Rating: Summary: Highly Recommended! Review: My new favorite modern author! Fast-paced, exciting, and very informative! Looking forward to Da Vinci Code!
Rating: Summary: Exciting mystery Review: After reading and enjoying the best selling 'Da Vinci Code' I was hoping this book would be as an exciting read. It basically was the same type of novel with the same type of suspense and I wasn't disappointed.While Brown's writing style is not classical literature by any means, and sometimes borders the obscenely ridiculous, it is fast paced and action filled and I can't seem to stop turning the pages until I get to the conclusion of the mystery he lays out from page one. While my high rating doesn't mean I rate this as being on par with some of the other genres I read, this book certainly ranks on the top of the pile with others in it's type. Look past some of the obvious "that could never happen" moments, and just enjoy the quick and exciting mystery for what it is and you'll probably feel the same way.
Rating: Summary: I haven't read the DaVinci Code yet, but I will after this Review: I would highly recommend this suspenseful read.....though not if you have a queasy stomach (some scenes are pretty graphic). I picked this up at the airport, expecting the usual fluff, and I was more than pleasantly surprised. I literally could not put it down! With twists from beginning to end, this book incorporates a traditional murder mystery with a fascinating exploration of terrorism, human nature, and the complexities of modern religion. If you're an art history buff, the main character's pursuit of evil based on clues left by Bernini is an added bonus.
Rating: Summary: Can there be a thing as too much drama??? Review: Dan Brown's Angels and Demons is just packed with too much! Too much drama, too much symbolism, too much vatican, too much of Robert Langdon's ridiculously bad diaglogue. Now, don't get me wrong...I did not hate the book...what I hate is that a book has tremendous potential and is ruined by the "over the top" drama better suited to the Harlequin Romance novels. Angels and Demons isn't a bad read, if you're into this type of novel. It has tremendous loopholes, but provides the reader with nail biting suspense, intricate plots, and some lustful moments between the main characters. Cudo's to Mr. Brown for his research and imagination. The Illuminati is an intriguing subject and the secrecy surrounding the papacy and the Vatican library and it's contents certianly makes this book interesting. The premise that antimatter could be stolen and used for terroristic purposes is original and frightening in these times. In the end, Angels and Demons is a novel that entertains the way a good B movie does. There is nothing wrong with that, but frustrating to see the potential for so much more.
Rating: Summary: A Great Read... Review: Although this title actually came before The Da Vinci Code, made people get around to reading it following it. This is the first of Dan Brown's books to employ Robert Langdon as its main character and although not quite up to the level of Da Vinci Code, it is very close. The pace is fast -- I read the book in two days -- and the excitement high. If you like intelligent thrillers and liked the Da Vinci Code, you will love this book. If you haven't read the Da Vinci Code yet, even better -- start here and read both back to back!
Rating: Summary: And I didn't even know the pope *had* a kitchen sink... Review: Rather than shell out goodbucks for DaVinci Code, I decided to sample Mr. Brown in softcover first. Now I can understand, more or less, why "Code" has taken the bestseller list by storm. If it's like "Angels & Demons", it isn't worth the adulation it's received, but it's pure fun to read. A beautifully paced thriller, with so many things going on (all but the kitchen sink: multiple secrete societies, geometric and alphabetic and architectural conundrums, particle physics and Renaissance history, secret tunnels and public corpses, all with a papal election and - hmm, is that a cherry on top?) that your head will be turning faster than the pages. That Brown keeps all these dancers twirling on the same stage without losing the beat bespeaks an impressive skill. Plus, enough of the subthemes (that architecture, those quickie physics lessons in the CERN basement) have a tincture of the intellectual about them to add considerable snob appeal to the mix. Brown doesn't quite get the physics right, which makes me wonder how far to trust some of his other intellectually dazzling bits. But I sure *felt* smarter reading about them! And why complain, so long as us customers leave feeling satisfied? I also got irritated every now and then by whiffs, sometimes more and sometimes less gentle, of anti-Catholicism. But then, I'm a Protestant; I'd guess most Catholics would be used to this sort of thing and take it in stride; and it certainly didn't add up to outright hostility. Conclusion: I will read DaVinci Code, but I'm more than content to wait for the paperback. So take it to the beach, by all means. And be prepared to stay up so late you miss your morning swim the next day. Just don't expect anything like a religious experience out of it.
Rating: Summary: filth Review: my friend's trash roommate and her hick boyfriend like this book...enough said. this is a poor man's stephen king or nelson demille novel. most of the book has no plot, and when there is, its stupid and unbelievable. if this book had a soundtrack, it would be the polyphonic spree. you really feel stupid after reading this, for 2 reasons. 1-the plot kills brain cells and 2-you think of the money you wasted down the Stop n Shop book aisle (because thats the only place that will sell this!!!) if you are still interested, just wait for the public access movie version of this terrible piece of "literature"
Rating: Summary: Travelling to Rome? Review: ...then you've got to read this book. I just spent 4 days in Rome after having read this book recently. It added so much to my trip to find and examine all the particular places he discussed: churches, fountains, plazas, and a castle. But don't read this book if you have other obligations at hand. I finished it in a 6-hour marathon from 9pm to 3am.
Rating: Summary: A worthy beginning. Review: I, like most people I've talked to, began with "The Da Vinci Code" before reading "Angels and Demons." Both are beyond much of what I've read before, however, "Da Vinci" is the better of the two. "Da Vinci" just felt much more polished. You could feel the convidence of mr. brown as he drove you through the Louve, the swiss bank, and the opus dei building. The plot was much more intriguing and I felt I learned more from the effort than from "Angels." ...But I must stop, because "Angels" is a heck of a good book as well. The book reads like a dream, you seriously cannot put it down as you follow the characters through the catacombs, the partheon, the sistine chapel, and the illuminati headquarters, among others. You learn of the secrets of the ancient Illuminati and what they could possibly have against the Catholic Church. Why they feel it is time to reveal a secret that could ruin its rich history forever, which, brings me to my next point. Why am I such a follower of these books? I am a Christian and disagreed with mr. brown's viewpoints in "Angels" and especially in "da vinci code," and yet I found myself awake at 2 or 3 in the morning, scurrying to find out what happens next. I think it must be the capturing quality that mr. brown imposes on the reader, where he traps you with an intriguing plot and just slowly, but surely, reels you in. His stories are unlike any other because they are about real societies, real brotherhoods, and their real problems with other people of common belief. It is these hatreds he builds on, and researches on, until finally he scribes a marvelous read for the curious to encounter. So join the party, I have a feeling America will want him to stick around for quite some time.
Rating: Summary: Bridges the Gap Review: Not necessarily between angels and demons, but this book and Brown's The Da Vinci Code both effectively bridge the gap between readers of fiction and readers of non-fiction. This is not an easy task. My suspense thriller, EVIL, BE GONE (also available on Amazon.com) has been paired with a couple of Dan Brown's books on this site and although lovers of fiction have gobbled it up, I haven't been able to convince my closest friends who are exclusively non-fiction readers to even pick it up. On the other hand, Dan Brown puts so much historical fact in his novels that even the most die-hard non-fiction readers can enjoy them without feeling guilty. As an author, he demonstrates an incredible commitment to thorough research. I applaud him and I will keep reading his books. You should, too! Robert John Estko (Author of the suspense thriller, EVIL, BE GONE)
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