After Andy Weir's The Martian almost became a new favourite last year, I was eager to read more by him and so I took advantage of my father's birthday to gift him Artemis so that I'd be able to read it after him. And when I was in need of pure fun and escapism, I picked it up and the book delivered. Artemis has the same defiant optimism and fast pace as The Martian, with a wider focus since it involves a main character interacting with a group of allies rather than one isolated on a planet with no hope of survival. Artemis's MC, Jazz, was born on Earth, in Saudi Arabia, but she emigrated to the Moon at a very young age and does not intend to come back. She's become estranged from her father after some very poor life choices, and ekes out a living as a courier navigating the domes of Artemis, the Moon's human settlement. When a contact hires her for a dangerous job that could bring her financial woes to an end, she doesn't hesitate long. But of course, things don't exactly go as planned and Jazz finds herself with a target on her back.
This book really was entertaining, and I was pleasantly surprised to find so many diverse characters. I wasn't as emotionnally attached to the characters as I'd been to The Martian's MC, but that was partly because the plot reached farther than the mere survival of one person whose every action could mean their death.  Artemis did have heist vibes, which was perfect as I'd been considering re-reading Six of Crows for pure comfort and enjoyed witnessing first a lone wolf and then a cast of mis-matched characters devising a less-than-perfect plan and going for it. I don't think Artemis is better than The Martian, but I'm looking forward to reading Weir's third book, Project Hail Mary.
Rep: MC from Saudi Arabia, very diverse cast of characters, including several queer characters and one disabled secondary character.