Rating: 
Summary: movie paced with no real depth
Review: A decent story. At times Browns writing can be almost hardcore sci-fi and other times its amateurish. If the characters seem like their at a dead end you can always expect the word 'suddenly' to pop up. "Robert is stuck with no where to go.But Suddenly, he finds a magic key in his pocket"... I was thrilled at the end of the story, I swore I knew who would end up being the bad guy, but as if Brown felt insecure with the climax he went on and on. Almost trying to justify the end so that he would not offend anyones faith with the conclusion. If you like movies you'll love this book but dont expect anything too captivating.
Rating: 
Summary: Genuinely terrible
Review: Clumsy writing, no real characterizations, and a plot that is nothing but unmotivated turns and twists. Skip it, skip it, skip it.
Rating:
Summary: The one before "The Da Vinci Code."
Review: Before "The Da Vinci Code" became a runaway bestseller and a cultural phenomenon, Dan Brown wrote "Angels & Demons." Both books feature the brilliant Harvard symbologist, Robert Langdon, a man who is good at solving arcane puzzles. Both novels feature deadly conspiracies. In both books, Robert has a female sidekick who is as beautiful as she is brainy. Robert is called away from academia when he receives a mysterious telephone call at five in the morning. The head of CERN, the world's largest scientific research facility, has summoned Robert to see a corpse. An ancient brotherhood, known as the Illuminati, may have resurfaced. They appear to have murdered and branded a renowned physicist, and they are threatening to destroy many other lives in their quest to bring down the Catholic Church. Robert, along with Vittoria Vetra, daughter of the slain scientist, must retrace the path of the Illuminati in an effort to save lives before the villains can complete their deadly mission. Robert's knowledge of symbology and iconology lead him to the Vatican archives, where he unearths ancient documents with important clues. The novel is basically a race against time. Will Robert decipher the hidden clues in time to foil the Illuminati? I have several problems with "Angels & Demons," as I did with "The Da Vinci Code." The sole aspect of this book that is compelling is the obscure information about science and art. The characters and dialogue are wooden, and the plot is formulaic melodrama. The twists and turns at the end come very far out of left field. At almost six hundred pages, the book is far too long and repetitious. One particularly irksome habit is Brown's constant use of italics and exclamation points for emphasis. This device wears thin very quickly. Although this series has undoubtedly captured the public's imagination, Brown lacks the narrative skills to bring his ideas to three-dimensional life in a work of fiction.
Rating: 
Summary: Fact or Fiction - Either way it's pretty good
Review: In Angels and Demons, Dan Brown spins a pretty good yarn by mingling historical fact, fiction, some speculation, and some good story telling. As you will undoubtedly find by reading the reviews posted here, the book is, of course, not perfect in every sense ...but, which ones are? In ways reminiscent of older Michael Crichton books, Brown covers a lot of ground historically, technically, and in a more subtle way, metaphysically. What is interesting is the way in which the prodigious amount of factual detail is presented. It is almost always introduced by the varied characters, in support of their even more varied agendas. In light of this resultant point of view, the character's 'facts' can be perceived as skewed, even flawed. That's part of what makes these characters and by extension this book fun to read. The mostly believable characters are not hollow representations spewing encyclopedic, impossible to refute, historical facts. They move the story along at a near perfect pace by presenting their case, their facts, viewed through the prism of their own experiences in support of their ultimate, sometimes hidden goals. It is left for the reader to weigh their motivations and determine the accuracy of their information. I think some reviewers confuse the characters' point of view with Brown's endorsement of the accuracy of their assertions. A lot of this detail is controversial as you would expect prompting some to brand it inaccurate at best or even propagandist in the extreme. Interestingly enough some of the details as presented in Angels and Demons and the Da Vinci Code are at odds with one another. For example: the historical role of the Illuminati vs. the Freemasons. Is it possible Brown got the same details wrong twice? Or is it really that the characters have differing views on the same pieces of historical detail? My criticism of this book (which some may see as a plus) is that it is very similar to the Da Vinci Code in just about every structural way. The basic premise is different but executed in the same fashion as its ancestor. The protagonist, the same Langdon from the 'Code, meets up with just about the same characters, albeit with different names, come to some startling similar conclusions en route to temporarily cracking some age old mysteries. All in all Angels and Demons is a thoroughly enjoyable work of fiction. A beautiful by-product of which is that its themes may pique reader's intellect enough to invite them to perform additional research and heaven forbid read some actual history books.
Rating: 
Summary: I HAVE STOPPED READING AFTER THE FIRST 24 PAGES
Review: Alright you have to help me out on this one.... but let me begin at the beginning. I read the recent USA Today overview of Dan Brown and the so hot THE DA VINCI CODE and was struck by the description of the book being full of factual information.... about art, secret organizations and so forth... I thought "wow, this is the kind of historical book I might like". When I went to the book store (sorry Amazon but sometimes you have to scratch your book itch in person!) I learned that Dan Brown's earlier novel ANGELS & DEMONS introduced the symbologist Robert Langdon and might be a good place to start the story so to speak (and the fact it was available as a less expensive paperback helped also). I looked forward to a really good read and hoped to high heaven that there would not be a silly factual mistake or something of some such nature to make me regret my purchase (I find that if I discover something "dumb" in the first 25 or 30 pages of a book I just can't keep going forward). Well I have to tell you this book presented a "dumb" and "counter-factual" thing right off the bat.... Is it just me or did anyone else feel the same way? I mean couldn't our hero be sent a plain old executive jet for his flight to CERN? Did Brown have to have CERN send him a Boeing X-33 HSCT (a prototype to boot) that flies at 11,000 miles a hour? Do you know the kind of support equipment that would be needed at Logan airport for this thing? Do you know the kind of stir it would cause if it landed there? Every aviation nut in the world would be there in a minute. And only one pilot? You would make such a important flight to pick up this hot shot Harvard guy and send only one pilot?.... and he plays country music?...AND he hops out of the plane in Switzerland to give Langdon a ride to CERN himself? No car to pick him up? And Langdon makes reference several times to the planes GANGPLANK.... what is this thing a pirate ship? I'm sure NORAD would love a 11,000 MPH plane flying at 60,000 feet to make it's way into Logan.... that wouldn't draw any attention I'm sure. All right I will get off my high horse.... I am probably letting facts get in the way of a good story. I just find it so incredible that a story teller would start off this way... and for no real reason. The story would be so much more believable if Langdon made his way to CERN in a much more conventional way. Most of what I have read so far (to page 24) just doesn't ring true... so how am I to believe what follows? Am I the only one who sees this? Am I being to demanding of this thriller? Anyway.... I need someone to reply to my review and assure me that this book gets much better (and more factual). Shall I continue or does other "unbelievable" things come along? I can handle adventure and fast changing action and maybe even some improbable (but possible) events but honestly so far I am not impressed.... I was looking for something written with some brains (as the U.S.A. Today story hinted) but if the rest of the book is like the first 24 pages.... well I think I will be looking for something else to read. If THE DA VINCI CODE is written with the same lack of realism as the first 24 pages of this earlier book presents then I am hiring a literary agent and starting my new novel right away (I think I would like to go for the hard cover sales record also!)
Rating:
Summary: Good Thrills But Inherently Flawed Novel
Review: I always enjoy good thrillers, especially ones that involve conspiracies and nefarious plots; indeed the best ones can wrest you from your world into theirs, suspending your incredulity and logic as the story weaves its way towards its end. Dan Brown's 'Angels and Demons', however, is not one of them. The biggest disappointment are the inconsistent and irrational characters that Mr. Brown has created. This obviously isn't supposed to be a character-based novel but still it is difficult to be swept away by the story when you feel that the hero, supposedly intelligent because of his Harvard affiliation, is so obtuse that he doesn't seem to learn from his mistakes when facing the Hassassin, or when the heroine, supposedly Italian and a physicist, speaks in American lingo and worse, spouts hackneyed lines. Characters make the story and it was a disappointment that this is Mr. Brown's biggest weakness. However, what about his strength of weaving historical facts into an engrossing story? I was impressed by the facts and how Mr. Brown's imagination wove them into this still thrilling story. Nonetheless, the book should have ended at page 250 and not 430. A reader cannot suspend belief when he is always so conscious of how the author is trying too hard to craft "ingenious" twists and when these twists are so trite and predictable. This would have been a better book if it wasn't so laboriously hackneyed. I hope the infamous Da Vinci Code is better, though I'm now a little hesitant to pick it up at the bookstore.
Rating: 
Summary: Brilliant
Review: Similar to others, I too have become a Dan Brown fan since "The Divinci Code" This book had me on the edge of my seat anticipating every move Langdon made. I do not look at this book for any historical or religious facts, those that are reading this have to keep in mind that the book is still fiction. Brown is a brilliant author and I applaud is imagination and his intellect, to combine the two is amazing.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect blend of fiction of facts!!
Review: In Angels and Demons, Professor Robert Langdon is thrust into a world of intrigue and peril as he tries to solve the mystery of the Illuminati and save the Vatican. A page turning story that has a wonderful twist at the end! A not-to-be missed prelude to The DaVinci Code. Dan Brown's Angels and Demons offers up something for everyone. A great story with life and death drama, along with a well researched amount of science, art and history.
Rating:
Summary: fun to read but full of inaccuracies
Review: If Brown had only taken a bit more trouble in his research the book would have been a lot better. But statements to the effect that hatha yoga is a Buddhist practice, that Henry Wallace "sold the design of the Great Seal to the President" (actually, he put it on the dollar -- it was designed in the 1700's), and that the motto "Novus Ordo Seclorum" means "New Secular Order" (it means "New Order for the Ages") mar the book, as do numerious factual errors about physics. Why a person with so much imagination would not take the trouble to do research easily obtained via the Internet is beyond me. If you want to see how fact and myth are artfully combined, read Foucault's Pendulum. It has the Masons et al neatly tied together with great style. But Brown's book is fun to read if you can get past the howlers.
Rating:
Summary: 4 1/2 Stars...The Answer is Two-Fold
Review: Like many others, I found this book after racing through "The Da Vinci Code." I wondered if Dan Brown was a consistent thriller writer, or if he had come up with just one great idea. The answer is two-fold. Yes, in "Angels and Demons" Brown shows that he has the chops to write consistently fast-paced thrillers, with intriguing historical tie-ins. Instead of dealing with the Knights Templar and the Holy Grail, this time he tackles the Illuminati and their anti-religious zeal. When a scientist is murdered and branded with an ancient anagram, our old friend Robert Langdon is dragged into a serpentine scheme to undermine the foundations of Catholicism. As always, Brown divvies out his facts and plot twists with perfect timing. He gives little time to breathe, but offers tidbits of character development that keep us caring about Langdon--even if only on a peripheral level. Ultimately, though, this book stumbles under its own weight. It could've ended a hundred pages earlier and been a tighter, more believable novel. Instead, Brown goes for broke...and leaves us feeling a little over/under-whelmed. He makes some fascinating arguments for the value of spiritual and moral existence, while also diluting these ideas with pantheistic mumbo-jumbo. According to the author himself, the next Langdon book will delve into the secrets of the Masons. I'll be quick to pick up a copy. I won't be reading it to find out universal truths, but I will love every minute of Brown's superb storytelling fervor.
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