Marvel's Secret Invasion Prose Novel

by Paul Cornell

A shapeshifting alien race invades the Marvel Universe in this exciting re-imagining of the bestselling comic book event from the author of one of its original tie-ins.

WHO DO YOU TRUST?

The shapeshifting alien race known as the Skrulls have infiltrated every branch of the Marvel Universe, from S.H.I.E.L.D., to the Avengers, and even interplanetary defence force S.W.O.R.D. 

As the New Avengers watch leader of the Hand, Elektra, transform into a Skrull after her death, they come to realise that an attack is coming, one that has been planned for many years. From heroes to villains, anyone could be a Skrull in disguise. Uncertain of who to trust, the team tries desperately to unite against an unseen foe. But it is too late. 

The invasion has begun.

A crashed ship in the Savage Land. A prison break at the Raft. Thunderbolts Mountain under attack. 

And an armada of Skrull ships approaching Earth. 

Scattered and hopeless, heroes and villains alike must team up to fight a war they never saw coming, the fallout of which will change the face of the Marvel Universe as we know it. 

BASED ON THE BESTSELLING MARVEL EVENT BY BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS AND LEINIL FRANCIS YU.

Genres: Marvel

352 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 12, 2023

About the author

Paul Cornell is a British writer of science fiction and fantasy prose, comics and television. He's been Hugo Award-nominated for all three media, and has won the BSFA Award for his short fiction, and the Eagle Award for his comics. He's the writer of Saucer Country for Vertigo, Demon Knights for DC, and has written for the Doctor Who TV series. His new urban fantasy novel is London Falling, out from Tor on December 6th.

via Wikipedia @ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Cor...

Reviews

[Neil · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this novelization of Marvel’s “BIG EVENT” in the comics more than the mini-series itself (and all of the tie-in issues). I will say this – the book makes me want to go back and reread the series and compare; I did have the hardbound collection of the series I would periodically look at while reading the book. The book moved at a pretty good pace; it held my interest throughout; it was actually a faster read than I thought it would be. Character development is always a hard thing in these kinds of stories because there are years of backstories in the comics and even then, a future author can totally change the development that was done to suit their purposes.

I liked that the story goes into more detail in terms of some of the events that happen in the series. Also, I missed while reading the comics that most of the story takes place in 24-48 hours or so. The book really made that clear (although I think there were some “continuity issues” in terms of the timing of different events, but not enough to take away from the overall story itself). I did like how the book explained some things that happened in the comics. For example, I never could figure out how the SHIELD helicarrier ended up in the middle of the Bermuda Triangle, far out to sea, in the comics. In the book, it is “explained” that the vessel had some kind of transporter device that could be used in emergencies and that is how the carrier ended up in the Atlantic Ocean. Granted, that is the only example that comes to mind, but there were others, hahahah. The story does go a bit beyond the seven-issue series, too, in terms of wrapping things up such as Jessica and Luke’s baby; she is taken by the Skrull agent in the miniseries but the two heroes work with Norman Osborne to find their child in the New Avengers series when Luke was leading the team, which I did not mind.

It is interesting, because the author has Thor going far beyond what he said in the series to Tony regarding their broken relationship to the extent that Thor tells Tony he will neve work with Tony ever again unless a couple of things happen involving Tony admitting he was sorry and apologizing. In the comics, Thor says he will never work with Tony again, so clearly that did not remain a kept promise as Thor has since teamed up with Tony multiple times after this series was written. At first, I felt the author had gone “too far” in how Thor was treating Tony, but then after I thought about it I decided he was probably “right on” in terms of Thor and how Thor felt. Tony had deeply betrayed Thor and broken his trust when Tony used Thor’s DNA to create “Clor” (the clone of Thor from the Civil War comic book event) after Thor had “died again” after the latest round of Ragnarök. It would be a hard thing to forgive, that deep of a betrayal; granted, I did feel that he went a little too far in other areas of Thor in terms of Captain America dying and the Superhero Registration Act.

Not just Thor, but I felt the author went too far in castigating Tony and Reed Richards for supporting the Act and went too far in defending Captain America and making Captain America look like a saint. Those were the dumbest, crappiest parts of the book. I think he should have balanced some of those opinions out with those who supported the Act. Common people will demand that the government step in, step up, and “do something” depending on whatever crisis is currently facing the nation. It’s sheer lunacy to believe that normal, common people are going to be okay with super-powered beings causing mayhem and destruction with zero accountability and no government oversight.

For example, chapter 33 had some serious garbage in it, in my opinion. Not 100% garbage, but a good chunk of garbage. Alice Creasy pretty much paints Cap in an innocent light and Tony as some kind of fascist (164ff). She has as bone to pick, anyway, about superheroes in general, so I suppose it could be said to provide some kind of “metacommentary” on superheroes and the damage they do, how they are never held accountable for their actions. The problem is that she is giving Captain America a free pass for all of the crimes he committed during the “Superhero Civil War”, of how he continually put the lives of normal people, of law-abiding citizens and/or those doing their jobs as LEOs, at risk because of his arrogance, his refusal to consider the will of the people. Again, I really think the author should have balanced Alice’s opinion out with a character who fully supported Tony Stark and the heroes who sided with the SHRA (something I fully believe the general public at large would have fully supported, on the one hand, because I don’t believe “normal people” are going to accept superhumans to get away with their continually reckless behavior, especially after Stamford. The human population supposedly hates and fears mutants and supposedly wants to put them in cages and make their very existence illegal; that should easily have transferred over into full-fledged support for the SHRA by the general population). I think the way the miniseries ended was pretty telling – the “common people” attack Captain America to prevent him from killing Tony and continuing his reign of destruction of NYC and its surrounding Burroughs.

I also don’t agree with the author’s take that Janet van Dyne would have been chastising herself over supporting the arguments of Tony Stark over the “heroic aspirations” of Steve Rogers (195). I think that is bunk, that is drivel, that it is a load of garbage, that it is the author’s flight of fancy. I don’t believe Janet felt that way, nor do I believe she would have supported Rogers over Stark. I do think, though, the author made a good point about how nobody looked to her or Natasha for guidance in the “big battle” in Central Park. The author had a good point about how Thor could have risen into the air and used the lightning to devastating effect amongst the Skrulls before the two groups closed the gap and engaged each other. I just don’t agree with the author’s take on Janet; I could see her taking the middle ground and staying out of it because she can see both sides, but she was also a leader of the Avengers multiple times for varying lengths of time – she knows the damage that can be done when a team behaves recklessly and foolishly, taking needless chances as evidenced by what happened at Stamford or when Avengers Mansion was taken over for a brief period of time by an iteration of the Masters of Evil and members of the Avengers at that time refused to listen to her and were hurt in the process (such as Hercules ending up in a coma after being severely beaten).

I was also mildly annoyed that he had Ben Grimm chastising Reed like he does at the end of the book. I don’t think Ben would have told Reed he was wrong in terms of how the author has been doing it in the book (perhaps that conversation took place in the FF miniseries for Secret Invasion? I missed reading that series, so it is possible that conversation Ben has with Reed did take place just as the author describes it).

I also felt like Tony having second thoughts about his actions was a cheap cop-out and intellectually dishonest. I never had that sense about Tony feeling that way. Nor did I ever have the sense that Tony might have actually supported Norman Osborn replacing Tony as the head of security in the United States, or for the entire world, for that matter. None of that rang true to me, either. It felt more like the author trying to impose his views and opinions upon the characters and the characters no longer rang true to themselves or who they fundamentally are.

Some differences between the book and series I noticed: the replacement of DumDum Dugan by a Skrull does not happen in the book like it does in the series. It happens right away in the series. Hahahah, I should have jotted them down because now my mind is drawing a blank. At the end, when Tony pilots the Skrull prisonship to Central Park, the author has Fury speaking with Dugan and Contessa de Fontaigne before disappearing with the surviving members of his Howling Commandos. That never happened in the book. In the series, the upper floors of the Baxter Building disappear; in the book, they never completely disappear (and the building is able to repair itself, too). We get some extended conversations between different characters that never took place in the comics. Oh! He also goes more into detail (or depth) regarding Clint Barton’s relationship with Echo and how Bobbi Morse adversely impacts that relationship. Granted, the “first” Bobbi turns out to be a Skrull, but then Bobbi turns up in the freed prisonship that Tony liberates and lands on Earth. The comics really gloss over what happens between Clint and Echo during the whole fracas down in the Savage Land followed by Bobbi turning up alive at the end of the battle. The author goes into more detail between Maria Hill and the Skrulls who take over the helicarrier before she sets off its self-destruct. There is a funny moment where Reed and Sue are talking, trying to find out when she was taken – as it turns out, she’d been gone for something like six weeks but Reed never noticed ‘cuz he was too busy in his lab to copulate with the Skrull mimicking Susan. It was pretty funny to me.

Overall, it was very good. It was entertaining. It did a nice job of expanding where expansion was necessary to help move the story along, but it also got rid of some stuff that wasn’t necessary for the story to continue. It moved at a fast pace and held my interesting throughout – I was entertained by the story and had a hard time putting it down. While I did not always agree with the author’s “political views” in parts of the book (where I felt he inserted his own views and opinions a little too heavily without balancing them out by alternate points of view), I still felt he did a nice job of translating this series of comics into a solid novelization that does a nice job of telling this story and keeping true to most of the central parts of the story. I am glad I read the book.

[M. K. French · Rating 4 out of 5]

Skrulls infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D., the Avengers, and the interplanetary defence force S.W.O.R.D. When Elektra, leader of the Hand, transforms into a Skrull after her death, the New Avengers realize that an attack is coming. Anyone could be a Skrull in disguise. The team doesn't know who to trust as they try to defend Earth, but it's too late. The invasion has begun.

This is the prose novel adapted from the graphic novel, which is based on multiple comic books written by Brian Michael Bendis and Leinil Francis Yu. It's been done across different universes and media, most recently in the live-action Disney+ "Secret Invasion" series. Because this follows the comics, we have Avengers, New Avengers, Young Avengers, Thunderbolts, mutants, and the Fantastic Four all involved, coming together despite the Civil War arc regarding registering those with superpowers and abilities. Most people have no idea how to determine who is a Skrull and who isn't, so they turn on each other and have no idea who might be a true enemy. Paranoia destabilizes the superhero community, just as the Skrulls had hoped, and their invasion fleet arrives. They claim they want to help humanity better itself, which superheroes hadn't allowed them to do, and don't mention the desire to take over the planet and its resources to make it their own.

While it certainly helps to know who all of the characters are and this iteration of them, each chapter is titled with the character whose POV it is. We're given enough backstory within their chapter to place their motivations and what had happened to put them into that position. This makes for fairly fast movement as each group in various places across the world is targeted and fights back. It's definitely a page-turner, even in prose form, and is a great addition to the library of any fan of the comic arc, or for those who want to know what happened without having to buy books across all the different comic lines. The threats are explained and each story thread is completed, with loose ends that are taken up in the comics afterward.

[Ian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a bit left field. Let's talk. I like Paul Cornell's work generally, some of his stuff is a but patchy for my taste, but that's probably on me not him. He also has an impressive resume with work in all the media – novels, comics, TV, etcetera and it's all pretty decent. Add in, I get his newsletter and he comes across as one of the good guys.
I also like Marvel movies and was a comic book fan in the days of my youth (when dinosaurs roamed the Earth) so this prose adaptation of one of Marvel's cross comic 'events' by Cornell interested me. Let's face it, cross media stuff is difficult and surely the crossover from comic to novel is the most difficult of all.
I'll admit that, to my surprise this is a really good book. Clearly you need to have a general grasp of the Marvel comic universe, the characters, their background and so on, but bearing that in mind Cornell provides his characters with breath and an internal life that is frankly impressive. There are actually some genuine emotional moments here that are actually affecting.
The book covers the Skrull invasion of Earth (not related to the recent TV series in any serious way.) The Skrull are shape-shifters so you immediately have the paranoia that everyone has used since John W Campbell's “Who Goes There?” (filmed twice as The Thing, and once again as a prequel) where no one knows who is the real person and who is an counterfeit and actually an enemy. We then get to well written action that, to be fair, probably worked better as comic panels, but you work with what you have. Then a nicely done prologue leaving things open, as, no doubt, did the comics.
Probably as a read this is a four star experience, but I have to bump it up to five stars because it's unexpectedly good!

[Brandon Daniels · Rating 4 out of 5]

Discovered this while rereading the comics and decided to throw the audiobook on as a lark, and I was pleasantly surprised.

The main Secret Invasion series is sort of a mess, and it requires a lot of context, and you need to read several tie ins to fully appreciate it. Even then, it’s really just one chapter in a much longer, very interconnected time in Marvel comics.

This adaptation is better than the comics in basically every way. It’s better paced, easier to follow, and it executes off a lot of the story beats better. It pays off the “who do you trust,” “anyone could be a Skrull,” idea better than the comics. It incorporates most of the major tie ins, and the climax in particular is much more successful. That said, it still requires a lot of context. It does an admirable job, but, honestly, this book is really going to be best enjoyed by those who have read the original series and lot of Marvel comics from this era at some point.

[Ryk Stanton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a big story to try to novelize and I think this author did well. It was much tighter than that 99-issue dumpster fire in the comics, and I like that the novel finished up the Jarvis storyline, which was less unsettled in the comics.

I wonder, though, if someone who read the novel but not the comics would understand the story well.

Nevertheless, good book and I’m glad I read it. Free, on Hoopla!

[AChristianNerd · Rating 4 out of 5]

First book of 2025!
I'm adoring these comic novelizations. Having so many povs was so much fun. To get into the minds of the scrulls and how often they get carried away with their impersonations was really cool to see. Enjoyed seeing an alternate timeline to the cinematic universe, where civil war went differently and affected every group. It was awesome to see all the major hero groups all existing as one universe instead of being alone.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is way better than the snooze of a show that shares its name. It had the potential to be really impactful in the MCU, and was just a fizzle all in all. The prose novelization is quite good, get to see the avengers actually go all out for once and kill people. There are actual consequences to actions.

[Thomas A Costa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome!

Great read, really enjoyed it! Each character was handled great, I really liked how the classic characters were written, hope to read more like this

[Mitch Schroeder · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty good adaptation of the comic and its tie-ins. I wish there was a Dark Reign follow up.

[Amy Walker - Trans-Scribe Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comic books have been described by much smarter people than myself as modern mythology, with characters that will potentially live on forever in some form or another, and stories that are designed to inspire as much as to entertain. And much like the stories of mythology, there are some comic stories that are so beloved that they have been retold over and over, changed into film, television, animation, and prose. Secret Invasion has had this treatment a few times, and now it’s time for it to have its prose version.

Written by Paul Cornell, who is no stranger to Marvel Comics, having written series such as Wolverine and Captain Britain and MI:13, takes the universe-changing events of Secret Invasion, originally created by Brian Michael Bendis and Leinil Francis Yu, and transforms them into a new medium – and does so very well.

Much like the original graphic novel, the prose version covers the events of the Skrull invasion of Earth, a series of events that were building up for a long while across multiple titles. The book begins not with a scene from the Secret Invasion graphic novel, but with an issue from Mighty Avengers, where the Illuminati meet to discuss the fact that the assassin Elektra was killed, and reverted into a Skrull. The group of super-geniuses that each control some aspect of the Marvel Universe come together after divisions from the fallout of the recent superhero civil war, realising that this is a threat that goes beyond their differences. However, when one of them turns out to be a Skrull it begins a spiral of distrust within the Marvel Universe where no one can trust anyone else.

Tony Stark, the hero Iron-Man and the current head of S.H.I.E.L.D., is trying his best to get to the bottom of things, seeing if there’s a way to identify the now undetectable Skrulls, and to find out if Elektra is a one off, or if this is part of a bigger conspiracy. However, his investigation is barely underway when a Skrull ship enters Earth space, coming in to land in the Savage Land. Stark gathers his team of Avengers and heads down there to investigate, and finds that the rogue group of ‘criminal’ Avengers from the other side of the Civil War have also arrived on the scene. Tensions build as neither team is ready to trust the other, but when the Skrull ship opens and lets out a host of heroes claiming to have been taken prisoner by the Skrulls and replaced, it becomes the opening salvo in a full scale war.

The Skrull fleet arrives, and hundreds of immensely powerful Super Skrulls descend on Earth, taking down the military, and crippling the planets defences. Every hero team, all of the fugitive heroes from the Civil War, and even a lot of Earth’s villains, come together in a desperate defence of the planet.

For those who’ve read the original graphic novel there’s not a huge amount here that will surprise or feel like new material. Cornell doesn’t make any huge plot changes, and this isn’t a re-imagining of the story but a fairly faithful adaptation. Where it does feel different, however, is in that thanks to the format we’re able to spend more time with the characters and get inside their heads. Each chapter is told from a different character’s point of view, and we get to see how the invasion is affecting them, how they feel about the recent civil war, and their fears in the face of overwhelming odds. So if you’re looking to try something that gives the same experience of the comics, but goes into more depth and doesn’t quite feel like the constant action slog that the comic was, this is the version of the story that you’re going to want to check out.

[V. Arrow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Once the big battle started, this was a slog to finish... Big Damn Battles(tm) are so hard to do well in writing, if it's possible at all, and the dozens of threads and POVs here didn't make it any less repetitive or muddled. I did prefer this novel to the comic book event, largely because it's more compact and linear. It makes me wish that the MCU had been able to use its actual heroes in their version of Secret Invasion (although since the MCU skrulls are mostly good guys, this makes the mythos there even more confusing).