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Marvel's What If...? #3
What If... Marc Spector Was A Host To Venom?
Marc Spector and Venom engage in a battle of wills in the next adventure of an epic multiversal series reimagining iconic Marvel origin stories.
Hardcover
First published October 22, 2024
110 people are currently reading
1360 people want to read
About the author
Mike Chen
65 books1,027 followersMike Chen is the New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Brotherhood, Here and Now and Then, Light Years From Home, and other novels, in addition to Star Trek comics. He has covered geek culture for sites such as Nerdist, Tor.com, and StarTrek.com, and in a different life, covered the NHL. A member of SFWA, Mike lives in the Bay Area with his wife, daughter, and many rescue animals. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram: @mikechenwriter
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 82 reviews
Want to read
October 28, 2023I mean he’s already got so many guys in him, why not add another?
December 9, 2024
A great read that is full of fast-paced action and surprising sentiment. I wanna start this review by saying that although I was a casual fan of moon knight before reading this, after reading this I am now fully invested in moon knight stocks (going to dive straight into the comics). The greatest thing this book does (and Chen deserves a lot of credit for it) is managing to juggle two different versions of the same person from different universes each with not only split personalities but a foreign entity (venom/konshu) in their mind and somehow make it all very clear and and easily understandable at all times. An insane feat for writing no doubt. The prose was very digestible and equally had its moments of sentiment that were quite heart warming. And I think that might be one of the best parts about this book, it has the fast paced action you'd expect from a superhero book and it also has the moments of sentiment when necessary. I also really liked the way Chen initially wrote venom as a somewhat mindless alien entity and then slowly showed us flashes of the well known humour we have seen the character have as marc slowly gets closer with him. It only really fell short for me in the villain department, the whisperer was certainly not bad but I wouldn't say he was great either, rather standard and average. Really good read and highly recommend for any marvel fans.
Want to read
October 10, 2023i need this,,, in my hands. NOW. PLEASE.
February 1, 2025
Marvel: What If...? series 03 What If . . . Marc Spector Was Host to Venom? (A Moon Knight & Venom Story) by Mike Chen
challenging dark funny mysterious reflective sad tense
Medium-paced
Plot or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters are a main focus? Yes
4.0 Stars
This is the book that I picked up the entire series for. So excited.
I have to say, this was my second favourite story...so far. I was hoping that it would've been the best, but I just connected with the first one, better.
To get me in the mood for this story, with Moon Knight, I picked up Moon Knight, Volume 1: Lunatic graphic novel and read it, and started on Moon Knight, Volume 2: Reincarnation graphic novel. I really liked the story and the art in the first one, but the second one was a step down in both story and art. Now, I'm not sure I want to read the third, but I will...being a completionist.
I loved this story, but was confused a few times on what exactly was going on. It might've been me, but maybe not. I've read all of Mike Chen's novels, and I love them...so it was probably me.
I loved that he was able to use characters from the Moon Knight TV series on Disney+. Also, when I read Khonshu's parts, I had F. Murray Abraham in mind...though sadly, I could not do the snarky voice...like him, but in my mind...that's what I was going for.
Loved the melding of these two Marvel properties. I've only seen the first Venom movie, but am hoping to rectify that ommission in the near future.
Having Marc Spector as the Host of Venom, instead of Eddie Brock was interesting, but ALSO having Stephen and Jake, and Moon Knight as is alter egos. was cool...at the same time.
Also bringing in all the other characters that we know from the comic world was cool, too.
I hope they continue with this series...for I'm looking forward to the next iteration. Bring it on.
challenging dark funny mysterious reflective sad tense
Medium-paced
Plot or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters are a main focus? Yes
4.0 Stars
This is the book that I picked up the entire series for. So excited.
I have to say, this was my second favourite story...so far. I was hoping that it would've been the best, but I just connected with the first one, better.
To get me in the mood for this story, with Moon Knight, I picked up Moon Knight, Volume 1: Lunatic graphic novel and read it, and started on Moon Knight, Volume 2: Reincarnation graphic novel. I really liked the story and the art in the first one, but the second one was a step down in both story and art. Now, I'm not sure I want to read the third, but I will...being a completionist.
I loved this story, but was confused a few times on what exactly was going on. It might've been me, but maybe not. I've read all of Mike Chen's novels, and I love them...so it was probably me.
I loved that he was able to use characters from the Moon Knight TV series on Disney+. Also, when I read Khonshu's parts, I had F. Murray Abraham in mind...though sadly, I could not do the snarky voice...like him, but in my mind...that's what I was going for.
Loved the melding of these two Marvel properties. I've only seen the first Venom movie, but am hoping to rectify that ommission in the near future.
Having Marc Spector as the Host of Venom, instead of Eddie Brock was interesting, but ALSO having Stephen and Jake, and Moon Knight as is alter egos. was cool...at the same time.
Also bringing in all the other characters that we know from the comic world was cool, too.
I hope they continue with this series...for I'm looking forward to the next iteration. Bring it on.
January 25, 2025
“You think of Moon Knight as a beacon of justice, a sight so bright that criminals shake in terror. Now you experience that yourself as you see that when we exist with you, things are different. Now Moon Knight’s suit is completely black. Inscrutable against the night sky or the shadows. That is us. We are Venom.”
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
A fun read that is full of fast-paced action and surprising sentiment. I do want to mention that I was a casual fan of Moon Knight before reading this; after reading this, I am now fully invested in Marc, Steven, Jake, and Khonshu. The greatest thing this book does (and Chen deserves a lot of credit here) is managing to juggle two different versions of the same person from different universes each with multiple split personalities and a foreign entity (Venom/Khonshu) in their mind and somehow make it all readable and understandable.
The storyline was very entertaining while having moments of sentiment that were quite heart warming. I think that might be one of the best parts of this book, it has the fast paced action you'd expect and it also has the moments of sentiment when necessary. I also liked the way Chen initially wrote Venom as just another alien entity and then showed us flashes of his signature humor/banter as he and Marc navigate working together. The “villain” in this story fell a bit flat for me. The Whisperer was not bad but certainly not great either, not very developed or interesting. Really good read and highly recommend for any marvel fans.
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
A fun read that is full of fast-paced action and surprising sentiment. I do want to mention that I was a casual fan of Moon Knight before reading this; after reading this, I am now fully invested in Marc, Steven, Jake, and Khonshu. The greatest thing this book does (and Chen deserves a lot of credit here) is managing to juggle two different versions of the same person from different universes each with multiple split personalities and a foreign entity (Venom/Khonshu) in their mind and somehow make it all readable and understandable.
The storyline was very entertaining while having moments of sentiment that were quite heart warming. I think that might be one of the best parts of this book, it has the fast paced action you'd expect and it also has the moments of sentiment when necessary. I also liked the way Chen initially wrote Venom as just another alien entity and then showed us flashes of his signature humor/banter as he and Marc navigate working together. The “villain” in this story fell a bit flat for me. The Whisperer was not bad but certainly not great either, not very developed or interesting. Really good read and highly recommend for any marvel fans.
April 19, 2025
This is probably my favorite of the series so far! I love how these feel like an episode of What If…? Duh that makes sense but this one really felt like it. I love Moon Knight, and Marc Spector, and Jake Lockley, and Steven Grant and this book was so amazing. The premise of this book is exactly as the title suggests: Marc Spector becomes host to Venom and there are multiversal beings involved. So much happens in this book that I can’t even begin to describe it all. It was like just when you thought you knew where the book was going… NOPE! Something crazy would happen after that. It kept me engaged until the very end. Like when I wasn't reading, I was thinking about it and counting down until I could read again. As I am going back and reviewing this book, it is crazy for me to see this is the lowest rated of the 3 novels!!! If you're a fan of the Moon Knight series, you will absolutely adore this book!
October 18, 2024
Mike Chen has become an auto read author for me so I was thrilled that he wrote a novel in the What If....series! The Venom/Moon Knight story was perfect for him since he is a sci-fi author and it delivered! I thought this was so interesting with Marc Spector/Jake Lockley/Steven Grant and Venom angle but it made sense (I think I need to do a re-watch of Moon Knight). I am curious where this is going now because the ending seemed not the end? Perhaps they will do a Dr. Strange one as well (here's hoping)!
March 3, 2025
Now I have to go back and read the first 2 lol
abandoned
February 6, 2025Turns out that yes, my suspicion of novels in comics settings and my lack of enthusiasm for Venom outweigh even my love of Moon Knight, though I might have got further if it hadn't been lumbered with some framing saga about America Chavez being a Watcher now?
January 17, 2025
This was a story that took me a long time to really get into. The first half(ish) of the book is really confusing due to the Multiverse story and trying to decipher which Marc is which. Eventually, it gets more clear and figured out but I still didn't find the story as interesting as the first two additions to the What If...? universe. Overall it was just okay and I think that without the Marvel name to the book, it isn't that great.
November 8, 2024
Interesting 3rd Entry
Never a big reader of Moon Knight comics, I had few preconceptions of the character(s). I enjoyed the author's storytelling and characters, especially since so many were aspects of the one. Not really into Venom either, so more insights. I will be interested to see if/how these books fit into the mcu.
Never a big reader of Moon Knight comics, I had few preconceptions of the character(s). I enjoyed the author's storytelling and characters, especially since so many were aspects of the one. Not really into Venom either, so more insights. I will be interested to see if/how these books fit into the mcu.
October 26, 2024
I DNFed this book REALLY early (less than 100 pages in). I plan to finish it one day, but this isn't what I wanted to read on any level. The concept of Venom with Moon Knight could be mined for so much and make an extremely compelling and interesting read that balances all the issues and the multiple personalities..
This decided rather than doing that, it was going to go full throttle over the top comic nonsense for no reason and while that can work in a comic, it's so freaking hard in a book.
OK so here's the premise, ready for this?
Moon Knight escapes from a fake mental ward and saves his friends. Venom Knight (Moon Knight and Venom combined) pops up from another world and beats up Moon Knight, takes him hostage, and decides to do the switch-a-roo. OK? Fine on the surface, sorta. To clarify Moon Knight from Venom Knight they call Moon Knight Marc and Venom Knight Spector. That works on a very, very surface level, but fine.
So Venom takes over Moon Knight and Venom Knight is basically dying. Venom becomes Moon Venom with Marc, Venom Knight becomes.. Jake and Steven without Spector. Got that? Well Khonshu, ya know Moon Knight's god? Jake and Steven are the ones from the other world that Venom Knight came from. They don't have a Khonshu. But Venom somehow magically locks Khonshu out of Moon Venom, so he swaps to Jake and Steven who are Spectorless and saves their body to go save his Marc from Venom. That's the story. It then swaps between the personalities by telling you the chapter title who each is. So that's clear right? The problem is.. there are 2 Marcs, 2 Jakes, and 2 Stevens in this whole thing. And the relationships between them are different.. so now you've taken an already complex story about a person with 3 personalities (Possibly 4 since Khonshu is sometimes not a god, but rather another personality).. added ANOTHER set of those 3 personalities.. and Venom.. Just.. why?
Again this concept could be soooooooooooooooooooo fun. There is so much to mine and so much Moon Knight lore to play with.. and rather than playing with that, you throw it all out and make something that's so convoluted and complex that it only really works in a medium where we can SEE THE CHARACTERS and therefor don't have to worry about which Marc is speaking (Or which Jake or which Steven) since we can see them... Such a waste of the potential.
To be fair, it's not hard to follow and it is well written. It's just.. so utterly over complicating something that A) was already complicated and B) could have just been vastly more straight forward and fun.
Gonna try to come back later, but that whole mess just made me bail and I don't want to come back at the moment.
This decided rather than doing that, it was going to go full throttle over the top comic nonsense for no reason and while that can work in a comic, it's so freaking hard in a book.
OK so here's the premise, ready for this?
Moon Knight escapes from a fake mental ward and saves his friends. Venom Knight (Moon Knight and Venom combined) pops up from another world and beats up Moon Knight, takes him hostage, and decides to do the switch-a-roo. OK? Fine on the surface, sorta. To clarify Moon Knight from Venom Knight they call Moon Knight Marc and Venom Knight Spector. That works on a very, very surface level, but fine.
So Venom takes over Moon Knight and Venom Knight is basically dying. Venom becomes Moon Venom with Marc, Venom Knight becomes.. Jake and Steven without Spector. Got that? Well Khonshu, ya know Moon Knight's god? Jake and Steven are the ones from the other world that Venom Knight came from. They don't have a Khonshu. But Venom somehow magically locks Khonshu out of Moon Venom, so he swaps to Jake and Steven who are Spectorless and saves their body to go save his Marc from Venom. That's the story. It then swaps between the personalities by telling you the chapter title who each is. So that's clear right? The problem is.. there are 2 Marcs, 2 Jakes, and 2 Stevens in this whole thing. And the relationships between them are different.. so now you've taken an already complex story about a person with 3 personalities (Possibly 4 since Khonshu is sometimes not a god, but rather another personality).. added ANOTHER set of those 3 personalities.. and Venom.. Just.. why?
Again this concept could be soooooooooooooooooooo fun. There is so much to mine and so much Moon Knight lore to play with.. and rather than playing with that, you throw it all out and make something that's so convoluted and complex that it only really works in a medium where we can SEE THE CHARACTERS and therefor don't have to worry about which Marc is speaking (Or which Jake or which Steven) since we can see them... Such a waste of the potential.
To be fair, it's not hard to follow and it is well written. It's just.. so utterly over complicating something that A) was already complicated and B) could have just been vastly more straight forward and fun.
Gonna try to come back later, but that whole mess just made me bail and I don't want to come back at the moment.
April 26, 2025
You know, when I first read the title for this, I was like...okay, yeah, sure, what if? Like, this just seemed like the most random combo of all time, but I was SO on board. I LOVE Venom, and I LOVED the Moon Knight show! What can go wrong?
And, overall, it was pretty good! But I do want to go over my thoughts on the whole thing, in no particular order or organization.
1) The audiobook is probably the superior way to experience this book. I loved it. They got two separate voice actors (one for Marc/Steven/Jake and one for Venom), and they both did an amazing job capturing the spirit of these characters. They brought so much personality and hearts to the role, and the performance choices they made were just amazing. Loved it a lot.
2) This is part of a series with a throughline plot and a framing device. I thought that these books were all a series of standalones, and that you didn't need to read all of them to understand the other. For the most part, if you haven't read the others, you'll be able to understand the meat of this book! But you'll really be confused where it comes to the prologue and epilogue.
3) If you are a more casual fan of the MCU, you probably will be confused! For starters, this does not follow the MCU timeline. So if you just watched the Moon Knight show and decided to jump into this book, you'll probably be confused! The cast is mostly made up of characters from the comics. It doesn't really impact anything huge to the understanding or enjoyment or the book, but it is a little confusing if you are expecting it to be a tie-in with the show Moon Knight.
And, overall, it was pretty good! But I do want to go over my thoughts on the whole thing, in no particular order or organization.
1) The audiobook is probably the superior way to experience this book. I loved it. They got two separate voice actors (one for Marc/Steven/Jake and one for Venom), and they both did an amazing job capturing the spirit of these characters. They brought so much personality and hearts to the role, and the performance choices they made were just amazing. Loved it a lot.
2) This is part of a series with a throughline plot and a framing device. I thought that these books were all a series of standalones, and that you didn't need to read all of them to understand the other. For the most part, if you haven't read the others, you'll be able to understand the meat of this book! But you'll really be confused where it comes to the prologue and epilogue.
3) If you are a more casual fan of the MCU, you probably will be confused! For starters, this does not follow the MCU timeline. So if you just watched the Moon Knight show and decided to jump into this book, you'll probably be confused! The cast is mostly made up of characters from the comics. It doesn't really impact anything huge to the understanding or enjoyment or the book, but it is a little confusing if you are expecting it to be a tie-in with the show Moon Knight.
December 28, 2024
When this book was announced in May 2024, I knew I had to be there day 1 once this book came out. I was so excited for this. I will do anything for moon knight content, he’s one of my favorite characters ever and I will be sat in anything he’s in.
I was weary going into this since i hadn’t read the other 2 “What If” books that came out before this one (especially that intro to the story had me worried) but I don’t think it hindered my enjoyment or understanding of the story.
Mike Chen does a great job balancing the 2 Marc Spector’s and how to know which we are reading from and what pov. We start out with Marc Spector’s pov and then we switch main pov’s to the other universes Marc Spector/Steven Grant/ Jake Lockley (mostly the latter 2). One interesting thing I noticed Mike Chen do to differentiate pov’s was writing them in different perspectives. Steven Grant would be in first person and Jake Lockley would be third. I think this was a smart idea to help understand from whose perspective we are reading from.
I liked the story! I was scared when I read the synopsis before the book came out that it would have 2 Marc Spectors since it is a venom story but I liked it. I don’t think I still quite understand the “why” of it all and what made Marc so special according to the big bad. I do wish this had more complex emotional moments since Marc is a complex character but the “in universe” Marc does have a character growth moment after seeing the other universes Steven and Jake which I did appreciate. I loved seeing my girl Layla and believe there was an mcu moon knight reference/ cameo!! (It’s like 1 sentence, so not really cameo? Not sure) but I loved that so much.
I’m not sure if I’ll read the first two books or any future books in this series (I only read this for moon knight content, I’ll be real) but I wouldn’t put it out of the cards.
I was weary going into this since i hadn’t read the other 2 “What If” books that came out before this one (especially that intro to the story had me worried) but I don’t think it hindered my enjoyment or understanding of the story.
Mike Chen does a great job balancing the 2 Marc Spector’s and how to know which we are reading from and what pov. We start out with Marc Spector’s pov and then we switch main pov’s to the other universes Marc Spector/Steven Grant/ Jake Lockley (mostly the latter 2). One interesting thing I noticed Mike Chen do to differentiate pov’s was writing them in different perspectives. Steven Grant would be in first person and Jake Lockley would be third. I think this was a smart idea to help understand from whose perspective we are reading from.
I liked the story! I was scared when I read the synopsis before the book came out that it would have 2 Marc Spectors since it is a venom story but I liked it. I don’t think I still quite understand the “why” of it all and what made Marc so special according to the big bad. I do wish this had more complex emotional moments since Marc is a complex character but the “in universe” Marc does have a character growth moment after seeing the other universes Steven and Jake which I did appreciate. I loved seeing my girl Layla and believe there was an mcu moon knight reference/ cameo!! (It’s like 1 sentence, so not really cameo? Not sure) but I loved that so much.
I’m not sure if I’ll read the first two books or any future books in this series (I only read this for moon knight content, I’ll be real) but I wouldn’t put it out of the cards.
July 5, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️
What If…? Marc Spector Was Host to Venom takes on the tough challenge of balancing Moon Knight’s multiple personalities with the chaos of the Venom symbiote. While the early split of voices helped, it was still hard to follow at times. The headspace scenes with Jake, Steven, and Khonshu were the highlight and the clearest part of the story. I missed the helpful POVs from America Chavez used in past What If books, which could’ve added clarity here. Mike Chen’s writing is strong—as seen in Star Wars: Brotherhood but this story might have worked better in a visual format.
5 out of 10
What If…? Marc Spector Was Host to Venom takes on the tough challenge of balancing Moon Knight’s multiple personalities with the chaos of the Venom symbiote. While the early split of voices helped, it was still hard to follow at times. The headspace scenes with Jake, Steven, and Khonshu were the highlight and the clearest part of the story. I missed the helpful POVs from America Chavez used in past What If books, which could’ve added clarity here. Mike Chen’s writing is strong—as seen in Star Wars: Brotherhood but this story might have worked better in a visual format.
5 out of 10
November 16, 2024
It was okay. While never a big fan of either Venom or Moon Knight, I thought I'd give it a chance because I enjoyed the first two books in the series. It started off slow, picked up speed in the middle, had some slow moments, and then had a crazy ending. It did hold my interest throughout most of the book, so it had that going for it.
I thought the author was able to keep all of the POVs fairly unique and separate, although it does get a little crazy towards the end. Granted, he did part of this by titling (subtitling?) each chapter with the name of the character from whom the POV is supposed to be taken for that chapter. At the same time, the multiple IDs makes it challenging to write a review, hahahah! I can only imagine how challenging it was to write the story! Because of this, I was not as confused as I could have been otherwise.
The plot:
I wasn't overwhelmed. I wasn't underwhelmed. It turned out better than I thought it would. This is the . . . fourth book? involving Venom that I have read (The Venom Factor and The Octopus Agenda by Diane Duane from the latter part of the 90s and Lethal Protector by James Tuck and released by Titan Books in 2018; I feel like there was one more, but I cannot remember which one it might have been). It was okay; the latter part is better than the beginning, hahahah! If I think of anything else to say, I'll update my review and add it later. At the end of the day, I am glad I took a chance and read this book.
I thought the author was able to keep all of the POVs fairly unique and separate, although it does get a little crazy towards the end. Granted, he did part of this by titling (subtitling?) each chapter with the name of the character from whom the POV is supposed to be taken for that chapter. At the same time, the multiple IDs makes it challenging to write a review, hahahah! I can only imagine how challenging it was to write the story! Because of this, I was not as confused as I could have been otherwise.
The plot:
I wasn't overwhelmed. I wasn't underwhelmed. It turned out better than I thought it would. This is the . . . fourth book? involving Venom that I have read (The Venom Factor and The Octopus Agenda by Diane Duane from the latter part of the 90s and Lethal Protector by James Tuck and released by Titan Books in 2018; I feel like there was one more, but I cannot remember which one it might have been). It was okay; the latter part is better than the beginning, hahahah! If I think of anything else to say, I'll update my review and add it later. At the end of the day, I am glad I took a chance and read this book.
January 7, 2025
Full disclaimer: I am a Venom fan whose only exposure to Moon Knight is from the Oscar Isaac show and his voicelines from Marvel Rivals, and this is not a spoiler-free review
So to start off, I wouldn't recommend this book to any Venom fans, or whoever might be interested into reading this for the Venom symbiote. That's pretty much it. Though if you want to know why, I'll go on.
But before that I'd like to acknowledge the parts where the book was decent, just not from a symbiotic perspective.
I liked how the writer managed the MK alters. Again I'm not familiar with them especially Jake, so I'm pretty much just going along with them. I think some other reviews did point this out that it was nice to see quite a bit of them, especially with slight differences that were mentioned in the story to add a little depth.
I think the writer also did a good job writing two Marcs, even if only because the story necessitates it.
I think a Moon Knight fan would be a lot more satisfied with this book, basically.
So what we didn't like... sigh
And let's be real. The whole concept, if you knew nothing of the story, about Marc Spector being Venom, would obviously merit some interest in seeing how their dynamic would go, when you consider there would basically be FIVE separate voices sharing one mind.
However this was not the case as it pretty much ended up being just Steven/Jake feat. Khonshu versus Symbiote/Marc for like 95% of the story.
And then there's the Venom characterization... (JUMPSCARE MOMENT)
Look... If you're going to go the #movie route of making the symbiote be in full control and the host as a puppet, you need to at least know WHY it worked in the Venom films.
Tom Hardy as Loser!Eddie was CHARMING, and Venom was #goofy, so they made for a good dynamic to watch.
What's the most important thing for a symbiote story? It's the BOND between symbiote and host. Comic symbrock had this, movie symbrock does as well, despite being adapted differently from the source and being widely regarded as trash
But this shit? Sorry but what do you mean Marc even struggled to get any input, and the whole time it was either "Venom in charge of the body" or "Marc in charge of the body" like they had to flip a coin to settle it. There is ZERO concept of symbiosis. This isn't supposed to be like MK alters arguing with each other over who should take over. Symbiote and host act together as ONE, even if one party was reluctant.
Reading them was a pain for the first half because you didn't even KNOW what was the symbiote's motivations until way later due to the slow pacing, so you just had to accept the symbiote was being this mad but not know if it was justified.
This feels excessively negative and I apologize but between the ending for Venom The Last Dance and the current state of Venom comics I feel like some higher ups are just saying fuck it and doing whatever they want with these characters and it has left me a little frustrated.
I don't have anything against Mike Chen, who seemed genuinely grateful to have the opportunity to write for this concept that Marvel had already planned way before for their What If novel series, and from his work I notice he had some LGBBQ rep and even acknowledged Eddie and the symbiote's relationship, which is something I'm glad for because you know Marvel would absolutely not have given a shit either way.
SO. tl:dr is that this is a lame book as part of an ongoing Multiverse story that was written by someone who was not familiar with Venom and had to rely on a lot of passed down information, because Marvel decided Venom needed to be involved (Due to symbiote's inherent multiversal properties, along with Loki, Wanda and what seems to be Jean Grey next...) but at the same time not deserving of closure (unless you count him guarding the entirety of the Hive Mind for the rest of the indefinite future as closure. Hell, even Venom: The End was better, at least that Venom had some feeling to it)
So to start off, I wouldn't recommend this book to any Venom fans, or whoever might be interested into reading this for the Venom symbiote. That's pretty much it. Though if you want to know why, I'll go on.
But before that I'd like to acknowledge the parts where the book was decent, just not from a symbiotic perspective.
I liked how the writer managed the MK alters. Again I'm not familiar with them especially Jake, so I'm pretty much just going along with them. I think some other reviews did point this out that it was nice to see quite a bit of them, especially with slight differences that were mentioned in the story to add a little depth.
I think the writer also did a good job writing two Marcs, even if only because the story necessitates it.
I think a Moon Knight fan would be a lot more satisfied with this book, basically.
So what we didn't like... sigh
And let's be real. The whole concept, if you knew nothing of the story, about Marc Spector being Venom, would obviously merit some interest in seeing how their dynamic would go, when you consider there would basically be FIVE separate voices sharing one mind.
However this was not the case as it pretty much ended up being just Steven/Jake feat. Khonshu versus Symbiote/Marc for like 95% of the story.
And then there's the Venom characterization... (JUMPSCARE MOMENT)
Look... If you're going to go the #movie route of making the symbiote be in full control and the host as a puppet, you need to at least know WHY it worked in the Venom films.
Tom Hardy as Loser!Eddie was CHARMING, and Venom was #goofy, so they made for a good dynamic to watch.
What's the most important thing for a symbiote story? It's the BOND between symbiote and host. Comic symbrock had this, movie symbrock does as well, despite being adapted differently from the source and being widely regarded as trash
But this shit? Sorry but what do you mean Marc even struggled to get any input, and the whole time it was either "Venom in charge of the body" or "Marc in charge of the body" like they had to flip a coin to settle it. There is ZERO concept of symbiosis. This isn't supposed to be like MK alters arguing with each other over who should take over. Symbiote and host act together as ONE, even if one party was reluctant.
Reading them was a pain for the first half because you didn't even KNOW what was the symbiote's motivations until way later due to the slow pacing, so you just had to accept the symbiote was being this mad but not know if it was justified.
This feels excessively negative and I apologize but between the ending for Venom The Last Dance and the current state of Venom comics I feel like some higher ups are just saying fuck it and doing whatever they want with these characters and it has left me a little frustrated.
I don't have anything against Mike Chen, who seemed genuinely grateful to have the opportunity to write for this concept that Marvel had already planned way before for their What If novel series, and from his work I notice he had some LGBBQ rep and even acknowledged Eddie and the symbiote's relationship, which is something I'm glad for because you know Marvel would absolutely not have given a shit either way.
SO. tl:dr is that this is a lame book as part of an ongoing Multiverse story that was written by someone who was not familiar with Venom and had to rely on a lot of passed down information, because Marvel decided Venom needed to be involved (Due to symbiote's inherent multiversal properties, along with Loki, Wanda and what seems to be Jean Grey next...) but at the same time not deserving of closure (unless you count him guarding the entirety of the Hive Mind for the rest of the indefinite future as closure. Hell, even Venom: The End was better, at least that Venom had some feeling to it)
August 30, 2025
I was debating between 2 and 3 stars. This book was hugely disappointing regarding premise and I couldn't finish it after over a month of trying, but the author knows how to keep a plot moving and I never felt bored.
The primary issue I have with this book is the waste of a fascinating premise. I am a fan of Moon Knight, and a huge fan of Hulk; I love characters with multiple minds in one body. Venom technically falls into this category as well. I was thrilled at the concept of Moon Knight adding another mind to his body (for lack of better phrasing) and how Steven, Marc, and Jake would interact with yet another power-granting, inhuman presence like Khonshu.
Instead, we get two Moon Knights, neither of which have more than 2 minds per body. Technically you could argue Khonshu is a third mind, but he doesn't actually have any real say in what the body does. So we have one MK made of Steven and Jake, and the other made up of Marc and Venom. Except Venom utterly dominates the body, leaving Marc a non-character, and thus, the entire book is really just "Steven & Jake vs Venom."
Another glaring issue: The book swaps between first, second, and third person depending on the character - and without particularly good reason.
Venom is in second person, talking to Marc, who he is manipulating and controlling. I'm okay with that! The Venom chapters were very short and to the point, and getting little bites of a creepy second-person was generally fun.
But then... Marc is 3rd. Other Marc is also 3rd. Jake is 3rd. And Steven... is 1st?
It was like whiplash getting to Steven's chapters. It made Steven seem vastly more important - in a meta way - than Marc or Jake. If the real reason for Steven being 1st person was "he's egotistical/self-important," that is NOT a good enough reason, especially when the only other character who isn't in 3rd person, is the villain of the story.
In addition to all of this, the setting felt a bit bland, and we go between the same few places over and over. I just wasn't interested in returning to the same place the story started in, and I hated that there was a second Marc at all (which also simply doesn't make enough sense / doesn't feel reasonable enough to even include in this plot in the first place).
I got a good ways through but only by forcing myself to do so. This is definitely a misleading title - even if it teeechnically is true. I wish we had a version of this where Venom, Marc, Steven and Jake are actually in the same headspace.
The primary issue I have with this book is the waste of a fascinating premise. I am a fan of Moon Knight, and a huge fan of Hulk; I love characters with multiple minds in one body. Venom technically falls into this category as well. I was thrilled at the concept of Moon Knight adding another mind to his body (for lack of better phrasing) and how Steven, Marc, and Jake would interact with yet another power-granting, inhuman presence like Khonshu.
Instead, we get two Moon Knights, neither of which have more than 2 minds per body. Technically you could argue Khonshu is a third mind, but he doesn't actually have any real say in what the body does. So we have one MK made of Steven and Jake, and the other made up of Marc and Venom. Except Venom utterly dominates the body, leaving Marc a non-character, and thus, the entire book is really just "Steven & Jake vs Venom."
Another glaring issue: The book swaps between first, second, and third person depending on the character - and without particularly good reason.
Venom is in second person, talking to Marc, who he is manipulating and controlling. I'm okay with that! The Venom chapters were very short and to the point, and getting little bites of a creepy second-person was generally fun.
But then... Marc is 3rd. Other Marc is also 3rd. Jake is 3rd. And Steven... is 1st?
It was like whiplash getting to Steven's chapters. It made Steven seem vastly more important - in a meta way - than Marc or Jake. If the real reason for Steven being 1st person was "he's egotistical/self-important," that is NOT a good enough reason, especially when the only other character who isn't in 3rd person, is the villain of the story.
In addition to all of this, the setting felt a bit bland, and we go between the same few places over and over. I just wasn't interested in returning to the same place the story started in, and I hated that there was a second Marc at all (which also simply doesn't make enough sense / doesn't feel reasonable enough to even include in this plot in the first place).
I got a good ways through but only by forcing myself to do so. This is definitely a misleading title - even if it teeechnically is true. I wish we had a version of this where Venom, Marc, Steven and Jake are actually in the same headspace.
October 24, 2024
I still consider myself to be a casual Marvel fan with a surface-level knowledge of the MCU and comic-verse, especially of Moon Knight, and I found that it was a good mix of both for me. This is comic-Marc with an MCU-portrayal of DID, which I thought was fun, and it filled in that longing for more Moon Knight content since the show on Disney+.
Overall: Hardcore comic fans might not like it. It can drag at times with lore drops. It feels a lot like Disney just wanted to put out some content without fully delving into a plot. For casual fans, it's fun to have Steven and Jake sharing a voice/body, but you don't get much of Marc included in their system so it feels a little empty. It can be a little silly, but it's a fun silly at least.
That being said... it was okay! I listened to the audiobook but the narrator can be monotone, and there were some parts I expected another character to be speaking but it wasn't, the narrator just merged his voice into a different accent entirely. So I don't recommend the audiobook as your first choice.
This was my first What if...? book, so I didn't realize there was an overarching plot, but it was fairly easy to ignore. The beginning would be good for people not familiar with the characters since it explains Moon Knight and Venom lore in some backstory, but it felt a little slow to start otherwise. I did get invested in the middle and I thoroughly enjoyed the Steven/Jake hijinks, but the ending left me feeling... disappointed. I wasn't satisfied with the way the plot was tied up, but the rest of the book was fun and some parts had me laughing to myself.
But yeah. Still mad about the end, but happy to have some more Moon Knight content while I wait for a Season 2.
Overall: Hardcore comic fans might not like it. It can drag at times with lore drops. It feels a lot like Disney just wanted to put out some content without fully delving into a plot. For casual fans, it's fun to have Steven and Jake sharing a voice/body, but you don't get much of Marc included in their system so it feels a little empty. It can be a little silly, but it's a fun silly at least.
That being said... it was okay! I listened to the audiobook but the narrator can be monotone, and there were some parts I expected another character to be speaking but it wasn't, the narrator just merged his voice into a different accent entirely. So I don't recommend the audiobook as your first choice.
This was my first What if...? book, so I didn't realize there was an overarching plot, but it was fairly easy to ignore. The beginning would be good for people not familiar with the characters since it explains Moon Knight and Venom lore in some backstory, but it felt a little slow to start otherwise. I did get invested in the middle and I thoroughly enjoyed the Steven/Jake hijinks, but the ending left me feeling... disappointed. I wasn't satisfied with the way the plot was tied up, but the rest of the book was fun and some parts had me laughing to myself.
But yeah. Still mad about the end, but happy to have some more Moon Knight content while I wait for a Season 2.
November 26, 2024
As someone who is a huge Moon Knight fan, this story fell flat for me. I enjoyed the exploration of another worlds MK, as well as the idea of Steven and Jake having to exist without their Marc, and Marc having to exist without his Steven and Jake. However, the pacing of the story wasn't great, and neither was the overall writing of it. I like the idea of the book having multiple POV's, especially when dealing with so many characters, but the constant switching of the literal POV it was written in did make it a little hard to follow at times. Parts of the writing also didn't feel very fleshed out and felt almost like reading a fan made story about the character and not a published work. Some of the chapters felt like they ended very abruptly leading me to go back and check if I skipped a page.
As a whole, the story felt hard to follow and after reading the first third of it I was wondering where else it could've gone. After finishing it I was left wanting a more worked out ending rather than things being left as ambiguous as they were. Overall, it just felt like it needed to be planned out better before being written, and then read over a few more times to make sure everything sounded like it made sense. This was a disappointing introduction to this author for me, and to the character in a novel form.
As a whole, the story felt hard to follow and after reading the first third of it I was wondering where else it could've gone. After finishing it I was left wanting a more worked out ending rather than things being left as ambiguous as they were. Overall, it just felt like it needed to be planned out better before being written, and then read over a few more times to make sure everything sounded like it made sense. This was a disappointing introduction to this author for me, and to the character in a novel form.
February 11, 2025
This was a departure to the past two books as it really focused on the idea of a multiverse and the main characters being aware of that fact. Honestly this was my least anticipated. I couldn’t get through the Moon knight TV show and I hate his ultimate in Marvel Rivals. This did give me a better sense to Mark Spector and Company which left me feeling much more positive about the character. All of the books in this series so far have left me feeling positive about their protagonists. Despite this, I couldn’t get hooked into the world as much. There was alternating chapters which was fine but I dreaded venom chapters (the narrator was breathy and too growly which was off-putting). Venom was the least compelling and really added little. While the previous books had changes to the protagonist’s story, Moon Knight’s story was already in motion. He wasn’t host to Venom from the start, he had Konshu already. Furthermore, there was a lot of references to Mark Spector’s backstory (eg. the psychiatrist) that made it difficult to really get into the swing of things because I just didn’t really know much about any of it. With the other books, I didn’t know about Wanda but I didn’t really need to know that much. Basically, the What If wasn’t very What If-y. I still really enjoyed the story! And I’m looking forward to more from this series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 18, 2025
It was the first of these what if books I picked up. Mostly because I saw my two favorite characters in Venom and Moonknight!
But it handles its idea in a fascinating way and perfectly dark atmosphere. Plus how it handles multiple personalities of Moonknight is handled with a lot of love and grace. It gives a still fantastical depiction of DID( Dissociative identity Disorder) but in a humanizing way that all the Alters are equally people, and have their own agency in the body. Plus being plural positive that Moonknight never isn't a system, even with shegians in the story involving venom suppressing some of the other personalities.
Plus! Have to give to this book for being a good anthology since you can pick up this one without having to read the first two stories in the what if books.
Overall the writing was witty and oozing charm. The setting is fascinating, and characters are in the utter front and center. If you love marvel and like stories a bit on the dark side, very much grab this book
But it handles its idea in a fascinating way and perfectly dark atmosphere. Plus how it handles multiple personalities of Moonknight is handled with a lot of love and grace. It gives a still fantastical depiction of DID( Dissociative identity Disorder) but in a humanizing way that all the Alters are equally people, and have their own agency in the body. Plus being plural positive that Moonknight never isn't a system, even with shegians in the story involving venom suppressing some of the other personalities.
Plus! Have to give to this book for being a good anthology since you can pick up this one without having to read the first two stories in the what if books.
Overall the writing was witty and oozing charm. The setting is fascinating, and characters are in the utter front and center. If you love marvel and like stories a bit on the dark side, very much grab this book
December 16, 2024
I just absolutely adore Moon Knight in all forms. Anything Moon Knight related and I just eat that shit right up.
I didn't read the first two books of this series, and I felt like I didn't have to. There's obviously a sub plot in the background with America and the Watchers, but I could not care less about that. I was here for Moon Knight and Moon Knight only.
It was cool getting to know Jake and Steven more!! Marc took the backseat, and we got to experience the world through the many flips of Jake and Steven. And also Venom was there. I didn't feel lost at any point, and didn't have any trouble telling which trio went with which universe, which was impressive considering the amount of duplicate characters bouncing around. That was one of my main concerns when I found out this was a multiverse book. It was funny to read about Venom constantly comparing Spector to his previous host/ex Eddie. Khonshu is a delight, like always. A good fix for a Moon Knight fan!
I didn't read the first two books of this series, and I felt like I didn't have to. There's obviously a sub plot in the background with America and the Watchers, but I could not care less about that. I was here for Moon Knight and Moon Knight only.
It was cool getting to know Jake and Steven more!! Marc took the backseat, and we got to experience the world through the many flips of Jake and Steven. And also Venom was there. I didn't feel lost at any point, and didn't have any trouble telling which trio went with which universe, which was impressive considering the amount of duplicate characters bouncing around. That was one of my main concerns when I found out this was a multiverse book. It was funny to read about Venom constantly comparing Spector to his previous host/ex Eddie. Khonshu is a delight, like always. A good fix for a Moon Knight fan!
January 13, 2025
I found this to be incredibly unsatisfying. I'm not sure if the premise doesn't work or if Chen isn't the right writer to choose for this particular story.
To me, both Venom and Moon Knight are characters which should have very intense, visceral stories. There should be smacks and body fluids flying and bones breaking. We should feel the rush of action, of climbing and swinging from buildings to leap down onto hordes of faceless henchmen.
But what we actually get is a super talky book full of conversations between Marc (Spector) and alters and also (Marc) Spector and alters and Venom and an antagonist known as the Whisperer.
Then for some reason we have a few pages of America Chavez shoe-horned in. I haven't read the other books in the What If? series so I can only guess that this is some continuing plot thread, but it isn't integrated and is distracting.
To me, both Venom and Moon Knight are characters which should have very intense, visceral stories. There should be smacks and body fluids flying and bones breaking. We should feel the rush of action, of climbing and swinging from buildings to leap down onto hordes of faceless henchmen.
But what we actually get is a super talky book full of conversations between Marc (Spector) and alters and also (Marc) Spector and alters and Venom and an antagonist known as the Whisperer.
Then for some reason we have a few pages of America Chavez shoe-horned in. I haven't read the other books in the What If? series so I can only guess that this is some continuing plot thread, but it isn't integrated and is distracting.
January 29, 2025
This is the 3rd in the series of Marvel's What If ... This book is confusing for multiple reasons. You must pay attention to what is happening and what you are reading. You have 2 Marc Spectors, 1 Venom, and two personalities of Marc Spector.
I was expecting this to be a state-forward Venom Moon Knight. This is more like The Marc Spector multiple personalities tracking Venom Moon Knight trying to figure out what they are doing and either trying to help them or stop them from breaking the Multiverse.
I wanted more Moon Knight and Venom that the story was following. This is more character development of Mar Spector's personality and how to work together than anything else, which was a little disappointing to me. However, the part with the Watcher had a big payoff and will keep me reading the new ones coming in Fall 2025.
I was expecting this to be a state-forward Venom Moon Knight. This is more like The Marc Spector multiple personalities tracking Venom Moon Knight trying to figure out what they are doing and either trying to help them or stop them from breaking the Multiverse.
I wanted more Moon Knight and Venom that the story was following. This is more character development of Mar Spector's personality and how to work together than anything else, which was a little disappointing to me. However, the part with the Watcher had a big payoff and will keep me reading the new ones coming in Fall 2025.
June 8, 2025
I must admit I'm not super familiar with these characters, but from what I've seen, the author did a passable job adapting them to novel form. It's funny, but I think the first author was told that , but by the end of this book, it is revealed to be , which should come as no surprise given the direction the MCU is headed. I find it amusing that the same shift appears to have ocurred in this series. Supposedly, there are more books to come starting this fall, but I haven't seen anything on the Internet about it yet. This wouldn't be the first time a Disney media tie-in series was cancelled if that ends up being the case, which is a shame since I'm really enjoying these scenarios even more than the ones that were chosen for the What If... tv series.
January 15, 2025
It’s bold to decide to have two Marcs/Jakes/Stevens (with no explanation how the second one got to this universe or why he’s there) and then decide okay this one is actually only Marc and the other one is actually only Jake/Steven. There seems to be two things this author loves: really convenient plot points and not explaining things. I stand by my thought that these books would be better as stand alone novels and not a series with an interconnected multiverse plot that just gets in the way of story telling. This book was so poorly written that you’ll leave it not really knowing what the happened in the end and continually asking yourself “but why?” throughout reading it. I don’t even know if I would recommend this to those who are big fans of Venom or Moon Knight.
January 28, 2025
TLDR: Go in knowing nothing, try the audible audiobook.
Everyone i saw recommend this book said: “Go in without knowing anything, just trust me”. And i am so glad i did. Truly, look up nothing more, no spoilers, try and avoid the description(s).
Also- the audiobook is INCREDIBLE! I truly believe that is how this book is meant to be experienced. It works perfectly with the narrative / perspective style this book uses, and sets everyone apart (if you know you know). I recommend the Audible version, i’m not sure if the others use the same VAs.
i picked this book for something fun to listen to while i would be doing household chores. “oh, a marvel storybook? that should be fun”. And it wasn’t just fun, but so much more. by the last 3-4 hours of the audiobook, id turn it on and just lay there, listening, doing nothing else, so enraptured. Go in with no expectations, no information.
Everyone i saw recommend this book said: “Go in without knowing anything, just trust me”. And i am so glad i did. Truly, look up nothing more, no spoilers, try and avoid the description(s).
Also- the audiobook is INCREDIBLE! I truly believe that is how this book is meant to be experienced. It works perfectly with the narrative / perspective style this book uses, and sets everyone apart (if you know you know). I recommend the Audible version, i’m not sure if the others use the same VAs.
i picked this book for something fun to listen to while i would be doing household chores. “oh, a marvel storybook? that should be fun”. And it wasn’t just fun, but so much more. by the last 3-4 hours of the audiobook, id turn it on and just lay there, listening, doing nothing else, so enraptured. Go in with no expectations, no information.
April 12, 2025
Compared to the first novels in this series, "What If... Marc Spector Was Host to Venom?" is a bit of a slog.
I'm not sure if that's because we're dealing with two Moon Knights - each with three distinct identities (though only one has a Khonshu) - or if it's just that the plotting is so ambitious that writer Mike Chen didn't quite get it completely right.
That said, the premise in which all the Moon Knights in the multiverse are endangered by the overarching villain - and, finally , confirmation of said villain's identity - plays out in unusual fashion. Venom makes things very difficult for the two Jakes/Marcs/Stevens.
The fun factor is still remarkably high.
The next book in the series is scheduled for fall. Can't wait.
I'm not sure if that's because we're dealing with two Moon Knights - each with three distinct identities (though only one has a Khonshu) - or if it's just that the plotting is so ambitious that writer Mike Chen didn't quite get it completely right.
That said, the premise in which all the Moon Knights in the multiverse are endangered by the overarching villain - and, finally , confirmation of said villain's identity - plays out in unusual fashion. Venom makes things very difficult for the two Jakes/Marcs/Stevens.
The fun factor is still remarkably high.
The next book in the series is scheduled for fall. Can't wait.
November 9, 2024
My god, this book was all over the place. While the middle found its groove, the beginning and end were just so, so difficult to follow. And let me be fair: Moon Knight is a complicated protagonist to try and tackle - you've already got Marc Spector, Jake Crowley, Steven Grant, and Khonshu (plus Mr. Knight) to deal with, all in one character's head, then you times that by two by bringing in a Moon Knight from somewhere else in the multiverse with all of his own band of characters, and then, to top it all off, you add in a hive-mind creature like Venom who speaks in the royal 'we.' What you get when you mix all that together is an incredibly complicated mesh of voices that I just don't think this author managed to distinguish well enough. It was a good effort, but it just missed the mark.
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