BASIC PLOT
The Doctor, Steven and Dodo find themselves trapped in Kiev in the Middle Ages, shortly before the Mongol hordes are due to attack. But something even worse is lurking below the city....

DOCTOR
First.

COMPANIONS
Steven and Dodo.

MATERIALISATION CIRCUIT
Kiev, 1240.

PREPARATORY READING
None.

CONTINUITY REFERENCES
Pg 17 "I nodded, remembering our earlier argument after our escape from Paris." The Massacre of St Bartholomew's Eve.

Pg 20 "One day I shall have to tell you of the fun and games we had with Polo and Khubilai." Marco Polo.

Pg 167 "I know that a future Khan - Kbubilai [sic] - will rule over an empire yet more vast than that of Ghengis, the first Great Khan." This is an indirect reference to Marco Polo, but interestingly the spelling of "Khubilai" has changed.

Pg 244 "Unlike our friend the Monk, I must strive to keep the waters of time clear and, not make them still muddier." The Meddling Monk appeared in The Time Meddler and The Daleks' Masterplan.

Pg 277 "I nodded, remembering an earlier conversation, minutes before Dodo first arrived." The Massacre of St Bartholomew's Eve.

OLD FRIENDS AND OLD ENEMIES
None.

NEW FRIENDS AND NEW ENEMIES
The Bunker Soldier.

CONTINUITY COCK-UPS

• Probably a typo, but the spelling of the Khan the Doctor met in Marco Polo changes from "Khubilai" to "Kbubilai "

PLUGGING THE HOLES [Fan-wank theorizing of how to fix continuity cock-ups]

• The first Doctor was often apt to get names wrong, so perhaps he slipped up. He might also be altering the truth deliberately, since the second use is when telling a Mongol of the future, so he might want to cover his tracks.

FEATURED ALIEN RACES
The Bunker Soldier.

FEATURED LOCATIONS
The city of Kiev, 1240 (autumn, according to the afterword) and the surrounding plains.

IN SUMMARY - Robert Smith?
Bunker Soldiers is a very disciplined work from one of the most underrated authors in the range. The characters are so engaging that you almost wish this were a pure historical. It changes gears somewhat when the SF part of the story takes over, but it's no less entertaining. The continuity is whittled down to almost nothing, although it's a shame this didn't go all the way. I think I'd have preferred a pure historical, continuity-free story about the Mongols invading Kiev that we almost got, but that's just a testament to how strong the setting and characters are.