1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
The true emerald mystery, November 28, 2000
This review is from: Spider-Man: Emerald Mystery (Paperback)
The only emerald mystery was how the publisher received my green money. I have been reading Marvel since the 60's and this book was an extreme disappointment. It has no action and no compelling villain. I purchased it online. If I had a chance to browse it in a store I would have never purchased it. A sub par product.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
No Jewel of a Mystery, October 28, 2000
This review is from: Spider-Man: Emerald Mystery (Paperback)
Dean Wesley Smith is one of my favorite authors of "Star Trek" novels so I was anxiously awaiting his much delayed third Spider-Man book. His other two Spidey novels, while not among the best, were enjoyable nontheless. Unfortunately it's a letdown. The most interesting thing about the book is that it is written in the first person, using Spider-Man's perspective. This is most unusual for a novel of this type. It works but I don't think Smith takes full advantage. Someone as brillant and witty as Spider-Man/Peter Parker should be a more engaging as a narrator.
The book is short and not so sweet. About two thirds of the book is taken up by endless robberies by innocent people turned into zombies by a villian calling himself the Jewel. All the zombies are easily apprehended and offer little or no resistance. Some challenge for Spidey, huh. An entire crowd of them threathening the Daily Bugle is defeated by, get this, shaking them awake. The villian, Jewel, has a practically nonexistent role here. Everyone knows it is very hard to have a top notch super hero adventure without a compelling villian. I suppose the mystery is how he came by his powers but this is apparent to the reader almost immediately even though it takes our heroes about 190 some pages to figure it out.
Some oversights stand out and in such a short book they grate even more. Alot of the story takes place at the Daily Bugle but J. Jonah Jameson never appears and no explanation is given for his absence. Near the end Spidey injures his shoulder and is bleeding but he never again mentions any pain or discomfort from it.
The best thing in the book is Spidey's relationship with a female private detective, Barb. The two play off each other well and Barb's ability to get the last word with the wise cracking web spinner is a nice touch. Unfortuantely it's not enough to lift an otherwise dismal and disappointing novel.
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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Surprising reviews..., November 22, 2002
This review is from: Spider-Man: Emerald Mystery (Paperback)
I was surprised to see the reviews of this book were so bad! I spotted this book at Borders the day after buying the movie on DVD. One of the reasons I bought it was because it was the only Spider-Man book available.
But once I got home, I didn't regret the purchase for a minute. The author did an excellent job characterizing Spidey, the mystery was very well done and the siege towards the end was wonderful. This book actually got me interested in Spider-books again.
My only complaint was the illustrations being so... well, they were bad.
But the book was highly enjoyable. I suggest people read excerpts or browse in bookstores, rather than use reviews from this site when considering the purchase.
Geonn
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