Spider-Man: Requiem

Marvel Pocket Books Novels

by Jeffrey J. Mariotte, Jeff Mariotte

A previously unknown translation of an ancient grimoire, the Darkhold, has been unearthed by archaeologists in South America. But this chilling discovery will have far-reaching effects. Halfway across the globe, the Darkhold is relentlessly pursued by the Cabal of Scrier, an organization devoted to achieving ultimate power through whatever means necessary. And it is through their actions that a darkness from beyond the grave will return to haunt the Spectacular Spider-Man in the form of one of the most frightening and dangerous foes he's ever encountered....

Genres: Marvel, Superheroes, Science Fiction, Spider Man, Fantasy, Fiction, Action

309 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published October 28, 2008

About the author

Also writes as Jeff Mariotte

Jeffrey J. Mariotte is the bestselling, award-winning author of more than 70 novels, including the Cody Cavanaugh western series, historical western epic Blood and Gold: The Legend of Joaquin Murrieta (with Peter Murrieta), thrillers Empty Rooms and The Devil's Bait, supernatural thrillers Season of the Wolf, Missing White Girl, River Runs Red, and Cold Black Hearts, horror epic The Slab, and the Dark Vengeance teen horror quartet. With wife and writing partner Marsheila (Marcy) Rockwell, he wrote the sf/horror/thriller 7 SYKOS and Mafia III: Plain of Jars, the authorized prequel to the bestselling video game. His most recent release is the short story collection Byrd's Luck & Other Stories, comprising five "traditional" Western tales and five horror-Western stories, two of them brand-new for this edition.

He also writes occasional nonfiction, short fiction (some of which is collected in Nine Frights), and comic books, including the long-running horror/Western comic book series Desperadoes and graphic novels Fade to Black and Zombie Cop. With Marsheila Rockwell, he has published several short stories and is working on more. He has worked in virtually every aspect of the book business, as a writer, editor, marketing executive, and bookseller.

Learn more at www.jeffmariotte.com, and follow him at https://www.facebook.com/JeffreyJMari... and @JeffMariotte on Twitter.

Also writes as Jeff Mariotte

Reviews

[Jodi Ralston · Rating 3 out of 5]

You don't realize how important good prose is to story immersion, until you read one tale that has it and the next one tale doesn't or vice versa. Good prose, that moves beyond serviceable, is important to making plot and characters draw you in. This one had it.

Also, the plot and characters had depth and were interesting. Good surprises in this one. Spidey mostly felt like Spidey, and the villain was villainous in good ways. I did have some issues with both though. The plot dragged a little at times, but never so much that it made me want to stop reading entirely. Instead, it just allowed for breaks. Mostly, I disliked a certain minor villian's subplot--it took too long for it to go anywhere. Once I got to the payoff, that redeemed the setup--but only partially. I think the story would have been better without that subplot. And I feel like the final battle shouldn't have taken place. The novel would have worked much better with just the previous "boss" battle, though that would have taken away from Spidey's use of intelligence to overcome an enemy.

Now, character--though Spidey was well written, he seemed a little darker and less heroic than I liked. Instead of being in love with MJ, he seemed more in lust with her. Something forgivable early in a relationship, but they have been together for a while, so I would rather him move beyond just thinking about her physical features to the features that last. I guess Spidey felt a bit egotistical in this one.

Overall, this author has strong craft skills, but I'm not sure I like his "men," and I think he likes writing darkness so much that he developed a side plot to showcase it, even though it didn't improve the story. I may read more stories of his, but I'd hold out for ones with darker heroes. I think he'd do those better than straight-up heroes.

[Dries Messely · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first superhero novel, and it was a really nice, quick read. The first thing I liked was the choice of villain, which was original and fresh. It was also quite darker than the animated series and the movies (since I live in Europe, the comics are not as available as they are in the States), which was cool. It reads really fast and is never a bore. The multiple standpoints didn't confuse me at all. I just thought the last ten or so pages were unnecessary. And the scale of the events was too big to be told in such a short way, I felt the book could easily be twice as long as it was now. Nonetheless, a very fun read.

[eres · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rounded up from 1.5 stars because it constantly switched between being bad to just ok. Already forgot what happened in most of the book.

[Brianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was entertaining enough to finish, but not my favorite. I enjoyed learning more about the Darkhold and Chthon. Peter’s character was a little different from the person I typically expect from the comics, but I haven’t read many where he is as old as he is in this book so I chalked it up to time. I wasn’t a big fan of his cockiness at times, but other than that, he was an interesting character to follow. I thought his relationship with MJ should have been more fleshed out and meaningful for a couple that had been together for so long. The character of The Surgeon seemed unnecessary and not entirely relevant most of the time.
The action was written well: easy to follow while still maintaining excitement. The story’s pace and direction felt right. There were a lot of different stories going on at once, but the author maintained a good balance and didn’t forget any one plot line for too long. Overall, not bad for a comic book novel.

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an enjoyable Spider-Man book. I enjoyed the fact that Mariotte seemed more interested in telling a good story than in conforming to an approved template; Peter isn't portrayed exactly as he was in the comics of the time, but had some rough edges and weaknesses. Also, the continuity with the rest of the M.U. was handled convincingly in that other events and characters were mentioned in a matter-of-fact manner, not in an obtrusive way, which is how normal casual conversation occurs. This is helped along, perhaps, by the main McGuffin of the Darkhold and the Cabal of Scrier not being overly familiar icons. It's not a great memorable and meaningful work, but it was a good read.

[Lori S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
In the end, the Darkholme book plays very little part in this story, and the sidetracking from the serial murderer made me think the author really needs to write a book featuring such a character. Just focus on Spider-Man/Peter and the problem he deals with in the form of an old enemy and the annoyance of the Cabal of Scrier (wannabe powers - full of annoying people who are more greedy than menacing).

The main story is quite good.

The side stories are kinda annoying.

Still an enjoyable read.

[Josh Waters · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story, loved the description and explanation of web-swinging, added another layer to something ive seen many times in movies and comic books.
The plot seemed a bit overcrowded at times with too much going on which made the ending fairly busy with spidey wrapping up loose threads one after the other.
But ultimately it was an enjoyable read.

[Andrew Kline · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was okay. I was laughing at a couple points because the way the author went so indepth with the street names on Spiderman's routes reminded me of the Californians sketch on SNL. Never heard of the main villain Carrion, but they did a decent, if not a little convoluted, job of introducing him. Didn't love the narration, a little lazy.

[Pete Aldin · Rating 5 out of 5]

While it took me a long time to get around to finishing it, this novel was terrific. A blend of points of view. Some real darkness and some authentic spidey humor. And written by a trade writer who knows his prose. Probably a 9/10 but I’m rounding it up to five stars.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

A more horror themed Spider-Man novel that is pretty fun overall.

Good human elements and a very enjoyable spooky villain.

The book could have been about 50 pages shorter though as certain elements felt a wee bit repetitive with Carrion.

[Eddie Possehl · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was packed with more plot threads than TASM 2. Also Peter stop talking so horny bro what in the world (ToT)

[V. Arrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

By far my favorite Chthon-related Marvel story that I've read! Peter's narrative voice is enjoyable here and the story is consistently exciting and well-paced. The dual baddies were a fairly interesting device as one had to be defeated by Spidey and one by Peter.

[Dominique · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author uses both first and third person in this book; the times that the author spends in Spider-man's point of view, he uses first person and all the rest, he uses third person. I found that switch from first person to third person to be on the confusing side.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had a surprisingly political message to it. Not what I would expect from a superhero novel but I guess it was a way for the author to get his opinion out there. Overall a pretty good read though if you like comic book characters.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very entertaining novel. A little dark especially for Spider-man, but with Carrion as villain it does fit a theme. I wasn't really expecting much from this, and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

[bluetyson]

Spider-Man: Requiem by Jeff Mariotte (2008)