Andy Weir has managed to write another sci-fi book that will appeal to people who "don't read sci-fi." The Martian was a crossover success, and I think this will be, too. There were definitely moments that were anxiety-inducing enough to make it difficult for me to read through, but of course it was worth it. I love the science. I love that he took on a woman's point of view. The attention to detail was great, as I would expect from Weir. Very entertaining, and I'm looking forward to recommending it to library patrons.

Weir did it again... Read this ASAP, you won't regret it.

Artemis is the only city on the moon and Jazz Bashara is a luminary of its seedy underbelly. She smuggles in fun goodies (nothing dangerous: she's got standards) to supplement her meager porter's wages. When one of her regular customers offers her an obscene amount of money to add industrial sabotage to her repertoire, Jazz brings all her scientific knowledge and criminal acumen to the issue. A tiny error in judgment snowballs into complete catastrophe; add a conspiracy and she's running for her life. Jazz is roguish, smart, foul-mouthed, and funny, but it's a little off-putting how often she's labeled promiscuous. A fun caper with a solid scientific grounding.

This book follows Jazz, a young woman who lives on the moon. The premise of the novel is that it's a heist that takes place in space. It seemed like it would be really interesting and since I did like The Martian I wanted to give this a chance. Jazz was an interesting character. You realize really early on that she is a smuggler of contraband and that she has a huge desire to get rich. Her smuggling business is what gets her involved in the heist that is supposed to take center stage.

I had high hopes for this novel but I was kind of disappointed. It read kind of like a YA novel although, in all honesty, it seemed a tad bit more juvenile than that. I think that the writing style in this book made it hard for me to connect to because I was expecting to read an adult novel and while the character is an adult she comes off as, possibly, 15. I also found the novel to be kind of slow and while there was action it just didn't keep me interested and when I was about 45% through I lost all interest and did not care what happened.

That being said, I did like Jazz's personality and the jokes she cracked. She has a sarcastic sense of humor that is portrayed well throughout the book. There were parts of the book that were written and made it evident that this female character was written by a male. However, that being said, I still did like Jazz and how strong of a character she was.

The ending was mediocre as well. It was definitely a 'good' ending but it might have wrapped up a tad bit too well.

It's no secret I like action filled plots.

This is an action filled plot!

So, yeah, I loved it.

Another thing I love is kick-ass heroines. Jazz Bashara is tough, smart, snarky, *fist pumps air* yet there's a soft, caring side to her that is beautifully feminine. Major kudos to Andy Weir and the wonderful women in his life that helped him write this amazing character.

She is not the only memorable character. Everyone I met was unique and interesting. Various nationalities are portrayed well. We also get a captivating love triangle with two gay men. I just want to gush on about all the different characters and scenarios in this story. But I don't want to give anything away. I want everyone to read and experience it first hand.

The story is fast-paced. Did you expect anything less from Weir? I had a movie reel running in my head the whole time I was reading.

Expected publication in November, 2017. Mark your calendars!

Jasmine Bashara grew up in the lunar city of Artemis, where she works as a porter and smuggler. After a job for one of her clients goes terribly wrong, Jazz finds herself hiding from a Brazilian crime syndicate, attempting to determine the importance of a mysterious item called "ZAFO," and scheming to protect the future of her city. Jazz is a very likeable narrator, a clever young woman with a sense of humor and, despite her profession, a strong ethical core. Artemis is populated by a variety of interesting characters, and the description of the workings of the city is fascinating and seems believable. This novel is a fun read that should appeal to science fiction and thriller fans as well as those who enjoy adventure and heist stories.

I wanted to love this book, after all, I loved The Martian, but there's just not enough here to love.

First off, the term "heist" implies something will be stolen. But there isn't anything stolen here, so the story is more of a "caper". It's an adventure, with a goal, that's quite illegal, but done "with good intentions".

Second, the book was definitely written with a movie version in mind. The female protagonist is a bit too dumbed down, the science is overexplained, and there aren't enough differences between life on the moon and life on Earth now.

Speaking of Jazz, she does have a good smartass personality, but it all seems kind of pointless. It's repeated several times that she has the intellectual ability to be good at basically anything science related, but all she wants is to be a minor smuggler. There's no good, or even understandable, reasons given for her choices. She just does things without thinking, and almost actively avoids improving her life.

Overall, I was really looking forward to this book, but it was a disappointment. On the positive, it was a quick read, with lots of action. Unfortunately, it mostly fell short everywhere else.

I was really looking forward to this book but what a disappointment. Too much science and technical information and the action really did not get going until the last third of the book. The premise was certainly good but something got lost I the execution.

Jasmine “Jazz” Bashara has made some poor life choices ever since she and her father immigrated to the first and only moon colony, “Artemis” when she was just a young girl. Now at the age of 27, she is a porter, a low-paying job that consists of carting stuff all over the multi-domed colony of 2000 people. However, it’s a great cover for her real profession: smuggler. She is motivated by money in order to lead a higher quality of life so when an opportunity drops in her lap to sabotage a major aluminum processing plant in order to help shift the balance of power…well, it’s the high paycheck that coaxes her into taking on the risky job.

That effort leads to a domino effect of one thing going wrong after another and eventually leads to dire peril, not only for herself but for every person in the colony. The story is told through Jazz’s first person point of view and despite her profession, her humorous and snarky outlook are enduring and we find ourselves rooting for her success, especially when she realizes what and who she is really up against.

Inevitable comparisons will be made between this novel and The Martian. I’m sure Andy Weir felt enormous pressure to avoid a sophomore slump and follow up such a phenomenally successful debut novel with another great book. I think he succeeded amazingly well although, frankly, his task was impossible. How can lightning ever be captured in a bottle twice? But having said that, I think he approached the task perfectly. He kept to his strong points by having his main POV character extremely intelligent and able to think through one disastrous problem at a time using scientific knowledge and insight. The use of humor as a tension-tamer is prevalent and also serves as a way to help us identify with Jazz. The stakes get extremely high in this novel and the action is edge-of-your seat intense. I love the way the author weaves real science into his stories, and let us learn without realizing it. It is clear he has a clear and vibrant understanding of how a moon colony would work, how life would be like in lunar gravity, as well as the economy of such a place. And we get to understand all of that as well, along with the myriad of ways things can go wrong.

But Andy Weir also ensures that this is not the same novel in any way, shape or form as The Martian. While there are similarities in style, the plot and the characters are refreshingly new. It’s also cool to see how multi-cultural the city of Artemis is. In fact, Jazz, herself is Arabic and the accomplished leader/CEO of the colony is Kenyan. The book can easily stand on its own as a wonderful novel in its own right. If forced to choose, I would still have to pick The Martian, but only because that one is in a class by itself. Based on this effort, I feel comfortable that Andy Weir is not just a one-shot wonder, but a novelist whose work I will seek out in the future with great anticipation.

Highly recommended.

I didn't read the blurb before I started this book. No, I expected perfection from Andy Weir after reading the Martian years ago. Imagine my shock when I notice the main character is in fact female! I had to restart the book with that information. Now, I rarely enjoy female characters that are written by men. I just feel they always get it wrong. As with some of my other favorite authors, I think Andy Weir did a fantastic job.

What can you say about Jazz? She's funny, badass, and a bit of a flirt. She may not be on the right side of the law, but her heart is always where it needs to be. I love her. I loved them all(Even the assholes). While reading the Martian I felt my heart drop multiple times, and Artemis was no different. It is the perfect about of humor and suspense. If you've read my other reviews, you are aware that I rarely have quotes to go with them. I have so many saved for this book that I can't add them all. It's that damn perfect.


If you're a fan of The Martian, I know you'll probably love this. I'm horribly sad that this book is over. Between The Martian And Artemis, Andy Weir has earned a forever place on my 'Favorite Authors' list. I can only hope he puts his next book out as quick as he did Artemis. 5/5

Like many people I absolutely loved "The Martian", and so I was excited to see that Andy Weir was coming out with a new sci fi novel. "Artemis" didn't grab me quite as much as "The Martian", but it is highly entertaining and features some excellent world building.

"Artemis" takes place in the first city located on the Moon. Our main character Jazz (Jasmine) has lived in Artemis since she was a small child, and is now working as a courier and smuggler with the hope that she can make enough money to buy her own apartment--one that is a bit bigger then the bunk where she currently sleeps. When she is offered a lot of money to take on a high risk--and highly illegal--job, Jazz agrees, and we are launched into a sci fi heist.

The greatest strength in this book is the obvious thought that Weir has put into how a city on the Moon would operate. Everything from city design, construction, maintenance, and economics has been logically put together to create a believable view of humanities first non-Earth city. I can't verify how close to possible all of the technological ideas are, but they all seemed plausible, and judging by the research he put into "The Martian" I'm guessing that the technology of "Artemis" is also as fact based as possible.

Jazz is not always a completely likeable main character, but she is smart and resourceful, and it's entertaining to watch her figure out how to extricate herself from various disasters. There is obviously more of a supporting cast then we saw in "The Martian" since Jazz lives in a city and is therefore able to interact with friends, family, and law enforcement in a way that Mark could not. It is also clear that Andy Weir put a lot of effort into making sure that his cast of characters was realistically diverse. Jazz is Arabic, one of her best friends is gay, one of the other important characters is disabled, and there are several other non-white characters in the main cast. I appreciated this diversity, although it does sometimes seem like Weir is trying really hard to make us know how diverse the cast is (having Jazz remind us that the gay character is gay all the time for example).

If you liked "The Martian" you will probably like "Artemis" as well. If Mark Watney's flippant tone in that book annoyed you, then I would worry a bit since that tone is extremely evident here. The dialogue and humor in the two books is very similar. Overall this book is a lot of fun and should be a good quick read for fans of near future sci fi. It is also likely to make a very fun movie one of these days.

If you were a fan of the wit and general humor in The Martian, you will not be disappointed here. Artemis was full of quotable, laugh out loud moments. Even in more serious times, the main character usually has a way of keeping things a little lighter without drawing away too much from the tension buildup.

Jazz definitely uses her sarcasm and humor as a defense mechanism. This is great for the most part. I will admit though, that come about the last 20% of the book, her sarcasm and badly timed jokes scraped against my nerves a little. In these moments, she went from a strong, independent woman to just seeming a tad too childish. I would just prefer that in a time sensitive situation she didn't get petty. That is probably my only real complaint.

Another great thing about this book is that it includes so many nationalities, races, and religions. For example, Jazz and her father are immigrants to Artemis from Saudi Arabia. It's very logical to not just assume that Artemis would be an American city on the moon. I think I can safely say, without giving anything away, that the earth organization behind Artemis isn't even in the states.

As to be expected, this book has a lot of scientific terminology. However, it is done in such a way though that explains everything as it goes without feeling like a boring lecture. It's not at all hard to follow what is going on.

Overall, this was a very clever and enjoyable read. I can't wait to see the movie and how it translates to the big screen! I highly recommend this book to sci-fi fans in general. Also, I think that if you enjoyed The Martian, chances are, you're going to like this too.

It's hard to read this book and not compare it to The Martian which was an amazing story.
This book is good and a fun read.
Jazz lives on the moon. She is a porter and a smuggler where being a porter comes in handy. One of her customers offers her a lot of moon money to sabotage the aluminum plant on the moon..It goes wrong. Then there is a double murder that is tied in.
Like The Martian there is a lot of science which I tend to skip over...maybe too much science. Like I said, it's a fun read and kept me reading.

A hilarious action/adventure space drama from the bestselling author of the runaway hit 'The Martian'.

Jazz Bashara lives on the moon with a chip on her shoulder. A twentysomething who has been living in a lunar town complex called 'Artemis' since she was 6, she's about as welcoming as a cactus. She's a serial dater, a quick judger, and isn't afraid to tell you what she thinks. This all comes in handy for her part-time job as a smuggler for the lunar base-she will help in the smuggling process for a fee and not care what or why you're doing it.

Until she runs into a problem with an assignment handed to her by billionaire Trond Landvik, a wealthy customer who lives on the Moon with his daughter. Trond wants Jazz to do something highly illegal - and highly lucrative - that puts all of them in danger.

From there, it's a race to find a conspiracy that involves plenty of officials in the small space of 'Artemis' and will have to include Jazz, some people (okay, most) she doesn't like, and her father whom she had a falling out with years earlier.

For fans of 'The Martian', 'Artemis' may come as quite a surprise. It's very funny, dirty humor maybe, but certainly nothing like what we saw in Weir's debut, but that can be a good thing if the reader is willing to leave their preconceived notions aside. Weir has always shown a funnier side in interviews and social media and that humor is showcased here in his follow-up to the Martian thriller. The closest I can compare it to is if fans of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum wanted to see her in space (trust me, you do).

Weir shows his funny side here and it's good. Welcome too is the array of diverse characters. Weir trades a lot of science found in 'The Martian' for humorous scenes involving Jazz in 'Artemis' but there's a lot of easy science to follow for those looking for it. I would take away all your expectations of this book and just enjoy the ride, it's worth it.

Definitely pick up if you're a fan of Weir or a science fiction fan in general.

Thank you to Crown Publishing and Net Galley for early access to this title due November 14th.

Considering the widespread success of The Martian, Andy Weir is clearly a gifted storyteller. Unfortunately for me, I'm not as keen on the grittier elements of the first-person POV. So, while I am sure this would be a good story for many others, it is not quite my cup of tea (pun intended for those who will read the book).

From the author of The Martian comes another scientific space story that features a young Saudi woman, Jazz Bashara, as the main character. I couldn’t wait to dive into another epic science fiction story rooted in actual science. Unfortunately, Weir’s inability to write a believable female character is a huge disservice to the story as a whole.

Jazz Bashara is a 26-year-old woman living on the moon working as a delivery person. She’s made a lot of mistakes in her past and is doing everything she can to right those wrongs, even if it means bending the rules. Jazz’s character is intriguing and works, theoretically. Unfortunately, Weir’s obvious inability in writing a female main character ruins everything that he was trying to accomplish. The science and actual plot sometimes takes a backseat to Jazz’s cringiest moments. Most of the time her internal monologue comes off as a 15-year-old boy. So, Weir’s attempts at creating a cohesive and sexual female character failed miserably because Jazz ends up being a caricature of a woman.

The other characters weren’t fleshed out and only existed to serve the plot at different moments. Some of them would have been interesting had they been developed more and some of them were just flat-out annoying. However, the most developed character, apart from Jazz, was a character the reader never sees because Jazz has an e-mail only relationship with him. I came to enjoy their interactions by the end of the novel, but that was after I overcame how random the e-mail exchanges were placed in the story. Had the exchanges been organically added it would have improved Artemis tenfold.

Artemis features a heist on the moon with Jazz leading the charge. It’s fun and exciting, but comes off as more of a mindless action movie than a story rooted in science. The beginning of the novel is where most of the science is featured because it explained how Artemis works and what it’s like to live on the moon, but as the story progresses the further away Weir veers from the science. This isn’t necessarily a negative, however the reason I enjoyed The Martian so much was because it was deeply root in science. So, if you didn’t enjoy the science lesson of The Martian but want to read a realistic science fiction novel then Artemis is for you. But, if you enjoyed that lesson than you may find yourself underwhelmed by Artemis.


Overall, I didn’t enjoy Artemis nearly as much as The Martian. Perhaps if Jazz had not sounded like a 15-year-old boy Artemis would have been success. Maybe Weir should just stick to writing male characters in the future.

Remember that guy who wrote The Martian and it became a bestseller & a movie? Well, he just wrote a new book called Artemis about a young smuggler. She’s 26-years-old, Arab, slightly criminal, and one of the more intelligent characters I’ve read in a couple of months. Oh, and did I mention she lives on the moon?

Jasmine Bashara (Jazz) is just your average twentysomething with eyes full of stars and an empty wallet. Profession? Porter and small time smuggler. Who said living on Moon’s first civilization was easy? Unless you’re a rich tourist or billionaire, most citizens are just trying to make it. Problem? She’s far more intelligent than your typical Moon citizen, and when she gets the chance to commit that perfect crime, Jazz can’t help but try to pull of the impossible. Money is money. Unfortunately for her, there’s no such thing as “the perfect crime” and soon she finds herself caught in the middle of a conspiracy as opposing forces fight to control Artemis.

Overall, this novel was fun. Jazz has a hilarious, likable personality, and uses humor as much as she can to tell the story. Weir definitely captures the typical millennial struggle of wanting to wander in life comfortably. I loved Jazz’s diverse background, her relationship with her father (despite it being strenuous), and entertaining perspective. I’m not sure if it was just me, but I just craved more. We got bite-sized information about Jazz’s past (some of it through e-mails), and a little bit about her present, but I would’ve loved some more character building. She’s the caricature of a kick-ass woman without the onion layers. And her promiscuity seemed to be her only descriptor at times which bugged me. I’d also have loved some world building. Don’t get me wrong. Artemis was described, for sure, but like Jazz, we only got to see the top layer. We got the rundown of the bubbles, the architecture of the city, but didn’t interact with anyone besides the main characters. If you want an action-packed, plot-heavy novel though, this one’s for you.

This book is similar to Weir’s other book in the sense that all the characters need to apply scientific knowledge in order to survive the challenges thrown at them. Is it sad that even with Jazz’s interesting and understandable (aka dumbed down) explanations, I still struggled to understand what the hell was happening? I’d say that I’m generally an intelligent person, but I had to re-read paragraphs in this novel a couple of times just to understand the physics, chemistry, and economics of it all. I got the gist, but not with ease. It made me question whether this was a YA or adult novel. It’s skimpy enough to be a YA novel, but a little to heavy on the science to really fit that category.

In a nutshell: A cool new addition to the sci-fi section and worth the read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. And it all happened on the moon! I loved it. Artemis was well written and exciting! Absolutely entertaining!

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I wish I could have read this without knowing it was written by Andy Weir. It's a fine book with a unique and mostly plausible take on how a lunar colony might run. There's lots of science in there too that I assume is accurate and exhaustively researched. But I don't know that anything could have stood up to being in the shadow of The Martian for me. Jazz never quite clicked as a character for me, and her lighthearted/detached attitude often felt forced.

is reactionary, comparing #2 to #1, especially if you loved the first. And I love The Martian. Hard. It has a few flaws (lack of character development), but it also did a lot of things right (plausible science! gleeful, if juvenile, sense of humor! defeating impossible situations with nerdery!). Great Literature it ain't, but it's so much fun, and one of my favorites from the past few years.

All this to say that Artemis had a lot to live up to. And I think it succeeded. Jazz, our heroine, is a cynical wiseass. She's also smart, confident, loyal, and honorable (to an extent) in her criminal capers. She has a lot more depth than Mark Watney, the Martian. The plot was tight, and well-paced, with lots of tension. Jazz uses nerdery to defeat impossible situations (which I still love). Artemis is a really enjoyable book. Sophomore slump avoided! I think that Weir's writerly skills have grown, and I will eagerly pick up whatever he writes next.