DeCandido has been labeled by Trek fiction fans as the second coming of Peter David, which is an apt description but a bit unfair since it shortchanges the fact that DeCandido is a damn good storyteller. He started out his professional novel publishing career with a Spider-Man novel and he returns to it here with this novel. The storyline follows some of the current comic book continuity with Peter teaching high school science, Mary Jane pursuing an acting career and Aunt May knowing Peter Parker equals Spider-Man. A new gamma-radiation treated version of ectasy is on the market and its killing people left and right--after they "Hulk-out" and Peter realizes that in order to stop the deaths, he'll have to find the source of the drug and put it out of business. DeCandido's great strenght in writing novels set in universes not of his own creation is that he's able to capture the voice and nuances of each character and that strength is on display here. But within that context, DeCandido is able to put his own stamp and interpretation on the characters and, for the most part, that works really well. Make not mistake--this novel is not going to win any awards for best fictional novel published this year, but it's a fun, fast-paced and enjoyable read that any fan of Spider-Man should enjoy.
