‘Ryan!’ shouted the Doctor. ‘Never, ever press random buttons!’ 
‘You do it all the time!’ 
‘That’s different!’ said the Doctor. 
‘How?’ said Ryan. 
‘Because that’s me!’ 

Tell you what, Una McCormack knows how to world build. I could imagine Molten Heart, which had a great setting for a story and was really alien too, with Yaz, Ryan and Graham needing to adjust to the planet Adamantine as much as the people of that planet needed to get used to them. It felt like one of those planets the Doctor would name drop at some point when on one of her other adventures. I was halfway through the book, when the Doctor, Ryan and new friend Ash have conquered sailing through lava rivers and are going into a forest, I had a thought that Molten Heart is like Classic Who. Yaz and Graham were trying to find their way through tunnels. It’s a simple adventure, with all of the unknown in front of them to discover. While in the forest, Ryan starts to talk about a fry up and mushrooms, which is exactly like Classic Who because in the William Hartnell era the Doctor, and his companions were always concerned about where the next meal was going to come from. Priorities.

‘Yeah, of course. But there’s something else …’
‘What is it?’
‘I’m starving’ Ryan grinned. ‘And I need your advice on the only thing we’ve got on the menu’
‘What?’ said the Doctor.
He threw his arms out wide. ‘Mushrooms!’ 

‘Yaz, watching her, thought, I want to be like that …’

It’s fascinating too to have the story told from Yaz’s viewpoint and to know what she’s thinking and feeling. Molten Heart starts in the TARDIS and very Doctor like, she’s talking about sticky fingers and buttons and then rope. Ryan gets some great moments and dialogue too with the Doctor. Graham gets some good moments with Yaz. The other characters in Molten Heart are fine.

Molten Heart was great fun to read.

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