Morbius: The Living Vampire - Blood Ties

Marvel Titan Books #14

by Brendan Deneen

Morbius the Living Vampire seeks to end his curse of a thirst for blood, and to stop a demonic cult from unleashing hell on Earth.

Seeking to cure his rare blood disorder, Dr. Michael Morbius instead cursed himself with an insatiable lust for human blood. While trying to cure his horrific condition, he has become allied with Amanda Saint, whose sister Catherine is one of the leaders of the Demon-Fire Cult. Also known as Poison Lark, Catherine Saint has two goals above all else. She seeks to bring Satan to Earth, thus unleashing the powers of Hell, and to kill Morbius and Amanda. When Morbius and Amanda follow the cult's trail to New York City, they run afoul of an underground fight club that uses monsters as their pawns in the arena. The club captures Morbius and he becomes the star attraction, forced to kill or be killed.

Genres: Marvel, Horror, Fantasy, Vampires, Audiobook, Fiction, Science Fiction

Kindle Edition

First published June 16, 2020

Reviews

[Louie the Mustache Matos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Blood Ties by Brendan Deneen is an actual Marvel Comics novel starring Morbius the Living Vampire. Essentially, the story takes Morbius (thankfully, it is not an origin story; it does a quick recap for all those new to the mythos, instead), and has him befriend Amanda Saint to help her find her missing Dad, while he searches for a cure to his medical condition that causes him to have an insatiable desire to feed on human blood.

During the course of the novel, Morbius and Amanda intersect with an underground fight club that has monsters fight each other. This is a front for the Demon-Fire Cult led by Poison Lark who is associated to the past of various characters. Morbius becomes the star attraction to the fight club, and because they refuse to feed him before his matches, it increases his ferocity/aggression, diminishes his humanity, and ability to differentiate between friend or foe.

This is of course a timely release meant to capitalize on the movie preview, but this is not a bad book. It remains faithful to the established continuity, while adding to the mythology. A high recommend to all Marvel fanboys and fangirls and perfect for Halloween.

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 3 out of 5]

Era così convinto che l'esperimento riuscisse. Campioni elettrificati di sangue di pipistrello, mutati in modo molto preciso. Aveva senso, funzionava nella teoria e anche in laboratorio, quando lui ed Emil Nikos avevano condotto i loro test segreti e controllati. Ma quando avevano effettuato l'esperimento, al largo dell'oceano, lontani da ogni pericolo - o così pensavano - le cose erano andate in modo molto diverso.

Morbius: The Living Vampire - Legami di Sangue è un romanzo avente per protagonista il Vampiro Vivente, pubblicato l’anno scorso dalla Titan Books nella sua linea di libri basati sugli eroi Marvel nella speranza di fare cassa in concomitanza del, poi rimandato e successivamente rivelatosi un vero e proprio disastro ai botteghini dei cinema di tutto il mondo, adattamento cinematografico dedicato al personaggio.
Una vera e propria debacle per il film avente per protagonista il povero Jared Leto che, già dopo un non proprio memorabile Joker nel primo Suicide Squad del 2016 scritto e diretto da David Ayer, è salito nuovamente alla ribalta grazie all’insuccesso clamoroso di questa nuova pellicola, divenuta trend sul web e sui social network tra meme e “It’s Morbin' Time” vari, al punto che la Sony ha pensato bene di distribuirlo una seconda volta nelle sale per poi floppare clamorosamente di nuovo.



Questo romanzo non è un adattamento del film in questione né dell’origine del personaggio raccontata per la prima volta sulle pagine di Amazing Spider-Man (prima serie) n. 101 (Ottobre 1971) e comunque riassunta attorno a pagina 20 per chi non la conoscesse, ma una storia nuova ed originale, seguito diretto degli eventi narrati sulla rivista a fumetti antologica Vampire Tales del 1973, ristampata qualche anno fa in tre economici volumetti in inglese che per mia fortuna posseggo, avendoli trovati e comprati durante una delle mie scorse partecipazioni al Romics, e che avrei probabilmente dovuto rileggere per potermi godere meglio questa storia, non ricordando praticamente nulla di Amanda Saint, sua sorella Catherine, e tutte le sanguinose vicende apparse su quelle pagine che fanno da prologo allo svolgimento di questo libro.

Dopo qualche altro minuto, planò e atterrò in cima a un edificio in mattoni di cinque piani come tanti altri di Hell's Kitchen, la parte di Midtown Manhattan famigerata per lo spaccio di droga, la prostituzione, le gang e la violenza. Ma Hell's Kitchen aveva il suo protettore, e lui doveva fare attenzione lì. Perfino i mostri come lui ci andavano cauti, col Diavolo.

Mi é piaciuto molto lo stile utilizzato dall’autore, e come alla descrizione dettagliata di ogni comprimario sia seguita quasi sempre una sua atroce dipartita, senza lesinare alcunché per quanto riguarda violenza e descrizioni di morti violente, in una storia avvincente di dipendenza e perdita dell’umanità che, pur non facendo mai temere per la sorte del tormentato protagonista, si è rivelata essere piacevole da leggere e non priva di sorprese: praticamente una sorta di Fight Club a base di Vampiri, mostri, e culti demoniaci.
Peccato davvero non avere riletto prima la succitata saga a fumetti collegata, e per quel secondo ed inaspettato epilogo finale che non mi é proprio piaciuto proprio, quasi una sorta di scena post crediti di un film Marvel, ma ridondante e realizzata male.
Qualche piccolo refuso nel testo, fortunatamente in numero minore rispetto ad altri libri tradotti e pubblicati qui in Italia dalla Multiplayer Edizioni, ma un “Martine” divenuto “Marine” mi é comunque rimasto impresso a fuoco nelle retine.
Non aspettatevi un capolavoro, ma se vi piacciono gli antieroi tragici, l’horror ed i fumetti Marvel, ed avete come me un debole per il dottor Michael Morbius e le sue avventure, questa è una quasi perfetta lettura estiva da ombrellone.

Tre stelle, tre e mezzo se consideriamo lo splendido easter egg di Daredevil a pagina 57.

I suoi lunghi capelli le coprivano il viso e Morbius non poteva vedere i suoi lineamenti, ma una cosa poteva vederla molto bene.
Il suo collo.
La carotide pulsava mentre lei respirava con lentezza, e fu come un faro che lo chiamava, insistente, per farlo avvicinare. Sentì lo stomaco brontolare e le mani tremare.
Era stato così bravo. Non aveva più ucciso.
Aveva reso Amanda fiera di lui.
Ma Michael Morbius aveva fame.



It's Morbin' Time!!!

[Henry Z F2 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly, I was extremely surprised by how interesting and well written this book is. I thought is would just be grim dark and boring all the time, but that's not the case at all.
The plot of the book wasn't anything special. What IS special is how the book writes the characters. Everyone is well fleshed out and very relatable, they do everything for a reason that makes sense. Cathrine, the main villain of this book and one of the main character's sister, isn't just some sort of crazed supervillain. You can very well follow the track of the stable yet strange family she grew p in, and how her love for her mother ended up getting her manipulated and twisted my people who she thought could provide her with comfort. So much so that she started doing the same to others.
I also symbolized with Franklin a lot, and how a brilliant man who just wanted a life got dragged in far, far too deep.
Meanwhile, I think the character interaction between our two protagonists is frankly genius. Morbius is super strong, can fly, and can kill six people with a single swipe of his claws, yet he needs Liz, an ordinary human girl, just as much as she needs him. Together, they deal with the demon fire cult and Morbius's red thirst. Both feel like they are fighting the same thing: their past, and they're fighting for the chance to finally move on
If you know me, you know I'm all for realistic, non-perfect endings. But this is one book (and one set of characters) that certainly deserved it.
Also, there's a daredevil cameo. It's on page 65. Check it out. It's really cool.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Grimdark and uneven, the author has a real talent for giving us the backstory and personality of a secondary or even tertiary character...before unceremoniously disposing of him or her in gruesome fashion. Which is all fair and well, in a book like this only the title character (possessor of the Almighty Marvel IP) is pretty much guaranteed to survive unscathed, even as the story contemplates the nature of addiction and losing one's basic humanity.



Also, kudos to the audiobook narrator for going Full Keanu with Morbius’ voice.

[Philip Fracassi · Rating 5 out of 5]

MORBIUS : BLOOD TIES was a lot of fun and really well-written. Action-packed with a fast-moving plot, lots of violence and blood, but also a lot of heart and excellent characterization.

A surprising "after-story" will please Marvel fans of all stripes, but the novel itself is highly engaging and a blast to read.

Highly recommend for fans of Marvel, antiheroes, and vampires.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty good book overall, but it felt like Morbius was a supporting character instead of the lead. The story was fairly mediocre, but the writing was very good

[Cory Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I saw this book first I just giggled. My only understanding of the character was Jared Leto's dumbass so obviously not the best first impression. I did say to myself I'd read it one day and maybe get a new look on the character though.
Well, before that ever happened I played the game Marvel's Midnight Suns, and guess what, Morbius was a super standout character for me there. They wrote him in a way where he acts as essentially the little freak of the team, simultaneously comic relief and pitiful vampire man. It sparked a MorbHigh™ within me that wasn't quite satiated by the time the credits rolled. Then I remembered this novel existed.
The two versions of Morbius I have now interacted with are honestly pretty different. I think the one in this novel is more comic accurate, while the videogame version is playing a bit more off of the 'Morbin Time' idea that has scooped out a tiny place in the Marvel zeitgeist ever since 2022's debacle. But, I like them both! Am I a Morbius fan? Dafuq?
I did like the novel, yes yes. Brendan Deneen describes his own writing as 'side-stories in other peoples' sandboxes', which I can totally see here. It is essentially a spin-off of a comic very few modern readers are likely to have read. But, in my opinion, it works. You get the gist straight off the bat, you feel the relationship between Morbius and Amanda and that acts as a vehicle to drive the rest of the plot.
It's not high art, it isn't anyone's magnum opus, but it's honestly a good Morb. If you are genuinely interested in the character, past the meme that is, then give it a little go. I'm glad I did, and have already picked up a new Marvel novel to try next. :)

[Joshua Jonah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book from a good friend of mine!

This book, as someone who’s done casual reading of marvel comics I’ve always had an idea who Morbius is, and what he does (Pre movie of course) and I’ve always dug the dark grittier comics he comes from. With that said, I think this book has a common issue with most comic adapted novels, which is trying to accomplish so much at once. This book is well written if you’re a casual fan but for the bigger fans I feel it can make things interesting in a negative way. The characters of Morbius, and Amanda are awesome and I really enjoy the power aspect Amanda gets. Catherine, Amanda’s sister who was presumed dead, I feel could’ve been a great build up enemy in maybe book two or something and I feel this makes you also feel like you’re missing out on a lot in some aspects. Over all this book,
For its entertainment value and it’s practicality get a 3.5 out of 5 from me.

[Chloe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dnf’d at 30%. Everything I hate about comics but in book form, with strangely little focus on Morbius. I really need to stop listening to the vampire girl on TikTok’s recommendations.

[Em · Rating 4 out of 5]

fav quote “It’s morbin’ time” ☺️

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this way more than I expected to based on its general rating. I thought it dipped enough into the character's origin story without completely retelling it, while the main story was intriguing and exciting. What's not to like when the living vampire gets captured by a mysterious cult and thrown into a ring of monsters to fight for his life as a mutated gladiator, all for the spectacle and enjoyment of the cult followers?! Sure, there are things about the writing and the storyline that maybe aren't the greatest, but I still had fun and I enjoyed the narration.

[Ciprian Ungureanu · Rating 1 out of 5]

terrible writing, it's a torture to finish it!

[Neil · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am tempted to start a list of "Marvel/DC novels" when one of their novels does not quite fall into my "superhero" category. This would be one of those books. It was okay. I am not really that familiar with Morbius; I know some of his story. The author does a nice job of giving enough background information so that a new reader to the character can quickly understand what is going on and get involved, to some level, with Morbius and why he does what he does. There is a lot of "background info dumps" that occur in the book that explain why certain characters behave a certain way or what has transpired (mostly in the comics, I guess) that has lead up to this book.

After reading this story, I truly cannot say Morbius would ever make any list of my favorite characters in any comic book universe. I cannot even say I consider him a "sympathetic hero" or "sympathetic character." I guess he is "better" than Dracula, so there is that. Perhaps if he "just" killed criminals and not innocent people; the way the book describes it, he kills more innocent people than "bad guys" (or people society might deem worth killing). I will say this: there was one "moment" in the story where Morbius and Franklin Lattimer, the scientist creating the monsters that fight in the Demon-Fire Cult's arena, are talking and both realize they are two sides of the same coin. They are both brilliant scientists who were abused and bullied all their lives and have suffered loss of some kind, who were not appreciated for their intelligence. This moment lasts right up until Franklin reveals that his first test subject was "Jake," a man who befriends Morbius right before Morbius kills the monstrous form of Jake in an arena death-match. It probably was one of the better moments in the book, to be honest.

The ending is somewhat funny in that Franklin returns to his damaged lab and puts together a new group that is focused on helping the world improve without demonic "help" or input. He captures criminals, turns them into monsters, and has them fight. The wealthy are still terrified over what happened when Morbius escaped and have been reluctant to revisit the underground arena until Franklin captures Carnage and has Carnage fight in the arena. Obviously, Carnage survives and makes an agreement with Franklin where Franklin will continue creating new monsters for Carnage to fight or Carnage will kill him and his merry band. This was not funny; what was funny occurs after Carnage is captured. Right before Carnage is captured, he had just defeated Spider-Man by knocking Spider-Man unconscious. He is captured while gloating over his fallen opponent. Franklin and his crew walk off with Carnage, leaving Spider-Man unconscious in the middle of Central Park in the middle of the night. It was a "whaaaaat?!?" moment for me. I could picture some muggers coming up or somebody else and seeing the webslinger lying on the ground, helpless, and taking advantage of the situation. One can only assume his "Spider-sense" would have "saved the day" or something. In any case, it was funny that they left Spider-Man behind like they did.

I think the weakest part of this book for me and any other books (or stories in the comics) like it are that one would think it would have caught the attention of Doctor Strange, "Sorcerer Supreme and Guardian of this Realm" (or whatever the heck he claims to be). The Demon-Fire Cult is intent on using some ancient book of black magic to create a situation where Satan himself can come to earth and take over as its new ruler. I mean, it well and truly sucks that Christianity is portrayed as so weak in stories like this, but then again, I really do not see how Christianity could be a "true religion" or continue on as a "religion" in the Marvel U simply because of the various gods, demi-gods, supernatural deities, extradimensional deities, and other beings who fall outside of "godhood" and are supreme entities unto themselves (such as the In-Betweener, the Living Tribunal, Lord Chaos, Master Order, and other such celestial entities/elders of the universe). So never mind Christianity; it really is irrelevant to this story (despite much of the story, especially the third act, taking part in an abandoned, decrepit church). But why would Doctor Strange not realize that something is amiss? Why would he not investigate? This would seem to be right up his alley? Or have one of his allies, like Brother Voodoo (who was also the Sorcerer Supreme for a short time), investigate if he was unable to do so. I mean, never mind how hilariously humorous it is to think that something mortal can defeat something that is demonic in nature, but whatever. I still think that not involving Doctor Strange in this book was one of the weaker parts of the book.

I did think it was interesting that the author took the route of Amanda Saint defeating whatever her sister had become after that final ceremony. I honestly did not expect that to happen. I guess it was a mix of Morbius and Amanda, but Amanda was the one who ultimately defeated the demon-possessed corpse of her sister. It was a crazy moment in the book.

I did like the friendship that developed between Jake and Morbius. I thought that was relatively believable and well done. The sad/bad thing is that the reader should already know that they are going to have to fight and Morbius is going to kill his friend. What is unknown is if Morbius will discover what he has done in the arena or in this cell. As it is, he discovers he has killed Jake in the arena, but Jake's death also allows Morbius to escape the arena and wreak havoc during his escape. It was not as sad as it could have been, I suppose, but what can you do? Too much foreshadowing can ruin later moments and the way the book was going, it was pretty much a guarantee that Morbius was going to kill a friend or various innocents in order to survive.

I also liked the idea of using tainted blood to capture Morbius. Not just because the blood was tainted, but it was also addictive in nature and made Morbius desperate to have more of it. So that was definitely one of the better "plot ideas" in the book and I thought the author did a pretty good job of coming up with it and keeping it an essential element to the overall narrative.

It was an okay book. I don't know if I will ever read it again as it dabbles a little too much into areas I am not that big a fan of, but it was okay for a book about a character for which I knew very little about. It will be interesting to see how the movie translates his character onscreen later this year (if I decide to go see it). In any case, I suppose I am glad that I read this book, on some level, despite its trip through the sewage of "evil and depravity" in the form of the Demon Fire Cult and their practices as well as Morbius feasting on and killing innocent people in order to survive.

[Alpyki · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I had to describe this book in one word, it would be "fun."

I'm a fan of the character, and honestly this is some of the best writing in years, decades even, for him because he actually felt like the character he's supposed to be. No annoying quips. He's written so well that it makes me wonder why this author isn't a writer on one of his comic books. They'd be certainly better than Vita Ayala.

But even if you're not familiar with him or even the particular set of comics this storyline came from (Vampire Tales, with splashes of early Fear), this book is a wild ride. Cultists and monsters galore, gore everywhere. Yet its tied together with some really good character moments and it's clear the author actually read the source material, didn't wiki it and call it a day like some writers would. Is the plot groundbreaking? Probably not. But heck it's better than a lot of books out there at the moment, and unlike those books it's actually entertaining.

My only problems with it are two. One is that I got a paperback copy, when I should've gotten a hardback because I will be re-reading this again. The second is that there are no more stories like this that I know of and I don't see Marvel continuing this story because it's so niche.

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every once in a while, I have a real craving for a superhero book. So, when I saw Morbius on my library app I decided to try it even though I do not know anything about the character only that he used to be a villain of Spiderman but is now trying to do better. Overall, I liked it. My favorite part was the friendship between Morbius and Amanda. Plus, I found their quest fairly interesting, as they try to find out more about the Demonfire cult which destroyed Amanda's family, and find Martine Morbius's true love. There was a lot of exposition for people, like myself, who were ignorant of Morbius's backstory, but I didn't mind. This was very much a popcorn read and I wish it had become a series as I had a fun time reading it.

[Katherine R · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really hope Marvel and DC go back and create audiobooks of most of their libraries. I love comics, I love this novelization because it's easier to listen than read for me and I want to see this become a solid outlet. I'm already amazed at the number of comics they've turned into books; hopefully there will be more.

This one was well told, plopping you into the middle of the main character's crisis but during a brief lull. I'd like to see this whole story arch from Morbius creation forward as well so I hope they write more of it.

[Twainy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dr Michael Morbius had a rare blood disorder. In attempting to find a cure he turned himself into a vampire.

He finds a friend in Amanda Saint who’s sister is the leader of the Demon Fire Cult.

They fall into an underground Monster Fight Club & Morbius is quickly the headliner.

There’s a lot of gore & not as much Morbius as I would have liked but it was a fun, quick, finely narrated book! This must be the start of a series because there’s a lot of set up & character development.

3.75 stars

[James Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great action novel

I have always loved Marvel comics and Spiderman and to find one of his enemies with a novel of his own surprised me, Morbius has always fascinated me as a complex anti-hero and i was not sure what to expect buying both the novel an audio but what a pleasant surprise, both a great story and caracters development doing the comics with Morbius justice, will defently keep my eyes open for more of this, highly recommend to any Marvel or horror fan

[coffee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tbh I wasn't feeling this book for most of the read. I think it's told in a very interesting nonlinear way but I often felt like I was missing context...even tho the context was usually filled in soon after. Perhaps it's bc Morbius was kind of a prick at first and the plot moved soooo slowly. I did warm up to him by the end but then there's still the issue that he can revert back to the anger bomb from the start. Ends on a bit of cliffhanger , 3/3.5

[Jim Altomare · Rating 3 out of 5]

The movie is coming out shortly, so I wanted to get prepped on the character. I listened to the book while I did my yard work.

Much better than I expected. Story was well written and the author was able to fill in the backstory quickly for anyone unfamiliar with the character. A good stand alone book. I would recommend to all comic and ~non twilight~ vampire fans.

[Lee Bright · Rating 2 out of 5]

This rating is based on the audiobook, I think it maybe different if I read the novel. The trouble is the readers narrative is really annoying, the voices he does are great but when he's just narrating the story he really grates on you. I think the book would have been a lot better with a different reader.

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Morbius: The Living Vampire-Blood Ties
By Marvel and Brendan Senses
I hadn't seen the movie that came out so I picked up the audio version when it was on sale on Chirp and the narration was terrific! I really enjoyed the book but now I'm curious if the movie was the same as the book! 😂
I am happy with just listening to the audio!

[Roman Colombo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to this one from Audible, and I'm not sure if the reader was just too purple or the writing or a combination. It was so hard to get into the story with the style it was told in.

The plot itself was interesting, and it was fun having a Morbius-centric story, even if the human characters were cringe-worthy.

[seba · Rating 3 out of 5]

It wasn't a terrible read, though there were some points where you felt like you hit a speed bump. If you're a fan of Marvel, or just the "Spiderverse," you'll just be getting a Costco sample cup of it. It look me a little bit too long to finish, simply because I kept putting it down. I think that says enough

[Megan · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 50%. There really was nothing I liked about this book and it was a struggle to get through what I did. No one has any redeeming qualities. The story is mostly telling us stuff that happened before the book starts. Morbius is barely in it. The dialogue was terrible. Very much was not for me.

[Antoinette · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF- I hated to not finish a second book this month, but I think I am so used to the 90s cartoon of Morbius that I couldn't get passed this one. It also was mixing a lot of other elements than just Morbius himself and his journey.

[Ryk Stanton · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book did not appeal to me, unfortunately.

[C H · Rating 1 out of 5]

Returned back to shelf. This is not an adequate origin story. The storyline is chopped and hard to follow, there is no clear character development. ai do not recommend this author.

[Zee]

I feel like this needed a much more detailed background. Guess I'll have to watch the movie for that but it's been delayed.

[PMoslice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intriguing, suspenseful, heartfelt and action packed! This story was excellent, well paced and a treat to experience.