''The Many Hands'' is a

BBC Books BBC Books (also formerly known as BBC Publishing) is an imprint majority-owned and managed by Penguin Random House through its Ebury Publishing division. The minority shareholder is BBC Studios, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasti ...

original novel written by Dale Smith and based on the long-running science fiction television series ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

''. It features the

Tenth Doctor The Tenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the main protagonist of the BBC science fiction television franchise ''Doctor Who''. He is played by David Tennant in three series as well as nine specials. As with previous incarnations of the ...

and

Martha Jones Martha Jones is a fictional character played by Freema Agyeman in the long-running British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'' and its spin-off series, ''Torchwood''. She is a companion of the Tenth Doctor in ''Doctor Who'', afte ...

. It was published on 10 April 2008, alongside '' Martha in the Mirror'' and ''

Snowglobe 7 ''Snowglobe 7'' is a BBC Books original novel written by Mike Tucker and based on the long-running science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It features the Tenth Doctor and Martha Jones. It was published on 10 April 2008, alongside '' ...

''.

Synopsis

The book opens with the mysterious arrival of a baby in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, 1773. The scene shifts to the city fifteen years earlier. The Doctor and Martha are confronted by the walking dead, first a solitary figure which attacks a stagecoach containing

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...

, then by an army of the creatures rising from the putrid waters of the

Nor' Loch The Nor Loch, also known as the Nor' Loch and the North Loch, was a man-made loch formerly in Edinburgh, Scotland, in the area now occupied by Princes Street Gardens and Waverley station which lie between the Royal Mile and Princes Street. ...

. The British soldiers under Captain McAllister who have arrested the Doctor find themselves following his lead. Part of this is the soldier's desire to save innocent civilians endangered by the creatures. Meanwhile, at the

Surgeon's Hall Surgeons' Hall in Edinburgh, Scotland, is the headquarters of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd). It houses the Surgeons' Hall Museum, and the library and archive of the RCSEd. The present Surgeons' Hall was designed by William ...

, Martha has met a couple of physicians, Alexander Monro, senior and

junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959 * ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009 * ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010 * ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019 Films * ''Junior'' (1994 ...

, who apparently brought the first corpse back to life. They lock her in a small room with dozens of hands, disembodied but disturbingly active. The Doctor deduces the presence of a

modular Broadly speaking, modularity is the degree to which a system's components may be separated and recombined, often with the benefit of flexibility and variety in use. The concept of modularity is used primarily to reduce complexity by breaking a sy ...

alien and discovers its sinister intentions. Benjamin Franklin reappears in the final chapter, set in 1771, meeting Alexander Monro, who reclaims the hand he gave Franklin years before, the last one on Earth.

Notes

*The Alexander Monro featured in the book is Alexander Monro ''primus''. The clone Alexander is based upon his son, Alexander Monro ''secundus'', and the implication at the end of another Alexander clone is a reference to Alexander Monro ''tertius'', the original's grandson. As stated in the book, all three were anatomists at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

Audiobook

An abridged audiobook was released on 19 February 2009, read by

David Troughton David Troughton (born 9 June 1950) is an English actor. He is known for his Shakespearean roles on the British stage and for his many roles on British television, including Dr Bob Buzzard in ''A Very Peculiar Practice'' and Ricky Hanson in ''Ne ...

, who is the son of

Second Doctor The Second Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. He was portrayed by actor Patrick Troughton. While the Troughton era of ''Doctor Who'' is well-remembered by fans an ...

actor,

Patrick Troughton Patrick George Troughton (; 25 March 1920 – 28 March 1987) was an English actor who was classically trained for the stage but became known for his roles in television and film. His work included appearances in several fantasy, science fiction ...

, and who also played Professor Hobbes in "

Midnight Midnight is the transition time from one day to the next – the moment when the date changes, on the local official clock time for any particular jurisdiction. By clock time, midnight is the opposite of noon, differing from it by 12 hours. ...

References

External links

*
The Cloister Library - ''The Many Hands''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Many Hands Fiction set in 1758 Novels set in the 1750s Novels set in the 1770s 2008 British novels 2008 science fiction novels New Series Adventures Tenth Doctor novels Novels by Dale Smith

Synopsis

Notes

Audiobook

See also

References

External links