"Now THIS is what a Spider-Man novel is all about! It`s really a police novel with Spider-Man hanging around (figuratively and literally). It is really fun to see the officers interact with each other and the webslinger, especially since some of them really like him, and some of them really don't. ... The twists and turns of this realistic police investigation will keep any reader on the edge of their seat in suspense. Whether it`s the police against Venom, or the confrontation between 'the Shadow' and Ann, there's something for everyone."
---Aaron Thall, Spider-Man Novel Reviews, Fandom.com
"In Peter Parker: Spider-Man #26, writer Paul Jenkins presented a view of the wall-crawler as seen through the eyes of a number of different New York cops. It was an entertaining and insightful story but only the second-best of its kind. If you want to read the best depiction of the wall-crawling wonder as seen by the NYPD, then you must take a look at the novel Spider-Man: Venom's Wrath by Keith R.A. DeCandido and Jose R. Nieto. ... They bother to look at Spider-Man in realistic terms. Ever wonder how it would feel to see a costumed man with a full-head mask climb the outside of a building as you walked along Fifth Avenue? This book will make you feel it. Ever wonder why Spider-Man is mistrusted while almost all the other super-heroes are respected? This book gives the best theory for it that I've ever seen. Ever wonder what it would be like to be on the NYPD in the Marvel Universe? This book presents the perfect cop's eye view of the webhead: a man whose non-verbal communication is entirely alien because his mask covers his face, his movements are unhuman, and his abilities unnerving. What race is the wall-crawler? What age? What income bracket or educational background? It is impossible to say. The regular Spider-Man reader is so comfortable in his comic knowledge that he can't divorce Peter Parker from his alter-ego. By using the cops as they do, DeCandido and Nieto succeed in infusing the familiar character with a fresh feeling of mystery."
---Al Sjoerdsma, "Rave," Peter Parker's Pad, Vol. 7, #1, 2001
"This book surprised me. ... once it got going (which to be fair didn't take that long) it was excellent! The first time Spidey shows up we're dealt a wonderful round of that wisecracking and webslinging we all know and love. ... The interaction between Spider-Man, the two sergeants and the rest of the cops is great. I especially like the scene where Hawkins explains to Spidey "why nobody likes you". All in all this book is a nice balance to some of the angst-filled, depressing novels like Goblin's Revenge and Valley of the Lizard. ... it's a great book. I'm glad to see that this trend of steadily improving novels is continuing."
---Kate Daley, Spider-Man Novel Reviews
"I've been enjoying the Marvel novels since I first read Mutant Empire. But this is the first one I've absolutely loved. It read like a Spider-Man story, but more than anything else it read like a police novel. DeCandido and Nieto slowly build and unravel the mystery of why the three people have been kidnapped, and in the meantime give us a great cast of cops interacting with Spider-Man. ... It's no secret I'm not a big fan of the Spidey titles these days, but that's not the only reason I so loved this story. It reminded me a lot of the kind of story I really enjoyed on NYPD Blue, with Spidey thrown in. Highly Recommended (9 [out of 10])...
"Half the battle when writing Spidey is capturing his voice. He's got to be funny, but not a total clown. He's got to have a thought pattern that suggests someone with an overdeveloped sense of responsibility. The authors really nailed this. There were bits of Spidey's dialogue that made me laugh out loud, but he never came across as a clown, but instead as a professional worthy of working with the NYPD. ... In addition, they really got Venom down. Venom is a tough character to write. I'm not really a fan of the character as he's been developed, but I liked him at the outset. Nieto & DeCandido portray not just his madness, but also his power, making him a really credible threat to Spidey...
"I don't have any complaints. This was my favorite of the Marvel novels I've read."
---Randy Lander, Snap Judgments
"I was impressed with this novel. Not only does it contain all the attraction of seeing long time foes Spidey and Venom face off in action packed fight scenes, but it offers a glimpse at what the ordinary folks of New York think and feel about the web spinner. ... There is a particularly well-written piece wherein Spider-Man has visited the Police precinct to work with the police on the kidnapping and he and Hawk get into a deep and meaningful conversation. They cover such topics as Spider-Man’s costume, how hard it is for the average person to communicate when the can’t read Spidey’s body language, even down to people placing wagers on what nationality Spidey is! It’s great from the perspective that this is all the stuff people would think about Spidey if he actually turned up right in their city! ... If you feel that the comics need to come alive for you, if you love the aerobatics and the whole 'normal guy with amazing powers' schtick that is Spidey, if you want to see Spidey go 3 rounds with Venom, if you love international politics and despot terrorist groups with enough high tech weaponry to take out an aircraft carrier, then you need to read Spider-Man: Venom’s Wrath!"
---Nathan Chattaway, Peter Parker's Pad, Vol. 4, #10, October 1998
"I thoroughly enjoyed Venom's Wrath. I think
the best part about it is that Keith and Jose did not try to write a prose
version of a comic book. The story they wrote takes full advantage of the
novel form; they use lots of descriptive paragraphs and interior
monologues and the like. ... The two authors have a firm grip
on all the characters involved. ... I hate to say too much about the plot, because it is quite engaging and
there are a few twists and turns along the way. But I would highly
recommend Venom's Wrath to any fan of Spider-Man or Marvel Comics."
---Douglas Clayborne Peterson, Spider-Byte Reviews
"This book reminded me of a classic Marvel Team Up. This time it was Spider-Man meets Jimmy Smits and the NYPD Blue. This was one entertaining novel. I found myself amazed at how drawn in I was to this book right away. ... This book ... made me stay up till 3 am reading intently. ... This book had everything that the current comics are lacking. Suspense, humor, tension, etc., etc. One particuarly funny scene was the police officers taking bets what race Spidey was. ... All in all I'm giving this book three and a half web heads out of four ... a great read for Spider-fans."
---Brad Douglas, Spider-Man's Crawl Space
About Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Watcher's Guide:
"Incredible. The end-all, everything you could possibly want to know about the show, guide is here (for season 1 and 2 at least). It's incredibly well done and it must have taken a long long time to get everything so darn perfect. The episode summaries are good, as well as some follow-up issues that pertain to the show. Miscellaneous info is on every page which adds a really nice touch. The biographies of the actors was made even more interesting by the fact that most of the actors were interviewed with some really good questions that don't involve answering 'So who was your favorite character to play?' There are great pictures thrown in as well. There's Behind The Scenes info that makes every fan giddy to read. This is the perfect guide to the series and if you're short on cash this is the only one that you should buy."
---Nika, And You Thought You were Obsessed with BtVS
"The Watcher's Guide is the ultimate in television companion books, and it's a notable exception to norm. ... By far the best part of this book is the episode guide, which covers all episodes from the pilot through to the end of Season Two. It is a veritable treasure trove of information, including the best quotes, pop culture references, notes on continuity from previous episodes, as well as dialogue from the original scripts which didn't make it into the finished episodes. Sprinkled throughout are little side boxes which contain funny odd bits of trivia ranging from the boring (The pine trees outside Buffy's bedroom window are deodara pines.) to the very interesting (Buffy spent time as a rat during "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered" in order to free up Sara Michelle Gellar to spend a week in New York City to host Saturday Night Live). Thankfully, the very interesting trivia way outnumbers the dull, and these little bits really help to give you a glimpse behind the scenes on the Buffy set."
---Rachel K. Ivey, RevolutionSF
"You want thorough? Try 298 pages on a show that's barely two seasons old. ... Since the beauty of Buffy is its stake-sharp writing, the authors rely heavily on excerpted dialogue to explain the series' vampire lore and the coffin-crossed love story between hunky vampire Angel and the Slayer. Sure, it's excessive ... but addicts will no doubt suck this trivia-laden tome dry with fanatic ferocity. B+"
---Kristen Baldwin, Entertainment Weekly #453, 9 October 1998
"The book serves novices and obsessive Buffy fans equally well. Each episode of the first two seasons gets a snappy yet learned summary, including a 'Quote of the Week,' a quick recap of each love entanglement and relationship switcheroo (and no soap opera is tanglier than Buffy), a 'Pop-Culture IQ' guide ... countless pop-up balloons of fun facts (Buffy was turned into a rat in order to free up her schedule to host Saturday Night Live), and a catalog of 'Buffy's Bag of Tricks'--her weapons, plus all the spells, chants, incantations, and previously incomprehensible rock-band lyrics on the show. ... Get this book, then send one as a gift. Friends don't let friends miss out on Buffy the Vampire Slayer."
---Amazon.com in-house review, posted on 20 October 1998
"As with so much in Sunnydale ... this is no ordinary guide book. The authors haven't taken the money and then jumped on the first coach out of the Hellmouth. ... Then there are the usual ports of call, with the character and episode guides for Seasons 1 and 2. However, Golden and Holder [NOTE: Ms. Stirling seems not to have noticed that there are three authors on this book, grump grump. ---KRAD] manage to spice up this staple diet by adding plenty of quotes, a lot of which were cut from the final screenplay, and a catalogue of the weapons used in each episode. This is my kind of book. ... The Watcher's Guide is a great guide because it has been written with obvious enjoyment, and a certain amount of certifiable humour ... If you are a fan of the series then this book is a must. 9.5 [out of 10]."
---Helen Stirling, Dreamwatch, March 1999
"8 [out of 10] ... The Watcher's Guide is not of coffee-table dimensions and low on gloss,
save two gorgeous 16-page photo-sections. But its meaty text is seasoned
with apposite and less familiar on-set photos. Likewise, the obvious
ingredients of a series guide (here are the characters, and ooh, look! Here
come all the episodes so far...) are gold-blended with some inventive,
pithy wit that parallels the series' scriptwriting standards.
"So, their generous menu cover: guides to the series' mythology, and
(cleverly) to Sunnydale town. Character profiles for Buffy and co, with
liberal helpings of top dialogue. Thirty-four episodes identifying
pop-culture references, unscreened dialogue, weaponry catalogues and
romantic turning points for each, alongside the required synopses and
credits. An intelligent essay-style bestiary of all major vampire, demon
and werrewolf characters. Sunnydale's love connections explored in depth,
and dozens of clear-sighted interview profiles spanning cast and crew,
repeatedly puncturing the notion of actors resembling their characters."
---Mark Wyman, TV Zone #111, February 1999
"The official X-Files season guides were surpassed by the unofficial 'Companion' series, there is a growing collection of unofficial Buffy guides available, how does this one fare against the competition? It's run the course, won the race, taken a shower, and gone home for a relaxing evening in front of the fire, and the others aren't out of the starting blocks yet. It really is that superior. ... While guides from other shows seem to be, 'Here's the cast, here are the episodes, thanks for buying me, goodbye,' this one is so much more. ... My favourite part of the guide is the continuity section. Not a bloopers section, but a description of events that happen, and how/why they happen in relation to past and future episodes, one for the arc plot fans out there. ... Just buy this book. ... You need it, trust me."
---John Stanley, BuffyUK.org
About "A Bone to Pick" in Did You Say Chicks!?:
"Die Baba Yaga scheint im Moment sogar ziemlich in zu sein, denn auch Marina Frants und Keith DeCandido liefern eine Story vor dem Hintergrund der russischen Mythologie: 'A Bone to Pick'."
---Storisende Verlag, at www.storisende.com
[Kimberley Rector, a goddess among women, was kind enough to translate this from the original German for us: "Baba Yaga seems to be, for the moment, in, because Marina Frants and Keith DeCandido also supply a story with the background of the Russian mythology: 'A Bone to Pick'." Not much of a thing to gloat about, as quotes go, but we just think it's cool that we've been reviewed in German.]
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