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Spider-Man #1
Spider-Man: The Venom Factor
In a Manhattan warehouse an innocent man has been murdered during a mysterious crime. Evidence points to the involvement of Venom - the alien symbiote who is obsessed with Spider-Man's destruction. Yet Venom has always safeguarded innocent lives. Has Venom gone completely around the bend, or is there another suspect?
Spider-Man thinks there is more to the crime than meets the eye. The spectre of the Hobgoblin, one of Spider-Man's nastiest villians, falls on a series of thefts, and leads the web-slinger to a deadly secret that may cause New York's destruction. Spider-Man must outsmart two of his deadliest enemies to save the city - but even more danger awaits him!
Diane Duane, the New York Times best-selling author, launches an epic trio of Spider-Man novels with the Venom Factor featuring all new illustrations by popular comics artist Ron Lim.
Comes with a sealed collectable Spider-Man card of the cover art.
Spider-Man thinks there is more to the crime than meets the eye. The spectre of the Hobgoblin, one of Spider-Man's nastiest villians, falls on a series of thefts, and leads the web-slinger to a deadly secret that may cause New York's destruction. Spider-Man must outsmart two of his deadliest enemies to save the city - but even more danger awaits him!
Diane Duane, the New York Times best-selling author, launches an epic trio of Spider-Man novels with the Venom Factor featuring all new illustrations by popular comics artist Ron Lim.
Comes with a sealed collectable Spider-Man card of the cover art.
239 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 1994
About the author
Diane Duane
201 books2,357 followersDiane Duane has been a writer of science fiction, fantasy, TV and film for more than forty years.
Besides the 1980's creation of the Young Wizards fantasy series for which she's best known, the "Middle Kingdoms" epic fantasy series, and numerous stand-alone fantasy or science fiction novels, her career has included extensive work in the Star Trek TM universe, and many scripts for live-action and animated TV series on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as work in comics and computer games. She has spent a fair amount of time on the New York Times Bestseller List, and has picked up various awards and award nominations here and there.
She lives in County Wicklow, in Ireland, with her husband of more than thirty years, the screenwriter and novelist Peter Morwood.
Her favorite color is blue, her favorite food is a weird kind of Swiss scrambled-potato dish called maluns, she was born in a Year of the Dragon, and her sign is "Runway 24 Left, Hold For Clearance."
(From her official website)
Besides the 1980's creation of the Young Wizards fantasy series for which she's best known, the "Middle Kingdoms" epic fantasy series, and numerous stand-alone fantasy or science fiction novels, her career has included extensive work in the Star Trek TM universe, and many scripts for live-action and animated TV series on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as work in comics and computer games. She has spent a fair amount of time on the New York Times Bestseller List, and has picked up various awards and award nominations here and there.
She lives in County Wicklow, in Ireland, with her husband of more than thirty years, the screenwriter and novelist Peter Morwood.
Her favorite color is blue, her favorite food is a weird kind of Swiss scrambled-potato dish called maluns, she was born in a Year of the Dragon, and her sign is "Runway 24 Left, Hold For Clearance."
(From her official website)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
August 28, 2020
This was the first of many books in the Marvel series of prose books that kicked off in the mid-1990s from Berkley/Byron Preiss Productions that were edited (for continuity at least) by Keith R.A. DeCandido. They chose a good novel to launch the series (Face it, Tiger... you just hit the jackpot!), with a good portrayal of Peter and his world along with a good adventure. Venom was never one of my favorite characters, but Hobgoblin is as creepy as always, and MJ has some poignant (and dramatic!) bits. There's more introduction and explanation than would be included in a novel today, but this was before the MCU had such a major presence in the world. Duane is a good writer, with a clear and concise style that catches the spirit of web-slinging quite well. Face Front, True Believers!
July 14, 2020
Unlike most novelty comic book tie-in prose novels, the author doesn't expect you to already know the universe or characters. A good job of developing characters with multiple points of view and gives a better idea of who MJ and Peter Parker are that the movies never quite really get down.
The final conflict seemed a bit rushed especially after the resolution, however.
The final conflict seemed a bit rushed especially after the resolution, however.
June 13, 2020
Kinda wordy for a Spider-Man story. And maybe I'm remembering incorrectly, but I didn't like Venom's voice in this book. Was he that eloquent in the comics in the mid-nineties?
November 29, 2023
In honor of Spider-Man 2 (the video game) releasing, I decided I wanted to get my hands on some Spidey content and I was not disappointed. Surprisingly, there are quite a few Spider-Man novels floating about with most being adaptations of comic book storylines in one way or another and I think that Spider-Man: The Venom Factor is a great starting point for any fan.
Spider-Man: The Venom Factor, written by Diane Duane and originally published in 1994, follows Peter Parker, our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, as a married man struggling to pay bills with his freelance photography work and balance his two lives. His wife, Mary Jane, is currently in between jobs and is working diligently to audition for anything she can. As if that’s not enough, Hobgoblin has begun to wreak havoc upon the city and, despite leaving for San Francisco, it appears Venom has made a deadly return as well. Throughout the novel, Spider-Man must do his best to foil Hobgoblin’s plans and discover how exactly Venom is connected to everything, if at all. Things aren’t quite adding up and to get to the bottom of this mystery, both Spider-Man and Peter Parker must play their roles.
Swinging into this book (see what I did there?) I wasn’t exactly sure how well Spider-Man’s character would be translated from a visual medium like a comic book to a pictureless novel, but I was pleasantly surprised. Duane does a spectacular job of weaving scene after scene of Spidey action and I found little difficulty in visualizing our masked hero swinging across the city and engaging in wild, aerial combat. The main villain of this story, Hobgoblin, is a bit one-dimensional; planning to blackmail the city of New York for a great sum of money using a bomb. It’s nothing groundbreaking, but he serves his purpose and honestly, it was fun to read scenes of him gliding into a building to steal some component for his device and bicker with Spider-Man before tossing a pumpkin bomb and gliding off into the night. Simple, but enjoyable. Admittedly, I enjoyed Venom’s portrayal a bit more. It reminded me a bit of Tom Hardy’s version of the character which I quite liked and while Venom doesn’t show up for a majority of the story, the presence of the symbiote is felt and adds some tension to the conflict. Lastly, I’d like to say that some of the scenes I enjoyed the most were of Peter’s photography sessions and MJ’s acting auditions. They added a nice respite between Spidey crime fighting sessions and helped flesh out the other half of Spider-Man’s life.
All in all, Spider-Man: The Venom Factor, in my opinion, is a great place to start with Spider-Man novels, especially since two more books follow to make up an entire trilogy! The book gives you the perfect amount of both Spider-Man and Peter Parker. It’s a fun, quick read that I would recommend to any Spidey fan looking for a new, web-slinging story.
Spider-Man: The Venom Factor, written by Diane Duane and originally published in 1994, follows Peter Parker, our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, as a married man struggling to pay bills with his freelance photography work and balance his two lives. His wife, Mary Jane, is currently in between jobs and is working diligently to audition for anything she can. As if that’s not enough, Hobgoblin has begun to wreak havoc upon the city and, despite leaving for San Francisco, it appears Venom has made a deadly return as well. Throughout the novel, Spider-Man must do his best to foil Hobgoblin’s plans and discover how exactly Venom is connected to everything, if at all. Things aren’t quite adding up and to get to the bottom of this mystery, both Spider-Man and Peter Parker must play their roles.
Swinging into this book (see what I did there?) I wasn’t exactly sure how well Spider-Man’s character would be translated from a visual medium like a comic book to a pictureless novel, but I was pleasantly surprised. Duane does a spectacular job of weaving scene after scene of Spidey action and I found little difficulty in visualizing our masked hero swinging across the city and engaging in wild, aerial combat. The main villain of this story, Hobgoblin, is a bit one-dimensional; planning to blackmail the city of New York for a great sum of money using a bomb. It’s nothing groundbreaking, but he serves his purpose and honestly, it was fun to read scenes of him gliding into a building to steal some component for his device and bicker with Spider-Man before tossing a pumpkin bomb and gliding off into the night. Simple, but enjoyable. Admittedly, I enjoyed Venom’s portrayal a bit more. It reminded me a bit of Tom Hardy’s version of the character which I quite liked and while Venom doesn’t show up for a majority of the story, the presence of the symbiote is felt and adds some tension to the conflict. Lastly, I’d like to say that some of the scenes I enjoyed the most were of Peter’s photography sessions and MJ’s acting auditions. They added a nice respite between Spidey crime fighting sessions and helped flesh out the other half of Spider-Man’s life.
All in all, Spider-Man: The Venom Factor, in my opinion, is a great place to start with Spider-Man novels, especially since two more books follow to make up an entire trilogy! The book gives you the perfect amount of both Spider-Man and Peter Parker. It’s a fun, quick read that I would recommend to any Spidey fan looking for a new, web-slinging story.
August 3, 2022
Not bad. It concerns comic book superheroes so that gives it an immediate advantage for me. But I've never been a huge fan of Spider-man and the reason why shows up in this book. I get why he was such a big deal when he first hit the scene. A superhero with real problems. That was very different from what had been around till then and it was a great idea. But now it's just gotten annoying. Especially when the 'problems' are things that are solvable. There's a lot of Peter and MJ whining about money in the book. And making ends meet because she's out of work and his photog job isn't as reliable as they'd like. So...stop the photos and get a job in a warehouse. With his strength it wouldn't even be a big deal. And MJ is only looking for acting work when she, as well, should be looking anywhere and everywhere. Even warehouses. That's the kind of stuff that's killed my liking of Spidey since I was a kid. He whines about stuff that he could fix.
But the book wasn't bad. I liked the characterization of Venom.
But the book wasn't bad. I liked the characterization of Venom.
January 21, 2020
I expected a lot more action... for that matter I expected a lot more venom... and a lot less MJ.
Spoilers:
Entire chapters are dedicated to POVs that aren’t Spider-Man... a chapter for a navy captain... a chapter for some bums in a warehouse...a chapter for MJ going to auditions....
And only one for venom?
Why?
The book isn’t badly written. But it was slow paced, filled with far too many mundane details, and gruelingly slow exposition. We all understand that spider man is also a sorta normal guy when he’s peter Parker. Nobody needs to read paragraphs about his costume getting dirty and needing cleaning. One brief sentence would do.
The only parts of this book that were interesting enough to be a page turner were the few places where venom showed up.
But we learn through spider man that venom did a whole lot of stuff that we missed.
Towards the end Spider-Man finds venom and hobgoblin after a fight.
He muses that it must have been a really action packed fight... and that’s it.
Why didn’t the author show us the details? She broke from the primary character’s POV plenty of times, and then decided to stick to it unnecessarily near the climax of the story?
Why on earth would you shy away from the action and the fight scenes in a superhero book?
This fell flat for me... i read it to my son, and when we were done I asked him what he thought. It was just okay.
The kid is obsessed with venom and Spider-Man and the book featuring both left him with “just okay”.
Spoilers:
Entire chapters are dedicated to POVs that aren’t Spider-Man... a chapter for a navy captain... a chapter for some bums in a warehouse...a chapter for MJ going to auditions....
And only one for venom?
Why?
The book isn’t badly written. But it was slow paced, filled with far too many mundane details, and gruelingly slow exposition. We all understand that spider man is also a sorta normal guy when he’s peter Parker. Nobody needs to read paragraphs about his costume getting dirty and needing cleaning. One brief sentence would do.
The only parts of this book that were interesting enough to be a page turner were the few places where venom showed up.
But we learn through spider man that venom did a whole lot of stuff that we missed.
Towards the end Spider-Man finds venom and hobgoblin after a fight.
He muses that it must have been a really action packed fight... and that’s it.
Why didn’t the author show us the details? She broke from the primary character’s POV plenty of times, and then decided to stick to it unnecessarily near the climax of the story?
Why on earth would you shy away from the action and the fight scenes in a superhero book?
This fell flat for me... i read it to my son, and when we were done I asked him what he thought. It was just okay.
The kid is obsessed with venom and Spider-Man and the book featuring both left him with “just okay”.
March 21, 2021
I've always felt a kinship toward Peter Parker, not only because his adventures helped me learn to read, but for the reason that our lives have had some things in common (no, I do not have the proportionate strength of a spider and I can't stick to ceilings, but I like to believe I have a spider sense of sorts). And that's part of why I enjoyed this novel, because the two sides of the character - Peter Parker and Spider-Man - were given equal attention. Stan Lee's rebirth of Marvel Comics in the 1960s was not a groundbreaking success only because of colorful costumes and fantastic powers; it was in large part a result of the very human characters that wore or wielded them.
This novel is a nice slice of that. We drop in on a particular point in Peter's life (this would be the mid-1990s), and while the settings are different the through-lines of the character are very evident. We see stressful problems in Peter's personal life, appearances by some of his equally popular supporting cast and, of course, some villains. The overarching plot is good (a bit of mystery was nice, but I did look askance at a bit of coincidence in how the subplots conveniently intersected for the ending). I must give credit to Diane Duane for "getting" the voices of Peter Parker and Spider-Man in this book. I don't imagine it is as easy as it might seem, but I felt she did that here quite well. I look forward to the next two installments in her trilogy.
This novel is a nice slice of that. We drop in on a particular point in Peter's life (this would be the mid-1990s), and while the settings are different the through-lines of the character are very evident. We see stressful problems in Peter's personal life, appearances by some of his equally popular supporting cast and, of course, some villains. The overarching plot is good (a bit of mystery was nice, but I did look askance at a bit of coincidence in how the subplots conveniently intersected for the ending). I must give credit to Diane Duane for "getting" the voices of Peter Parker and Spider-Man in this book. I don't imagine it is as easy as it might seem, but I felt she did that here quite well. I look forward to the next two installments in her trilogy.
June 13, 2016
A book based on the Marvel characters. In this one, Hobgoblin has a plan to blackmail New York City. Also, there are random people being murdered and it looks like Venom is the one doing these murders.
I liked this novel. The author did an excellent job with the characters as she did portrayed the three main characters perfectly. She also captured the mood of the city which is a prominent factor in the Spider-Man universe. I liked how she portrays Peter's everyday struggles with normal life and still being a hero. She does this well with Mary Jane also. I do have to say I am not the biggest comic book reader. So I was a little surprised to see Venom portrayed as an antihero instead of a villain and might be the reason why my rating isn't higher.
This captures the essence of this universe and would be enjoyed by all fans as the reader is immediately brought into this vast universe with its well known characters. I do think it is geared more towards the serious fan than the casual fan. The casual fan might not know some of the established facts but these facts do not detract from the story.
I liked this novel. The author did an excellent job with the characters as she did portrayed the three main characters perfectly. She also captured the mood of the city which is a prominent factor in the Spider-Man universe. I liked how she portrays Peter's everyday struggles with normal life and still being a hero. She does this well with Mary Jane also. I do have to say I am not the biggest comic book reader. So I was a little surprised to see Venom portrayed as an antihero instead of a villain and might be the reason why my rating isn't higher.
This captures the essence of this universe and would be enjoyed by all fans as the reader is immediately brought into this vast universe with its well known characters. I do think it is geared more towards the serious fan than the casual fan. The casual fan might not know some of the established facts but these facts do not detract from the story.
November 2, 2014
I loved this book so much as a kid.
August 30, 2018
23 years ago, I read this book. It was during the summer of 1995; I was reading a book a day that summer (in part because my job I had at the start of the summer was SLOW....). It was also the last summer that I was happy and upbeat.
I didnt know what I had ahead for me, but I knew that I was reading - READING- a BOOK about Spider-man. (This was a novel thing - there were so FEW books in those days about Marvel Superheroes. Therefore, when one was published, I celebrated it's publication and made it a point to share my thoughts with other people). Eventually, my joy was to be replaced by sadness, grief, and depression.
Funny part is, because of those dark times afterwards, I had forgotten almost EVERYTHING about the book. I remember the plot involved Spidey and Venom and a look alike. And that MJ was still in the picture and was Mrs. Watson-Parker still. But other than that -zip. Nothing.
This memory loss meant that, when I went back to re-read the book this month, I was reading is fresh and new. And could enjoy it all over again!!!
The plot is pretty much what I said - there is a dual threat to Manhattan - Hobgoblin has a bomb and "Venom" is going around, tearing up the city, and killing the homeless. And Spider-man is out to get them both. But when Venom comes to town, the Web-Head is in for a surprise!!
(Thing of note - anyone who reads this book and points out an error at the end - THAT IS SUPPOSE TO BE THAT WAY!! Names change with time and new threats!!! #NoPrizeFail).
Now, off to read the 2nd book in the series - after all, got to get ready for the new Venom movie!!
I didnt know what I had ahead for me, but I knew that I was reading - READING- a BOOK about Spider-man. (This was a novel thing - there were so FEW books in those days about Marvel Superheroes. Therefore, when one was published, I celebrated it's publication and made it a point to share my thoughts with other people). Eventually, my joy was to be replaced by sadness, grief, and depression.
Funny part is, because of those dark times afterwards, I had forgotten almost EVERYTHING about the book. I remember the plot involved Spidey and Venom and a look alike. And that MJ was still in the picture and was Mrs. Watson-Parker still. But other than that -zip. Nothing.
This memory loss meant that, when I went back to re-read the book this month, I was reading is fresh and new. And could enjoy it all over again!!!
The plot is pretty much what I said - there is a dual threat to Manhattan - Hobgoblin has a bomb and "Venom" is going around, tearing up the city, and killing the homeless. And Spider-man is out to get them both. But when Venom comes to town, the Web-Head is in for a surprise!!
(Thing of note - anyone who reads this book and points out an error at the end - THAT IS SUPPOSE TO BE THAT WAY!! Names change with time and new threats!!! #NoPrizeFail).
Now, off to read the 2nd book in the series - after all, got to get ready for the new Venom movie!!
October 28, 2021
Spider-Man: The Venom Factor by Diane Duane
Genre: Superhero Crime Caper
🦸♂️🦸♂️🦸♂️
Diane Duane has done something here. I’m not sure what, but she’s done something. It seems like the first quarter of this book was written with another overall story in mind. You wouldn��t really know you were reading a Spider-Man story until the second or third chapter. I’m not sure if that is intended or an accident.
🕸🕸🕸
Riddled with similes akin to what you’d read in a secondary school English exam, this novel darts around New York quicker as quick as a flash. There are explosions, spider webs and descriptions of things being hit by something like a train. Live by the train, die by the train.
🚝🚝🚝
What redeems this story a bit is Venom. The titular character of this story seems to not be in it enough. I recently watched Venom: Let There Be Carnage and I wish Diane Duane had given a bit more book time to developing Venom, instead of wasting time make references to the numerous other super heroes in town.
🕷🕷🕷
Which leads me to the question: why the bloody hell isn’t one of the other superheroes down in the Subway and sewer system battling for their lives to stop an atomic bomb? Seems like Spidey was infinitely out of his depth. There’s a neat little Mary Jane Watson subplot which has a ridiculous ending, partly because of this atomic bomb situation, partly because she’s poorly written.
💣💣💣
Regardless of the above, if you like Spider-Man, you’ll like this. I picked it up for cheap online.
#spiderman #spidey #bookstagram #review
Genre: Superhero Crime Caper
🦸♂️🦸♂️🦸♂️
Diane Duane has done something here. I’m not sure what, but she’s done something. It seems like the first quarter of this book was written with another overall story in mind. You wouldn��t really know you were reading a Spider-Man story until the second or third chapter. I’m not sure if that is intended or an accident.
🕸🕸🕸
Riddled with similes akin to what you’d read in a secondary school English exam, this novel darts around New York quicker as quick as a flash. There are explosions, spider webs and descriptions of things being hit by something like a train. Live by the train, die by the train.
🚝🚝🚝
What redeems this story a bit is Venom. The titular character of this story seems to not be in it enough. I recently watched Venom: Let There Be Carnage and I wish Diane Duane had given a bit more book time to developing Venom, instead of wasting time make references to the numerous other super heroes in town.
🕷🕷🕷
Which leads me to the question: why the bloody hell isn’t one of the other superheroes down in the Subway and sewer system battling for their lives to stop an atomic bomb? Seems like Spidey was infinitely out of his depth. There’s a neat little Mary Jane Watson subplot which has a ridiculous ending, partly because of this atomic bomb situation, partly because she’s poorly written.
💣💣💣
Regardless of the above, if you like Spider-Man, you’ll like this. I picked it up for cheap online.
#spiderman #spidey #bookstagram #review
April 5, 2023
The start of this book was pretty bad to the point I was worried I would have to suffer through it. It opened to a Spiderman free prologue that was tedious and pointless and went on too long. The prose was also very strange verging on grammatically incorrect. However once the story got going the authors prose straightened out into a more natural rhythym...maybe they were trying to be too clever at the start before settling into their natural writing voice. Also once the Spiderman portion began the book got much better.
It was true to every character it covered and it was true to the comic books canon. I really enjoyed Spider-Man as a prose novel. It was an easy action filled read.
It was true to every character it covered and it was true to the comic books canon. I really enjoyed Spider-Man as a prose novel. It was an easy action filled read.
September 30, 2020
I absolutely love love Spider-Man and my favorite villain being Venom, but surprisingly this book was boring and slow. It was overly detailed on minuscule topics like cameras, submarines, and computers; but barely talked about the history of the villains and Spidey. I made it through 4 long chapters and it was so slow-going. I got to a point where I stopped wanting to continue. I was very disappointed because I really wanted to love this book.
June 4, 2021
i was disappointed in this book. not that much action, no real explanation about the alien, and Venom was sparce. the novel is some 300 pages, which is only because the font is larger than normal. a lot of time is wasted in mary janes perspective, more than our friend eddie brock's.
i would have given it only 2 stars, but the artwork at the start of each chapter is awsome.
i would have given it only 2 stars, but the artwork at the start of each chapter is awsome.
July 9, 2021
This took so long to finish because it was such a slow book. Everything that happens could’ve been done in 50 pages, but this over elaborate novel tries to complicate what was never meant to be complicated: superheros. I planned to read the rest of the trilogy, but I can’t allow myself to waste any more time or effort into something that comic panels do so much better. 2 stars.
May 19, 2021
One of the first “comic book” novels I ever read. Great portrayal of Peter Parker, and how he tried to co exist as Spider-Man. A great amount of thought out into his photography, which was a welcome addition.
November 1, 2021
This really emphasized the fact that Spider-man never gets enough rest between his encounters in the city. Peter Parker also very rarely gets a break with his finances and it's very stressful. The chase and resolution of the main problem was well done.
November 30, 2021
Enjoyable book with Spider-Man and Venom. The Hardback came with a trading card. This was my favorite of the trilogy of Spider-Man books by Diane Duane. I felt it was true to the characters and a good read.
February 17, 2022
Being. Huge fan of Spider-man and especially Venom.
This book was a treat. At the time, I honestly didn't even know that Marvel had actual novels and books.
this and the X-Men trilogy were so good. I just remember sitting and waiting in the car and reading all these books.
I was hooked
This book was a treat. At the time, I honestly didn't even know that Marvel had actual novels and books.
this and the X-Men trilogy were so good. I just remember sitting and waiting in the car and reading all these books.
I was hooked
May 7, 2022
Cute, fun classic Spidey read. The story itself is fine, I just had some trouble with the perfectly reasonable functions of its time. (This book was published in 1998; no one had cellphones. Peter has to develop his photos. From actual film. By hand. My goodness how times change!)
February 27, 2018
for a 90's Spider man paperback, a really engaging read. Spider-Man, Venom, Hobgoblin, a fast paced plot and a light mystery mixed with some pretty cool action scenes...not bad, not bad at all.
August 23, 2019
Solid writing, and a fun romp. Not my usual comfort zone in terms of characters, but that's cool.
July 2, 2020
Not an epic read.
July 7, 2020
I have this edition here at home in great condition! If it is of interest this is the sale!
July 25, 2020
Despite the occasional typo and missing word this book was great. If you are a fan of Spider-Man you will probably enjoy this book.
November 29, 2020
the writing could have flowed better but overall an enjoyable story!
June 10, 2021
Mary Jane Watson-Parker should sue.
October 4, 2021
A well-spun yarn! The third act needed some pacing work, is all.
December 27, 2021
I think my favourite part is the look into henchmen and their interactions when unsupervised.
January 21, 2022
I would really like a Spider-Man novel WITHOUT a Peter Parker / Mary-Jane side story about their finances. The one in this book was particularly annoying because it literally went NOWHERE.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews