Ever wonder what the Master gets up to when the Doctor isn’t around? A new charity anthology reveals all, asking whether how one can exist without the other.

Master Pieces features 21 stories by 19 authors, and features an astonishing 14 Masters – and yes, that does include incarnations we’ve never even met before. Published by Altrix Books, the weighty 307-page tome is edited by Paul Driscoll (The Black Archive: The God Complex) and has contributions from Tim Gambrell (The Lucy Wilson Mysteries: The Brigadier and the Bledoe Cadets), Jon Arnold (The Black Archive: Rose), Simon A Brett (Whoblique Strategies), Kara Dennison (Unearthed), and Iain McLaughlin (Blake’s 7: Restoration – Part One).

Here’s the synopsis:

21 stories, 19 authors, 14 Masters but not a single Doctor in sight?

For centuries, whether by design or default, the Master has lived in the shadow of another Time Lord. An obsession and fierce rivalry with the Doctor has been at the heart of countless evil schemes, causing him to once observe that ‘the cosmos without the Doctor scarcely bears thinking about’.
So what happens when the Doctor doesn’t show up? Can the Master emerge from the shadow of being the Doctor’s arch-enemy? Is there really no pleasure, no mischief, and no reward to be had in a world without the Doctor?

Master Pieces is an unofficial charity anthology, written in aid of The Stroke Association.

Driscoll writes:

“This is the first fiction anthology I’ve edited and I’ve enjoyed the new challenge immensely. It’s been a big learning curve, made easier by having a wonderfully talented and generous bunch of authors on board, who have been a pleasure to work with.”

Keep an eye on the DWC for a review very soon…

Master Pieces is out now, priced £12.99.