Product Description

Meet Fletcher Moon. Half-pint schoolboy and fully qualified private investigator. Since graduating online, he has solved all sorts of minor mysteries at school and at home. It was only a matter of time before things got serious. When Fletcher starts asking questions about a spate of odd crimes in the town of Lock, it quickly becomes clear that nothing is quite as it seems. And the hunter is about to become the hunted …

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #345304 in Books
• Published on: 2006-06-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 320 pages

About the Author
Eoin Colfer was born and raised in Wexford in the south-east of Ireland. He began writing plays at an early age and, as an adult, continued to write. Eoin has written two books for younger children - THE LEGEND OF SPUD MURPHY and THE LEGEND OF CAPTAIN CROW'S TEETH - as well as the highly acclaimed THE SUPERNATURALIST, but he is best-known for his award-winning ARTEMIS FOWL books, featuring the brilliant young anti-hero. Eoin lives in Ireland with his wife, two sons and an overactive imagination.

Customer Reviews

Respect the shield!
Half Moon Investigations is a surprisingly (and refreshingly) NON fantasy novel from Eion Colfer. I love the Artemis Fowl books and found The Supernaturalist to be interesting (if not great) so it's obvious I would pick this book up right away. I'd never heard of it until I saw it in the shop and the cool cover and Eion Colfer's name in big letters was the selling point for me, regardless of whether or not the actual blurb made the book look any good.

Fletcher Moon is twelve and a fully licensed private detective. He takes his job very seriously even though the adults regard it as a game. But it ain't no game, not at all. There is a murky plot brewing in Fletcher's high school and he's been hired to get to the bottom of it. But he can't trust anyone and he uncovers more lies than truths. In this respect the book is kinda similar to the movie Brick by Rian Johnson.

I like the approach Colfer uses. He doesn't want to be too childish and insult his target audience but he can't take the story out of the young adult section. It's a fine line to walk and he makes it all the way.

The first-person narrative is punchy and to-the-point. No time is wasted padding and the story breezes along, going from twist to twist. It's the kind of book that you read all at once because there's no part that seems like a safe place to leave it at.

Like Artemis Fowl books, it seems that Colfer is planning on a new franchise with Half Moon Investigations. If so, I eagerly await the next.

Only half as good as his other books
If you pick up Half Moon Investigations with a completely open mind, then I'm sure that you will probably get at least some enjoyment out of it. However, if you are reading this book in the hopes that it is going to be another Eoin Colfer page turner, then I am afraid that you are probably going to be disappointed. I feel that this book is similar to Colfers book, 'The Wish List', in that although the book is entertaining, it simply does not match up to the high standards set by both Artemis Fowl, and the Supernaturalists.


After reading this book, I did feel a slight sense of disappointment that this book did not match up to Colfers others. Nevertheless, I did finish the book, and Colfers other books aside, I did find it to be a reasonably enjoyable novel with some interesting plot ideas, as well as some simply outrageous goings on amongst the young characters that will leave you ever so slightly amazed. Wrap that all up and throw in a plot twist that I didn't see coming, and you have a good book. Not a great book, but a good one, and certainly worth spending the money on if you have it spare.

Good, but it isn't Artemis Fowl...
'Half Moon Investigations' is an enjoyable read, but it certainly isn't on the same scale as Artemis Fowl.

Colfer takes us on a convincing jaunt through the dangers and intrigues of school politics and mystery, making the small things in life seem terribly important until you sit back and think about it. The characters are likeable and convincing, though about halfway through you'll find yourself grinding your teeth at the obviousness of the connections. However, Colfer still does give some nice and interesting surprises, and the book is certainly an enjoyable way to pass an afternoon.

For hardcore Artemis fans expecting the whirlwind journeys we know and love, and espionage on a worldwide scale, just be forewarned that it's not as epic as his other books. But for everyone else, go on, have a read.