Worlds Inside Books

Artemis Fowl is not a usual teenager. Even though he is just twelve, he’s already smarter than most adults. Fowl doesn’t seem to care about anybody, but as we read, we find out that this is not exactly true. He loves his mother very much and takes care of her when she’s ill and he misses his father who disappeared some time before the beginning of the book.

Most things about him, like the reasons for his criminal career, remain more or less unexplained. It’s understandable; this is only the first of a series of eight novels.

Due to his young age most of his adversaries underestimate him. They soon learn that this is a big mistake. Artemis Fowl is not someone you can easily trick.

Although sometimes we see how young Artemis really is, I think the plot would have been more realistic with somebody a bit older. Just four years more and his behaviour would have been much more believable.

Even though it is a YA novel and there is no strong language, there are serious death threats and most are not issued by evil people. Several LEP members (Lower Elements Police), who are supposed to be the good guys, are very happy to send a troll to kill a boy and to use a magical weapon to kill everybody in the house to get the gold back.

In this novel what’s good and bad depends on the point of view and nobody is all one or the other.