Artemis by Andy Weir

Science fiction adventure by the author of The Martian.
The moon has been colonized. Independent and unregulated commerce has been established. And you know what that means, right? Smuggling, money making, power for a few, struggling by many and enterprise in the new world.

On the lighter side of the genre, this book was heavy on the science and huge on the world building. The repetitive explanation of why the moon’s gravity cause people to bounce, mis-aim, and things to fall slowly got a little monotonous but was part of the storytelling, so justified.

Overall an appealing adventure.

BookFilter review by one of my writers, Janet Rotter: Andy Weir is a best-selling sci-fi talent who is becoming a better writer. He has a knack for well-defined characters that grab your interest – and characters, of course, are what novels are all about. If you liked botanist Mark Watney in “The Martian” for his honesty and persistence, you will like Jazz Bashera, the heroine of Weir’s new novel for different reasons. She's less Boy Scout and more...fun, frankly. The story is set on Artemis, the name given to the first and only city on the moon. Jazz, a young Saudi girl, came to Artemis at an early age with her father, a welder. But Jazz grew to become a rebel and sort of an outcast in Artemisian society. Unable to win entrance to the coveted EVA tourists’ guild because of a sloppy uniform, she works as a meagerly paid porter. My God! What’s a girl to do? Jazz eventually turns to smuggling to make her life easier. So when a rich client offers her a million slugs (moon currency) to sabotage all the smelters owned by a rival company, she accepts. Those smelters make the much-needed oxygen for life inside the bubbles of Artemis and her client wants to corner the market. An accident deprives her of success, the industrialist is murdered and suddenly Jazz finds herself a prime suspect. It turns out the smelters weren’t really the issue at all and Jazz must risk her life (again) to make everything turn out all right. Weir seemingly won’t do science fiction without pure textbook science thrown in, so there are a lot of lessons here on gravity, physics, metallurgy, simple machine welding and the chemistry of smelting. Happily that’s not all. If your eyes glazed over from time to time while reading “The Martian” because it was so technically focused, I hear you. To be honest, the science here is just as eye-glazing to me, but at least it comes in shorter bursts that weave well into the story. So Weir offers plenty of science for the nerd in you but also plenty of the brave free spirit Jazz for that part of you that loves a good old-fashioned adventure in modern sci-fi clothing. – Janet Rotter

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When your first novel is The Martian, what do you do for an encore?

The Martian was a freak of publishing. Andy Weir self-published it electronically in 2011; when brisk online sales caught the attention of the publishing industry and Hollywood, it went on to be a hardcover bestseller in 2014, and spawned a 2015 movie that grossed more than $630 million. While the book was weak on characterization and prose, it was full of humour and dramatic tension while remaining unapologetically geeky. It was terrific fun to read. (See my review.)

That’s a hell of an act to have to follow up on. Weir’s second novel, Artemis, is out today—published by Crown in the United States and Del Rey in the United Kingdom. And I have to say that while Artemis is a diverting enough read, I don’t expect it to bottle the same lightning its predecessor did.

The protagonist of Artemis is Jazz Bashara, a twentysomething resident of the lunar city of Artemis who despite her considerable talents ekes out a marginal existence by working as a porter and small-time smuggler, bringing in contraband items like cigars for the city’s wealthier residents. When one of her wealthy clients offers her a huge sum to carry out an act of industrial sabotage, Jazz jumps at the chance. When things go awry in typically Andy Weir fashion, which is to say, spectacular disasters in harsh extraterrestrial environments (“I took a moment to calculate how fucked I was” is perhaps the most Andy Weir sentence in existence), Jazz finds herself in danger from all sides.

Now. Those of you who’ve read The Martian will find some familiar pleasures: the humour, the characters repeatedly obliged to find rapid solutions to life-terminating catastrophes, that sort of thing. But it’s uneven, because Artemis is a very different book—a caper that involves protagonists and antagonists living in the aforementioned harsh extraterrestrial environment. You know, people.

For a writer not known for characterization, Weir took a big risk in making his protagonist a young lapsed-Muslim woman of Saudi descent. The risk does not necessarily pay off: Jazz doesn’t quite ring true. There are some awkward bits. Her sexuality is tossed about by other characters but isn’t necessary to the story; it seems gratuitous. And a Weir protagonist in the first person must be capable of giving infodumps on the fly (Weir doesn’t make use of incluing), which in Jazz’s hands1 seems contrived: it’s convenient that someone marginalized enough to be willing to take on shady work is as hypercompetent as an astronaut. Even foul-mouthed young smugglers turn out to be Mark Watney.

Another problem is class relations, which are handled, frankly, naively. A society that is absolutely ferocious in its economic stratification but apparently egalitarian in social relations is simply not plausible, even in a community of two thousand people.

All of which is to say that Weir’s strengths and weaknesses are readily apparent. Artemis as a built environment—as a work of engineering—is convincing. As a society, an economy, with businesses and cartels and politics and living breathing people who interact with one another, not so much. It feels like journeyman work. The worldbuilding is one-sided. While this is, make no mistake, a fun book, as a novel about life on the moon it falls short of classics like John M. Ford’s Growing Up Weightless.

But in the end that may not matter. Phil Lord and Christopher Miller—the guys who got fired from directing the Han Solo movie—are already working on a film version.

I enjoyed The Martian and was excited to read Artemis. As a child, my dream job when I “grew up” was to be an astronaut. While that goal changed, I still have my telescope, star charts and spend many a night gazing at the sky and wondering what is out there. I love science fiction that draws me into a place, other than the Earth and Andy Weir made me feel terror at being left behind on Mars, and he made me see the possibility of life on the moon.
The main character, Jazz, isn’t one of the privileged tourists who experience a truly memorable out of this world vacation, but rather she is a low paid worker looking to get a better job, better living quarters and a better life. She is extremely intelligent, adventurous and the voice Weir has given her took me on a detailed, descriptive tour of what it takes to live on the moon. Jazz is no ‘Pollyanna Pure’ and her goal to make enough money to achieve her dreams introduces as to a number of other characters. I could definitely see a sequel if the author was so inclined. Even though Jazz makes quite a few questionable decisions, it is this side of her character that makes this book so much more than just someone living in a moon colony and what that entails.
This book satisfied my inner child who would definitely scrimp and save to afford a Moon vacation and believes one day what seems like an impossible space adventure, may be possible. If you were able to visualize being on Mars after reading The Martian, Artemis should provide an equally enjoyable time for you on the Moon. It will be interesting to see where Andy Weir’s imagination goes next and I look forward to another well-written space adventure.
Thank you, Andy Weir, Crown Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

To describe my interest in science as limited is probably generous. I put off reading The Martian for years because I was sure that I wouldn't enjoy the science or character. However, a fascinating survival story kept me engaged with that story. Unfortunately, whatever charm The Martian had didn't seem to translate to Artemis. Jazz Bashera, the main character, was incredibly unlikable, and I'm not sure why the author chose to write a female main character but seemed to put no effort into creating a realistic woman (having been, at one point, a 26 year old female, I cannot believe that any 26 year old female talks about boobs as much as Jazz Bashera). She's an angry, bitter, crabby young woman (who also reads significantly younger than she is supposed to be). I always think I'm a plot driven reader until I read a book where I'm unimpressed with the character development, and I remember how critical this element is to me.
This story is being called a "heist", but it wasn't a fast paced criminal caper. It involved a lot of talking about science and welding, and the overall effect in this story just wasn't terribly engaging.

Life in Artemis, the only human city on the moon, is rough for Jasmine Bashara, a 26 year old delivery person, smuggler, and would-be tourist guide. She fails her EVA (extravehicular activity) Guild exam in, literally, breathtaking fashion; she’s somewhat estranged from her welder father, to whom she owes a huge personal debt; she’s living alone in a tiny, claustrophobia-inducing capsule room; she barely gets by on her payments as a porter (supplemented by some judicious smuggling activity). But Jazz wouldn’t want to live any other place ― certainly not on Earth ― and she’s determined to make a success of her life, with no help from anyone.

So when Trond Landvik, one of the wealthiest people on the moon and a regular customer for Jazz’s smuggled luxuries, offers her a million “slugs” (moon currency) to do a highly illegal sabotage job, Jazz can’t resist. Trond’s intention is to disrupt Sanchez Aluminum’s production of oxygen for long enough that he can take over the business, for reasons he’s cagey about. The job requires Jazz to sneak out of the domed city of Artemis (tough when all comings and goings out of the city’s four airlocks are constantly monitored) and take out four massive anorthite harvester machines. Jazz is both brilliant and determined, and comes up with a complicated scheme worthy of Mark Watney. But the plan doesn’t work out quite the way she intended, organized crime elements get involved, and suddenly it’s a life-and-death situation for Jazz.

Artemis (2017), Andy Weir’s just-published second novel, didn’t engage me nearly to the extent The Martian did, but it’s action-packed and ― once the crimes finally get rolling ― compulsively readable. There’s a complex crime caper on the moon and lots of geeky hard science details. The domed moon city setting is laid out with a great deal attention to detail; Weir’s world (or moon)-building is fairly elaborate, if not fleshed out quite as completely as I would have liked. I suppose something had to give to work in all the science facts and the too often cringe-worthy jokes.

The cast of characters in Artemis is highly diverse, beginning with Jazz herself, a rebellious Arab young woman protagonist. She’s Muslim in heritage, though non-religious and sexually active. Artemis’ government is controlled by Kenya, with a female administrator, and its population is a cross-section of several Earth nationalities. One of Jazz’s friends is gay, though their relationship’s been on the rocks since he “stole” Jazz’s former boyfriend away from her ― ouch. Jazz also has had a Kenyan pen pal since she was nine years old; their mildly interesting letters provide interludes at the end of each chapter, giving us some background information regarding Jazz’s past, and gradually tying back into Jazz’s present circumstances.

Unfortunately, characterization isn’t otherwise a strong point in Artemis. Jazz’s juvenile, snarky personality frequently irritated me. She’s a genius ― when motivated, she picks up electronics design and the chemistry underlying high-temperature smelting with a few quick hours of study ― but she often acts in childish, petulant ways because of her pride and rebelliousness. Her character and fondness for crude jokes makes Jazz read more like a teenage boy than a woman in her mid-twenties. Her mantra in life seems to be “nobody can tell me what to do.” Jazz gradually gains a sliver of wisdom and redemption, but it’s limited. The secondary characters are (mostly) appealing personalities, but easily recognizable and one-dimensional types.

Artemis’s crime caper plot is also a more standard and familiar one; the novel as a whole just isn’t as fresh or compelling as The Martian. While the hard science details aren’t given short shrift, they flow less smoothly in Artemis than in The Martian, bogging down the pace somewhat. However, Weir is clearly making an effort to expand his horizons: along with the greater diversity, the reader is also treated to lessons in wealth inequality, economics, and sciences like welding and smelting. Duct tape even makes a brief but memorable appearance in the plot, in a brief scene sure to be appreciated by fans of The Martian.

In the end, Artemis was a reasonably engaging story, but Weir’s shortcomings as an author are more apparent here, with the less gripping plot, than they were in The Martian. Whether you’ll enjoy Artemis depends, I think, upon your affinity (or tolerance) for complex crime caper plots, immature protagonists, and an abundance of technical science.

Jazz Bashera is a porter who smuggles on the side who lives on the moon colony of Artemis. She is barely make ends meet but she is offered one million slugs, all she has to do is blow up Artemis's aluminum making smelter. Of course doing that comes with plenty of complications. Andy Weir's science fiction heist novel gets boggled down in its own cleverness. While the stakes get higher and higher as the novel moves along, it's very hard to care. The book's main character Jazz is very hard to hard to like and the other characters aren't any more likable. The dialogue veers from ineffective snark to meandering jargon that slows the narrative down to a crawl. Yes, scientific explanations are part of hard science fiction but Weir does not effectively weave the explanations into the narrative. Jazz is the narrator but her constant explanations for what she doing and how everything works just doesn't work, especially when the reader is trying to figure out whether she is talking to the reader or describing her thoughts. The heist is supposed to be the book's main draw but it's hard to get into the heist when the action gets boggled down in explanations on how wielding works. In between the explanations Weir remembers that he is writing a heist story but what plot there is more of a justification to provide explanations for various scientific processes. Artemis would work better if there was more focus on the heist and less focus wielding and smelting.

I loved The Martian so when I came across this book, I had to have it! Author Andy Weir is no one-trick pony, he really knows how to tell a story as proof again in Artemis. His seemingly limitless imagination makes me believe. I am now a certified dedicated fan. Overlooking some of the science that made my head spin, a super cool read and I am already speculating who will play kick-ass Jazz in the movie!

I have dreamt about populating the moon to escape the madness of our current world; a place where people can start over. Unfortunately, in Weir’s alternative universe, this is no Utopia. There is good, but lots of bad, rich but lots of poor. Flaws of humanity have no boundaries.

Artemis is a city on the moon, and Jazz the not so perfect, or depending on how you look at it perfect lunar girl. Jazz grew up in Artemis and became the go to person for those items that shall we say are most difficult to find in the Artesian stores. Jazz can think on her feet and stay one step ahead of most of the people around her, until they start dying.
This was an awesome book, if you are looking for a continuation of The Martian stop now this one is totally different book and great in its own way. The characters are cool and diverse but come together, the surroundings are great and add just that much hardship and sciency funness to the book, and his space facts are actually realistic. I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait for this one to hit the silver screen as well or to see what Mr. Weir has up his space sleeve next.

Jazz is a thief, a very good one. She smuggles things in that aren't allowed. She has to know every nook and cranny of the bubble towns that have been created on the moon to do it. She does. Her father wishes she didn't do what she does but she's trying to earn enough money to buy a suit to work outside. They're very expensive. When she's offered a large sum of money to stop the harvesters that bring in rock, she says no at first. But when she hears the money being offered, she changes her mind...

Crown Publishing and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It is being published today.

I read The Martian and this writer's words resonate with me. He talks about impossible things (at least so far) and he makes it very believable. His stories are full of suspense and huge challenges for the characters. No matter how many pages there are in the story, you won't skip a thing and you'll be unwilling to put it down and do something else. His stories are mesmerizing.

Jazz had enemies, friends, and some she's not sure of. When she goes to do her dirty deed, she makes a mistake and suddenly she's on the run. When she goes to visit the man that hired her, she finds him and his bodyguard dead. She runs down the other man she met while at his house and when she breaks in his room, she finds the killer instead. I told you, it's not boring.

This a conspiracy within a conspiracy and it takes a lot of questions and some brave action to try to save the world she lives in. At the end, she makes another mistake and almost kills everyone on the planet. Can she reverse this?

You'll keep reading until you know...

I have had some trouble reviewing this one, probably because I really try not to be biased. I loved The Martian hardcore and although the writing was good in this one, I don't think that it can hold a candle to Andy Weir's first book. I think I would like it better if I hadn't already read his previous work. That said, the story line was interesting enough and the writing was definitely recognizable. I wasn't real sold on the main character being a girl and that was probably my sticking point throughout the entire novel. Female characters may not be Weir's thing, or at least not at the moment. It, to me, seemed forced and the character for most of the book (except for where it was pointed out that she was a female) seemed more male to me. I also can't say that I would have any clue how to write a male character.
I liked it. I can't wait to see what Mr. Weir has for us in the future. His writing is amazing and he's one of the few Sci-Fi authors that I enjoy.

I received this book from Crown Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Fully formatted review available at: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2055498781?book_show_action=false

Jazz has lived on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, for two decades. To make ends meet, she smuggles contraband to those willing to pay. One day, a rich client has an intriguing request. He needs her help to sabotage Artemis's sole aluminum company so that he can enter the aluminum business. This is far beyond any criminal act that she's performed before, but he makes her an offer she can't refuse: one million slugs (Artemisian money). Four days later, Jazz's life is in danger and she's on the run. Her initial suspicions were correct. This goes much deeper than gaining a controlling stake in the lucrative aluminum industry.

Jazz and her father moved from Saudia Arabia to the Moon when she was six-years-old. Now she's twenty-six-years-old and in a bit of a rut. She and her father have a contentious relationship because of a mishap that happened when she was sixteen. He wanted her to be a welder like him, but she has no interest in following in his footsteps. She’s a quick learner and an intuitive problem solver but has no ambition. Everyone is constantly telling her how much untapped potential she has and she's sick of hearing it. She doesn't want to spend her life working herself to death only to live paycheck to paycheck. She wants to make money quickly and painlessly. Her goal is to earn 416,922 slugs and purchase a living space in a wealthier area. She'd at least like a private bathroom! Jazz has a colorful personality and a bit of a libertarian streak. She has a snarky rapport with her neighbors and a self-deprecating sense of humor.

• I LOVED listening to Weir’s The Martian. Artemis didn't wow me as much. I think it's the difference between a person who has to work their way out of an unexpected life-and-death situation (Mark) and a person who repeatedly has to get themselves out of life-and-death situations of their own creation (Jazz). I also couldn't identify with Jazz as much as Mark. Her initial assignment is mundane and I wasn't invested in her money-making schemes or survival. Greed actually isn't her driving motivation, but we don't learn about that until much later.

• Setting: The Moon city was awesome! It was interesting to learn about the methods they used to overcome the hostile environment. I also liked the parts about the society and how Earth problems transferred to the Moon.

• Humor: Jazz may be approaching thirty, but she’s really a teenage boy at heart. Here’s Jazz describing the multi-dome city of Artemis: "The city shined in the sunlight like a bunch of metallic boobs. What? I’m not a poet. They look like boobs.” There are constant jokes about identity, breasts, sex, excrement, and prostitutes. By the end, I was so over the constant jabs at Jazz’s sex life. At one point, even her dad made a sex joke at her expense! (And what was the purpose of the reusable condom prototype, besides giving a Svoboda a reason to constantly inquire about her sex life? He asked about it so much that I was surprised it didn't play a part in the end.) I know there were similar critiques of the humor in The Martian, so maybe my love of stories about people trying to get back home overrode any potential annoyances. But with Watney the humor felt like a pressure-relief valve—Jazz just felt like she was trying way too hard to be edgy: "I looked like a leper. Or a hooker who gave handjobs exclusively to lepers.” and "I’d have to blow the remaining two at the same time. Please don’t quote that last sentence out of context.” She did tell one total dad-joke that made me smile though:


“Don’t joke around. Not with airlock procedures.”
“Sheesh, you really suck the air out of the room, you know that?”


• Science: The technical explanations were so boring to me this time around. The intricacies of welding just aren't as thrilling as potato farming! Who knew? Jazz constantly stops to explain concepts to the reader, so sometimes I felt like I was on a museum tour or reading a textbook.

• The expression super-duper was used three too many times. It's a really juvenile term, so it really jolted me out of the story.

• My favorite part was the relationship between Jazz and her father: "Very few people get a chance to quantify how much their father loves them. But I did. The job should have taken forty-five minutes, but Dad spent three and a half hours on it. My father loves me three 366 percent more than he loves anything else.” Aww!! I loved how much pride he had in her!

This story was a slow-starter for me, but it became more of a page-turner once the stakes were raised about 1/3 of the way through. I loved the setting and the plot reeled me in by the second half, but Jazz didn’t ring authentic to me. I think I may have enjoyed the audiobook more, especially since Rosario Dawson is the narrator. Artemis had its entertaining points, but I don't think it will necessarily be a winner for all fans of The Martian.

The Martian was a spectacular hit, and I’m sure the first question on everyone’s minds is “how does this compare”? Well, it had a very different feel. The type of humor was similar, but not quite the same. In The Martian, the humor all stemmed from surviving on Mars, and was self deprecating and a bit dark in the ways he might die, or how others might see ultimate demise. Jazz definitely has a bit darker sense of humor as well, but its not as life and death, and maybe doesn’t come across quite as nice. I don’t mean that as a negative, just that is how I compared the two styles.

In this book, the moon has been colonized with a single city called Artemis. The city is a connected series of multi-level domes, where people under or above ground. The city has both permanent residents as well as many wealthy tourists, because really, who wouldn’t want to go visit the moon if they have the means. Because of the controlled atmosphere that allows humans to survive on the inhospitable moon, there are many restrictions on substances and items allowed in Artemis. Anything that could pose a fire hazard is extremely dangerous and outlawed.

Enter Jazz. Her legitimate day job is as a porter, delivering packages across Artemis. But her main job is as a smuggler, delivering those contraband items that people in Artemis are looking for. I enjoyed Jazz’s character. She is strong and smart and fiercely independent. I also enjoyed her sense of humor. You could also say Jazz is a bit of a Mary Sue. When I say she is smart, that is a bit of an understatement. She is a whiz at figuring things out, and honestly, sometimes those deductions and scientific reasonings seemed to come a bit too easy when she was outside of an area of expertise. (I can understand if it is in her background, but when something new to her pops up, she still seems to reach expert level awfully quick). This really didn’t detract much from my enjoyment of the book, and Jazz was certainly not infallible, but I do suspect some readers will find her resolutions a bit “easy”. That said, Weir does still include scientific explanations for many of the problems, events and solutions presented in the book. I didn’t find it anywhere close to being hard to follow, or overly scientific. Really, it was presented quite simplistically, likely to ensure readers could follow and still feel like there was a sound basis for what was happening.

Overall, I would say this was an incredibly fun book. Is it perfect? I don’t think so, but I also find that I didn’t care much about the imperfections I did notice. I don’t think readers should go in expecting more of The Martian, but do know that some of the key traits from The Martian (that “off” sense of humor and a very bright and scientific protagonist) are present in Artemis as well.

The Martian is one of my favorite books, so Artemis had some big shoes (or book covers) to fill. It did not disappoint.

Jazz lives on the moon. She's on her own after she and her father split. She is making it, but barely. She smuggles contraband into Artemis, the city on the moon. When the opportunity arises for her to make real money -- like being set for life -- she goes for it, even though it's an impossible task. Things don't go well and Jazz gets in deeper and deeper, but if there is one thing she is, it's tenacious.

Jazz is also very intelligent - one might even say she's a genius. The obstacles she must overcome are huge, and some of her schemes are inconceivable. But the stakes are high, so after convincing a few others to help her she goes for it. And misses.

Artemis is not marketed as a young adult book, but the main character is a teenager, so I think teens will enjoy this. Weir once again doesn't shy away from some scientific explanations for what is happening. You can enjoy the science, but if not there is still plenty of story around it to "skip" it. One thing I missed, as compared to The Martian, is the humor. Jazz is a pretty serious character, not given to seeing the humor in her situation as was Watney.

The story definitely kept my interest, and it moves at a fast pace. Artemis has a complete ending, but I wouldn't be surprised if we join Jazz again on some more adventures. I, for one, would enjoy that.

I was excited about Artemis for the simple fact that it was a new Andy Weir book. I loved The Martian so I was anxious for more Andy Weir. I was hoping to go into reading it blind, but I spoiled myself to the premise as I was adding it to my Goodreads. Once I saw it was a heist story set on the moon, I had to read it immediately.

There was a level of fun to Artemis. I'm sure a lot of readers will enjoy it. I hoped by the time I sat down to write my official review, the fun aspects of Artemis would overtake my issues, but the opposite has happened. When I look back on reading Artemis, the problems are what I remember most.

Most of my issues revolve around the main character Jazz. This makes sense since there really weren't any other developed characters in Artemis. It was a formula that worked well for Mark Watney's character in The Martian, but I wasn't a fan of Jazz at all.

Not only was Jazz not likable, her character development was problematic. The reader is told on several occasions that Jazz has a sexual history. Why? What does the fact that Jazz has sex tell us about her character? As many times as it was brought up, I assume it was supposed to mean something.

My assessment of Jazz's character is Andy Weir tried to create a badass female character like Devi Morris from Rachel Bach's Paradox trilogy and failed miserably.

Jazz's back story was filled with the awful choices of her youth. I didn't see how her back story was any different from her current story. She was still making awful choices. I wish I could have cared about her, but instead I felt she deserved whatever she got.

Complaints aside, the science in Artemis was fun. The science was a huge part of what I was hoping for going into reading Artemis. Like The Martian, I have no idea if the science was accurate, but it didn't need to be.

At the end of the day, my opinion of Artemis isn't going to sway anyone and it really shouldn't. I wanted a new Andy Weir novel and that's what I got.

I will be excited for his next release, but I'm also hoping it will be a while before we get his next female protagonist.

Despite having issues with Artemis, I came away from reading it waffling between 2 and 3 stars so I'm going to stick with my initial reaction and go straight up the middle with my rating.

5/10: Decent Read

Ahoy there me mateys! I received this sci-fi eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. So here be me honest musings . . .

artemis (Andy Weir)

Title: artemis

Author: Andy Weir

Publisher: Crown Publishing

Publication Date: TODAY!!! (hardback/e-book)

ISBN: 978-0553448122

Source: NetGalley

Andy Weir's newest book was a super fun read. He is a versatile writer in that overall this book has a completely different feel than the martian. And that's a good thing. But the areas that made the martian a success are present here. Snarky intelligent character. Check. Science and physics facts that are accessible for physics hating people. Check. World building so good that ye feel ye could step off the spaceship onto the planet, or in this case moon. Check.

This book was a fast-paced adventure heist that kept me rapidly turning pages until the end. The main character, Jazz, is super intelligent but lacks common sense. She continues to make one bad decision after the other. At 26 she seems destined to be stuck in a low-level job on the margins. Then an enticing offer comes along that could give her a lot of money and move her into a lifestyle of comfort. Of course it's another bad choice and the consequences impact more than just her. Can she fix it or will the moon as she knows it change for good?

Jazz as a character was the weak point of the book for me in that she is just such a mess. She does read younger than 26 at times and is so annoying at others. But she slowly won me over by the end. I loved that her father is present and a good parent. Her family is diverse. She is a Muslim of Saudi Arabian descent. Actually, the moon is full of people of different backgrounds. I also loved how the moon is portrayed as dangerous and how the citizens police themselves. It was both funny and made logical sense.

Overall I thought this was a great book by Mr. Weir and I will certainly be reading whatever he writes next. If ye have a hankerin' to visit the moon then I suggest ye pick this one up. Just be prepared that it's a crazy time to visit.

So lastly . . .

Thank you Crown Publishing!

The reviews of this one vary widely so check out the thoughts of me crew:

Lynn @ lynn'sbookblog

Ali @ iwuvbooks

Annie @ themisstery - a take on a book outside her comfort zone!

Mogsy @thebibliosanctum

Goodreads' website has this to say about the novel:

Jazz Bashara is a criminal.

Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent.

Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down. But pulling off the impossible is just the start of her problems, as she learns that she's stepped square into a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself—and that now, her only chance at survival lies in a gambit even riskier than the first.

To visit the author’s website go to:

Andy Weir - Author

To buy the novel go to:

artemis - Book

To add to Goodreads go to:

Yer Ports for Plunder List

Artemis is a fun light read, it’s fast-paced and well plotted.

My main problem was that I had a hard time getting attached to Jazz or supporting characters and their very minor subplots, but the price for a fast pace may have been character development. I had an especially hard time relating to Jazz and her why me complex. Besides the fact that she’s brilliantly intelligent, I couldn’t figure out why people in Artemis cared about her or wanted to be her friend. She was very abrasive and seemed to offer nothing positive to anyone around her, just a lot of snarky and juvenile banter. If Jazz was 10 years younger I could understand her narrative a bit better. So many boob jokes and lots of juvenile humor, it made me think of how my husband and I joke around, unfortunately neither of us is known for our wit and none of our conversations should be immortalized in book form. There were a few gems, “Don’t you think I won’t look that up!” But for the most part, the humor was teetering between cute and obnoxious.

I love hard science fiction, and I think the accuracy of the science in Wier’s work is a big draw for a lot of readers, but a lot of the time the scientific explanations are seemingly tacked on. Neal Stephenson does a better job diving into the deep science stuff and keeping it integral to the narrative as opposed to seeming more like random info dumps. But Artemis is enormously more approachable than a 1200 page Stephenson tome. I think that’s it right there, Andy Wier is writing approachable and entertaining hard science fiction for the masses. Artemis is going to sell a bajillion copies and I’m betting the movie will be great.