Rating: 
Summary: What a bad book!
Review: I have never in my life read such an inaccurate and anti-catholic book in my life. The book's plot mainly focuses on the anti-catholic 'brotherhood' called illuminati, which is still well and alive today (according to the cover of the book (...)! They have apparently infiltrated about every organized institution known to man and are now ready to blow up (quite literally) the Vatican City. The book is grossly unrealistic and is not backed by anything real (...). Dan Brown claims not to be a conspiracy theorist nor an anti-Catholic himself (he even goes as far as to claim that he is a Catholic himself!) but in reality the book delves into the world of conspiracy more than the entire 6 seasons of the X-files and he (or his NON-CATHOLIC lead character in the book and other characters) hate the Christian organization, the Pope and everyone who has the slightest affliction with the church more than Hitler hated the Jews! The only Catholic priest who doesn't have ties with the Vatican City is killed in the first chapter! The most harmful thing in this book that it claims to be pure fact, along with this supposed secret brotherhood and all the dirty secrets Brown uncovers about the church; really, his quest to disprove and invalidate every doctrine the Church has ever put forward is disgusting. It is true, some people cannot just accept the truth; there is no secret brotherhood, the Church is not corrupt and that Jesus was in fact divine (Refer to the Da Vinci Code) but must find some hidden meaning which is not there. Brown, who himself has stated that he does believe in these things, is a troubled man and this propaganda (which is conveniently presented as a harmless little story) is truly hazardous.
Rating: 
Summary: mildly entertaining... for people who enjoy bad writing
Review: The book is written in such a poor format that nearly every chapter ends with a "surprise" fact which any semi-intelligent person can figure out. On a few occasions, words like "Art" even have their own paragraph. You will find phrases such as "despite the satisfaction in his loins" in some of the most terribly done chapters I've read. The characterization is completely flat, the plot is predictable, and the author obviously had no confidence in the reader's capacity to think.I gave this two stars because the book was just that funny. Also, some of the scientific discussion, although painfully slow-paced, has interesting theories.
Rating:
Summary: not worth it
Review: If you read "The Davinci Code" first, don't waste your time with this one. I thought it would give me more insight on the characters of "The Davinci Code", and it didn't. It is the exact same plot as DC with a different setting and characters. It will truly spoil any love you have for DC and give you a very low opinion of the author who has actually written some good books. So I beg you not to destroy your mind with this crap. And, Dan Brown, do us all a favor and write and original story for once.
Rating: 
Summary: lives up to expectations after reading DaVinci Code
Review: I almost skipped this book because of the bad reviews and the "inaccuracies" chronicled on this site. I was surprised to learn, however, that the book is quite good. Many reviewers here have talked about the so-called inaccuracies. My reply is, give it a rest! It is a work of fiction! Some of the 'inaccuracies' pointed out by others: 1) Yoga is hindu, not Buddhist as written in the book - that is true, but Brown talks about Hatha yoga, which to my knowledge actually is Buddhist. 2) Great Seal (the pyramid with the eye) was created by Wallace, the vice-president of FDR, when it was actually created by Ben Franklin and other founding fathers - yes, it was created by the founding fathers, but it wasn't included on the dollar bill until Wallace convinced FDR to do so. 3) Hashasins had nothing to do with Christianity - yes, they had other agendas, but as muslims they did have animosity towards the Catholic Church. If you are going to criticise these trifles, you need to be more careful about what Brown is actually stating. Anyway, it is just fiction, so take it easy and enjoy. For those of you who enjoyed Da Vinci Code, I am quite sure you will enjoy this.
Rating:
Summary: I want my money back
Review: I went into the book store and asked for a recomendation. I told the sales person that I do not enjoy mindless books for the mass public. She then picks up exactly that. If you're only looking to read because you want to look smart, well this is the book for you. However if you are an evenly remotely intelligent person avoid this pseudo-litature at all cost. The author pretends that he did all his research but if you are at all educated you can see right through it. This book is written for a lowest common denominator audience. The author even assumes that the reader wouldn't know basic facts about major historical figures. If you enjoy Vin Diesel movies then pick up this book, rather yet just wait for him to star in the movie version and stop reading so I can avoid getting recomended books that are only being writen because of you.
Rating:
Summary: Finally it's over.
Review: I do not usually write reviews, but this book pushed me over the edge. I am not going to question Mr. Browns accuracy about religious, scientific facts. While I was reading this book, I felt that Mr. Brown has a template with a few blanks in it. In case of Angels & Demons this blanks were filled with 'antimatter', later on, using global Microsoft Words find and replace we get DaVinci Code where blanks were filled with 'Holly Grail'. The ending is absolutely insane.
Rating:
Summary: interesting at times, but not worth the effort
Review: I found Angels and Demons to be a frustrating experience. At times I enjoyed it, finding the action interesting. But for the most part, this book was very poorly written, and worth your time only if you have nothing better to do. Dan Brown seems like a smart man. He has clearly researched a great deal of what he discusses and, like Michael Crichton, tries to get as much of that knowledge into the book. His descriptions of Rome and the Vatican were believable, and at times captivating. When it comes to plot, Brown seems capable. It is when one gets to every other aspect of the writer's craft; character, mood, etc., that Brown comes up short. His characters are two dimensional at best, with one of his villians being so ham-fistedly taken from central casting as to be laughable. His attempts to describe the characters' reactions to various events are clumsy and repatative. While he seems smart enough to come up with an interesting plot, he does not have the tools necessary to make the characters involved in that plot people you care about. If you have time to kill, and nothing else on hand, Angels and Demons may help fill the hours. If you've got other options though, go with those. This is a book worth missing.
Rating:
Summary: Get the Physics Right Next Time
Review: A novel about reconciling science and religion would be worthwhile, but you need to get the science right or at least plausible. I ran into a dozen "Give me a breaks" before I put this book down in disgust. Some of these are that gravity is 30% less at 60,000 feet (it's 0.3% less), using tuna to disprove the theory of relativity, and making antimatter proves God's existence (physicists have know about antimatter since the 1920s and first made antiprotons in the 1950s). Despite thanking CERN and Brookhaven in the acknowledgements, it's clear that Mr. Brown didn't have a physicist or even a high school physics student proofread this book.
Rating:
Summary: what a joke
Review: This may be the worst book I have ever read. Dan Brown set up his main character as a Harvard professor, world renowned in the field of symbology, thus making inexcusable the huge number of factual errors in the narrative. An example: the rite of the Holy Eucharist is based on Aztec ceremony. Even setting aside the issue of Europeans not knowing about the Aztecs until the 16th century, there's the little issue of Christianity predating Aztec civilization. Because the story hinges on the character's knowledge, these factual errors diminish his credibility and make the story fall apart. Also, in the beginning of the book the author states that all references to works of art and their exact locations are correct. I would submit that this is deliberately misleading; I consider history of the work of art to be a reference to that work, and I find it very hard to believe that these works were created for the reasons the story claims they were. The only reason I finished this book is that sharing the gems of badness with friends and family was so amusing.
Rating:
Summary: Fell apart near the end
Review: I can't ever recall reading a book before that I stopped reading 20 pages before the ending. After a couple of weeks, I picked it up again, just to finish it. But this book falls apart badly once the (easily guessable) final twist is revealed. I was also a little miffed at the mention of a "Jewish" connection to his fictional illuminati story, and the use of the name "Olivetti" (a Jewish Italian name) for one of the protagonists. Dan Brown doesn't need to fan the flames of antisemitism, even in a fictional story. And another thing: Since when do cell phones have "dial tones." He makes reference to this about four times in the book. I can suspend my disbelief as well as anyone, but c'mon now!
| 
