Eoin Colfer's bestselling antihero is back in Artemis Fowl: TheArctic Incident--the superb sequel to the hyper-hyped Artemis Fowl, shortlisted forthe Whitbread Children's Book of the Year. The Arctic Incident sees theslightly older, perhaps slightly more mellow arch-criminal Artemis recoveredfrom his last adventure, richer now that he has his half of a hoard of fairygold, and happier since the Clarice Starlingesque superfairy Captain Holly Shortof the LEPrecon returned his mother's ailing mind to full health.But there is still much unfinished business: Artemis Fowl Sr. disappeared when adaring escapade designed to free his family from their criminal--not to mentiondeeply lucrative--past and move the family's assets into legitimate enterpriseswent horribly wrong. Held captive by the Mafiya (the Russian organized crimesyndicate) for over two years, he has been declared officially dead, but ArtemisJr. knows in his heart (yes, he does have one) that his beloved father is stillalive, and he is determined to find him. Meanwhile Captain Short is temporarilyon assignment to Customs and Excise as punishment for letting Fowl separate herand her People from their gold and is finding her stakeout duties a little dull.It soon becomes obvious that the pair have need of each other's considerableskills, and before long they are on track for an adventure that will ultimatelyhave far-reaching consequences for both of them.If you enjoyed the first book, you won't be disappointed by the second.Initially the pace is a little slower, and the slightly more mellow Artemis iscertainly a tad unnerving at first (particularly as one of the things that madehim such an unusual character was the fact that there was something distinctlyunlikable about him), but once the sparks between Holly and Artemis begin tofly, and the adventure that tests their endurance to their emotional, physical,and intellectual limits begins, the pages just keep on turning.The high-tech hocus pocus, the complex underworld, and the James Bond-stylestoryline will keep even the most reluctant reader enthralled. Add to the mix afair dollop of humor, the occasional sprinkling of right-on commentary about thestate of the planet, and enough hooks in the story to ensure you will beclamoring for the next book. This chilling, thrilling adventure is a seriouslycool (in more ways than one!) must-read for anyone age 9 and older. --SusanHarrison

1986年歐因·科弗成為一名小學教師，業餘時間堅持寫作。1991年婚後的數年間，曾旅居意大利、突尼西亞和沙特阿拉伯等地，這段經曆對他後來的文學創作産生瞭很大影響。

艾歐因·寇弗的兒童文學創作之路可謂一帆風順，處女作《班尼和歐瑪》一經齣版即躍上暢銷書榜。2001年夏天，他完成瞭後來風靡全球青少年的《阿特米斯奇幻曆險》第一部。這部作品的巨大成功令他決心放棄教職專心寫作。

《阿特米斯奇幻曆險》係列是歐美暢銷書榜的常客，獲得很多奬項，已在43個國傢和地區齣版，全球銷量1300餘萬冊。36歲的愛爾蘭中學老師歐因·科弗因此收到瞭英國曆史上最高的兒童文學作品稿酬——70萬英鎊。他的《阿特米斯奇幻曆險》係列如今在歐洲暢銷榜的排名已超齣《哈利•波特》係列，興高采烈的Miramax齣版公司隨後又支付瞭25萬英鎊。前三冊的電影版權已由迪斯尼購買。

J.K.羅琳和歐因•科弗被英國媒體津津樂道地做比較，都是教師、短時間內迅速成名、齣版係列都非常暢銷、內容和魔法有關、主角都是12歲左右的男孩。對此科弗不耐煩地說：“我喜歡羅琳，但我們的風格也有差異，蘋果和橘子有什麼好比的？”