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Artemis Fowl Book 4: The Opal Deception
- By Eoin Colfer
- Genre: Fantasy
Common Sense Media says
Fun kid genius series shows hero's nicer side.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this book isn't meant for literary discussions, but if you must, Artemis does consider the morality of his actions. Having a child criminal genius as the hero troubles some parents: Artemis, despite his mellowing, is ruthless, arrogant, and sarcastic.
What's the story?
At the end of the last Artemis Fowl book, The Eternity Code, young criminal genius Artemis and Butler had their memories wiped so that they would no longer remember what they knew about the Lower Elements -- fairies, goblins, centaurs, etc. But you knew Artemis would have some clever plan to get his memory back, didn't you? As it turns out, though, his plan doesn't work fast enough. His old adversary/friend Holly Short needs his help -- Opal Koboi has escaped and is planning both revenge and world domination, and only Artemis is clever enough to oppose her.
But Opal, who is as smart as Artemis, quickly gets the upper hand, and has Artemis and Holly playing defense as her plans fall into place one by one -- plans that include humiliating and discrediting Holly before she is killed. Now they are on the run both from Opal, and from the LEP, whom Opal has fooled into thinking that Holly has gone renegade.
Is it any good?
Fans of the series who were horrified to think it would end as a trilogy will be thrilled to see this new episode. While it can be read without reading the previous books, it's not recommended. Even with lots of exposition, it's pretty confusing without the context. It maintains the strengths of the series: fast pacing, suspense, smarty-pants humor, B-movie dialogue and plotting, and unusual settings.
Artemis is considerably softened up here, a process begun in the previous book and now accelerated. At times he is almost, well, nice -- which may disappoint some readers even as parents breathe a sigh of relief.
Explore, discuss, enjoy
Families can talk about the main character and his motivations. How has he changed in the series? How is he the same?
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Teen, 13 years old
April 9, 2008
AGE
a relief
this book was such a relief. it had seemed like artemis fowl would end as a trilogy, and the end of book three made everything that had happened until then seem utterly pointless. i kinda liked that arty was off balance most of the book- it made him more human, and he had to come up with things on the spur of the moment. he also develops a surprising sense of humor (always a plus). all in all, a great book. the only thing is, when he's coming up with and even implementing his secret plans, you don't know any more about them than the villains. it can really be kind of irritating.
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Teen, 13 years old
March 20, 2011
AGE
e.g. some readers will love but not all
Opal deception may be violent at some points but not all. Holly and Artemis have to work together even if they're Archenemies. Opal is after her enemy Artemis Fowl and Holly Short tries to save him but she herself gets stuck with Artemis and Mulch Diggums. Its a race to stay alive and to keep away from Opal and her little helpers
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Adult
April 9, 2008
AGE
A new Artemis...
Having read the previous Artemis Fowl books, this is a nice conclusion.
Only Opal could pull it off.
A warning:There is a death of a major character at the beginning. It is a bit shocking.
This book is very fast paced. You will hardly have time to catch your breath.
Well worth reading.
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Kid, 11 years old
April 9, 2008
AGE
awesome
it's longer, more action action-packed(yay) than it's awesome sequals! a must read
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Teen, 14 years old
February 7, 2009
AGE
Not the best.
While still very good, I must say that it is not as good as the others. I was sad when Julius Root died. I hate Opal. Artemis looked too weak in this book.
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Teen, 14 years old
June 23, 2010
AGE
..................................
Please don't call this series "fun". It's epic.
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Kid, 12 years old
May 13, 2010
AGE
Well... kinda confused, here.
At times, Artemis is good, but he IS a master criminal... so i'm not sure what to mark! =-P
What other families should know:
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Teen, 16 years old
July 18, 2010
AGE
a good read for all ages
a great read!
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Teen, 14 years old
April 9, 2008
AGE
Best yet of the Artemis Fowl series, a must read for Arty and Holly lovers!
This is a brilliant book, really! Colfer's best one yet! It's very in-depth, action-packed, and all the other hyphenated words I can think of.. forty-two? lol. Just kidding.
I did find a few parts to my dislike, the Julius Root incident, for one, and the troll scene was icky. I don't like trolls. But other than that, I like the book. The audio book is even better, I might add.
I am also glad that chocolate truffles played a major role in The Opal Deception. lol.
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| Author: | Eoin Colfer |
| Book type: | Fiction |
| Genre: | Fantasy |
| Publisher: | Hyperion Books for Children |
| Publication date: | April 18, 2005 |
| Number of pages: | 342 |
| Publisher's recommended age(s): | 9 - 14 |
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