiled. 'Now then...' He twisted round trying to get his bearings, licking his index finger and holding it up. Then he stared out across the desert sands in the opposite direction to the crater. 'That way, I think.'"</div>
File:Sands of Time Chapter 12.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">"Norris gaped at the mummy in amazement. Then he raised the shotgun to his shoulder and fired. One of the barrels spat flame and the mummy lurched back under the impact. The bandages on the upper body tore and smoked as the lead shot ripped through."</div>
File:Sands of Time Chapter 15.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">"A drunk stirred in the gutter as one of the massive figures stepped over him. He stared in fuzzy horror at the shape moving above him, then dragged himself to his feet and fled noisily in the opposite direction."</div>
File:Sands of Time Alternate Ending.jpg|<div style="font-size:80%;line-height:100%">"The Chronicler peered into the glowing embers of reality. Deep within the holosphere, a single quantum choice played itself out for him. He was at one with the world he watched, oblivious to the great hallway in which he worked."</div>
</gallery>
 
== Additional cover images ==
<gallery position="center" captionalign="center" hideaddbutton="true">
The Sands of Time ebook cover.jpg|The [[Target Books]]-style cover for the ebook
Dw sands of time 600.jpg|2014 editon. Cover by [[Two Associates]].
</gallery>
 
== Editions published outside Britain ==
* Published in Germany by Cross Cult in 2021 as a paperback edition.
 
<gallery position=center captionalign=center hideaddbutton="true" >
GermanSandsOfTime.jpg|German edition
</gallery>


== External links ==
== External links ==
* {{dwrefguide|who_ma22.htm|The Sands of Time}}
{{dwrefguide|who_ma22.htm|The Sands of Time}}
* {{whoniverse|MA22.php|The Sands of Time}}
* {{whoniverse|ma22|The Sands of Time}}
* [http://www.magnetopia.org/cloisterlibrary/sand.htm The Cloister Library: '''The Sands of Time''']
* [http://mysite.science.uottawa.ca/rsmith43/cloister/sand.htm The Cloister Library: '''The Sands of Time''']


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Latest revision as of 20:44, 24 March 2024

Error creating thumbnail: Read-only mode

Error creating thumbnail: Read-only mode

The Sands of Time was the twenty-second novel in the Virgin Missing Adventures series. It was written by Justin Richards and featured the Fifth Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan Jovanka.

Publisher's summary[[edit] | [edit source]]

1996 Virgin Books edition[[edit] | [edit source]]

"If Sutekh had escaped, no power in the universe could have stopped him wreaking havoc and destruction. This time, it's worse."

Arriving in Victorian London, the Fifth Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan run straight into trouble: Nyssa is kidnapped in the British Museum by Egyptian religious fanatics; the Doctor and Tegan are greeted by a stranger who knows more about them than he should and invited to a very strange party.

Why are rooms already booked for the Doctor at the Savoy? How can Lord Kenilworth's butler Atkins be in Egypt and London at the same time? What is the history of the ancient mummy to be unwrapped at Kenilworth's house? And what has all this got to do with Nyssa?

The Doctor's quest for answers leads him across continents and time as an ancient Egyptian prophecy threatens 1990s England. While the Doctor attempts to unravel the plans of the mysterious Sadan Rassul, mummies stalk the night and an ancient terror stirs in its tomb.

2014 BBC Books edition[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Doctor is in Victorian London with Nyssa and Tegan — a city shrouded in mystery. When Nyssa is kidnapped in the British Museum, the Doctor and Tegan have to unlock the answers to a series of ancient questions.

Their quest leads them across continents and time as an ancient Egyptian prophecy threatens future England. To save Nyssa, the Doctor must foil the plans of the mysterious Sadan Rassul. But as mummies stalk the night, an ancient terror stirs in its tomb.

Plot[[edit] | [edit source]]

to be added

Characters[[edit] | [edit source]]

Worldbuilding[[edit] | [edit source]]

Individuals[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • Nephthys is released when the canopic jar containing her reasoning is broken while robbers are plundering her pyramid.
  • Marcus Scarman arrives for dinner at Lord Kenilworth's in 1896.

Notes[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • This novel continues many of the themes in the television story Pyramids of Mars and functions as both a prequel and a sequel.
  • The story was released as an e-book on the BBC website in 2004, with the book remaining on the website until 2010. It contained illustrations by Peter McKinstry and added an alternate ending to the story. The alternate ending was added into the story by having a character called the Chronicler run a simulation of the events of the ending of the novel "if things had gone differently".
  • This novel was reprinted and released as an ebook by BBC Books on 6 March 2014 as The Monster Collection Edition.
  • The phenomenon of the Web of Time and the Doctor's inability to change history despite his limitless ability to travel in time is central to the novel. It is discussed several times by the Doctor and Tegan. The Doctor does mention that he has seen history changed, but that it requires "fantastic power" and is often disastrous.
  • Despite this, Tegan attempts to change history in a minor way. However, events end up not being changed at all — something that doesn't surprise the Doctor.
  • Further history of the Osirans is detailed in this story.
  • This story is set between Arc of Infinity and Snakedance.

Continuity[[edit] | [edit source]]

Illustrations[[edit] | [edit source]]

The BBC e-book of The Sands of Time contained several illustrations by Peter McKinstry.

  • "She was hardly more than a girl, her eyes betraying her fear as she shivered in the warm rain. The Priests stood either side of her holding her arms out from her body. Their heads were lowered - perhaps in shame, perhaps in an effort to keep them dry."
    "She was hardly more than a girl, her eyes betraying her fear as she shivered in the warm rain. The Priests stood either side of her holding her arms out from her body. Their heads were lowered - perhaps in shame, perhaps in an effort to keep them dry."
  • "Nyssa was being drawn closer, into the kaleidoscope of light. She clasped her hands tightly over her shoulders as the blackness closed around her and Rassul's laughter faded into the hazy darkness."
    "Nyssa was being drawn closer, into the kaleidoscope of light. She clasped her hands tightly over her shoulders as the blackness closed around her and Rassul's laughter faded into the hazy darkness."
  • "The tree quivered and shook as a heavy object washed up against it, jamming hard in the mud. In a moment it was quiet again. Just the river, the breeze, the reeds and the tree. And the solid blue box of the TARDIS stuck fast in the muddy bank of the ancient river Nile."
    "The tree quivered and shook as a heavy object washed up against it, jamming hard in the mud. In a moment it was quiet again. Just the river, the breeze, the reeds and the tree. And the solid blue box of the TARDIS stuck fast in the muddy bank of the ancient river Nile."
  • The excavation was a huge pit in the desert, at the base of a sandy mound. On the side of the pit below the mound, the wall of sand was interrupted by the shining black marble of the pyramid side."
    The excavation was a huge pit in the desert, at the base of a sandy mound. On the side of the pit below the mound, the wall of sand was interrupted by the shining black marble of the pyramid side."
  • "Each of the figures was seven feet tall. Heavy legs moving the body stiffly forward with a rolling motion that transferred the weight of the mummy from one leg to the other as the figure twisted its way forwards towards the central dais."
    "Each of the figures was seven feet tall. Heavy legs moving the body stiffly forward with a rolling motion that transferred the weight of the mummy from one leg to the other as the figure twisted its way forwards towards the central dais."
  • "Simons lifted his hands slowly to her neck and sher closed her eyes, lifting her head towards his. She tried not to flinch when the stench grew stronger as he leaned forward, pushing her back on to the bed."
    "Simons lifted his hands slowly to her neck and sher closed her eyes, lifting her head towards his. She tried not to flinch when the stench grew stronger as he leaned forward, pushing her back on to the bed."
  • "Her hand was on the light switch when she saw the rows of specimen jars. She was already in the process of turning out the light as she began to realise what the shapes floating inside the discoloured fluids might be."
    "Her hand was on the light switch when she saw the rows of specimen jars. She was already in the process of turning out the light as she began to realise what the shapes floating inside the discoloured fluids might be."
  • "'Exactly.' the Doctor smiled. 'Now then...' He twisted round trying to get his bearings, licking his index finger and holding it up. Then he stared out across the desert sands in the opposite direction to the crater. 'That way, I think.'"
    "'Exactly.' the Doctor smiled. 'Now then...' He twisted round trying to get his bearings, licking his index finger and holding it up. Then he stared out across the desert sands in the opposite direction to the crater. 'That way, I think.'"
  • "Norris gaped at the mummy in amazement. Then he raised the shotgun to his shoulder and fired. One of the barrels spat flame and the mummy lurched back under the impact. The bandages on the upper body tore and smoked as the lead shot ripped through."
    "Norris gaped at the mummy in amazement. Then he raised the shotgun to his shoulder and fired. One of the barrels spat flame and the mummy lurched back under the impact. The bandages on the upper body tore and smoked as the lead shot ripped through."
  • "A drunk stirred in the gutter as one of the massive figures stepped over him. He stared in fuzzy horror at the shape moving above him, then dragged himself to his feet and fled noisily in the opposite direction."
    "A drunk stirred in the gutter as one of the massive figures stepped over him. He stared in fuzzy horror at the shape moving above him, then dragged himself to his feet and fled noisily in the opposite direction."
  • "The Chronicler peered into the glowing embers of reality. Deep within the holosphere, a single quantum choice played itself out for him. He was at one with the world he watched, oblivious to the great hallway in which he worked."
    "The Chronicler peered into the glowing embers of reality. Deep within the holosphere, a single quantum choice played itself out for him. He was at one with the world he watched, oblivious to the great hallway in which he worked."

Additional cover images[[edit] | [edit source]]

Editions published outside Britain[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • Published in Germany by Cross Cult in 2021 as a paperback edition.
  • German edition

    German edition

External links[[edit] | [edit source]]

v • e
Virgin Missing Adventures
First Doctor
Susan, Ian, Barbara
Ian, Barbara
Ian, Barbara, Vicki
Vicki, Steven
Dodo
Second Doctor
Ben, Polly
Jamie, Victoria
Jamie, Zoe
Third Doctor
Liz, UNIT
Jo, UNIT
Jo, Yates
Sarah, Jeremy,
The Brig
Fourth Doctor
Sarah, Harry
Sarah
Romana I, K9
Romana II, K9
Fifth Doctor
Adric, Nyssa, Tegan
Nyssa, Tegan
Tegan, Turlough, Kamelion
Turlough
Sixth Doctor
Peri
Grant
Mel
Seventh Doctor
Chris, Roz
Other
Victoria, Sarah, The Brig
Second, Third, Seventh Doctors
with Dodo and UNIT
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