Airman

By Eoin Colfer

Conner Broekhart was born flying. To be precise, he was born in a hot air balloon; hence, the beginning of a life passionate about winning the race to fly. Connor is in the best position to fulfill his dream; student to the amazing French Aeronaut, Victory Vigny, he spends his days being tutored with Princess Isabella, his childhood friend, on the Saltee Islands off the cost of Ireland. Things are looking promising, both with his blossoming love for Isabella and with the race to fly- until Connor witnesses a horrible crime and unlocks a conspiracy against King Nicholas that turns his life upside down. Imprisoned for what he saw, he tries to escape; but the only way out is to fly…

This was one of those books that I couldn’t put down after I reached a certain point. The beginning was a little slow for me personally, but it really just clips along the whole time. Connor is an extremely bright kid with a future that was stolen from him just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The story is a familiar plot-line, but has some very intriguing twists and turns making it into something quite extra-ordinary. The Saltee Islands are real islands that are un-inhabited, but Colfer puts a different spin and history on the islands that is completely believable and just amazing. I had to look it up because I thought it was historically accurate. I wish it was, it’s a lot more interesting than the real history (which by the way is pretty neat in itself). This book was absolutely amazing to read. By far my favorite from Eoin next to the Artemis Fowl series.