Rating: Summary: GOOD BUT Review: Like many people, I discovered Dan Brown through The Da Vinci Code. So when my Page Turners Book Club picked Angels & Demons as our March read, I was excited to read another book by this author. As much as I enjoyed the just-one-more-page-before-I-turn-out-the-light qualities of this book I still prefer The Da Vinci Code. Angels & Demons is the prequel for The Da Vinci Code and I could truly see Brown's growth as a writer in his later work. I would consider his plotting skills in Angels & Demons good, but by the time he went on to write The Da Vinci Code I believe they were perfected. Angels & Demons still possesses the page turning, fast paced plotting present in The Da Vinci Code. However, in my opinion, some of the plot twists, while being thoroughly entertaining, were also entirely unbelievable. I don't believe that fiction needs to be exactly like real life, but I can only suspend disbelief so far without falling out of the story. If this was your first Dan Brown, and you enjoyed this one, I would highly recommend picking up a copy of The Da Vinci Code. If you've already read The Da Vinci Code, you'll probably like this one too, just know before you begin that you've already read the best, now you're going back for the rest. You might also want to check out "A TOURIST IN THE YUCATAN" fun thriller.
Rating: Summary: I enjoyed it until the end Review: Of course it wasn't as good as the DVC... but I like his style of writing. His books are easy reads. Twists and turns and all that good stuff (even though some were predictable), BUT I didn't enjoy the end! I thought it was too far fetch, and it left me feeling sad (for the camerlengo). Overall it was a good book, (until the end).
Rating: Summary: You Must be Kidding Review: It's astonishing that this is currently one of the biggest bestsellers in the world. It's a formula (Ludlum, Cussler, Clancy) and no better. It's a pageturner only in the sense that you wonder just where will this silly story go. If you want to read something that is well written, full of surprises and a mystery, buy anything by Arturo Perez Reverte. This book doesn't even reach the level of a good beach read. A waste of time.
Rating: Summary: Great Plot, similiar to Davinci Code Review: This book is full of twist and turns in which i really love...however, after reading this book, I started on the Da Vinci code, and disappointed on how similar the background of the characters are....Dan Brown, you writing is awesome but I would love to see more different plot lines.
Rating: Summary: God Awful Review: This is the first book I have ever chucked across the room in frustration. After reading the Da Vinci Code, I figured I was in for more of the same. I can't stand Dan Brown's writing style, but enjoyed the plot and factual background of the story. Angels and Demons has about half the historical and factual background as the DVC, and the plot is a million times more ridiculous. Too many twists and turns. I'm all for poetic license, and can shrug my shoulders at a few "well that would never REALLY happen" moments, but this book is just silly.
Rating: Summary: Some books are made in the end... Review: ... and some are broken. The book's strengths (excellent pacing for much of the first half, an astonishing level of attention to detail of art and architecture) are overpowered in the climax by a series of questionable coincidences concocted to make the implausible conclusion have any sense of narrative cohesion. This isn't Tom Clancy, where you can suspend disbelief and pretend that one man can indeed stop nuclear war if only he is on the telephone at the correct time, no, it beggars the imagination. For a book which seems impressively researched, there are errors in Catholic theology (from who is eligible to be elected Pope to the Church's rationale for celibacy) and particle physics (too numerous to mention) which could have been caught by running the text past one of the undergraduate students of the main character. Profoundly disappointing.
Rating: Summary: Not as interesting as Da Vinci Code Review: I read The Da Vinci Code first and loved it so I thought that this one would be as good. It is only exciting in the middle fifth of the book. The beginning drags on and on with too much "set up" before the action starts. The ending is completely impossible and then, after the climax of the plot, it rambles on and on for about 50 more pages. It was disappointingly boring.
Rating: Summary: Angelic & Devilish! Review: I really, really enjoyed this book very much. I am not a very easy person to impress and frankly I hardly read any fiction these days...especially mass market fiction. More often than not I just end up throwing it down a quarter of the way into it because it's either boring or predictable (this includes Deception Point also written by Dan Brown). If this book had not been on sale I probably would not have touched it. But I am glad that I did. I found Angels and Demons to be a compelling read and very hard to put down. In fact I loved it so much that I bought several copies and have added it to my list of all time favorite books. It was straightforward and intelligently written without being pretentious or verbose. It's obvious that Dan Brown likes the written word. But unlike other authors I did not feel that I was reading a pretentious tome where the author was trying to show off to the reader, his knowledge or how many degree s/he had. It could have easily been made into a 1000 page plus door stopper with useless material that did not add anything to the story. But to Dan Brown's credit he just stuck with what was necessary. There was nothing superfluous in this book. But at the same time it was very intelligent. It was well paced, and things went smoothly from point to point. Idea to idea. You sort of get the idea of that the book was written with a TV or big screen movie in mind. Right down to where the heroine (beautiful of course) spends virtually the entire book outfitted in shorts and a tank top. I found the protagonist Robert Langdon to be quite well written and interesting. It was nice to see an "intellectual" hero who wasn't quite the hopeless nebbish nerd. More to the point he was quite likable. And unlike Corso in the Club Dumas, I wasn't made to believe that this a man like that would really have a beautiful woman throw herself at him. I also liked the heroine Vittoria. For once it was nice to read a story about a man and a woman working together without having it turn into a Harlequin like romance or a sexual escapade. I liked the way Langdon's and Vittoria's worked together without the overt sexual shenanigans. One of the things that surprised me was Browns treatment of the Church...or to be more precise Christianity. Unlike many of his contemporaries Brown did not use his book as an opportunity to take pot shots at Christians or the Church or ridicule it. In fact several portions of the book show what a boon the Christian faith has had on the characters lives. It was as if Brown was showing that one could both be a person of faith and a person of science. The scientists and their mean narrow minded condemnation of faith came off worse of all in this book. Especially in one instance where a group of scientists rejoice when a cardinal is murdered. I also liked the construction of the Illuminati...considering the modern times we live in, the attack on people of faith I had to wonder if they really do exist. Unlike some other reviewers I saw nothing against the "Church". If it was against anything it was against the strict adherence to tradition and legalism. As a Protestant I already know that Christianity is about having a personal relationship with God. Not a stone building and rituals. Finally to address the negative reviews. I found most of the negative reviews towards this book to be rather specious and petty if not a trifle arrogant. I find it hard to take seriously reviews by people who question the intelligence of others or accuse others of not "having read much" because they enjoyed a book less than a bit credible to say the least. I love reading the classics as much as the next person. And I still think that Angels and Demons is a wonderful book. I will concede that the end was remarkably over the top. It was as if Dan Brown had this great idea for a book but he was not certain how he should end it. And yes the end did stretch ones level of credulity. The action scenes appeared to go on for a bit too long. But since most of the book was such a page turner I am willing to forgive him for that. In fact I This book is for people who like a well paced, intelligent story and recognize if for what it is. A good yarn. Dan Brown has managed to make me do something I haven't done in years. Read a mass market fiction book from cover to cover in no time flat!!
Rating: Summary: Brown takes on the Church and Science simultaneously. Review: I must admit that picking up ANGELS AND DEMONS after reading THE DA VINCI CODE presented Dan Brown with the unenviable task of great expectations for this reviewer. While DA VINCI still garners disparate reviews, it is a very well told story. In any event, with the bar set so high, A&D had a veritable mountain to climb. While plausibility comes into serious play at the book's climax, the storyline and style crescendos were fabulous...this seems to be a quality Dan Brown enjoys to his benefit. For those who have read these books in reverse order (like me), the reader is reintroduced to Robert Langdon, the Harvard symbologist and hero of DA VINCI. The shrill ring of his telephone awakens Langdon in the wee hours of the morning only to be slapped with what Langdon feels is a prank call. As he has his morning tea, he receives a fax with a symbol; a symbol that chills his blood and makes him realize the earlier phone call was anything but a prank. A little known albeit preeminent physicist, Leonardo Vetra, is on a laser-focused mission to bridge the omnipresent chasm between science and religion. As a senior resident physicist at Switzerland's renowned Consiel European pour la Recherché Nucleaire (CERN), Vetra, also a closeted Catholic priest, has discovered how to produce antimatter, considered the most powerful element known to man (think of Star Trek). However, before he has completed his investigation and research into its appropriate use, Vetra is found murdered in his own apartment on the CERN campus. CERN's emotionless director, Max Kohler, has called on Langdon as Vetra's body has been mutilated and branded, branded with the ancient and esoteric symbol of the Illuminati. As Langdon attempts to piece together this bizarre and macabre scene, he meets Vetra's daughter, Vittoria, also a CERN scientist. Vittoria, grief-stricken yet determined to find her father's killer, informs Langdon and Kohler of the antimatter experiments only to find that a larger container of antimatter is missing. The killer has somehow gained entrance into the bowels of CERN in the super secure facility where the Vetras were performing their antimatter experiments. The killer, ostensibly a member of the Illuminati, has left a message claiming that he deposited the antimatter somewhere within Vatican City, where the cardinals have gathered to select a new pope to replace the recently deceased pope. Vittoria explains that the stolen sample will not only eradicate all of Vatican City but a great portion of Rome itself! Langdon and Vittoria make their way to Rome in an effort to divine their way to the killer, recover the antimatter, and save a great part of the Catholic priesthood. While A&D has a heady plot, Brown provides well-described explanations of the symbology, science, and religious overtones. Short of being a religious scholar, it is difficult for the layperson to discern fact from fiction however, Brown provides credible detail leading the reader to believe the veracity of the presented "facts." As with DA VINCI, Brown weaves "fact" and fiction in a wonderful blend designed to thrill and shock. Brown then develops further credibility by describing and, at the beginning of the book, mapping, much of the historical detail. For instance, the protocol, practice, and history involved in the selecting a new pope is explained in painful yet readable detail. And, to ensure the dark side receives its due, Brown details the somewhat nefarious brotherhood of the Illuminati. While certain visuals in the climax left me somewhat dubious, Brown has crafted yet another powerful yet controversial novel sure to whet the appetites of many. A very good read and certainly recommended.
Rating: Summary: LUVED IT!!!!!! Review: I read the Da vinci code and had no choice but to read Angels and Deamons. and guess what, i loved it. I'm only thirteen, but i read like any adult, and this is one of the greatest books of all time. i would steer you away from this author if your christian though. lucky for me, i'm not, so i wasn't at all offended by these books, and could simply enjoy them!!!
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