The Book of the War
Encyclopedia
The Book of the War is a hypertext
multi-author novel presented in the form of an encyclopedia of the first 50 years of the War in the Faction Paradox
universe based on the Doctor Who
universe. The book was edited by Lawrence Miles
, and written by Miles, Simon Bucher-Jones
, Daniel O'Mahony
, Ian McIntire, Mags L. Halliday, Helen Fayle, Philip Purser-Hallard
, Kelly Hale
, Jonathan Dennis, and Mark Clapham
.
The book makes references to the Doctor Who
novels Alien Bodies
, Interference
, The Taking of Planet 5
, and The Shadows of Avalon
, and it features the characters Compassion
and Chris Cwej
who first appeared in Doctor Who novels. A number of other parallels with Doctor Who characters and concepts can be found, but these links are not explicit. No familiarity with Doctor Who is required to appreciate The Book of the War.
Characters and settings from The Book of the War appear in the later Faction Paradox novels Of the City of the Saved...
, Warring States and Newtons Sleep
, and the short story anthology A Romance in Twelve Parts
.
is a rare example of similar use of a non-linear encyclopedic structure for a work of fiction.
Hypertext
Hypertext is text displayed on a computer or other electronic device with references to other text that the reader can immediately access, usually by a mouse click or keypress sequence. Apart from running text, hypertext may contain tables, images and other presentational devices. Hypertext is the...
multi-author novel presented in the form of an encyclopedia of the first 50 years of the War in the Faction Paradox
Faction Paradox
Faction Paradox is a fictional time travelling cult/rebel group/organized crime syndicate, originally created by the author Lawrence Miles. The Faction's belief-system as portrayed has some similarities to voodoo, and is sometimes described as such...
universe based on the Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
universe. The book was edited by Lawrence Miles
Lawrence Miles
Lawrence Miles is a science fiction author known for his work on original Doctor Who novels and the subsequent spin-off Faction Paradox...
, and written by Miles, Simon Bucher-Jones
Simon Bucher-Jones
Simon Bucher-Jones in Liverpool; he is a British author, poet, artist, and amateur actor, best known for his Doctor Who novels for Virgin and the BBC and as a contributor to the Faction Paradox spin-off series....
, Daniel O'Mahony
Daniel O'Mahony
Daniel O'Mahony is a half-British half-Irish author, born in Croydon. He is the oldest of five children, his siblings including Eoin O'Mahony of the band Hamfatter, and Madeleine O'Mahony, who has designed and made hats for Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge.-Biography:O'Mahony's first professionally...
, Ian McIntire, Mags L. Halliday, Helen Fayle, Philip Purser-Hallard
Philip Purser-Hallard
Philip Purser-Hallard is an author and scholar whose interests in science fiction and religion have been expressed both in fiction and non-fiction....
, Kelly Hale
Kelly Hale
Kelly Hale is an American author. Her first novel was the e-book Erasing Sherlock Holmes, which mixed Sherlock Holmes with a time-travel plot. Her next novel, co-written with Simon Bucher-Jones, was the BBC Doctor Who novel Grimm Reality...
, Jonathan Dennis, and Mark Clapham
Mark Clapham
Mark Clapham is a British author, best known for writing fiction and reference books for television series, in particular Doctor Who in his book : Who's Next....
.
Content
Although various plot threads can be found in the book, its real value lies in the wealth of ideas on display. It's primarily a guide to many of the important factions involved in the War in Heaven. These include Faction Paradox itself, the Great Houses, the Celestis, the Remote, and Posthumanity. A number of hints about the mysterious Enemy against whom the Great Houses at fighting are scattered through the text, but nothing conclusive. The book details many individuals, events, technologies, and concepts related to the War.The book makes references to the Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
novels Alien Bodies
Alien Bodies
Alien Bodies is an original novel written by Lawrence Miles and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Eighth Doctor and Sam. This story marks the first appearance of Faction Paradox, a time travelling Gallifreyan voodoo cult...
, Interference
Interference: Book One
Interference: Book One is an original novel written by Lawrence Miles and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
, The Taking of Planet 5
The Taking of Planet 5
The Taking of Planet 5 is a BBC Books original novel written by Simon Bucher-Jones & Mark Clapham and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Eighth Doctor, Fitz and Compassion. It is, in part, a sequel to the television serial Image of the...
, and The Shadows of Avalon
The Shadows of Avalon
The Shadows of Avalon is a BBC Books original novel written by Paul Cornell and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
, and it features the characters Compassion
Compassion (Doctor Who)
Compassion is a fictional character in the Eighth Doctor Adventures novels based upon the British science fiction television series, Doctor Who. Compassion was originally from a people known as the Remote, a splinter group of the time travelling voodoo cult Faction Paradox...
and Chris Cwej
Chris Cwej
Christopher Rodonanté Cwej, usually just known as Chris Cwej, is a fictional character from the Virgin New Adventures range of spin-offs based on the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who...
who first appeared in Doctor Who novels. A number of other parallels with Doctor Who characters and concepts can be found, but these links are not explicit. No familiarity with Doctor Who is required to appreciate The Book of the War.
Characters and settings from The Book of the War appear in the later Faction Paradox novels Of the City of the Saved...
Of the City of the Saved...
Of the City of the Saved... is an original novel by Philip Purser-Hallard set in the Faction Paradox universe. Laura Tobin, who first appeared in the BBC Doctor Who books, is a major character in the novel....
, Warring States and Newtons Sleep
Newtons Sleep
Newtons Sleep is an original novel by Daniel O'Mahony set in the Faction Paradox universe. .It is the first Faction Paradox novel to be published by Random Static, and was launched on the 12th of January 2008. Although taking place in a shared universe, it is a stand-alone work that does not...
, and the short story anthology A Romance in Twelve Parts
A Romance in Twelve Parts
A Romance in Twelve Parts is a short story anthology edited by Lawrence Miles and Stuart Douglas, published by Obverse Books in May 2011, featuring the voodoo-style time-travelling cult Faction Paradox....
.
See also
The otherwise unrelated novel Dictionary of the KhazarsDictionary of the Khazars
Dictionary of the Khazars: A Lexicon Novel is the first novel by Serbian writer Milorad Pavić, published in 1984. Originally written in Serbian, the novel has been translated into many languages...
is a rare example of similar use of a non-linear encyclopedic structure for a work of fiction.