The Also People (novel)
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Publisher's Summary
'Just how technologically advanced are they?' The Doctor frowned. 'Let me put it this way: they have a non-aggression pact with the Time Lords.'
The Doctor has taken his companions to paradise, or at least the closest thing he can find. A sun enclosed by an artificial sphere where there is no want, poverty or violence.
While Chris learns to surf, meets a girl and falls in love with a biplane, Roz suspects an alien plot and Bernice considers that a Dyson Sphere needs an archaeologist like a fish needs a five-speed gear box.
Then the peace is shattered by murder. As the suspects proliferate, Bernice realises that even an artifical world has its buried secrets and Roz discovers what she's always suspected -- that every paradise has its snake.
Characters
- Once broke the Galactic record for continuous spoon playing: 67 hours worth.
- Most likely would have killed Kadiatu had Benny not saved her.
- Gets rescued by a parachute that designs apple trees in its spare time.
- The ships are scared of him.
- Can think faster then he can talk (obviously) and is capable of keeping up with (and confusing) a ship that thinks that picoseconds is a long time.
- Whistles "anything you can do, I can do better" with a small bomb in his mouth.
- Trusts God as much as god trusts him.
- Mercilessly mocks a member of the Time Lord Interest Group over the inconsistencies in his Time Lord costume.
- Goes to a Fancy Dress Party dressed as himself.
- Has visited a Dyson Sphere before, albeit one that was already fragmented.
- Despite everything, Benny still trusts the Doctor.
- Realises that there isn't enough alcohol in the unvierse to allow her to cope with the idea that the People are on par with the Time Lords and have a non-aggression pact with them.
- Roz's middle name is revealed here to be 'Inyathi' meaning 'buffalo'.
- Roz decided in her youth that messy sex didn't offer anything a 3 pack of Martian ale and a long shower couldn't.
- Has a sister: Lebe.
- Roz's father collected Dalek poetry.
- Chris's grandfather was colour blind.
- Bakes bread
- Has a daughter, Dep.
- Fancies Benny.
- Sleeps with Chris and impregnates herself with his sperm.
- Is a long time friend of the Doctor.
- Is 'looking after' Kadiatu for the Doctor.
- Has a relationship with Roz.
- He has a secret agent in the Proxy Wars.
- Is the accomplace in the murder of vi!Cari.
- Brings a weird yellow dip to parties that no one ever eats.
- Insists he/it is not a computer.
- Is a member of the Anti-Machine Interest Group.
- Trusts the Doctor as much as the Doctor trusts him.
- !C-Mel
- Is the murderer of vi!Cari, the Doctor kills !C-Mel.
- Is murdered.
- Is a gossip and rather unliked even by other ships.
- Kadiatu Lethbridge-Stewart
- Plays chess with the Doctor, and as a sign of her improved mental prowess begins to play it in her head against him in his. She wins some of the games.but...
- Looses an arm wrestling contest with the Doctor. Much to everyone's surprise.
- Is a ship.
- Murdered 200,000 beings in a moment of combat panic.
- Got combat psychosis some years ago.
References
- The Time Lords and The People have a non-aggression treaty, part of which stops the People from developing time travel and interferring in the affairs of the Mutter's Spiral.
- The People built and live in the Worldsphere.
- iSanti Jeni is the town closest to where the Doctor and co are staying.
- feLixi volunteered in the Xeno Relations (Normalisation) Interest Group (XR(N)IG) as a secret agent.
- Benny has a pretty surreal dream involving drinking and discussing evil with: a Dalek, a Cyberman, a Sontaran (named Grinx), Davros also gets a mention. (see page 222 of The Also People)
- God lives in Whynot where the continents constantly change on God's whim. This includes drowning a city (slowly and with due forewarning to the locals) because he heard about Atlantis.
- Flashback is a drink that makes you relive the past (the more you drink the more clear it is).
- The Lament of the Non-Operational is a 128 stanza long piece of Dalek poetry.
- The Windmills in the Worldsphere are real and do generate power.
- The Doctor mentions World War IV.
Notes
- In the introduction Ben Aaronovitch details how to pronounce the names of the People.
- The image on the cover of this novel actually happens in the novel.
Continuity
- saRa!qava attends Benny's wedding reception in NA: Happy Endings Kadiatu is also present.
- The People / elements of the People's (or God itself) culture appear in BNA: Oh No It Isn't!, Down, Ghost Devices, Walking to Babylon and Where Angels Fear (in which also the final fate of !C-Mel is revealed) and The Quantum Archangel where the People and God are involved in the Millennial Wars that the Doctor learns about.
