The Arctic Incident (Artemis Fowl, Book 2)

For those of you who are like me and enjoy placing yourself in a different world through book's.The Artemis Fowl series is the way to go.I have read all five and I am now awating the sixth installment.

The useage of elves,pixie's and goblin's are amazing.I am really glad that I decided to pick up the book's and read them.I do suggest to anyone reading this to do the same.If you are indeed into fantasy or science-fiction.

The evil boy-genius criminal mastermind is at his evilest at the start of this funny and action-packed story. However, in Artemis' search for his father his heart does warm. A little bit. So does that of his fairy-cop enemy, Holly. A little bit.

[[ASIN:0786851473 The Arctic Incident]] is the second novel of the Artemis Fowl series which starts with [[ASIN:0786817879 Artemis Fowl]], where I have a longer review. The series should be read in order.

By the time I started this book, the only skepticism left was whether a sequel could capitalize on a wonderful first. Again, this book kept me going until I was finished and ready to move on to the third. I said it before and I will say it again. I highly recommend this series.

Talk about saving the day and his father's life!

The adventure continues with the second Artemis Fowl book, where Artemis is again drawn into the fairy world and ends up fighting on the same side as they are, displaying quite a few more familiar human qualities than he did in the first book. Besides some grudging respect between them, Artemis and the fairies now seem to be getting to be friends . . . and Mr. Colfer just comes up with such original ways to make things exciting.

With tons of comparisons to Harry Potter when the series first came out, Artemis Fowl is a companion to Harry Potter only in that it features a young adult protagonist and magic to an extent. The rest of the series is vastly different, in a far more modern (perhaps even slightly futuristic) world with a surprisingly charismatic antihero. This reader was late to the Artemis Fowl bandwagon, and perhaps that is best as the rest of the series for several books waits ahead with the new book in the series (supossidly the second to last one) newly released.

This time the elaborate heist for a specific goal that Artemis had set up in the first novel has come to fruition in this sequel, the search for his missing father. Long declared dead by the rest of the world, Artemis refuses to give up hope that Fowl Sr is still alive and out there somewhere. Perhaps being held captive by enemies of the Fowl criminal empire. In this Fowl would be right, only this time it's the Russian Mafya, holding a ransom for Fowl. Knowing fully well of a trap being laid for him and his Father, Artemis plans on rescuing his father with his unstoppable tank like bodyguard Butler. Going on in a sub plot in the Fairy world, Goblins of the B'wa Kell are armed with weapons far more advanced and banned in the underground fairy world. Incapable of larger organization even at the smallest level (goblins are hideously stupid) the LEPrecon force smells a larger plot at hand and they would be right. Our favorite LEPrecon Captain Holly Short suspects her old nemesis Artemis Fowl is behind the plot at large, but would she be right? In this Colfer is a master at handling to separate sub plots without detracting from the first to give leeway to the other. Managing to set up several threads in different scenes, Colfer's writing is at its' simplest and highest here. Descriptions are evident enough to give us a clear picture of what is happening at large in the scene without overly elaborate prose, his dialogue is made for action and manages to keep the reader at the edge of the seat.

This reader read the book in a manner of three days (allowing real life concerns to get in the way of reading of course). But over a weekend or even on a vacation the book goes by fast while still being full of mettle. Colfer brings back old favorites, Mulch Diggums, the centaur Foaly, even Captain Root gets in on the action, while also introducing new ones in the nemesis of Opal Koboi. In this one Fowl himself is far more humanistic and approachable, less the cold hearted, unrelatable villain that made the character hard to support in the first novel. In this one we see Artemis as a super bright, genius, desperate young man that he really is. A child at heart who is desperate for his family to return to some sense of normalcy. Forced to work together in harsh circumstances the characters are portrayed at their best. The one fault of the novel would perhaps be, the distant figure of Fowl Sr. We as readers have little idea what the man was like while he was with Artemis and while we obviously want the character to return as the protagonist does being he's his father, we know nothing of the man himself. What he was like, perhaps the novel could have been interspersed with flashbacks of Fowl Sr. Just to give the reader a better idea as to what the man himself is like. While the new villainess Opal is purported to be a genius akin to Fowl, it's hard to get a sense of her. Seeming more like a floating victim rather then the criminal mastermind we are supposed to believe she is. Though very clever and able to be one step ahead of the "heroes" she seems surprisingly uneven and appears at times to be surprisingly naive, hopefully this is Colfer showing a major weakness to who will undoubtedly be a major villain later.

Colfer's Artemis Fowl, the second novel in the Artemis Fowl series is the most entertaining so far and this reader eagerly awaits more.

This is a great book for Pre-Teens and Teens alike. It is about a boy who is a super genius, and how his life has become intwined in the hidden underground world of fairies and other creatures. Artemis is a criminal mastermind, but he always learns that good beats evil in the end. However he may forget this lesson in time for the next book. This book is a sequel to the first Artemis Fowl book. I recommend reading it first, but it isn't required.

"By the age of thirteen, our subject, Artemis Fowl, was displaying signs

of an intellect greater than any human since Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart."

Thus begins the second book by Eoin Colfer in the Artemis Fowl series,

The Arctic Incident. Made for young adults, Artemis Fowl is an exciting

book to read. Even though I've only read two of them so far, the series is

action-packed and a mix of realistic fiction and fantasy. The entire book

is told from the narrator's point of view, and it cuts to first-person for

character thoughts. Sometimes parts drag on, but I was interested enough

to start the second book.

The main character, Artemis, is a boy genius who deals in the crime

business often; usually unnoticed. He isn't the cheerful one, since his

mother is in a depression after his father disappeared, and he has to care

for himself. In The Arctic Incident, he gets a suspicious video message of

a man speaking Russian. Believing it's his father, Artemis seeks upon the

help of the fairies; not like fairytales, but high-tech beings who live

deep underground. They must get to Russia, all while solving a war between

goblins and the civillians of the fairy world.

Artemis fowl is a good read, filled to the brim with action and suspense.

If you're interested in that kind of book, you should begin the series now!

-Tyler McBride

Artemis is at it again, this time he needs the help of the LEP to get his father back, but they too need his help. The book starts off by explaining the whereabouts of Artemis' father, and the plot begins to thicken. The whole gang from both worlds unite in this adventure...and a betrayal occurs which could frame one of the main characters, causing some major drama. This story wasn't quite as good as the first but it was still a very fun read. I continue to want to read more and suggest this book to anyone who enjoys young adult fantasy fiction.

I am no longer a young adult but find that i truely enjoy these tales of fantasy. If you have read the first Artemis tale then pick this one up as well, i don't think you will be dissappointed but do keep in mind that it may not be quite a great as the first book was.