Call number
FIC WEI
Collection
Genres
Publication
Crown (2017), Edition: F First Edition, 320 pages
Description
Augmenting her limited income by smuggling contraband to survive on the Moon's wealthy city of Artemis, Jazz agrees to commit what seems to be a perfect, lucrative crime, only to find herself embroiled in a conspiracy for control of the city.
User reviews
LibraryThing member jmchshannon
Reading Artemis is a tricky business. You know there is no way Andy Weir’s second novel can be as good as his debut efforts. Yet that does not stop you from hoping that you are wrong, buoying up your expectations only to have them dashed as you realize that you were, unfortunately, right all
Some of the problem is that it appears as if Mr. Weir is trying too hard to repeat his success by using a very similar formula to his novel as he did last time. Instinctively, this makes sense. People fell hard for the wise-cracking genius stranded on Mars and the supporting cast of characters on Earth helping him. As is so often the case though, what works one time does not work again. Jazz is no Mark, and the Moon is not Mars. Jazz is neither alone nor struggling to survive in a hostile environment.
You can see where Mr. Weir tries to separate his two heros. Obviously one is a girl. He cuts down on the cussing. He has made Jazz’s life as unlike Mark’s as possible. Yes, there are still dangers on the Moon, but half of Jazz’s problems stem from trying to circumvent the safety procedures and equipment in place to prevent accidents like habitats being breached or people dying from exposure to the vacuum of space. She may be poor, but she has more than Mark ever had at her disposal. That constant threat of life-or-death danger that made Mark’s story so compelling is completely missing in Jazz’s story.
The other problem comes from Jazz herself. She just is not very interesting. For someone who is in her twenties, she acts like a teenager. Her method of interacting with others is to deliberately bait or mock them. The attitude she exudes to everyone is grating, and you find yourself wishing one of her enemies would catch up to her if only to teach her a lesson. Instead, she bounces from self-induced catastrophe to self-induced catastrophe with seemingly no cares for others. That her rough exterior masks a vulnerable interior is neither a surprise nor all that interesting in the grand scheme.
The science this time around is equally disappointing. Gone are the fascinating chemistry, astronomy, and botany problems. Instead, the novel reads like one long love story to engineering. This means math and physics and more math. I might use math on a daily basis because of my job, but even I draw the line at reading about it in my novels. Plus, I am no engineer. Descriptions of structures, the ways they were built, are shaped, and are kept safe is like reading a car’s owner’s manual. How many people can say they enjoy that?
On one hand, Artemis falls victim to the dreaded follow-up anticipation generated by the next novel after any rousing success. People are going to be disappointed no matter how low expectations they think they have because there will always be hope that it will be at least as good as that blockbuster. On the other hand, there are some very real problems within Artemis that makes it a disappointment in its own right. A lackluster plot with a mediocre and annoying main character is not going to be successful in any instance. That the two coincide within one novel makes Artemis a novel that is doubly disappointing.
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along.Some of the problem is that it appears as if Mr. Weir is trying too hard to repeat his success by using a very similar formula to his novel as he did last time. Instinctively, this makes sense. People fell hard for the wise-cracking genius stranded on Mars and the supporting cast of characters on Earth helping him. As is so often the case though, what works one time does not work again. Jazz is no Mark, and the Moon is not Mars. Jazz is neither alone nor struggling to survive in a hostile environment.
You can see where Mr. Weir tries to separate his two heros. Obviously one is a girl. He cuts down on the cussing. He has made Jazz’s life as unlike Mark’s as possible. Yes, there are still dangers on the Moon, but half of Jazz’s problems stem from trying to circumvent the safety procedures and equipment in place to prevent accidents like habitats being breached or people dying from exposure to the vacuum of space. She may be poor, but she has more than Mark ever had at her disposal. That constant threat of life-or-death danger that made Mark’s story so compelling is completely missing in Jazz’s story.
The other problem comes from Jazz herself. She just is not very interesting. For someone who is in her twenties, she acts like a teenager. Her method of interacting with others is to deliberately bait or mock them. The attitude she exudes to everyone is grating, and you find yourself wishing one of her enemies would catch up to her if only to teach her a lesson. Instead, she bounces from self-induced catastrophe to self-induced catastrophe with seemingly no cares for others. That her rough exterior masks a vulnerable interior is neither a surprise nor all that interesting in the grand scheme.
The science this time around is equally disappointing. Gone are the fascinating chemistry, astronomy, and botany problems. Instead, the novel reads like one long love story to engineering. This means math and physics and more math. I might use math on a daily basis because of my job, but even I draw the line at reading about it in my novels. Plus, I am no engineer. Descriptions of structures, the ways they were built, are shaped, and are kept safe is like reading a car’s owner’s manual. How many people can say they enjoy that?
On one hand, Artemis falls victim to the dreaded follow-up anticipation generated by the next novel after any rousing success. People are going to be disappointed no matter how low expectations they think they have because there will always be hope that it will be at least as good as that blockbuster. On the other hand, there are some very real problems within Artemis that makes it a disappointment in its own right. A lackluster plot with a mediocre and annoying main character is not going to be successful in any instance. That the two coincide within one novel makes Artemis a novel that is doubly disappointing.
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LibraryThing member theokester
With the wild success of Andy Weir's first book, The Martian, it was no surprise that he would write another book and it was even less of a surprise that people clamored for their copies of his follow up novel Artemis. I was intrigued to read his next offering but I lagged the rabid fans and am
For readers comparing Artemis to The Martian, they will find some similarities and some differences. Weir maintained the snarky, sarcastic style and wit of his main character along with plenty of scientific explanation and information throughout the story. He also works to maintain a balance of action and suspense. The main differences come in terms of the story structure and plot flow. As I was reading the novel, part of me kept wanting to compare it with the plot of The Martian and by doing this I found myself discounting Artemis. Once I separated the plot of the two novels and only compared them in terms of style and tone, I gave Artemis a fairer shake.
Rather than spending a "man versus nature" story of Astronaut Watney stranded on Mars trying to survive, we have a "man (woman) vs. man" novel. Our main character, Jazz Bashara, lives in the populated moon city of Artemis. And Artemis should certainly be classified a city rather than a "space station" or "moon base." The later terms would evoke thoughts of space shuttle or space station missions of recent years where human populations are in the single- or low double-digit values. Artemis is a city of 2000 people with a bustling economy and many human dymanics. Jazz works as a porter, delivering goods to various portions of the city but also using her legitimate job as the perfect cover for her more lucrative job as a smuggler of contraband goods. Thus, the human interactions become critical to the plot in a way that seldom happened in The Martian.
While this is definitely a sci-fi adventure novel, in some sense it felt almost like a "space noir" novel. It vaguely reminded me of the pulp fiction or hard-boiled detective novels of the early 20th century (Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, etc., who if you haven't read, do yourself a favor and check them out). Even though it's set in the moon and full of plenty of sci-fi elements (with a little extra focus on the "sci" part), this boils down to an adventure novel with the protagonist caught in a hazardous plot between smugglers, gangsters, cops and business folks.
Many of the plot elements could be traced over to some of the classic clichés of detective noir of the ~1930s. From chase scenes on foot and in vehicles (though modified for sci-fi settings) to sneaky hand-offs in the park or hanging out in the bar, a lot of moments could potentially be set in 1920s Chicago or San Francisco, if not for the lunar landscape. At times, the characters felt a little cliché as well. From the "by the books" cop to the shady politician to the greedy and corrupt businessman with his innocent and troubled daughter, these are the sort of characters you might expect to see. Our main character, Jazz, is a bit more fleshed out beyond her stereotypical elements.
Jazz is the "caught in a hard place" protagonist trying to make her way in the world through underhanded means party because she's good at it and partly to spite the expectations of others. There's a fair amount of commentary on her promiscuity although she tries to downplay it. She mainly seems motivated by a desire for wealth (though there is the mystery of her need for a VERY specific sum of money). While Jazz certainly isn't innocent, she is forced to try and clear her name while avoiding people trying to kill her and those she loves.
As I mentioned early on, I enjoyed the sarcastic character from The Martian and had fun seeing Jazz carry on the similar attitude. Since Watney (in The Martian) was largely talking to himself, he had plenty of opportunities to be snarky without having to worry about human interaction or ongoing conversation. Jazz (in Artemis) has a fair amount of time when she's alone trying to figure out what to do but she's also interacting with other people quite a lot. As a result, her snarky attitude turns into ongoing conversations with other characters. In short snippets this worked out well but over longer segments the conversations felt a bit forced and stilted.
On the whole, the story was interesting and generally fun to read. As you might expect, some of the plot twists and resolutions were a little hard to swallow even with the in-depth scientific explanations working to validate the happenings. The science narrative helped suspend disbelief on the elements directly involving the science (such as the welding or the chemistry) but the same care wasn't taken with some of the over-the-top antics of our characters during chase, fight and other action scenes. A lot of the plot and schemes felt overly complicated and some of the characterizations and conversations felt a little cliché or forced.
Still, I enjoyed the book overall and would recommend it to those who enjoy a good adventure novel. The blending of a classic suspense/murder/conspiracy adventure with a sci-fi story could help reach a wider audience. Sci-fi readers will enjoy the lunar setting and space elements. Detective/noir readers will enjoy the character interactions and subversive plot. Fans of The Martian may find themselves a little divided depending on what it is they liked about the earlier book. Overall, I found it to be an entertaining follow-up to Weir's earlier book. It's not my "book of the year", but it was a delightsome diversion that straddles the sci-fi and adventure fences nicely.
***
3 out of 5 stars
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'finally' reading Artemis about 6 months after release.For readers comparing Artemis to The Martian, they will find some similarities and some differences. Weir maintained the snarky, sarcastic style and wit of his main character along with plenty of scientific explanation and information throughout the story. He also works to maintain a balance of action and suspense. The main differences come in terms of the story structure and plot flow. As I was reading the novel, part of me kept wanting to compare it with the plot of The Martian and by doing this I found myself discounting Artemis. Once I separated the plot of the two novels and only compared them in terms of style and tone, I gave Artemis a fairer shake.
Rather than spending a "man versus nature" story of Astronaut Watney stranded on Mars trying to survive, we have a "man (woman) vs. man" novel. Our main character, Jazz Bashara, lives in the populated moon city of Artemis. And Artemis should certainly be classified a city rather than a "space station" or "moon base." The later terms would evoke thoughts of space shuttle or space station missions of recent years where human populations are in the single- or low double-digit values. Artemis is a city of 2000 people with a bustling economy and many human dymanics. Jazz works as a porter, delivering goods to various portions of the city but also using her legitimate job as the perfect cover for her more lucrative job as a smuggler of contraband goods. Thus, the human interactions become critical to the plot in a way that seldom happened in The Martian.
While this is definitely a sci-fi adventure novel, in some sense it felt almost like a "space noir" novel. It vaguely reminded me of the pulp fiction or hard-boiled detective novels of the early 20th century (Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, etc., who if you haven't read, do yourself a favor and check them out). Even though it's set in the moon and full of plenty of sci-fi elements (with a little extra focus on the "sci" part), this boils down to an adventure novel with the protagonist caught in a hazardous plot between smugglers, gangsters, cops and business folks.
Many of the plot elements could be traced over to some of the classic clichés of detective noir of the ~1930s. From chase scenes on foot and in vehicles (though modified for sci-fi settings) to sneaky hand-offs in the park or hanging out in the bar, a lot of moments could potentially be set in 1920s Chicago or San Francisco, if not for the lunar landscape. At times, the characters felt a little cliché as well. From the "by the books" cop to the shady politician to the greedy and corrupt businessman with his innocent and troubled daughter, these are the sort of characters you might expect to see. Our main character, Jazz, is a bit more fleshed out beyond her stereotypical elements.
Jazz is the "caught in a hard place" protagonist trying to make her way in the world through underhanded means party because she's good at it and partly to spite the expectations of others. There's a fair amount of commentary on her promiscuity although she tries to downplay it. She mainly seems motivated by a desire for wealth (though there is the mystery of her need for a VERY specific sum of money). While Jazz certainly isn't innocent, she is forced to try and clear her name while avoiding people trying to kill her and those she loves.
As I mentioned early on, I enjoyed the sarcastic character from The Martian and had fun seeing Jazz carry on the similar attitude. Since Watney (in The Martian) was largely talking to himself, he had plenty of opportunities to be snarky without having to worry about human interaction or ongoing conversation. Jazz (in Artemis) has a fair amount of time when she's alone trying to figure out what to do but she's also interacting with other people quite a lot. As a result, her snarky attitude turns into ongoing conversations with other characters. In short snippets this worked out well but over longer segments the conversations felt a bit forced and stilted.
On the whole, the story was interesting and generally fun to read. As you might expect, some of the plot twists and resolutions were a little hard to swallow even with the in-depth scientific explanations working to validate the happenings. The science narrative helped suspend disbelief on the elements directly involving the science (such as the welding or the chemistry) but the same care wasn't taken with some of the over-the-top antics of our characters during chase, fight and other action scenes. A lot of the plot and schemes felt overly complicated and some of the characterizations and conversations felt a little cliché or forced.
Still, I enjoyed the book overall and would recommend it to those who enjoy a good adventure novel. The blending of a classic suspense/murder/conspiracy adventure with a sci-fi story could help reach a wider audience. Sci-fi readers will enjoy the lunar setting and space elements. Detective/noir readers will enjoy the character interactions and subversive plot. Fans of The Martian may find themselves a little divided depending on what it is they liked about the earlier book. Overall, I found it to be an entertaining follow-up to Weir's earlier book. It's not my "book of the year", but it was a delightsome diversion that straddles the sci-fi and adventure fences nicely.
***
3 out of 5 stars
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LibraryThing member imyril
DNF - maybe I'd have made more effort if Jazz hadn't just sounded like Mark Watney with a different name (in spite of supposedly being an Arabic woman, so major fail right from the start) - but as it was, I decided the heist wasn't actually interesting enough to offset my increasing irritation.
I
I
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received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review Show Less
LibraryThing member theWallflower
When this came out, everyone seemed to react with hate or disappointment. I don’t know why–I loved it. It’s not the same as “The Martian“. But if I wanted the same as “The Martian”, I’d read “The Martian”.
This one has less science and math. Maybe that’s what people were
So our story takes place on a city on the moon. One that’s not exactly as pristine and efficient as 2001: A Space Odyssey would have you believe. In fact, our main character is a smuggler. And she gets involved in a corporate sabotage kind of plot, but more like a heist caper. And she’s a PoC, she’s funny, she swears a lot. In fact, all the characters are dynamic and stand out. (Did Weir engineer this novel with the intention of it becoming a movie? Hm.) It’s intelligent and entertaining this side of Scalzi.
The math and science aren’t completely gone (I don’t think it would be Andy Weir if it wasn’t). It’s more about chemistry and economics, all of which result from living on the moon in a low-gravity, no oxygen environment. And welding. I hope you like welding, because there is a lot of talk about that.
This one has less science and math. Maybe that’s what people were
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looking forward to. That was the “special something” that made “The Martian” stand out. But that means it’s easier to understand the plot. I expected that, without his physics to rely on, Andy Weir’s characters and plot would be flat and plodding. But that’s not the case at all. Weir proves he’s not a guy who wrote a lab paper in narrative form. He wrote a narrative using a lab paper.So our story takes place on a city on the moon. One that’s not exactly as pristine and efficient as 2001: A Space Odyssey would have you believe. In fact, our main character is a smuggler. And she gets involved in a corporate sabotage kind of plot, but more like a heist caper. And she’s a PoC, she’s funny, she swears a lot. In fact, all the characters are dynamic and stand out. (Did Weir engineer this novel with the intention of it becoming a movie? Hm.) It’s intelligent and entertaining this side of Scalzi.
The math and science aren’t completely gone (I don’t think it would be Andy Weir if it wasn’t). It’s more about chemistry and economics, all of which result from living on the moon in a low-gravity, no oxygen environment. And welding. I hope you like welding, because there is a lot of talk about that.
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LibraryThing member jennybeast
I'm just not sure how I feel about this book. On the one hand, fast moving plot, incredibly interesting science and setting, yay for heist books, and cool that the main character is a woman of color.
On the other hand: I don't love an anti-hero, even when they come around to a more ethical point of
On the other hand: I don't love an anti-hero, even when they come around to a more ethical point of
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view, and she occasionally doesn't read as realistically female. It's like there are moments of bro-dom that peek out in the middle of relatively solid character, and frankly it's hard to resolve her somewhat Islamic upbringing with her attitude towards sex. Not that there isn't room in the universe for all the spectrum of humanity, but she doesn't seem to have the right baggage as background for having grown up in even a small Muslim community. It's hard to explain, but if you grow up with the world telling you a specific female role, even if your father is wildly proud of your mind and wants to teach you to do all the things, even if you are without a mother or a large community, if there is a religious group that you are marginally part of there is some consideration of earlier conditioning, even if it's all rejection. Jazz just doesn't seem to have anything like that, and it's subtle but uneasy. Show Less
LibraryThing member Pepperwings
A smuggler, a colony on the moon, a deal gone sour, this has the makings of a great sci-fi.
I loved the science and then struggles, the interactions and dealings they had, the politics were interesting, and I definitely enjoyed a large portion of this story.
Unfortunately, Weir cannot write a
While there are definitely some women who share certain similarities in their outward attitude, sense of humor, and/or sensibilities, the inner dialogue and motivations did *not* reflect any of the women I know. I'm a woman who has interacted with many men and women on rather deep levels, and all the ones I've met and known who acted in a similar way, had very different inner worlds. It was difficult to believe the characters with such a huge disconnect.
All this to say, it broke the tenuous suspension of disbelief several times, making it difficult to stay within the realm of the story. But, this is true of a variety of sci-fi, and the real area of interest is usually not the people, but the ideas.
There are definitely a lot of realistic ideas and science that went into this story, and for *that*, I greatly enjoyed it.
I loved the science and then struggles, the interactions and dealings they had, the politics were interesting, and I definitely enjoyed a large portion of this story.
Unfortunately, Weir cannot write a
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convincing woman. While there are definitely some women who share certain similarities in their outward attitude, sense of humor, and/or sensibilities, the inner dialogue and motivations did *not* reflect any of the women I know. I'm a woman who has interacted with many men and women on rather deep levels, and all the ones I've met and known who acted in a similar way, had very different inner worlds. It was difficult to believe the characters with such a huge disconnect.
All this to say, it broke the tenuous suspension of disbelief several times, making it difficult to stay within the realm of the story. But, this is true of a variety of sci-fi, and the real area of interest is usually not the people, but the ideas.
There are definitely a lot of realistic ideas and science that went into this story, and for *that*, I greatly enjoyed it.
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LibraryThing member BookConcierge
Book on CD performed by Rosario Dawson
4.5****
I wondered if Weir could possibly top The Martian, or at least equal it. Well, now I know. And I love that this time he features a feisty, intelligent woman as the lead character.
Jasmine “Jazz” Bashara has lived practically her entire life in
I love a good crime caper, and this is one. Lots of twists and turns that kept the action moving and my interest high. Lots of obstacles to this “impossible task” that our heroine must figure out how to overcome, and even when she’s covered all the basis … well, if things CAN go wrong they WILL go wrong.
I really liked how she put together a very unlikely team of helpers.
My favorite quote: “I left without further comment. I didn’t want to spend more time inside the mind off an economist. It was dark and disturbing.” I live with an economist, so that really resonated with me … LOL!
Rosario Dawson is fantastic performing the audio. She really brings Jazz (and the other characters) to life! 5***** for her performance. Brava!
4.5****
I wondered if Weir could possibly top The Martian, or at least equal it. Well, now I know. And I love that this time he features a feisty, intelligent woman as the lead character.
Jasmine “Jazz” Bashara has lived practically her entire life in
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Artemis, the city constructed on the moon and run by a Kenyan conglomerate. She could have joined her father’s welding business, but teenage rebellion led her down a different path and now she’s a porter – delivering goods to residents, including contraband she smuggles in. Smuggling is a relatively prosperous endeavor, but Jazz is still living on the edge. And then she is offered a unique opportunity. I love a good crime caper, and this is one. Lots of twists and turns that kept the action moving and my interest high. Lots of obstacles to this “impossible task” that our heroine must figure out how to overcome, and even when she’s covered all the basis … well, if things CAN go wrong they WILL go wrong.
I really liked how she put together a very unlikely team of helpers.
My favorite quote: “I left without further comment. I didn’t want to spend more time inside the mind off an economist. It was dark and disturbing.” I live with an economist, so that really resonated with me … LOL!
Rosario Dawson is fantastic performing the audio. She really brings Jazz (and the other characters) to life! 5***** for her performance. Brava!
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LibraryThing member ericlee
Andy Weir's first book, The Martian, was nearly perfect. As I read it, I remember thinking: This is why I used to love reading science fiction. The film version starring Matt Damon, while passable, didn't capture even a fraction of the magic of a book that was a paean to science.
Artemis, Weir's
And there the resemblance ends. Artemis feels wrong from the very first page and gets wronger as the book progresses. Though Weir gets that a human city on the Moon sometime in next century is likely to be populated by peoples of all countries (Artemis is the name of that city), its component parts are named after American astronauts. One of the four people immortalised in this way is Alan Shepard who was, um, the second man in space after the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin.
Weir's American-centric view of the world -- in spite of making his lead character an Arab woman (who is Saudi only in name - she behaves exactly like a young American woman would) -- can be summed up in this sentence: "Thank god [sic] Vietnamese uses a subset of the English alphabet." (I wonder what alphabet the author thinks the French or Germans use -- are these all "subsets of the English"?)
The plot is absurd, the characters two dimensional, even the imagined future city poorly thought out. I was so excited when I saw that the author of a great book like The Martian had written another - and so disappointed by this result.
Artemis, Weir's
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second book, is set on the Moon. Like The Martian, its lead character faces a number of challenges, and solves them using science and reason.And there the resemblance ends. Artemis feels wrong from the very first page and gets wronger as the book progresses. Though Weir gets that a human city on the Moon sometime in next century is likely to be populated by peoples of all countries (Artemis is the name of that city), its component parts are named after American astronauts. One of the four people immortalised in this way is Alan Shepard who was, um, the second man in space after the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin.
Weir's American-centric view of the world -- in spite of making his lead character an Arab woman (who is Saudi only in name - she behaves exactly like a young American woman would) -- can be summed up in this sentence: "Thank god [sic] Vietnamese uses a subset of the English alphabet." (I wonder what alphabet the author thinks the French or Germans use -- are these all "subsets of the English"?)
The plot is absurd, the characters two dimensional, even the imagined future city poorly thought out. I was so excited when I saw that the author of a great book like The Martian had written another - and so disappointed by this result.
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LibraryThing member ladycato
I received an ebook galley from the publisher via Netgalley.
To contrast this book with Weir's previous one is unavoidable, and perhaps unfair... but this really does seem to me like a case of Second Book Syndrome, where the expectations are high for the author to miraculously produce a book that is
I loved The Martian, and so was excited to read Weir's new book. It recycles many of the same elements of his previous novel--hard science presented in a fun way, with a snarky protagonist--but it lacks heart. Oh, it's still a fun, fast read, and has a lot of good things about it; the diverse cast of characters was a pleasant surprise, and although many never progressed beyond stereotypes, it was still nice to see such representation at all.
In The Martian, you sympathize with the hero because he's abandoned on Mars and must survive on his own. Jazz, the spunky Saudi-lunar lead in Artemis, struggles to survive when her greedy, impulsive antics get her embroiled in international mob dealings in the moon colony. And in the end, everyone who almost dies as a result of her shenanigans laughs off everything sitcom-style. It felt... cloying rather than cathartic. The setting is incredible, and Weir is a master at writing space MacGuyvers, but much of the action felt made-for-Hollywood and hollow.
I still rate the book as a three, as it is still a fast and fascinating read, but I am left with a profound sense of disappointment.
To contrast this book with Weir's previous one is unavoidable, and perhaps unfair... but this really does seem to me like a case of Second Book Syndrome, where the expectations are high for the author to miraculously produce a book that is
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just like the previous one but totally original at the same time.I loved The Martian, and so was excited to read Weir's new book. It recycles many of the same elements of his previous novel--hard science presented in a fun way, with a snarky protagonist--but it lacks heart. Oh, it's still a fun, fast read, and has a lot of good things about it; the diverse cast of characters was a pleasant surprise, and although many never progressed beyond stereotypes, it was still nice to see such representation at all.
In The Martian, you sympathize with the hero because he's abandoned on Mars and must survive on his own. Jazz, the spunky Saudi-lunar lead in Artemis, struggles to survive when her greedy, impulsive antics get her embroiled in international mob dealings in the moon colony. And in the end, everyone who almost dies as a result of her shenanigans laughs off everything sitcom-style. It felt... cloying rather than cathartic. The setting is incredible, and Weir is a master at writing space MacGuyvers, but much of the action felt made-for-Hollywood and hollow.
I still rate the book as a three, as it is still a fast and fascinating read, but I am left with a profound sense of disappointment.
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LibraryThing member rivkat
Jazz is a young woman of Saudi heritage who was mostly raised on the moon by her observant Muslim father. She had a falling-out with him and is now living on her own, nonobservant in every possible way, trying to earn enough money for a comfortable existence—mostly by smuggling in high-value
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goods to sell to the people of Artemis, a development run by a Nigerian state/corporate partnership. When she’s offered a million slugs—a fortune—to do a small sabotage job, little does she know that it will lead to life-altering and life-threatening feats of criminal engineering, requiring her to use every relationship she has as well as her genius-level intelligence to survive. I don’t know if it will strike the same nerve as The Martian, but there’s the same mix of engineering challenges and occasional teamwork; if you wanted to learn about welding in a vacuum, you can here. Jazz seemed tilted towards the hard-boiled noir type, and she’s definitely a geek boy’s fantasy of a hot, smart woman who’s also in need of the love of a good geeky man, but she got to be the protagonist/hero and so I was ok with that. (I’m looking at you, Ready Player One.) I really appreciated the moment she’s in a physical fight with another woman and, when they realize that the bubble they’re in is in danger, they both stop trying to kill each other and switch over to survival/cooperation mode—like real people should and probably would, unlike movie characters. Show Less
LibraryThing member passeriformes
A fun sci-fi romp, feat. some light exploration of the highs and lows of space capitalism, so much hard science incorporated I did not really understand but enjoyed reading regardless, and an extremely stilted romance that (thankfully) was not emphasized much in the narrative. Quick rundown of
Still, I liked reading this novel. It is not perfect by any means, and I hope very much that Andy Weir has spent some time reading works written by women since this was published, but if you like your pace quick and your women immoral, you will probably enjoy ARTEMIS.
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everything else I found important to note: the worldbuilding was neat; the side characters were by and large flat, but serviceable for what this book is; the way the protagonist was written wasn't horrible but screamed "My Author Is A Heterosexual Man" so heavily that I honestly started to find it kind of hilarious; and some of the structural choices made here really were a little questionable.Still, I liked reading this novel. It is not perfect by any means, and I hope very much that Andy Weir has spent some time reading works written by women since this was published, but if you like your pace quick and your women immoral, you will probably enjoy ARTEMIS.
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LibraryThing member pegmcdaniel
After reading The Martian, then seeing the movie, I wanted to read Andy Weir's latest book, Artemis. It's about life in the first city, Artemis, established on the moon. The protagonist is a 26-year-old woman, Jazz, who gets involved in a heist thinking it would be a way to get a lot of money. She
The heist itself took too long and I got to the point that I just wanted to finish the book. There was way too much use of the F-word and I actually winced at some of the jokes. I guess I expected too much from this author to write a novel even close to what we got in The Martian.
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was such an unlikable character in so many ways but, despite her, the first half of the book was bearable. However, the scientific language was way above my head so it's hard to follow when you don't know what the characters are talking about. Welding was discussed throughout the novel and even though welding was essential to the plot, to me it was boring.The heist itself took too long and I got to the point that I just wanted to finish the book. There was way too much use of the F-word and I actually winced at some of the jokes. I guess I expected too much from this author to write a novel even close to what we got in The Martian.
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LibraryThing member irregularreader
Life isn’t easy on the moon. Jasmine “Jazz” Bashara has lived in Artemis, the only lunar city, since she was six years old. The daughter of a respected welder, poor life choices have led Jazz down a path of near poverty and petty crime. When one of Artemis’ most wealthy citizens offers her
I loved Andy Weir’s previous novel, The Martian. Weir’s mix of science, outer space, and sarcastic humor made his modern day Robinson Crusoe story ridiculously fun. Artemis is more of the same, but now Weir had given us a heist novel . . . In Space!
Jazz Bashara is five and a half feet of sarcastic supergenius, a young woman who blew her considerable potential in poorly-managed teenage rebellion. Using her considerable intellect to skirt along the edges of lawful lunar society, her goal is to get away from the day to day scrape of bottom-rung existence. Bring on the “one last big job” from a ridiculously wealthy client, and the heist begins.
Weir has again based his world in (what seems to my non-sciencey self) wonderfully realistic detail. As the ins and outs of Artemis are explained, we begin to see how the first human settlement on the moon might operate (I’m sure Neil deGrasse Tyson will rip the science apart, but hey). Jazz is a very similar character to The Martian’s Mark Watney, but sarcastic, smart characters really appeal to me, so I don’t mind,
Fans of The Martian or smart science fiction will probably really enjoy this book. We’re heading into new and uncharted territory in real-life space exploration, so I for one want to read all the realistic sci-fi in can get my mitts on.
An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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a ridiculous amount of money to commit a serious crime, Jazz can’t say no. But getting the job done is only the start of her problems. Big, shadowy players are operating behind the scenes, and this caper could put Artemis itself in grave danger.I loved Andy Weir’s previous novel, The Martian. Weir’s mix of science, outer space, and sarcastic humor made his modern day Robinson Crusoe story ridiculously fun. Artemis is more of the same, but now Weir had given us a heist novel . . . In Space!
Jazz Bashara is five and a half feet of sarcastic supergenius, a young woman who blew her considerable potential in poorly-managed teenage rebellion. Using her considerable intellect to skirt along the edges of lawful lunar society, her goal is to get away from the day to day scrape of bottom-rung existence. Bring on the “one last big job” from a ridiculously wealthy client, and the heist begins.
Weir has again based his world in (what seems to my non-sciencey self) wonderfully realistic detail. As the ins and outs of Artemis are explained, we begin to see how the first human settlement on the moon might operate (I’m sure Neil deGrasse Tyson will rip the science apart, but hey). Jazz is a very similar character to The Martian’s Mark Watney, but sarcastic, smart characters really appeal to me, so I don’t mind,
Fans of The Martian or smart science fiction will probably really enjoy this book. We’re heading into new and uncharted territory in real-life space exploration, so I for one want to read all the realistic sci-fi in can get my mitts on.
An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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LibraryThing member dpappas
I loved Andy Weir's previous book The Martian so when I found out about Artemis I immediately went to Netgalley to request it. This book follows Jasmine (Jazz) Bashara who is a porter (and also a smuggler) in Artemis the only city on the moon. Jazz is struggling to make ends meet when someone comes
Jazz was a bit of a mystery to me at first. I was really curious to see how she became a lowly porter. Once her past was laid out I was a bit disappointed. I think that is when I started to like Jazz less and less. She was definitely funny at times but her attitude could be a bit annoying especially since she only had herself to blame for the position she was in.
Sometimes I felt that this was a bit bogged down in too much discussion about pressure and chemicals mixing, basically in science. It is understandable that there would be some discussion about that but it got to be a bit much at times for me.
Overall I did enjoy this book and will definitely be reading more from Andy Weir.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the galley.
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to her with a highly illegal task to do but with a reward too good to pass down. Jazz finds herself pulled into something way bigger and more dangerous than she thought it was.Jazz was a bit of a mystery to me at first. I was really curious to see how she became a lowly porter. Once her past was laid out I was a bit disappointed. I think that is when I started to like Jazz less and less. She was definitely funny at times but her attitude could be a bit annoying especially since she only had herself to blame for the position she was in.
Sometimes I felt that this was a bit bogged down in too much discussion about pressure and chemicals mixing, basically in science. It is understandable that there would be some discussion about that but it got to be a bit much at times for me.
Overall I did enjoy this book and will definitely be reading more from Andy Weir.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the galley.
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LibraryThing member cmbohn
In the future, humans have figured out that the moon is full of stuff we need, like aluminum and other minerals, and that people will pay good money for that and for tourism. So a little community of craftsman, engineers, sex workers, millionaires, and hospitality workers have set up shop
Jazz is an Artemisian. She’s lived there for 20 years, in the only city on the moon. It’s a small city, but still, it’s a permanent colony up there in space. Just don’t say “in space.” She’s also a porter. At least, that’s her official title. In reality, she’s a smuggler. She operates under the noses of the official law there because she doesn’t break the laws badly enough that they elect to take notice. One of her best clients comes to her with a truly big job, a job that will set Jazz up in a solid middle class lifestyle. Unfortunately for Jazz, things don’t go as smoothly as she’s hoped.
I like Jazz as a character. She’s stubborn as hell, and doesn’t always think things through, but she’s scrappy and smart and funny. I liked the other characters too, Svoboda the engineer, Dale her former friends, her conservative dad, the “town sheriff” – Weir does a great job building characters you honestly care about. Jazz has made some major mistakes and is trying to use this big job to fix things. I like the way the writer uses these mistakes to flesh out the characters, so you can really see how Jazz has changed from her youth. She becomes a smarter, more responsible adult. Of course, she’s still a hustler, though, and I like that too.
But it’s the worldbuilding that shines here. It’s a story ON THE MOON! Like, how cool is that? My son was asking me how it compares to The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, and I have to say that it holds up really well. That book was a five star read for me, just amazing and mindblowing and everything else. Well, this one is just as good. I couldn’t pick a favorite, but it’s definitely one that I’m going to be reading again.
There was some technical stuff in there that I didn’t follow, but I don’t know that it’s because it was badly written. I just have a hard time picturing things in my head sometimes. But that didn’t slow my enjoyment of the book.
Andy Weir is well on his way to being sci-fi writer of the generation.
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there.Jazz is an Artemisian. She’s lived there for 20 years, in the only city on the moon. It’s a small city, but still, it’s a permanent colony up there in space. Just don’t say “in space.” She’s also a porter. At least, that’s her official title. In reality, she’s a smuggler. She operates under the noses of the official law there because she doesn’t break the laws badly enough that they elect to take notice. One of her best clients comes to her with a truly big job, a job that will set Jazz up in a solid middle class lifestyle. Unfortunately for Jazz, things don’t go as smoothly as she’s hoped.
I like Jazz as a character. She’s stubborn as hell, and doesn’t always think things through, but she’s scrappy and smart and funny. I liked the other characters too, Svoboda the engineer, Dale her former friends, her conservative dad, the “town sheriff” – Weir does a great job building characters you honestly care about. Jazz has made some major mistakes and is trying to use this big job to fix things. I like the way the writer uses these mistakes to flesh out the characters, so you can really see how Jazz has changed from her youth. She becomes a smarter, more responsible adult. Of course, she’s still a hustler, though, and I like that too.
But it’s the worldbuilding that shines here. It’s a story ON THE MOON! Like, how cool is that? My son was asking me how it compares to The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, and I have to say that it holds up really well. That book was a five star read for me, just amazing and mindblowing and everything else. Well, this one is just as good. I couldn’t pick a favorite, but it’s definitely one that I’m going to be reading again.
There was some technical stuff in there that I didn’t follow, but I don’t know that it’s because it was badly written. I just have a hard time picturing things in my head sometimes. But that didn’t slow my enjoyment of the book.
Andy Weir is well on his way to being sci-fi writer of the generation.
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LibraryThing member Cherylk
I never read this author's other famous novel, The Martian that spawned the movie starring Matt Damon. Yet, I did see the movie and enjoyed it a lot. I do plan to read the novel. If it is anything like this book, I am in for a real treat. This book is "out of this world". I could see this book also
Jazz is my hero. She is a kick ass chick. Plus, she has street smarts, which you need to survive on the Moon. Well, at least in the ghetto area. While, Jazz was hinted at having had a couple relationships, I am glad they were more just mentions and not really played out in the story. This story to me was better by not having any type of relationship. Well there was one relationship that Jazz had but it was more of a friendship. She had a pen pal on Earth. His name is Kelvin. I enjoyed their letters back and forth. I hope that one day Kelvin does visit Jazz.
As I was reading this book, it was like I was transported to the Moon and was in Jazz's shoes experiencing everything that she did in "real" time. Artemis is the book of the century! You do not want to be the last one that does not experience this book. Mr. Weir breathes life into the story and characters.
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being turned into a movie. Although, I am now sure if it would be as good as the one that was playing in my head, the whole time I was reading this book. Jazz is my hero. She is a kick ass chick. Plus, she has street smarts, which you need to survive on the Moon. Well, at least in the ghetto area. While, Jazz was hinted at having had a couple relationships, I am glad they were more just mentions and not really played out in the story. This story to me was better by not having any type of relationship. Well there was one relationship that Jazz had but it was more of a friendship. She had a pen pal on Earth. His name is Kelvin. I enjoyed their letters back and forth. I hope that one day Kelvin does visit Jazz.
As I was reading this book, it was like I was transported to the Moon and was in Jazz's shoes experiencing everything that she did in "real" time. Artemis is the book of the century! You do not want to be the last one that does not experience this book. Mr. Weir breathes life into the story and characters.
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LibraryThing member DanieXJ
I mostly liked The Martian, and so I was a little excited to see what this one was about too. And from the synopsis, the plot looked really cool too. A heist that uses science-y stuff, a gray hat smuggler who has a code and may have gotten in over her head. It sounded awesome.
The reality of the
It was mainly the secondary characters I liked here. Svoboda was pretty cool, and Dale was okay. Heck, even Trond, the 'bad guy' and his daughter Lena were surprisingly interesting characters. I would have loved to read more about them as well as Svoboda, Dale, etc. than repeated descriptions of Jazz shivering in a wall.
And then the ending. For most of the book I thought the science part was coo, but that one part at the end. Really? Anyway....
It wasn't a bad book, but I did go into it expecting quite the amazing book, and unfortunately this wasn't it.
I was given this ARC by Netgalley on behalf of Crown Publishing
The reality of the
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novel though was slightly different unfortunately. While I liked some of the characters (more on that shortly), I just couldn't stand Jazz, the main character. She was supposed to be an adult woman, but she seemed much more like a teen boy. There were jokes that ran the entire book that just had absolutely no purpose, and didn't need to be there. I didn't mind the character of Kevin, but, this pen pal thing also seemed to have very little point.It was mainly the secondary characters I liked here. Svoboda was pretty cool, and Dale was okay. Heck, even Trond, the 'bad guy' and his daughter Lena were surprisingly interesting characters. I would have loved to read more about them as well as Svoboda, Dale, etc. than repeated descriptions of Jazz shivering in a wall.
And then the ending. For most of the book I thought the science part was coo, but that one part at the end. Really? Anyway....
It wasn't a bad book, but I did go into it expecting quite the amazing book, and unfortunately this wasn't it.
I was given this ARC by Netgalley on behalf of Crown Publishing
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LibraryThing member tottman
Everyone excited to see what Andy Weir would do for a followup to the massively successful The Martian can rest assured that he has struck gold again. Artemis is every bit as fun and another wild ride.
Jazz Bashara has grown up on the moon in the small city of Artemis. She knows every nook and
Weir has once again created a smart-aleck, intelligent, slightly obnoxious character that you can’t help but love. He surrounds her with strong supporting characters all of whom get fleshed out as the novel progresses. Impressions of all the characters change as you learn a little more of their backstory and motivations.
Weir does a good job of incorporating and explaining the science, even if it is not present to quite the same degree as his previous book. He also creates a fascinating and plausible economy and political system. Match this with a clever plot and explosive action and you have an outstanding book.
The story has the pacing of a James Cameron film (hint, hint James Cameron) in that once the action really starts rolling, it doesn’t stop until the book ends and you’re out of breath. Most importantly, this book is a lot of fun. I wouldn’t mind more adventures in this world, but whatever Andy Weir has up his sleeve next, I’m on board. Highly recommended.
I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book from the publisher.
Jazz Bashara has grown up on the moon in the small city of Artemis. She knows every nook and
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cranny of the domed city where she works as a porter and a smuggler. Jazz dreams of joining the EVA guild which will allow her to escort tourists outside the dome for a lot more money than she’s making and quite a bit more comfort than her current coffin-like apartment provides. When Trond Landvik,one of her smuggling customers, offers her a chance at a big score, the money is too much for her to ignore. Jazz knows there’s something fishy, but she trusts herself to be smart and clever enough to outwit everyone else. She almost is. Once the caper goes awry, Jazz is on the run, trying to stay one step ahead of disaster: for her and Artemis.Weir has once again created a smart-aleck, intelligent, slightly obnoxious character that you can’t help but love. He surrounds her with strong supporting characters all of whom get fleshed out as the novel progresses. Impressions of all the characters change as you learn a little more of their backstory and motivations.
Weir does a good job of incorporating and explaining the science, even if it is not present to quite the same degree as his previous book. He also creates a fascinating and plausible economy and political system. Match this with a clever plot and explosive action and you have an outstanding book.
The story has the pacing of a James Cameron film (hint, hint James Cameron) in that once the action really starts rolling, it doesn’t stop until the book ends and you’re out of breath. Most importantly, this book is a lot of fun. I wouldn’t mind more adventures in this world, but whatever Andy Weir has up his sleeve next, I’m on board. Highly recommended.
I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book from the publisher.
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LibraryThing member Dokfintong
Reradiation
The problem I have with this book is reradiation, that physical property that makes black cooler than white.
No Benjamin Franklin was not wrong, but his paper on snow experiment did not go far enough. Reradiation is a tricky concept. Sometimes black is hotter than white (walk barefoot in
Andy Weir spends a lot of time, LOTS of time, explaining how things work on the moon but in his imagining everything is shiny. I don't buy it.
Some other details niggled at me too. Why didn't the rich guy who asks Jazz to commit the crime advance her money to cover costs? (Remember the subplot in Ocean's 11?) High tech crime costs money and Jazz has very little cash with which to acquire the tech she needs. And why didn't he offer her the use of his shower, instead of complaining that she smelled bad? A hot shower would have bought her loyalty and improved the atmosphere both.
You might like this book or you might not. I was unhappy with the overly descriptive writing.
I received a review copy of "Artemis: A Novel" by Andy Weir (Crown) through NetGalley.com.
The problem I have with this book is reradiation, that physical property that makes black cooler than white.
No Benjamin Franklin was not wrong, but his paper on snow experiment did not go far enough. Reradiation is a tricky concept. Sometimes black is hotter than white (walk barefoot in
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the multicoloured pavement in the summertime and your feet will tell you that) but sometimes black is cooler than white (Tuarag robes, for example) because the heat is kept inside instead of radiating outward. So in space you don't make stuff shiny to reflect sunlight and be cooler, in space shiny stuff can't shed its internal heat because the inside of the reflective surface reflects the heat back in.Andy Weir spends a lot of time, LOTS of time, explaining how things work on the moon but in his imagining everything is shiny. I don't buy it.
Some other details niggled at me too. Why didn't the rich guy who asks Jazz to commit the crime advance her money to cover costs? (Remember the subplot in Ocean's 11?) High tech crime costs money and Jazz has very little cash with which to acquire the tech she needs. And why didn't he offer her the use of his shower, instead of complaining that she smelled bad? A hot shower would have bought her loyalty and improved the atmosphere both.
You might like this book or you might not. I was unhappy with the overly descriptive writing.
I received a review copy of "Artemis: A Novel" by Andy Weir (Crown) through NetGalley.com.
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LibraryThing member foggidawn
Jazz Bashara is a small-time crook in Artemis, the first human city on the moon. She smuggles in luxury goods for a select clientele, and also works as a porter for legitimate shipments. When a client approaches her with a special job, she initially turns him down, but he makes her an offer she’d
I do love a good caper, and this is the very definition of one: wild shenanigans, hair-raising escapes, petty bickering... plus a great setting. What didn’t I love? The main character. Jazz never read as convincingly female to me. I’m in favor of tough, wise-cracking, butt-kicking lady types, but I just found something lacking in the characterization. Don’t let that put you off, though — maybe you will feel differently. If you like sci-fi heist stories, give this one a try.
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be crazy to refuse. Then, of course, everything goes wrong...I do love a good caper, and this is the very definition of one: wild shenanigans, hair-raising escapes, petty bickering... plus a great setting. What didn’t I love? The main character. Jazz never read as convincingly female to me. I’m in favor of tough, wise-cracking, butt-kicking lady types, but I just found something lacking in the characterization. Don’t let that put you off, though — maybe you will feel differently. If you like sci-fi heist stories, give this one a try.
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LibraryThing member breic
The plot is beyond cliched. The main character and narrator is 24, but acts like she's 6. The other characters are essentially the same. The potty humor would be beneath Adam Sandler.
> I'd have to blow the remaining two at the same time. Please don’t quote that last sentence out of context.
> The
> "Shit! Damn! Crap! Ass! Son of a bitch!" It’s important to vary your profanities. If you use the same one too often it loses strength
> She stopped and held up a finger. "Hold on a moment. I don’t have to explain myself to you. You have to explain yourself to me!"
On the other hand, it is set on the moon. Even though she's lived there since she was six, this is such a novelty to the narrator that she is compelled to explain every consequence of the setting, often repeatedly. (Did you know that there's no air on the moon? If not, you'll learn this, probably upwards of 100 times.)
> I'd have to blow the remaining two at the same time. Please don’t quote that last sentence out of context.
> The
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city shined in the sunlight like a bunch of metallic boobs. What? I’m not a poet. They look like boobs.> "Shit! Damn! Crap! Ass! Son of a bitch!" It’s important to vary your profanities. If you use the same one too often it loses strength
> She stopped and held up a finger. "Hold on a moment. I don’t have to explain myself to you. You have to explain yourself to me!"
On the other hand, it is set on the moon. Even though she's lived there since she was six, this is such a novelty to the narrator that she is compelled to explain every consequence of the setting, often repeatedly. (Did you know that there's no air on the moon? If not, you'll learn this, probably upwards of 100 times.)
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LibraryThing member jrthebutler
A smuggler living in Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is called upon to perform an act of sabotage.
LibraryThing member lostinalibrary
Artemis is ‘the first (and so far, only) city on the moon’. Jasmine (Jazz) Bashara is a porter who delivers mostly black-market contraband from Earth. Among her customers is Trond Landvik a wealthy businessman, rich by even Earth standards who, one day, offers her a very lucrative job – all
Artemis is author Andy Weir’s follow-up novel to The Martian. Like The Martian, it has an off-Earth setting and there’s plenty of sciency stuff (I now know much more about welding on the moon than I ever thought I would learn or want). But, overall, as a lot of other reviewers have pointed out, this seemed more like a caper story than scifi. Don’t get me wrong – I am rather partial to a good caper story but this wasn’t at all what I expected. If anything, I would say it felt like ‘40s Noir and this is nowhere more evident than in Jazz. Granted she’s less your typical noir ‘dame’ and more Philip Marlowe with her tough talk, hard drinking, and willingness to stretch the law, even break it for the right price or cause but only so far. But, like Marlowe, she lacks any real depth. Instead, there’s a kind of comic book quality to her.
Because I was expecting something completely different, it took me a while to get into the book. However, having said that, once I stopped looking for a sequel to The Martian and, instead, accepted it for what it is, a rollicking good crime caper, I found Artemis a whole lot of fun and a real page-turner. There’s plenty of action and if the characters are somewhat one-dimensional, they were entertaining, the world-building and the science were interesting, and there was even a nice touch of humour. And, hey, really what more can you ask from a crime caper, especially one set on the moon.
Thanks to Netgalley and Crown Publishing for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review
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she has to do is sabotage the mining equipment of the Sanchez Aluminum Co. Trouble is, she isn’t able to complete the job which means she won’t get paid. Even worse, the company is owned by a Brazilian mobster who doesn’t take kindly to having his business interfered with. When she finds Trond murdered and discovers the reason why he hired her in the first place, she is forced to finish the job with the help of friends and family to save Artemus. Only again, things don’t go quite as planned and, instead of saving the city, she might just have destroyed it.Artemis is author Andy Weir’s follow-up novel to The Martian. Like The Martian, it has an off-Earth setting and there’s plenty of sciency stuff (I now know much more about welding on the moon than I ever thought I would learn or want). But, overall, as a lot of other reviewers have pointed out, this seemed more like a caper story than scifi. Don’t get me wrong – I am rather partial to a good caper story but this wasn’t at all what I expected. If anything, I would say it felt like ‘40s Noir and this is nowhere more evident than in Jazz. Granted she’s less your typical noir ‘dame’ and more Philip Marlowe with her tough talk, hard drinking, and willingness to stretch the law, even break it for the right price or cause but only so far. But, like Marlowe, she lacks any real depth. Instead, there’s a kind of comic book quality to her.
Because I was expecting something completely different, it took me a while to get into the book. However, having said that, once I stopped looking for a sequel to The Martian and, instead, accepted it for what it is, a rollicking good crime caper, I found Artemis a whole lot of fun and a real page-turner. There’s plenty of action and if the characters are somewhat one-dimensional, they were entertaining, the world-building and the science were interesting, and there was even a nice touch of humour. And, hey, really what more can you ask from a crime caper, especially one set on the moon.
Thanks to Netgalley and Crown Publishing for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review
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LibraryThing member Unkletom
Full disclosure time: I’m a big fan of Andy Weir’s. I read and loved The Martian when it first came out and also have read and enjoyed the short stories, The Egg and Annie’s Day, which Andy made available for free online. He’s also a fellow Livermoron (resident of Livermore, CA) so I have
In all honesty, the above information will probably earn Mr. Weir an additional star when it comes time to assign a rating. He’ll need it.
Those who loved The Martian will be glad to hear there are a lot of similarities. Both are chock full of life-threatening situations on unforgiving planets that are usually resolved by the use of clever science and ingenuity. Both tap into current scientific theory to create settings that are as intriguing as they are plausible. Both have clever main characters with a quirky sense of humor who constantly beset by problems of the “We’re all gonna die” variety.
Artemis, the lunar city named after the Greek goddess of the moon, is fascinating. Composed of four geodesic balls, each half above and half below the lunar surface, it serves as a combination tourist destination and base of operations for an aluminum mining and smelting operation. As in The Martian, Weir taps into a nerdiness typical of the Sandia National Labs programmer he once was to provide more than enough details on lunar life and the logistics and inner workings of Artemis to make his story plausible. Even though I once heard him say that “As a writer, I don’t have to be right; I only need to make you think I’m right,” I still really want to believe that a place such as Artemis is possible. (PS: I know some for the science doesn’t work, but I don’t want to spoil it for you so I’ll keep mum.)
My biggest problem is with the characters. The story is told in the first person by Jasmine ‘Jazz’ Bashara, a young courier/smuggler born in Saudi Arabia but raised in Artemis. She lives a bohemian lifestyle and has a tenuous relationship with her father whose love for his daughter is strained by her rebellious nature and lack of desire to live a more Islamic lifestyle. Aside from some asides mostly related to her body, she sounds almost identical to Mark Watney, the Martian. She sounds more like that steely-eyed rocket man that someone who is young, or female or Muslim. Her vocabulary, interspersed with verbal oddities such as “I wanted to claw the bitch’s eyes out and shove them up her urethra,” didn’t help me to envision the character Jazz was supposed to be. In fact, the person Jazz most reminds me of is Andy Weir.
Bottom line: Artemis, the city, is magnificent. Artemis, the book, was a bit of a disappointment compared with The Martian. Not that it was a bad story, which it wasn’t, but mainly because there were too many things in it that pulled me out of the story and kept me from suspending disbelief. When I was reading The Martian, I spent the entire time on Mars. With Artemis, I kept bouncing back to earth so many times it’s a wonder I didn’t get gravity sickness. 3 and ½ stars.
*Quotations are cited from an advanced reading copy and may not be the same as appears in the final published edition. The review was based on an advanced reading copy obtained at no cost from the publisher in exchange for an unbiased review. While this does take any ‘not worth what I paid for it’ statements out of my review, it otherwise has no impact on the content of my review.
FYI: On a 5-point scale I assign stars based on my assessment of what the book needs in the way of improvements:
*5 Stars – Nothing at all. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
*4 Stars – It could stand for a few tweaks here and there but it’s pretty good as it is.
*3 Stars – A solid C grade. Some serious rewriting would be needed in order for this book to be considered great or memorable.
*2 Stars – This book needs a lot of work. A good start would be to change the plot, the character development, the writing style and the ending.
*1 Star – The only thing that would improve this book is a good bonfire.
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had the pleasure of meeting him although he wouldn’t remember me from Adam. In all honesty, the above information will probably earn Mr. Weir an additional star when it comes time to assign a rating. He’ll need it.
Those who loved The Martian will be glad to hear there are a lot of similarities. Both are chock full of life-threatening situations on unforgiving planets that are usually resolved by the use of clever science and ingenuity. Both tap into current scientific theory to create settings that are as intriguing as they are plausible. Both have clever main characters with a quirky sense of humor who constantly beset by problems of the “We’re all gonna die” variety.
Artemis, the lunar city named after the Greek goddess of the moon, is fascinating. Composed of four geodesic balls, each half above and half below the lunar surface, it serves as a combination tourist destination and base of operations for an aluminum mining and smelting operation. As in The Martian, Weir taps into a nerdiness typical of the Sandia National Labs programmer he once was to provide more than enough details on lunar life and the logistics and inner workings of Artemis to make his story plausible. Even though I once heard him say that “As a writer, I don’t have to be right; I only need to make you think I’m right,” I still really want to believe that a place such as Artemis is possible. (PS: I know some for the science doesn’t work, but I don’t want to spoil it for you so I’ll keep mum.)
My biggest problem is with the characters. The story is told in the first person by Jasmine ‘Jazz’ Bashara, a young courier/smuggler born in Saudi Arabia but raised in Artemis. She lives a bohemian lifestyle and has a tenuous relationship with her father whose love for his daughter is strained by her rebellious nature and lack of desire to live a more Islamic lifestyle. Aside from some asides mostly related to her body, she sounds almost identical to Mark Watney, the Martian. She sounds more like that steely-eyed rocket man that someone who is young, or female or Muslim. Her vocabulary, interspersed with verbal oddities such as “I wanted to claw the bitch’s eyes out and shove them up her urethra,” didn’t help me to envision the character Jazz was supposed to be. In fact, the person Jazz most reminds me of is Andy Weir.
Bottom line: Artemis, the city, is magnificent. Artemis, the book, was a bit of a disappointment compared with The Martian. Not that it was a bad story, which it wasn’t, but mainly because there were too many things in it that pulled me out of the story and kept me from suspending disbelief. When I was reading The Martian, I spent the entire time on Mars. With Artemis, I kept bouncing back to earth so many times it’s a wonder I didn’t get gravity sickness. 3 and ½ stars.
*Quotations are cited from an advanced reading copy and may not be the same as appears in the final published edition. The review was based on an advanced reading copy obtained at no cost from the publisher in exchange for an unbiased review. While this does take any ‘not worth what I paid for it’ statements out of my review, it otherwise has no impact on the content of my review.
FYI: On a 5-point scale I assign stars based on my assessment of what the book needs in the way of improvements:
*5 Stars – Nothing at all. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
*4 Stars – It could stand for a few tweaks here and there but it’s pretty good as it is.
*3 Stars – A solid C grade. Some serious rewriting would be needed in order for this book to be considered great or memorable.
*2 Stars – This book needs a lot of work. A good start would be to change the plot, the character development, the writing style and the ending.
*1 Star – The only thing that would improve this book is a good bonfire.
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LibraryThing member RandyMetcalfe
Jasmine is a young woman who has lived in the lunar city of Artemis since she was a child. It’s her home, all that she knows, maybe all that she loves. But we can be awful to those we love. And when we disappoint them, we often find we’ve disappointed ourselves. Despite the breakdown in the
Weir’s story here is as rollicking as you might expect. As Jazz scrapes through one adventure after another with little more than her wits to keep death at bay, the surprise is perhaps how little you end up caring. I suppose it has something to do with the fact that the troubles she confronts (usually successfully) are of her own making. She’s not just a plucky soul surviving against a threatening but ultimately uncaring universe. She’s a bit of a tearaway whose antics put not merely herself but everyone she knows at risk. Serious risk.
Still an enjoyable read — I seem to have read it straight through, so it must be sufficiently gripping. But not as uplifting as Weir’s earlier effort with The Martian.
Gently recommended.
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relationship with her father, a series of should-have-known-better romances, a failure to qualify for the EVA Guild, Jazz is surviving. At least she still has her smuggling business. Small scale but reliable. Until, that is, she gets roped into applying her wide array of skills and smarts to a bit of nefarious skulduggery. And not just for money. For a LOT of money! But nothing goes entirely the way you hope it will. Not even on the moon.Weir’s story here is as rollicking as you might expect. As Jazz scrapes through one adventure after another with little more than her wits to keep death at bay, the surprise is perhaps how little you end up caring. I suppose it has something to do with the fact that the troubles she confronts (usually successfully) are of her own making. She’s not just a plucky soul surviving against a threatening but ultimately uncaring universe. She’s a bit of a tearaway whose antics put not merely herself but everyone she knows at risk. Serious risk.
Still an enjoyable read — I seem to have read it straight through, so it must be sufficiently gripping. But not as uplifting as Weir’s earlier effort with The Martian.
Gently recommended.
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Awards
Audie Award (Finalist — Science Fiction — 2019)
Geffen Award (2019)
Prometheus Award (Nominee — Novel — 2018)
Dragon Award (Winner — Science Fiction Novel — 2018)
Pages
320
ISBN
0553448129 / 9780553448122