Down These Mean Streets

After being disappointed with a couple of the DC Comics novels of late, I decided to give one of the Marvel versions a try. And I'm glad that I did! While "Green Lantern: Hero's Quest" and "Superman: The Never-Ending Battle" were both fairly bland, this novel was quite refreshing. For one thing, it was clearly written with a mature audience in mind. That does NOT mean that there is endless swearing (there is some) or unnecessary sex scenes (none), but that the theme and tone are geared toward a thoughtful audience. This is a drug novel. It might be a science-fiction drug with science-fiction side effects, but it is a drug story nonetheless. Young people die from this drug. And both Spider-Man and the police have to use their wits for detective work just as much as for battle scenes. As far as I know, I have never read any of Keith R. A. DeCandido's work before, but I would love it if he were to write more of these types of super hero novels. In fact, if this series of books maintains such a mature feel, I would love to see Dean R. Koontz or Christopher Andrews take a crack at one. My ONLY complaint, the only reason I am not giving this novel 5 stars, is because of the ending. While my favorite elements were the down to earth, realistic issues, when it eventually became evident that a popular Spider-Man super villain was behind it all, THEN I was ready for a climactic battle. Unfortunately, it was not to be. The final fights, of which there were two, were handled very briefly, adding up to only a few pages the first time, and over in essentially one page the second time. A bit disappointing. I wish the author had taken just one more chapter to play up those elements. But ... Overall, I was very pleased. This book was very refreshing after DC's let downs. Thanks to this novel, I am now looking forward to Christopher Andrews' "Paranormals," which is apparently ALSO a super human story (though not from DC or Marvel). I'll be reviewing that one next!

Comic books and superheores have been around a LONG LONG time. But those who have endured most are the ones who have well developed three dimensional characters. Even though the settings may change, the quintessential nature of the character remains unchanged. In this book, Keith stays true to the basic nature of Peter Parker as Spiderman, focusing on the classic themes of power and responsibility and how the responsibilities of a super hero overlap and conflict with those of his or her alter ego. In with this he mixes a realistic look at drug dealing as well as the effects of sudden and unexpected power. Of course, there are still exiciting battle scenes around the city. If you enjoy a well crafted, well plotted, character oriented story featuring a classic Marvel character pick up this book.

Only Mr. DeCandido could seamlessly combine a fantasy topic with procedural police work. As we've seen in his previous novel "Dragon Precinct", this particular brand of cross-over is a forte of Keith's. Once again, we are gifted with a fun read set in New York City- a place that Mr DeCandido obviously knows very well- centering around one of the most well-known of superheroes- Spiderman. With this excursion, Spiderman is actually working with the NYPD to quell the explosion of what appears to be a new designer drug hitting the streets. Suffice it to say that we get a look into the workings of Spiderman's relatively familiar psyche as well as a fresh look at the New York City Police Department. Mr DeCandido threw in enough twists and turns to keep this story fresh, however, as an avid reader, I was able to guess the final twist well in advance. Nevertheless, if you enjoy Spiderman books and comics, "Down these Mean Streets" is a definate must read.

This is the first Spider-man novel by Keith R.A. DeCandido (known by his followers as KRAD) in a very long time. I have to say his writing and story telling has improved with each book. I'm a police officer in the United states and thought his protrayal of the job was pretty accurate with nods to the paperwork, lack of funding, public outrage, as well as the positives such as a love of the job and for the most part great co-workers. This is a lot more relastic approach to Law enforcement than shows like "CSI" and even "law and order". CSI is nothing like true crime scene analysis. These characters were a lot richer than most comic book adaptions. Most of the time all the cops love the super-hero or hate the super hero. This book has people who have been hurt by these super hero battles. I'm more of a fan of DC characters such as Batman, Green Lantern, and superman. The recent JLA books by pocket are no where near KRAD's work here. I still like KRAD's "Articles of Federation" and his "Lost Era" entry but this is a good book which is a bit shorter than those two books. This book also seemed more like a set-up to another book to me also. KRAD often does leave little threads which he can pick up in later books and has done so in the Star trek universe sometimes to surprising measures.

A quick and fun read. All of the characters 'sound' right, and KRADs knowledge of the characters and their history is evident. My only complaints are how late in the book the main villain was introduced, and I felt that the cops in the story got a little too much of the focus. I loved how KRAD described the act of swinging through the city on a web-line and the fact that MJ was involved in the main story and not just in some unrelated sub-plot. The story leaves itself open for a sequel, and I hope to see one soon. If the Marvel novels continue, I'd love to see some coordination between the various stories and heros and supporting characters ala the recent Star Trek book universe.