This is a graduate-level text on algebraic geometry that provides a quick and fully self-contained development of the fundamentals, including all commutative algebra which is used. A taste of the deeper theory is given: some topics, such as local algebra and ramification theory, are treated in depth. The book culminates with a selection of topics from the theory of algebraic curves, including the Riemann-Roch theorem, elliptic curves, the zeta function of a curve over a finite field, and the Riemann hypothesis for elliptic curves.