MY SIX BEST BOOKS

IRISH author Eoin, 54, is best known for his Artemis Fowl series. His first adult fantasy novel Highfire (Jo Fletcher Books, £16.99) is published on Tuesday.

PETER PAN by JM Barrie

(Macmillan Collectors, £10.99)

This featured the greatest villain I’d ever read. Captain Hook made this book for me. I always try and live up to him and create a villain that good.

THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY by Douglas Adams

(Pan, £8.99)

Up until this, fantasy had been very worthy and generally involved a great plan or possibly a prophecy. Hitchhiker’s came along and it was the funniest book ever written.

THE TALENTED MR RIPLEY by Patricia Highsmith

(Vintage, £8.99)

She showed you could take a bad guy and make him the leading man. I didn’t think it was possible to have sympathy for such a horrible person but you find yourself wanting this murdering conman to succeed.

FRANKENSTEIN by Mary Shelley

(Penguin Classics, £5.99)

At once a fantastic character, a horror story and also the first sci-fi novel ever written. The irony was the real monster was Victor Frankenstein.

THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS by Frank Miller

(DC Comics, £15.99)

The Dark Knight revolutionised what could be done with a graphic novel and inspired the dark, moody Batman that we’ve seen on cinema screens ever since.

THE COMPLETE BRIGADIER GERARD by Arthur Conan Doyle

(Canongate Classics, £9.99)

A series of comic short stories about Conan Doyle’s lesserknown hero.

In his mind he’s the world’s finest hussar, swordsman and lover. In reality he prances through the NapoleonicWars escaping death and disgrace by pure chance.