Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
I liker most of the book, but the ending felt like he ran out of time or words and just decided to end it.
Paperback, 320 pages
Published Nov. 22, 2017 by Nova.
Artemisa
by Andy Weir
JASMINE BASHARA never signed up to be a hero. She just wanted to get rich.
Not crazy, eccentric-billionaire rich, like many of the visitors to her hometown of Artemis, humanity's first and only lunar colony. Just rich enough to move out of her coffin-sized apartment and eat something better than flavored algae. Rich enough to pay off a debt she's owed for a long time.
So when a chance at a huge score finally comes her way, Jazz can't say no. Sure, it requires her to graduate from small-time smuggler to full-on criminal mastermind. And it calls for a particular combination of cunning, technical skills, and large explosions--not to mention sheer brazen swagger. But Jazz has never run into a challenge her intellect can't handle, and she figures she's got the "swagger" part down.
The trouble is, engineering the perfect crime is just the start of Jazz's …
JASMINE BASHARA never signed up to be a hero. She just wanted to get rich.
Not crazy, eccentric-billionaire rich, like many of the visitors to her hometown of Artemis, humanity's first and only lunar colony. Just rich enough to move out of her coffin-sized apartment and eat something better than flavored algae. Rich enough to pay off a debt she's owed for a long time.
So when a chance at a huge score finally comes her way, Jazz can't say no. Sure, it requires her to graduate from small-time smuggler to full-on criminal mastermind. And it calls for a particular combination of cunning, technical skills, and large explosions--not to mention sheer brazen swagger. But Jazz has never run into a challenge her intellect can't handle, and she figures she's got the "swagger" part down.
The trouble is, engineering the perfect crime is just the start of Jazz's problems. Because her little heist is about to land her in the middle of a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself.
Trapped between competing forces, pursued by a killer and the law alike, even Jazz has to admit she's in way over her head. She'll have to hatch a truly spectacular scheme to have a chance at staying alive and saving her city.
Jazz is no hero, but she is a very good criminal.
That'll have to do.
Propelled by its heroine's wisecracking voice, set in a city that's at once stunningly imagined and intimately familiar, and brimming over with clever problem solving and heisty fun, Artemis is another irresistible brew of science, suspense, and humor from #1 bestselling author Andy Weir.
This description comes from the publisher.
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
I just love Andy Weir's take on sci-fi. There is science, there is logic, there are so many puns. A smart female protagonist. More than one female characters total, as a matter of fact.
There was a great diversity of characters which only seems a bit artificial now that I think about it. During the book, it just seemed natural that there would be a bunch of different people in a place as artificially grown as Artemis. I guess I'm overanalyzing it right now.
One question remains: What happened to Svoboda's "payment"? I mean I guess I know, but that's just guessing.
Rosario Dawson's interpretation of the Artemis audiobook is wonderful. I can already see Jazz by listening to Dawson's voice only.
I just love Andy Weir's take on sci-fi. There is science, there is logic, there are so many puns. A smart female protagonist. More than one female characters total, as a matter of fact.
There was a great diversity of characters which only seems a bit artificial now that I think about it. During the book, it just seemed natural that there would be a bunch of different people in a place as artificially grown as Artemis. I guess I'm overanalyzing it right now.
One question remains: What happened to Svoboda's "payment"? I mean I guess I know, but that's just guessing.
Rosario Dawson's interpretation of the Artemis audiobook is wonderful. I can already see Jazz by listening to Dawson's voice only.
Andy Welfle ✏ reviewed Artemis by Andy Weir
None
4 stars
Read quickly like a YA novel, but with some good world-building and detail on how a city on the moon would operate 40-50 years hence.
The Gnome King reviewed Artemis by Andy Weir
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
As a Sci-Fi book this one is a bit meh, yes they live on the Moon, and there are cities on there, you also get the odd bit science, but it just isn't interesting enough, I expect there was a lot of hate for this book by those who loved The Martian. Don't get me wrong, this is a cracking good read, mainly because of the awesome "heist" style plot. Jazz is a tad annoying at times, but her ability to quickly deal with situations and her wise-crack answers all add to the story.
Without giving things away, Jazz has been talked into a small piece of sabotage, and the reader is left on the edge of their seat the second she starts on this job. She is supported by a great cast of characters too, Dale is one funny dude, almost matching Jazz at times with his witty comebacks.
…
As a Sci-Fi book this one is a bit meh, yes they live on the Moon, and there are cities on there, you also get the odd bit science, but it just isn't interesting enough, I expect there was a lot of hate for this book by those who loved The Martian. Don't get me wrong, this is a cracking good read, mainly because of the awesome "heist" style plot. Jazz is a tad annoying at times, but her ability to quickly deal with situations and her wise-crack answers all add to the story.
Without giving things away, Jazz has been talked into a small piece of sabotage, and the reader is left on the edge of their seat the second she starts on this job. She is supported by a great cast of characters too, Dale is one funny dude, almost matching Jazz at times with his witty comebacks.
If you are picking up this book expecting another Martian style book then walk away now, if you're a fan of the oceans movies then keep on reading.
Painkiller reviewed Artemis by Andy Weir
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Pretty good, especially for the hard SciFi fan. A bit less technical and more "intrigue" than The Martian.
Pretty good, especially for the hard SciFi fan. A bit less technical and more "intrigue" than The Martian.
protomattr reviewed Artemis by Andy Weir
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Like The Martian, Artemis serves up a satisfying combination of nerdy science/engineering-based plot devices, things that go horribly wrong, and smart-ass characters. Yet for his sophomore effort, Andy Weir takes some big risks by adding lots of inter-character conflict to his “MacGyver in space” formula, and by making his protagonist/narrator a young middle eastern woman. And he pulls it off. Artemis is a fun, thrilling read, and one that leaves you with a compelling and realistic vision of lunar settlement. Wherever he goes next, I will be there.
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
читабельна фантастична пригода на місяці з елементами технотрилера.
None
4 stars
It's a nice scifi book about a moon colony. I liked the plot and especially the fact that it is a female main character.
It's a nice scifi book about a moon colony. I liked the plot and especially the fact that it is a female main character.
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
I was pleasantly surprised that this wasn't a repeat of The Martian.
I was disappointed to find that Artemis is a total YA Novel.
Instead of the Competence porn we got in The Martian, we get; forgiven for incompetence porn on a grand scale. I guess this is meant to appeal to a awkward, incompetent, geeky teen audience.
An entire moon base society and economy is set up to accommodate a dangerously reckless, incompetent headstrong girl that should have killed herself or someone else and been thrown off the moon before the book timeline began.
From a book about how dangerous living on Mars is and how careful, smart and competent you need to be to survive there, we go to a moon base with a 100% oxygen atmosphere where the main character continuously plays with fire and gets away with it.
I was pleasantly surprised that this wasn't a repeat of The Martian.
I was disappointed to find that Artemis is a total YA Novel.
Instead of the Competence porn we got in The Martian, we get; forgiven for incompetence porn on a grand scale. I guess this is meant to appeal to a awkward, incompetent, geeky teen audience.
An entire moon base society and economy is set up to accommodate a dangerously reckless, incompetent headstrong girl that should have killed herself or someone else and been thrown off the moon before the book timeline began.
From a book about how dangerous living on Mars is and how careful, smart and competent you need to be to survive there, we go to a moon base with a 100% oxygen atmosphere where the main character continuously plays with fire and gets away with it.
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
Main character was rather annoying.
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
OK, I have slightly mixed feelings about this book. I suspect my rating's more like 3.5 stars, but since I listened to it on Audible, the absolutely brilliant narration by actress Rosario Dawson added at least a full star. BRILLIANT.
It's the story of Jasmine (Jazz) Bashara, a lunar colony native of Saudi descent living in the Kenya-owned moon colony of Artemis, currently the only lunar settlement in existence. After a falling out with her very religious father and then her creep of an ex-boyfriend, she ekes out a meagre existence as a porter, with a more lucrative smuggling operation on the side. During the course of her normal smuggling operations she gets an offer she can't refuse to perform a bit of sabotage, and unwittingly becomes caught up in the middle of a much larger plot that will affect the future of Artemis. As she tries to save her …
OK, I have slightly mixed feelings about this book. I suspect my rating's more like 3.5 stars, but since I listened to it on Audible, the absolutely brilliant narration by actress Rosario Dawson added at least a full star. BRILLIANT.
It's the story of Jasmine (Jazz) Bashara, a lunar colony native of Saudi descent living in the Kenya-owned moon colony of Artemis, currently the only lunar settlement in existence. After a falling out with her very religious father and then her creep of an ex-boyfriend, she ekes out a meagre existence as a porter, with a more lucrative smuggling operation on the side. During the course of her normal smuggling operations she gets an offer she can't refuse to perform a bit of sabotage, and unwittingly becomes caught up in the middle of a much larger plot that will affect the future of Artemis. As she tries to save her own life while figuring out who it is that she's tangled with, she has to plot the moon's biggest ever heist.
Things I loved about it:
- The science: it is detailed, interesting, and well-thought out, as with the author's previous book "The Martian". I particularly love that there are so many things we take for granted about how life and physics work on earth that are NOT true on the moon, and the author calls them out through various plot points in ways that make you think about how many assumptions we made.
- The heroine: Jazz is a sassy, smack-talking young lady who is definitely NOT perfect, prissy, perky, manic-pixie-dream-girl, nor infallible -- all traps that a lot of male authors trying to write female characters often fall into. In fact, she's kind of an ass and makes "your mom" jokes and really abysmal life decisions to the point she's quite unlikeable at times, but I like that anyway, because it's a very rare male author who manages to write an unlikeable female heroine.
- The world: Artemis is a really interesting setting, especially since the author didn't just take a default easy route in assuming one of the main current space powers or first world nations would found the first lunar colony. Instead, there's some interesting economic background and it turns out that since a politician from Nairobi had the foresight to offer the most favorable terms and regulations, Kenya actually got the contract for the space colony and as a result it helped pull the nation into prosperity far ahead of its neighbours. A piece of back story that's really mostly irrelevant to the plot but which I nonetheless found even more enjoyable because it even exists.
- The narration: as mentioned above, Rosario Dawson does an AMAZING job narrating this audiobook and I'm sure makes all the characters at least 50% more likeable and the science at least 50% more digestible through her talents.
Things I disliked about it:
- The heroine: although I do like her for many reasons above, there are still various points where she is jarringly and obviously being written by a male author and does/says things that are ridiculous, mostly involving describing/noticing how sexy she is. She's also apparently a genius at basically anything she wants to be, has a perfect memory, is stunningly attractive, and can beat up trained assassins multiple times over despite lacking any martial arts skills of any time. Her sassy tone, despite Rosario Dawson's outstanding ability to make it palatable, really does sound very like a female Mark Watney (hero of The Martian).
- The plot: while I like a plot that has twists and things that go wrong, pretty much everything bad in the entire book that happens is due to Jazz's selfishness and stupidity, and honestly, she should never have been allowed to get away with even half of what she gets away with in the book. I just couldn't swallow that she was forgiven for so many choices that were not just stupid and selfless, but outright criminally dangerous. There's a point past which one stops cheering for the protagonist of the book and has to admit that she really, really screwed up to a point that's irredeemable, and I felt that Jazz passed that point and went right on running. It's like reading The Martian again, but with Mark Watney as a female, and everything that goes wrong is directly his fault due to his own stupid decisions instead of accidents.
Overall I enjoyed the book a lot, especially due to the audiobook's excellent narrator, and had trouble putting it on pause. I suspect I'd have found it a lot easier to put down in paper form, as the heroine's tone would have been more irritating and the science drier. I'll still definitely check out the author's next book, but I hope his next hero or heroine manages a completely different personality than yet another Mark Watney. And if it's a heroine, he really should get some female early readers to sanity check her tone.
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Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
The city shined in the sunlight like a bunch of metallic boobs. What? I’m not a poet. They look like boobs.
This is not a bad story. Of course I read [b: The Martian|18007564|The Martian|Andy Weir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1413706054s/18007564.jpg|21825181] and I loved that and somehow maybe that skewed my expectations.
What this book has: a good setting - Artemis is an interesting place, especially the origins story of how it came to be; Jazz as protagonist wasn't bad but I didn't warm to her or her weird kind of "humor" - or is it self-deprecation? The plot was not bad. The half-way twist was indeed pretty good.
However.
“On a scale from one to ‘invade Russia in winter,’ how stupid is this plan?”
The problem wasn't the plan itself but the details of the description. I felt like 90% of the book was some kind of technical description or other. The actual action …
The city shined in the sunlight like a bunch of metallic boobs. What? I’m not a poet. They look like boobs.
This is not a bad story. Of course I read [b: The Martian|18007564|The Martian|Andy Weir|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1413706054s/18007564.jpg|21825181] and I loved that and somehow maybe that skewed my expectations.
What this book has: a good setting - Artemis is an interesting place, especially the origins story of how it came to be; Jazz as protagonist wasn't bad but I didn't warm to her or her weird kind of "humor" - or is it self-deprecation? The plot was not bad. The half-way twist was indeed pretty good.
However.
“On a scale from one to ‘invade Russia in winter,’ how stupid is this plan?”
The problem wasn't the plan itself but the details of the description. I felt like 90% of the book was some kind of technical description or other. The actual action was so little and the interaction even less. So much more could have been made of Rudi and Jazz' interaction for example.
This same stuff worked better in The Martian where the whole story revolves about survival, about man vs universe. On the moon, with its settled city, even when Jazz is doing EVAs, it doesn't seem to matter so much and it just didn't work for me. The stakes are different here and the writing should have been, too. This is a crime, maybe a mystery, or a thriller...
I wish this had been a short story. Or a novella. Because that's what it is filled up with tedious description of details that are admirably researched but essentially ... boring. And that's what the book ended up doing despite the potential of the set-up: it bored me.
PS: and I really didn't like how Jazz managed to win fights against a professional assassin on her hunches. That just immediately re-instates my disbelief
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
First novel I read as an audiobook, so that was quite the experience in itself, but the book was too! Similar to the Martian in scientific detail (coffee does not taste well on the moon because of low pressure) but equally engaging and interesting. And with a bad ass welding, cursing, scamming female lead.
Thomas Nielsen reviewed Artemis by Andy Weir
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
It does replicate that "let's science the shit out of this"-charm of The Martian adding afast pace as well but it fails to deliver on so many other fronts:
1) The sceneries are seemingly taken out of a Hollywood notion of how oil rigs and other such pro-driven vessels operate (which is to say that not much resembles real life). Safety is taken much more seriously in places where life and death is measured by how well you tie your shoes or whether you use the railing when scaling stairs or not. An unfounded sense of machismo. Yes, there are many safety practices on Artemis, just not many realistic ones. Those few there are are readily ignored by supposedly trained personell.
2) Everybody seems to be quasi illeterate grease monkeys with little to offer but one single skill. That is not very sound practice considering how expensive it is to …
It does replicate that "let's science the shit out of this"-charm of The Martian adding afast pace as well but it fails to deliver on so many other fronts:
1) The sceneries are seemingly taken out of a Hollywood notion of how oil rigs and other such pro-driven vessels operate (which is to say that not much resembles real life). Safety is taken much more seriously in places where life and death is measured by how well you tie your shoes or whether you use the railing when scaling stairs or not. An unfounded sense of machismo. Yes, there are many safety practices on Artemis, just not many realistic ones. Those few there are are readily ignored by supposedly trained personell.
2) Everybody seems to be quasi illeterate grease monkeys with little to offer but one single skill. That is not very sound practice considering how expensive it is to move people to the Moon. You would want to have as many skills in one person as possible. What is worse, however, is that they are incredibly restricted in their interaction with one another which gets very boring in the end. "He said that?"... "yeah of course he did, he's been like that the entire book".
3) And now we're at it; what is it with taking your time? Everything happens in rapid succession with no regards to periferal activities. Jazz even succeeds in having a complete welder's shop furnished in roughly a day, complete with in-wall gaslines and what have we.
4) You don't weld in an atmosphere of pure oxygen. Let's not even talk about the health risks of breathing pure oxygen for any extended time. Lighting a spark in an atmosphere of pure oxygen would almost certainly be catastrophic, not to mention lighting a cigar.
The Martian managed to let you overlook the little discrepancies. It was simply an example of science in and of itself being exciting, which is definitely less simple to accomplish. Very few books do. Unfortunately Artemis puts itself among those that don't. I hate to say it: it is what Dan Brown would have written, had he written a moon book. As with the DaVinci Code, you cannot profess authenticity and not deliver.
Santhosh Guru reviewed Artemis by Andy Weir
Review of 'Artemis' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
My first sci-fi in audio format. This has been a fantastic experience. Full credits to Rosario Dawson for weaving the magic. So many characters voiced by her but still different and not caricaturish at all. I would give 5 stars only for Rosario Dawson alone. Unfortunately the story is more of a thriller set in moon than a sci-fi. It is not mind blowing but it is not that bad too.
