Airman by Eoin Colfer

Young Conor Broekhart really has it going for him—he has a smart mother, his father is captain of the guard, he trains and is mentored by a genius by the name of Victor Vigny, he is close friends with Princess Isabella, he is the toast of the town because of his innovative rescue of the Princess, and best of all, he was born in a hot air balloon! Perhaps because he was born in the sky, Conor Broekhart was destined to return to the skies.

Since an early age, Conor looked to the skies, always pondering how he could soar above Great Saltee, his home, thinking up glider and other aircraft designs. Luckily, he is under the tutelage of Victor Vigny, who is no stranger to the skies—in fact, he was in the hot air balloon with the Broekhart family when Conor was born! Conor is taught martial arts, fencing, Shakespeare, among other things, and his fellow student is none other than Princess Isabella. And ever since saving Princess Isabella’s life from a fire by taking to the skies, Conor is the golden boy of the present and future on the island of Great Saltee.

Unfortunately for Conor, his golden days are numbered—at the young age of fourteen, he becomes the witness of the assassination of Good King Nick of the Saltee islands, as well as the death of his mentor, Victor. Both were by the hand of the mad and ambitious Red Cross Marshal, Bonvilain. Young Broekhart is soon entangled in Bonvilain’s webs of treachery as he tries to expose the marshal’s treason, only to find himself locked up in Little Saltee, the prison island, doomed to digging for diamonds in inhumane conditions, for the rest of his life. Bonvilain has accused of him of helping Victor murder the king, and has even managed to get Conor’s father to hate him.

Locked away as “Conor Finn,” young Broekhart won’t be any trouble any more, right? Wrong! There’s trouble for evil brewing up ahead, and as for escaping jail, what better way to do it than to fly? Freedom and vengeance might not be so far away after all…

The adventures of the “swash-buckling scientist” a.k.a. Conor, reminded me strongly of a favorite classic of mine, the Count of Monte Cristo. So if there are any other Count of Monte Cristo fans out there, give this book a try! And I’d also recommend this book to all readers looking for a good adventure! Conor is a very admirable character that stuck to his morals and displayed great strength even in the darkest times! The characters were very well developed in this book, and Airman was quite an enjoyable novel in general. Eoin Colfer fans will love his latest novel!