Andy Wier has created an extremely compelling story in his novel Artemis. It tells the story of Jasmine Bashara, a young woman trying to make a living in the one and only lunar colony Artemis. Jazz is a part-time porter and full-time smuggler who is just trying to get rich. Not rich rich but rich enough to get out of her closet size apartment and pay off an old debt. Something that appears to be within her grasp when a long-time customer approaches her about a job, a job that she just can’t say no to. While it is not smuggling the job falls within her wheelhouse since it is a minor bit of corporate espionage. However, things get tricky and complicated when her heist manages to land Jazz right in the middle of numerous competing forces several of which would like to see her dead. Now Jazz has to find a way to save herself but also potentially the city of Artemis, all while not making things worse. Luckily Jazz is a criminal and not a hero so she is willing and able to do what needs doing.
I am going to say that this book is science-fiction and yet at the same time in many ways it is also a thriller as you find yourself caught up in Jazz’s race against time while she works on figuring everything out. It is fast-paced and will more than likely keep you on the edge of your seat almost the entire time, especially in the later parts when the tension is really high. The book does an incredible job of balancing the unraveling of the mystery and the gradual heightening of the tension and the danger. It also does a great job of balancing the stereotypical thriller elements that such a plot line includes with the obviously science-fiction setting of a lunar colony. In my opinion this also creates a really odd dichotomy of extremely familiar events and storylines playing out in a relatively unusual setting for this kind of story. Don’t get me wrong, the story was an incredible read and I greatly enjoyed it. I was just surprised by the blending that took place and just how well it was blended. Now I know many people would be leery of this boom considering the protagonist is a criminal but I feel like Jazz is a very principled criminal as she clearly has standards about what she will or will not do, regardless of how much money she might make. Once you take into account the overall storyline it seems like she might almost be an anti-hero instead as she quite obviously refuses to be classed as a hero. Quite rightly in my opinion. The narrative style is rather humorous as Jazz is definitely sarcastic and sassy which just helps lighten the story. There was really only one thing I wasn’t sure about. Sprinkled throughout the text are letters or emails between Jazz and her friend Kelvin. However many of them are actually from the past and don’t match the current timeline but there are not any clear dates so they can come across as confusing at first. The book was still a good read though so I am happy to give it four out of five stars.
This was a good example of a science fiction novel so if you enjoy you might consider trying this one. Since it also has numerous elements and a similar feel the thriller genre it might also appeal to readers who prefer that type of novel. The book is aimed at an adult audience and I would tend to agree with that one for a few reasons. Jazz is a sarcastic and sassy narrator who is also remarkably blunt about just about everything. This leads to numerous mature and adult references as well as some really colorful language throughout the entire book. There wasn’t anything overly explicit but there were a lot of references nonetheless so I would recommend no readers younger than about sixteen probably. It was still a good book though so I hope you will still consider trying it. If you do consider sharing your thoughts in the comments.