Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer

Artemis Fowl is the first of a series of semi-realist novels produced by Eoin Colfer. They document the adventures of a precocious prodigal child of the criminal empire, Artemis Fowl. In this book, accompanied by his huge and loyal bodyguard/sidekick/advisor Butler, Artemis engages in a series of surreal activities; the absence of his missing father and the mental disorder of his mother allow him to pursue the unlikely position of a criminal mastermind. However, Artemis soon encounters more than he bargains for when his attempted capture of a member of the underground 'fairy' civilization goes terribly wrong. Be prepared for a thrilling adventure, with trolls, magic and much more!

Twelve-year-old Artemis Fowl is a millionaire, a genius, and above all, a criminal mastermind. But even Artemis doesn't know what he's taken on when he kidnaps a fairy, Captain Holly Short of the LEPrecon Unit. These aren't the fairies of bedtime stories—they're dangerous! Full of unexpected twists and turns, Artemis Fowl is a riveting, magical adventure.

It was an entertaining YA with a snarky twist on the usual fantasy tropes.

This story is delightful, and the introduction to a series. Eoin Colfer captures your attention with a devious but still lovable character and a hint of another world. There is adventure, imagination, and perhaps a bit of moral learning. Will our characters survive? Will they do the right thing? Most of us can't relate directly to the youthful Artemis (filthy rich boy genius with a personal amazing bodyguard/servant) or the spunky Holly Short (being a fairy and all), but the characters are well written and fun. Somewhat predictable, this story (and series) is fun and worth following.

I'd recommend this book (series) to readers of any age at this lexile. There's something for girls and boys, with strong protagonists from both. There is some cartoon style violence.

I am doing this review well into the fourth book, and I'm happy that I can report that the story gets better, and our devilish Artemis becomes a better role model for younger readers over time, er, book(s).

Well, I have no idea what I just read. This book came into my life after someone thought it was mine, so gave it to me. I tried to explain it wasn't mine, but I was told to keep it anyway. That was a few years ago and I've only just read it. When I opened it, I had no idea what to expect. I'd heard of the book, but never found out what it was about. I learned very quickly! A fairy army, kind-of. I was confused to say the least, but as I read, it got better. The author manages to introduce all the different types of fairy with their own rules, powers and appearance.

The human characters, in my opinion, are less likeable than the fairy characters. It may be what the author intended, but does an author ever truly want the reader to hate the title character? The human characters are also less believable than the fairy characters, if that's at all possible. A genius 12 year old, with a “manservant” that is described as a “mountain” many times. Then, there's the mother with mental health issues and the sister to the manservant, who is also clearly a little bit crazy. I just didn't like any of them! I struggled to believe them as real human characters, and I think them being human was important, as it would've offset the magic and craziness of the fairies, but there wasn't a real human character there.

Despite the above, I did enjoy the story and the world-building. There are redeeming qualities of this book and I still would say read it and see what you think. I think it's a very strange book.

Le premier tome d'une saga de fantasy pour la jeunesse, que je n'ai pas poursuivi parce que ce premier volume, quoique plaisant, ne m'a pas totalement convaincu.