Unsettling things are afoot in a sleepy Cornish village. Strangers are hanging about the harbour and a mysterious object is retrieved from the sea bed. Then the locals start getting sick.

Could this have anything to do with the alluringly beautiful Ruth who local lifeboatman Steve has taken a shine to ... or could the other stranger, a man calling himself the Doctor, be somehow involved? And why is Ruth both drawn and terrified by the sea?

The Doctor is perhaps the only person who can help, but can he discover the truth in time?

Background information:

Telos Publishing presents the sixth in our series of original Doctor Who Novellas, Rip Tide, a story featuring the eighth Doctor and written by popular and prolific fantasy novelist Louise Cooper.

'I had met Louise some years before, ' explained David Howe, 'and worked with her on a collection for the British Fantasy Society called The Spiral Garden, which was edited by Jan Edwards, and also commissioned a short story from her for the second F20 anthology I edited for the BFS. I knew she had a wealth of ideas and is a very talented writer and I really wanted to see how she might tackle the Eighth Doctor.'

'I was invited to write for Telos' Doctor Who range,' says Louise, 'and very honoured I was too! The choice of story and setting was, I suppose, sheer personal bias, as I'm writing about the area where I live and that is my favourite place in the entire world. I also thought that the "specialness", I might almost say strangeness, of Cornwall was an ideal location for the Doctor; the two are very well matched.'

Louise has fond memories of watching Doctor Who on television. 'I remember, at the age of 9 or 10, being aware that a new and innovative SF series was about to begin on TV, and still recall the build-up of anticipation and excitement as I waited for the first episode. I was instantly hooked - and devastated when the episode ended on a cliff-hanger. Having to wait a whole week to find out what happened next was a nerve-racking experience!'

'Right from the start the Doctor was a fascinating figure, and the originality of a character who changed - in appearance if not in essence - from time to time is still a major attraction for me. Who will he become next? (No pun intended.) I haven't been able to follow the series' progress too regularly over the years, but when I do get to see it, I greatly enjoy the increasing subtlety of character, plots, motives etc. I can probably best sum it up by saying that, (doubtless like most fans), I would love to have the Doctor as a friend.'

As well as setting the Novella in Cornwall, Louise also had some other motivations. 'In addition to feeling that Cornwall would be an intriguing place for the Doctor to become involved in a mystery, I also thought that a tale involving a lifeboat would give a lot of scope for an exciting plot - as well as (in a small way) drawing attention to the service, of which I'm a dedicated supporter. I like to think that the Doctor would approve...'

Writing the foreword for Rip Tide, is popular novelist and director Stephen Gallagher, who also wrote two adventures for the Doctor on television: Warriors' Gate and Terminus, and painting the frontispiece for the deluxe edition is Fred Gambino, an innovative and sought after artist who completed two covers for the Virgin range of New Adventures: Lungbarrow and The Dying Days and eight covers for Virgin's spin-off Bernice Summerfield range, including Dragon's Wrath, Return to the Fractured Planet and Twilight of the Gods.

The book was available in two superb editions: a standard hardback with cloth-effect cover and foil-stamped logo and title; and a signed and numbered limited edition deluxe hardback.

All copies of the limited edition deluxe version came individually signed by the author, frontispiece artist and foreword writer.

Rip Tide was published on the 27th of February 2003

If anyone wishes to make a donation to the work of the The Royal National Lifeboat Institution, then cheques can be sent, payable to the RNLI to:

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution
West Quay Rd.
Poole
Dorset BH15 1HZ, UK
(Registered Charity Number 209603)