Goodreads Summary: "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; these fairies are armed and dangerous. Artemis thinks he has them right where he wants them-but then they stop playing by the rules."
In one of my favorite local used bookstores I had run across a copy of Artemis Fowl buried amongst the MG and YA books. I recognized the title immediately and found myself tossing it into my basket for later purchase. Ultimately as I found myself at the check-out counter with more books than I had planned and with what I was sure was less than adequate funds I put it back for another day or another reader. Why did I choose to put Artemis Fowl back? Something about the book had me wary, I wasn't really sure I was going to enjoy reading it and there were books in my basket that I had been dying to read. This is the reason why I chose to borrow this book than ultimately saved it for last.
As some of you might have already figured out by reading a few of my past reviews, characters are a big deal to me. I might pick up a book for another reason: it was recommended to me, loved the setting, the premise, etc but I have got to enjoy the characters to really get into it.
The main character, Artemis Fowl, made me smirk a great deal. And reminds me of myself and my cousin who are always trying to stay one step ahead of one another. I love reading about prodigy children or gifted as they are otherwise called [huge Ender’s Game fan-girl if you know the series]. Artemis was no exception. No, he wasn’t very childlike but I never expected him to be as some others might. I simply enjoyed him for what he was. An evil little genius.
But for me it wasn't Artemis alone that made this novel for me, rather it was the cast of supporting characters and the way that they played not only off of themselves but off of Artemis as well. Not to say that I didn’t enjoy Artemis, I did, but it was the cast as a whole that really made the story work.
Knowing as I’m sure most of you do what my favorite paranormal creatures are you’re probably wondering how I handled the version presented in this book. The truth? I enjoyed it! Though I am a lover of what I think to be the traditional dark fairies I loved reading this different take on them. In fact I found myself giggling a lot and reminded of the elves that were in the Santa Clause movies starring Tim Allen. [Elves which I thought were underappreciated for their epic-ness].
The action was captivating, deserving of the phrase action-packed. I found myself with few breaks in the plot in which I could sit my kindle down and take a break. Even those few slow scenes I found in which I could do this didn't really help as I was wondering what would happen once the calm before the storm broke, so I would go racing back to it.
I'm giving Artemis Fowl a four out of five stars review. And yes, providing that worn copy is still in the used bookstore I will be purchasing it for myself. Artemis has earned a place on my shelf and I'm happy to let him have it. I'll also be trying to get a hold of the next one in the series as I think this could actually be one that my whole little family will enjoy.
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