Artemis Fowl and the Lost Colony

[sawyl]

With the fourth novel, Artemis Fowl and the Lost Colony, Eoin Colfer introduces demons — a group of fairy-like creatures with a strong affinity for the moon — and gives Artemis a new and worthy rival.

Having come up with a method for determining the periodic arrivals of demons on Earth, Artemis Fowl is able to put himself in the right place in time to witness the latest appearance and to get caught up in the time distortion its arrival triggers. Artemis prediction, which turns out to be more precise than his fairy friends, seems to indicate that the spell keeping the demons' island of Hybras outside normal time has started to decay.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the veil on Hybras, a young demon called No 1 is starting to suspect he might be the first demon magus to appear for ten thousand years; something that causes the demons' leader, Leon Abbot, to mesmerise him into a trip to the volcanic crater at the heart of the island and a one-way trip to 21st century Earth. Arriving on Earth No 1 is promptly abducted by 12 year-old genius Minerva Paradizo. Working with Captain Holly Short of the LEP Recon, Artemis and Butler set about recovering the young demon from the French girl's chateau only to for one of Minerva's minders to go radically off-script.

With the situation suddenly complicated by the involvement of a group of human thugs, Artemis manipulates the villains into a meeting at Taipei 101. After a high altitude standoff and chase, during which they finally resolve the mystery of what happened to the group of demon magi who cast the original spell to place Hybras outside time, No 1, Artemis and Holly travel to the demons' island to deal with Leon Abbot before the spell fails and pushes the demons back into normal time and space for once and all.

One of the most amusing conceits of The Lost Colony is its attitude to growing up: Artemis has started going through puberty and consequently smitten by every girl to cross his path, but self-aware enough to release what is happening; while No 1, who seems to have been waiting to warp into a soldier demon forever, is beginning to accept that he may simply be different to his fellows. Minerva is a fun addition to the cast and a worthy rival to Artemis, it's just a pity she doesn't go on to have a greater role in the rest of the series.