Parents' Guide to

The Fowl Twins

By Carrie R. Wheadon, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 10+

Artemis Fowl spin-off is clever and action-packed.

Book Eoin Colfer Fantasy 2019
The Fowl Twins Poster Image

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What you will—and won't—find in this book.

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What's the Story?

In THE FOWL TWINS, 11-year-old Myles and Beckett are on their own for the weekend on their family's Irish island. Their parents are on a short trip, and big-brother Artemis and his bodyguard, Butler, are on their way to Mars. Well, they think they're on their own until a sniper on a neighboring island, the nefarious Lord Teddy Bleedham-Drye, takes a shot at a toy-size troll breaching the surface of the Earth. Three things happen at once: The toy troll, shrink-wrapped by the special bullet, is pocketed by Beckett -- he thinks it's an actual toy and not a fairy; the Fowl's fancy security system shuts down the compound; and a police fairy flying by in an invisible suit sees the whole thing. Nothing should be able to get in or out of the Fowl compound, but somehow a nun, Sister Jeronima, from a secret organization (acronym of ACRONYM) intent on finding and experimenting on fairies, breaches their system and whisks the boys away. The twins wake up in a secret prison in Amsterdam ready to do anything they can to escape.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say Not yet rated
Kids say (6 ):

This spin-off series is both exceedingly clever and action-packed, and will satisfy readers who miss the fairy world and Artemis Fowl's genius antics. Myles can easily be compared to Artemis, and always wants to one-up his older brother's accomplishments. And while Butler was always the one keeping Artemis in check, here we have Myles' twin, Beckett. He runs on pure instinct, performs expert-level martial arts moves (guard your knee caps), and has a secret connection to all living things that we won't give away here. Author Eoin Colfer also presents us with some fabulous villains, as he always does: the eternal-youth-obsessed evil genius Lord Teddy Bleedham-Drye and the militant interrogation expert Sister Jeronima Gonzalez-Ramos de Zarate of Bilbao. The names alone are priceless. As is the name of Sister Jeronima's secret organization, with an acronym of ACRONYM.

The Fowl Twins takes these unforgettable characters and puts them in plenty of nail-biting chase scenes and double-cross situations. There are boat chases, plane ejector seats, cliff dives, and prison breaks. And there's not one, but two, private islands full of high-tech gadgets. Strap into your self-regenerating fairy suit. This series is off to an exciting start.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the Fowl brothers in The Fowl Twins. Which one are you most like? Who would you like to be? How does Myles underestimate both of his brothers? When does he find out he's wrong?

  • How do Myles and Beckett show that they value others' lives, even the lives of the bad guys? What tactics do they use to cause less harm?

  • Have you read the Artemis Fowl series? How does this compare?

Book Details

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