Marvel Ironman: The Gauntlet

Marvel Press Novels

by Eoin Colfer

Coming in fall 2016, this year’s Irish Laureate of Children’s Books, and author of the world-renowned “Artemis Fowl” series, novelist Eoin Colfer will present an electrifying new take on the Marvel universe’s most famous billionaire super hero, Tony Stark, in a towering tale of armour and adventure in a brand new Iron Man story.

Genres: Marvel, Young Adult, Superheroes, Middle Grade, Fiction, Science Fiction, Fantasy

288 pages, Paperback

First published October 25, 2016

About the author

Eoin Colfer (pronounced Owen) was born in Wexford on the South-East coast of Ireland in 1965, where he and his four brothers were brought up by his father and mother, who were both educators.

He received his degree from Dublin University and began teaching primary school in Wexford. He has lived and worked all over the world, including Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Italy. After the publication of the Artemis Fowl novels, Eoin retired from teaching and now writes full time. He lives in Ireland with his wife and two children.

Reviews

[Khurram · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book more than I though I would. Yes it is aimed at younger readers but that is ok, as usually this just mean there is less swearing in the book. As Eoin Colfer's says he see himself as a bit of a wise guy, and Tony Stark is definitely a wise guy, so this works very well for him writing the character. He also sets the story in Ireland, and the other main characters are Irish. So he plays to his strengths nothing wrong with that at all.

Even though this is an Iron Man story Tony Stark has lot of time outside the amour, I do like the way Tony and ProtoTony's interaction. It is like looking into the mirror that also talks back. There are a couple of changes like the main villain's powers are technology based rather than magical. I am a little unsure about Eoin use of constantly tying up loose ends in the same chapter. An example is the character is in trouble then on the next couple of lines we are told that when Tony discusses it with Roodhy in a few weeks they end up wrestling. It kind of takes away from the moment as I already know the character will be ok (I know that subconsciously, but don't need it reinforced at this time). Also they the character have a habit of thinking something they saying it out loud a little while later. However this can all be put aside as the story is very good, and as great use of technology which has to be there in an Iron man book.

Tony Stark, despite his public image is trying the "clean up" all the Stark weapons still out there on the black market. Publicly he also make appearances at Rock shows, and summits, in amour of course. However on the way to a said an even he flies into a trap his amour is hijacked, and he himself is challenged to mortal combat by his nemesis. Can he survive, get his amour back, and stop an international terrorist? A good and enjoyable book. I especially like Tony's anti-charm tactics, I would be interested to read Eoin Clofer take on Iron Man again or is he decided a certain wisecracking wall crawlier.

[Abdollah zarei · Rating 3 out of 5]

تونی استارک این داستان بیشتر شبیه به شخصیت کمیک مجموعه مردآهنیه تا فیلم های سینمایی اون. همون تونی استارک زبون باز با تیکه ها و متلک های ممعروفش. کالفر داستان عامه پسندی برای نوجوانانِ دوستدار مردآهنی نوشته و تا جای ممکن شخصیت مغرور, باهوش, پولدار و البته دخترباز استارک رو خوب پیش برده و به تصویر کشیده. داستان اونقدرها فراز و نشیب و یا راز و رمزی درش نیست. اما بهترین چیز داستان برای من پرداختن به یکی از دشمنان معروف مردآهنی بود که در فیلم ها کمتر دیدیمش

قطعا این کتاب برای هواداران مجموعه مارول سرگرم کننده و دلنشینه

[Jim C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual rating is 3.5 stars.

This is a solo adventure about the Marvel superhero written by the author that has written the terrific Artemis Fowl series. In this one, Iron Man squares off against Mandarin. Don't worry. This Mandarin is much better than the one we saw in Iron Man 3.

This book is a quick read as it is meant for the younger audience. For the most part I enjoyed it but I did think there was something missing. The adventure was fine and one could envision this being part of Iron Man's world. As for the portrayal of Tony Stark, I believed the author tried to capture the essence of the character but something just didn't seem right. I am not sure if the author's portrayal was trying too hard with the dialogue or I am just so use to the portrayal of Tony Stark by Robert Downey Jr. Let's face it. Downey is Iron Man and I just cannot picture someone else's stamp on the character. I also did think there were parts of the story that were streamlined and did affect my enjoyment. This could be the case it being a younger audience novel and I do believe this book could have been fleshed out a little more. The ending battle is terrific and a highlight of this book.

I did like my time reading about one more adventure with this iconic superhero. It wasn't an amazing book and I do think that this adventure could be a terrific animated film. I believe it would work better visually than it does as a written story.

[Stephanie (Bookfever) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly, I don't know how to review this book. First of all, since Eoin Colfer is my favorite author ever I should've read this book ages ago but other books kept coming in between. And then it took me ages to post this review. I know, shame on me! Second, it was so very awesome. Just like I had hoped.

I don't want to get too much into the story because then I'd be giving too much away for sure but I can say that it's partly set on Little Saltee, which is obviously is very familiar (fans of his other books will totally get this!!!). I felt like a lot of Colfer's personality was definitely written into Tony Stark. So you can imagine the snark and wit was so very much on point.

I don't knwo why but I felt like it also had a lot of Artemis Fowl vibes. Another reason why I enjoyed this story so much. It's classic Colfer! I can't tell you enough how many times I laughed out loud. It was really hilarious.

Overall, Iron Man: The Gauntlet was yet another great read by Eoin Colfer. Funny, with a lot of high-tech action as usual and unforgetable and witty characters, it's a must-read for young and old.

[ewondare · Rating 3 out of 5]

کتاب یه سفر قهرمانیه که آیرن‌من، بدون حضور قهرمان‌های دیگه می‌درخشه. کتاب کوتاه و ساده‌ای که می‌شه به راحتی فهمید برای مخاطب جوونه.
نمی‌تونم از چیزی‌ش زیاد گله کنم.عناصر داستانی‌ که من در همه ی داستان‌ها چک می‌کنمشون، به اندازه ی کافی وجود داشتن اما در عین حال، جای خالی یه چیزی مدام حس می‌شد.

نمی‌دونم من بودم یا نه، اما تونی استارکِ به تصویر کشیده شده ی توی این کتاب، کمی با تونی استارک فاصله داره. کنایه‌ها و لحن همیشگی‌ استارک (از مهم‌ترین عامل‌هایی که استارک رو تونی استارک می‌کنن) خیلی کمرنگ بود.

داستان، داستان فوق‌العاده‌ای نبود. از کتاب‌هایی هم نبود که بخوام دوباره برگردم سرش. اما به عنوان یک‌بار خوندن تجربه ی کافی و خوبی بود.

[Golven Leroy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow, that was not very good at all. I was excited to read a book about Iron-Man, but… I couldn’t even finish it. The writing was very poor, I could have started a drinking game where I would take a shot every time the author used the “word” literally. The dialogues felt like conversations between badly programmed NPCs. The characters are just… meh, predictable, they either have no development or it is way too quick, and this version of Tony Stark is pretty obnoxious. Nothing about it the book was “realistic” (as much as sci-fi can be realistic), and the plot did not make sense. The descriptions of the foreign characters were quite unsavory, too. I have read Marvel fan fictions written by teenagers that were much better. I don’t like to stop reading a book in the middle of it, and in this case I was even very close to the end, but… it’s just bad. I’m only giving it 2 stars instead of 1 for the nice hard cover, once you remove the ugly paper cover on top of it. Eesh!

[Stephanie (Reading is Better With Cupcakes) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I should probably start this off by admitting that I have never really watched any of the Marvel movies (including the Iron Man ones and the ones that have Iron Man in them) nor have I read any of the comics or books or all that stuff...

In short, I am more or less an Iron Man noob with very limited knowledge about the guy. It is not to say that I am totally ignorant about the character and have no idea about his personality or anything, I do. I have been in the room while my husband has watched the movies, so I am not TOTALLY clueless. I just know that I am no where near an expert on this character.

So, if I don't know much about this character, why did I want to read this book? Because it was written by Eoin Colfer. He is an author I have enjoyed in the past, so I thought I would get this book and genre a go.

The Gauntlet, in short is about Iron Man (duh!) on one of his adventures. This particular adventure, he is supposed to be going to an eco-summit - but finds that is suit has been hacked and that he is more or less kidnapped. Now he has to make it out and he needs to try to help a young girl get out too.

Oh the stuff that goes on in this book!

All in all, I enjoyed the book well enough. Was it my absolutely favorite? No. But I liked it. I found myself wanting to know what was going to happen next and how.

It really kind of felt like I was reading a movie or something.

Character wise, they were okay. Sometimes they felt a little flat or a little too similar to each other. Eoin Colfer did try to keep true to Tony Stark/Iron Man's personality though. I felt the snarky roll right off the character and the pages. I just wish I could have found a way to connect with the characters.

Also, just a heads up, there is some language use in the book. Not too much, but it is there.

So, for not being a huge Marvel fan by any means, I still found this book to be okay and mostly enjoyable.

My Rating
3.5 Stars

This review is based on an eARC provided by the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Find more of my reviews here:
http://readingwithcupcakes.blogspot.com/

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 1 out of 5]

In recent years, I've seen various movies and television shows featuring Tony Stark as Iron Man, ranging from The Avengers on the big screen to the old-school 1994 animated series on DVD. I've also read various Marvel comics, both in issue and omnibus format.

This pales in comparison to those.

I've enjoyed print novels featuring comic book superheroes before, but, this one lacks the magic of the other ones I've read. If you want to see how a Marvel print novel should be done, read Peter David's adaptation of Spider-Man 2; now that is amazing stuff!

[Jana · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

I really enjoyed seeing the more vulnerable side of Tony Stark in this book because I love that about Iron Man, but the plot itself didn't always manage to capture my attention.

[Dorin Lazăr · Rating 1 out of 5]

It was a struggle to go through the first half; I just couldn't let myself to read the rest of the book. It's too dumbly written; it infantilizes the characters and, worse, the readers as well. So you should probably avoid this book is you're 14 or older, because the book expects you're 8, I guess.

Not much I can say other than *yet another abandoned book*. Pretty sad.

[Jordan Lynch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was actually pretty fun, and I enjoyed seeing Tony get himself into new shenanigans. Colfer gets Tony's snark and pompous attitude just right, and I liked getting to see Tony rely on his brains rather than just on the Iron Man suit.

This book doesn't really fit neatly into the MCU timeline, but it would clearly take place sometime after the events of Iron Man II, what with the real Mandarin being the villain. I actually liked the crew of bad guys he rounded up for this nefarious plot; they were somewhat stereotypical, but they managed to be funny and pretty tough. Of course, their leader was truly a force to be reckoned with, and I was glad that he lived to fight another day.

Friday, or Saoirse, rather, is a fun character, and I loved seeing her pit her intelligence against Tony. I liked it better when they worked together like the two nerds they are, though, and I would love for some sort of little pop-up from her in a later book, since a cameo in one of the movies seems quite unlikely.

Overall, The Gaunlet is a fun, Stark-fueled read filled with lots of techno babble, plenty of attitude, and some flashy heroics--pretty standard for any outing with Tony Stark.

[Kristina · Rating 1 out of 5]

No, just no

[Tony Calder · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would actually give this 3.5/5. This book is written for a younger audience but that really doesn't matter too much for most superhero stories. It is also based more on the MCU and the modern reset of Marvel comics than on the previous 50+ years of Marvel history, but that's not really surprising.

It isn't the Tony Stark or Iron Man that I am familiar with from having read the comics since the 60s, but it is much closer to the Tony Stark / Iron Man from the movies. The story was fun and there isn't really a lot more to say about it.

[jessica ☾ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5 Tony Stark is my absolute favorite character from the MCU of all time, and I think this book did him a decent amount of justice. It’s definitely written for a younger audience but I enjoyed the action and sarcasm all the same.

[Paxton Holley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read to my son. Not bad.

[Roxana Chirilă · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is an Iron Man novel penned by a very famous children's author - and I bet you've never even heard about it before!...

...for a good reason, actually.

I read Eoin Colfer's "Artemis Fowl" and a couple of its sequels a few years ago and fell in love with them. They were fun, creative, funny, and pretty much hit the right spot for me, even with their occasional bathroom humor and such.

Later, I fell in love with the Marvel movies (so many of us have...) and Iron Man was among my favorites - despite Iron Man 2, also known as "fuck, did you really have Tony Stark pee in his suit?"

So, naturally, when I came across "The Gauntlet" in a bookstore, I was surprised. I mean, I haven't been keeping up with Eoin Colfer's work, but you'd think I'd have heard about THIS. I grabbed it, took it home, and a few months later I got around to it, only to be disappointed.

I mean, not as disappointed as when I tried reading the Assassin's Creed books by Oliver Bowden, but still. I'd never heard of Oliver Bowden before, but I knew enough of Colfer to expect more.

"The Gauntlet" reads like a comic book - but not one written by Neil Gaiman, Frank Miller, or any of the greats. It has a decent-ish plot, a lot of pow-bang-boom, some humor (a few jokes feel a bit forced) and little characterization.

I can only assume the story is meant to fit either in the comics universe somewhere, or in that hazy place where comics universes tend to resign, where we know the elements and we can combine the blocks in all sorts of ways, without bothering to tell a single, coherent story.

Tony Stark is off to attend a party, and then an environmental convention on the next day, so he's flying his suit to Ireland. Little does he know that his suit's been hacked and that he's about to be delivered into the hands of his enemy, the Mandarin - who is actually himself in this one, not an actor hired by some other guy who is the REAL bad guy.

The Mandarin is the head of an assassination squad of sorts, and he's been hired to kill the people at the environmental convention in order to further the plan of the eeeeevil unknown people who want to make money at the expense of the planet (or just kill people they dislike). And what he wants to do is frame Iron Man for it. So he needs the suit.

Shenanigans ensue, complete with escapes, running about, lots of fighting, and the good guys winning in the end, but nothing that's likely to blow too many people's minds.

[Angie Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favoritest favorites of the favorite-y favorites!! I've read it like twelve million times. Highly recommend.

[Logan Wise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was a really good book I would suggest reading this if you haven't yet. The plot of the book was an amazing plot, there were many plot twists, and they were very unexpected.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Colfer has captured the snarky genius of Tony Stark and lets him interact with some fun new characters, both real and AI. And there's an overall comic book superhero flavor to the text and the story. But...it's hard to connect with anyone, and the book reads rather like one long chase scene where technology, boosted by coincidences, keeps everyone from really having to think, ponder, and outwit.

[Yusuf · Rating 5 out of 5]

At first glance, It appears to be a childish superhero book, but it is actually much better.
Written by the renowned author, this book has smooth and flowing, great word choice. I highly recommend this awesome iron man novel.

[Lex · Rating 4 out of 5]

I literally never do written reviews but I went into this with zero expectations and as an Iron Man fan I was very surprisingly pleased by it, so I think that warrants actual commentary from me this time.

The audience for this book is definitely skewed younger (though there's way more violence/traumatic injury than I expected for a book I thought was middle grade but which I'd probably actually call YA). The villains all talk like Saturday morning cartoon characters, but you know what? Sometimes that's all you need for superhero hijinks. The pacing is a little quick too at some points, but the dialogue is fun and witty and I genuinely laughed out loud on several occasions.

Colfer seems to actually know some stuff about 616 Tony's lore which is more than most comic writers can say lately. He leans a bit too hard into the "snarky asshole" personality for Tony but at least in text acknowledges it a few times as Tony's public persona so I'll let that slide. But otherwise he does a good job hitting more than just one aspect of Tony's personality, and whether it be coincidence or wiki lookups or actual canon knowledge, it's pretty sad that I'm happy to see SOMEONE out there making reference to stuff like Tony's love of Arthurian legend or even that he doesn't drink anymore, which you think would be common knowledge for anyone working on 616 Iron Man but lol. (I don't think this book is supposed to be 616 canon but it's definitely taking its cues from 616 so I'm considering it that 'verse.)

Anyway, maybe I'm being extra charitable because it's forever "missing pre-2010ish 616 Tony Stark hours" in my head, but as a fan of Colfer's other books too this was a surprisingly enjoyable read.

(Honestly I'd give this book 5 stars solely for the bit where Tony accidentally calls Fury "Dad" but I am already probably too biased in this review.)

[Tracey Dyck · Rating 4 out of 5]

The only other Eoin Colfer book I've read so far is the first Artemis Fowl, which I wasn't wild about. But this one was a fun book, so I'm glad my brother recommended it.

WHAT I LOVED

-Mr. Colfer captured Tony Stark voice wonderfully. I could hear Robert Downey Jr. saying most of Tony's dialogue, in fact, even if some of the quips were laid on a little thick at times.

-The plot was basically a series of showdowns with the Mandarin, and so it felt like one giant 3rd act. Which was an interesting thing in terms of pacing. I think I liked it!

-It takes place in Ireland. That's always a plus for me.

-Lots of humor and one-liners! It kind of reminded me of a Marvel flavored Alex Rider book, and I found myself chuckling out loud a few times.

WHAT I DIDN'T LOVE

-As much as I liked Saoirse (pronounced Seer-sha), I had a hard time "hearing" her Irish accent, for whatever reason.

-I didn't really care about the larger stakes--disrupting a government summit about the environment--but that wasn't too bad, since I did care about Tony and Saoirse.

IN CONCLUSION

If you like Stark's one-liners and want a fast, actiony superhero read, this is a fun little ride! It gets 4 stars from me.

[Adrian Montanez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Iron Man vs The Redhead vs The Mandarin.

Alright, this was a different story from the usual Iron Man stories. It did have the same elements as most Iron Man stories, it was just done in a different way. (Do keep in mind that this book is for younger readers.)

In this story, we see that it's not the armor that makes Iron Man it's Tony Stark. And we get the smart-aleck Eoin Colfer writing the smarta** Tony Stark so you kind of know what you're getting if you've read the Artemis Fowl books. You also get a too smart for her own good redhead and the Mandarin that Iron Man 3 deserved.

That's pretty much all I have for this book. It was a short read and overall, I enjoyed this Iron Man adventure.

3.5 stars out of 5.

[Gbolahan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Awwwwww, 😯, so short!

This was a light fun read. We knew Tony probably wouldn't really die, or come to much permanent harm, sigh, that's the popular super hero genre for you, but, damn, he really went through a lot in this one.
Colfer humour; top notch as usual. There were actual times that I actually LOLed. He does this thing where he shows us a perspective that is ultimately unrelated to the whole story, but is as funny as hell.

I did NOT see the twists coming, damn. Well played, Mr Colfer. Your mind is wonderfully devious.

If your life has been serious and you just want just get away for a while, read this book.

[E · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Pretty good. Believe it or not, I'd never read any of Colfer's books before -- SHAME! FOR SHAME! -- but if this is how he writes, then I'll probably get into his other works. He nailed the Tony Stark I know (ie. from the MCU) so well that it was easy to hear RDJ's voice in my head speaking the lines. This was, by far, the most enjoyable aspect of the book for me. (Also the occasional, rather subtle fourth wall breaking. I love that when done well.)
The plot was kinda enh and there wasn't quite as much action as I would have liked. But if you enjoy Tony's usual snark and are after a decent middle-grade read, give this one a look.

[Nathan Usher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about Tony Stark, who is known worldwide as an inventor, a billionaire and most importantly, Iron Man. Tony is going to somewhere in Dublin when he sees something going on. There is people there when he comes and they take his suit. Can Tony get out alive?

I like this book and I would recommend it for kids who like adventure. I would recommend this book to kids who like the Artemis Fowl series. I like this book because it took somethings from the movie Iron Man and also made up a few things.

[Reetta Saine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Colferin kannattaisi olla varovainen näissä muiden teosten kirjoittamisissa, sillä mopo alkaa karata käsistä pahemman kerran.

Humoristista toimintaa, joka varmasti löytää lukijakuntansa. Voi ottaa mukaan vinkkauksiin juurikaan puhumatta mitään.

[Gabriel Grada · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely insane! Loved the book from the start, it showed the emotions of billionare play boy Tony Stark and took a dive into his past and origin story, whcih ties strongly to who he is present day and creates the outcome of his future.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining Y/A story.

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick and entertaining enough read, but as expected (given that this is geared towards a MG/YA audience) just a bit too juvenile for me.