Spider-Man: The Darkest Hours [Paperback]

Jim Butcher (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Pocket Star (2006)
• ASIN: B001VEW3I6
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Jim Butcher read his first fantasy novel when he was seven years old--
the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. By the time he turned eight,
he'd added the rest of the Narnia books, the Prydain Chronicles, every
book about Star Wars he could find, a great many Star Trek novels and
the Lord of the Rings to his count.

So he was pretty much doomed from the start.

Love of fantasy, his personal gateway drug, drew him toward a fairly
eclectic spread of interests: horseback riding (including trick riding,
stunt riding, drill riding, and competitive stunt racing), archery,
martial arts, costuming, music and theater. He played a lot of role-
playing games, a lot of fantasy-based tactical computer games, and
eventually got into live-action roleplay where players beat each other
up with boffer weapons.

So, really, he can fly his nerd flag with pretty much anyone, and
frequently does.

He took up writing to be able to produce fantasy novels with swords and
horses in them, and determinedly wrote terrible fantasy books until,
just to prove a point to his writing teacher, he decided to take every
piece of her advice; fill out outlines and worksheets, and design
stories and characters just the way she'd been telling him to do for
about three years. He was certain that once she saw what hideous art it
produced, she would be proven wrong and repent the error of her ways.
The result was the Dresden Files, which sure showed *her*.

She has not yet admitted her mistake and recanted her philosophy on
writing.

Jim has performed in dramas, musicals, and vocal groups in front of
live audiences of thousands and on TV. He has performed exhibition
riding in multiple arenas, and fallen from running horses a truly
ridiculous number of times. He was once cursed by an Amazon witch
doctor in rural Brazil, has apparently begun writing about himself in
the third person, and is hardly ever sick at sea.

He also writes books occasionally.

Jim stands accused of writing the Dresden Files and the Codex Alera.
He's plead insanity, but the jury is still out on that one. He lives in
Missouri with his wife, romantic suspense and paranormal romance writer
Shannon K. Butcher (who is really pretty and way out of his league),
his son, and a ferocious guard dog.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Wicked Web, July 12, 2006

By 

Mel Odom (Moore, OK USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Spider-Man: The Darkest Hours (Mass Market Paperback)

A few years ago, Spider-Man fought an incredible being who called himself Morlun, who was supposed to be an Ancient and a drinker of souls. More to the point, Morlun feasted on the souls of people who chose animals as their "spirit totem." He wanted Spider-Man because of his connection to the spider spirit. Spider-Man defeated Morlun with help, but now the rest of the Ancients, a sister and two brothers, are out for revenge. And maybe a midnight snack. After being assigned a temporary basketball coaching job with a troublesome star athlete, Peter Parker (Spider-Man) arrives home to find more trouble: his wife MJ has taken on an acting job but now has to drive to get there. Unfortunately, she doesn't have a driver's license (what native New Yorker does?) and just failed the tests. Peter tells her he'll help her, then jumps into patrol as Spider-Man. He immediately gets jumped by Felcity Hardy, an old girlfriend who goes by the name The Black Cat. Black Cat tells Spider-Man that he's being lured to his doom by the Rhino on a rampage. But, being a hero, Peter has no choice but to go -- and nearly gets feasted on. Together, Spider-Man and the Black Cat have to figure out how to defeat the trio of Ancients without losing their lives in the process.

Jim Butcher is the best-selling author of the Dresden Files, featuring wizard-for-hire Harry Dresden. A television show is being filmed now. He's also the author of the Codex Alera fantasy series.

Butcher hits some really nice licks with this book, capturing the humbleness and golly-gee of Peter Parker in his first-person narrative. Throwing the Black Cat into the mix with Peter and his wife MJ was an especially nice touch, a romp down memory lane for old-time comics fans. The Rhino, always one of Spider-Man's more simple yet complex villains, is played brilliantly in the book. There's even a couple cameos with Dr. Stephen Strange, Sorcerer Supreme (as well as an astonishing reveal about Wong, Dr. Strange's majordomo). The pacing is frenetic, filled with the trademark quips as well as lots of dialogue among the characters, and surprising twists and turns of the plot that keep a reader moving along. Although these are comic book characters, they come across as surprisingly human on Butcher's pages.

THE DARKEST HOURS is a solid Spider-Man novel, a great adventure read, and the very thing a comic geek or someone interested in Spider-Man through the movie venue needs to pack along to the beach. Harry Dresden fans will probably also enjoy this sideline jaunt Butcher takes through the Marvel Comics Universe.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Definitely gets Spider-Man, August 23, 2006

By 

Mark Muncy "[e-mail]" (ST. PETERSBURG, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Spider-Man: The Darkest Hours (Mass Market Paperback)

Some of these Spider-Man novels fall a little flat. This one "gets it." Spidey is smart, and witty. It even has a whole sub-plot involving his students at school. There's a guest shot by Dr. Strange, some comments about him being a team-up junkie, the ex-girlfriend alone with the wife, and all the fun of a typical Spidey mega-event. All this and the author makes Rhino interesting, too.

I couldn't put it down. After devouring it, I headed over and checked out the author's Dresden books and I am currently enjoying them as well.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Read!, November 4, 2006

By 

Aaron Felker (Pennsylvania, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Spider-Man: The Darkest Hours (Mass Market Paperback)

Bought this book because I'm a huge Spidey fan. I wasn't disappointed. The book was fantastic! Jim Butcher really captures Spidey's character. The plot is fast moving, and there's lots of action, but there's also many good Peter-MJ moments. What can I say? This books just plain fun to read.