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Artemis Fowl was one of those series I read as they came out during my pre-teen and teen years. (And of course I had to reread them multiple times because 11 years between the first and final book is much too long for me to remember what happened in the first book!) I loved the series and the mix of fantasy and magic in it.
If you’ve heard of the Artemis Fowl books and are looking for more information on the books, the series order, and the movie, then you’re in the right place! If you haven’t heard of the series, well then, buckle in, because this is a great one!
Artemis Fowl Series Order
Here is the order to read the Artemis Fowl books in:
- Artemis Fowl
- Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident
- Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code
- Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception
- Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony
- Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox
- Artemis Fowl: The Atlantis Complex
- Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian
You can actually get a complete box set of the series on Amazon. Of course, the Kindle books are also available, and many of them are on Kindle Unlimited.
Artemis Fowl Book Descriptions
Now, what is Artemis Fowl about? As I mentioned before, it’s a fun blend of magic and science, featuring faeries who have magic but who also have extremely advanced technology and live under the earth to avoid detection from humans, and a desperate boy genius with few scruples who discovers their existence and endeavors to use it to his advantage . . . Along with a lot of unexpected twists on what we would normally expect from the fae, several of which made me laugh out loud.
Intrigued? Let’s dive in to the book descriptions!
Artemis Fowl
Twelve-year-old criminal mastermind Artemis Fowl has discovered a world below ground of armed and dangerous—and extremely high-tech—fairies. As part of an elaborate plan to restore his family’s fortune, he kidnaps one of them, Holly Short, and holds her for ransom. But he may have underestimated the fairies’ powers. Is he about to trigger a cross-species war?
Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident
Goblin gangs (exactly as bad as it sounds) are planning an uprising, and it looks like they’ve had human help.
Holly Short is convinced it’s her old nemesis, Artemis Fowl.
But, for once, Artemis is innocent. He’s too busy getting his father back from the Arctic Circle, where the Russian Mafia (also very bad) is holding him prisoner.
All Artemis has to do is clear his name, face the biggest criminal organizations in the world, and avoid freezing to death.
Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code
Artemis Fowl isn’t quite done with his criminal past. At least, not yet. He’s got one last job, and then he’s going to be good.
But when an IT billionaire with a mob connection steals Artemis’s latest invention—the most powerful new supercomputer known to man, which uses stolen technology from an elite race of underground fairies—the device could put the entire fairy world at risk.
Only one fairy can help now. If only he wasn’t the fairies’ public enemy number one. . .
Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception
Artemis Fowl’s memories of the fairy race have been wiped, and his one fairy ally, Captain Holly Short, is on the run. He needs his memory back—and fast—because a power-crazed pixie is out for revenge, scheming to overthrow the Lower Elements Police. With Holly gone, Artemis is depending on a flatulent dwarf. Things are about to explode. . .
Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony
Until recently, Artemis Fowl was the only human to have discovered that magical beings do indeed exist. But now a second juvenile genius wants to capture a demon for scientific study. Only an ancient time spell separates the demons from humankind and keeps them trapped in Limbo, a place that exists outside of time and space—and Artemis must prevent it from unraveling. If he fails, the bloodthirsty tribe will relaunch their quest to wipe humans from the planet.
Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox
Just when Artemis Fowl decided to forego criminal activity of the magical kind, his mother became gravely ill. Unfortunately the cure, an endangered lemur, was made extinct eight years ago . . . by Artemis Fowl himself.
What if he could travel back in time, outwit his former self, and bring the lemur home? With the right demon warlock, it might be possible.
But we all remember the young Artemis. He was, to put it mildly, a pretty terrible human being, so this won’t be easy.
Artemis Fowl: The Atlantis Complex
When Artemis Fowl gathers the fairy elite to show off his latest invention, it’s clear that the former criminal genius has become delusional and paranoid.
Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian
The evil pixie Opal Koboi is wreaking havoc yet again. This time Artemis’s arch rival has reanimated dead fairy warriors who were buried in the grounds of Fowl Manor. Their spirits have possessed Artemis’s little brothers, making his siblings even more annoying than usual. The warriors don’t seem to realize that the battle they were fighting when they died is long over. Artemis has until sunrise to get the spirits to vacate his brothers and go back into the earth where they belong. Can he count on a certain LEPrecon fairy to join him in what could well be his last stand?
Besides the cool technology and the way it mixes with magic, my favorite aspect of this series is the way Artemis Fowl grows and changes. He goes from being a self-absorbed, callous, genius boy, to a caring, friendly, still-genius adult. In other words, he goes from being a villain that you can still somewhat sympathize with, to a hero that amazes you.
Artemis Fowl Movie
First, let’s take a look at the movie description: Artemis Fowl is a 12-year-old genius and descendant of a long line of criminal masterminds. He soon finds himself in an epic battle against a race of powerful underground fairies who may be behind his father’s disappearance.
Now, if you have younger children who have never read the books, the Artemis Fowl movie may be a good movie for them, with its much softer, better motivated Artemis Fowl. But if you’ve read the books, which can be enjoyed even by adults, your first thoughts may be,”What is this plot? Where did this device, the Aculos, come from? Why did they destroy Artemis’s character development? Why is Artemis not as genius in the movie as he is in the book? Why is Butler so pathetic? Why is Holly so lame and one-dimensional?”
Certainly Artemis’s motivation in the movie (to find his father) is more noble than his motivation in the book (to get fairy gold), but that motivation underpins his character. Of course, once you change his motivation, you have to come up with an entire new plot, and suddenly his father’s disappearance is also related to the fairies (not the case in the book), Artemis is a shallow character, the fairies are mean for picking on a lost little boy, a villain must materialize (really, Artemis is the villain in the first book and the villain in the movie doesn’t make an appearance until later in the series), Holly must come to like him (she hates him in the first book), and a mystical, all-powerful device not in keeping with the rules of Eoin Colfer’s world must be made up.
My advice? Skip the movie.
If you’ve read the Artemis Fowl books, did you enjoy them? What was your favorite part? Let us know in the comments!
Happy reading.
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