Rating: 
Summary: Mixed Bag
Review: No question that it is a good exciting read. But, you have to ignore or read over the heavy religious sentiment and "miracles" to enjoy this book, which tend to drag it down. Disappointing after having read "Deception Point" by the same author, which is an outstanding book.
Rating: 
Summary: Another GREATstory from one of America's greatest writers
Review: I have to admit I got hooked on Dan Brown's work purely out of luck. I read The DaVinci Code first, and couldn't put it down. I immediately logged in to Amazon and ordered all his other books. Although I'm not the most religious person, I still found the story captivating and loved the characters. I thought the story dragged just a little in one or two areas, but not enough to detract from the overall power of the story. Dan Brown truly has a gift for taking the reader for a ride they don't want to get off of. Can't wait for his next novel! If you haven't already read his other works, buy them NOW, you won't be sorry later!
Rating:
Summary: Loved The DaVinci Code - this one, not so much.
Review: After reading The DaVinci Code, one of the most entertaining, historically interesting and cleverly written books I've ever read, I was eager to read Angels and Demons. Angels and Demons is a prequel to The DaVinci Code however, the main character is much less likable in Angles and Demons and the writing/story line is less sophisticated. This book is entertaining and interesting in the same vein as The DaVinci Code, but I personally found it to be way too violent and had to put it down about half way through it (could not bear to read about another detailed, gruesome killing!).
Rating: 
Summary: WARNING! Will not work on Pocket PCs
Review: After literally 2 hours of download hassles and reading Adobe's customer support forums, I discovered that the Ebook I purchased from Amazon CANNOT be read on my Pocket PC that has Adobe Acrobat on it! Adobe Acrobat does not support ebooks for Pocket PCs. Amazon's web site should CLEARLY state this fact. I wanted an electronic version of this book that I could easily take with me. I have no intention of reading it at my PC. DO NOT buy this e-book or any other Adobe E-book if you plan to use it on your Windows Pocket PC!
Rating: 
Summary: Angels & Demons
Review: Merely a suggestion: go to Dan Brown's website, he gives you the opportunity to read a 5 or 6 chapter excerpt from each of his books. Then you can actually decide for yourself whether or not you are interested in coming back to Amazon to purchase a book.
Rating:
Summary: Written for the fourth grade
Review: Okay, I want to say that I started reading this book because a friend highly recommended it to me. While the overall synopsis of the plot has merit and could no doubt be turned into a great story - the writing is absolutely abysmal. The characters are shallow, and the reader is dragged through each paragraph like a slack-jawed mouth breather with no sense of deductive reasoning to draw on. Despite the nice plot, I could not finish the book.
Save your money.
Rating:
Summary: Some other Vatican?
Review: The suspense is compelling but Brown can't know much about the modern Roman Catholic church. He asks us to believe the Vatican is worried about having to defend Creationism when the 350-year-old Vatican Observatory is a leading institution of astronomical and cosmological research. For more see http://clavius.as.arizona.edu/vo/ He also asks us to believe reasonably intelligent, educated people know nothing of anti-matter, that ambigrams are mysterious and shocking, and a few other groaners. Of course, I'm going to get right back to reading as soon as I send this.
Rating:
Summary: Suspenseful and Thrilling
Review: The beginning of the book started to fly at first, but then it slowed down so that the reader can set a base of understanding for future reference. The book flows quite well and is surprisingly intense at times. All in all, it was a satisfying book that seemed to be credible for the imaginative minds. Robert Langdon, Harvard University professor and symbologist, is called on the phone by a mysterious man known as Maximillian Kohler. Kohler is the director of a huge scientifc facility called CERN, where only the brightest and most intelligent scientists, young and old, attend. After one of Kohler's top scientists gets murdered, he provides Langdon with a startling picture through a fax. It's an ambrigram symbol of the famed anti-Catholoc cult known as the Illumanati! The ambrigram was burned into the chest of the murdered scientist, saying Illumanati. (An ambrigram is a word where if you look at it regularly, then turn it upsidedown, it looked exactly the same) This particular group was well known to have existed over a century ago, but has now resurfaced. Why? Perhaps to avenge the Catholic church and what it has done to discredit science in past times. THe Illumanati are also infamous to infiltration. Could Galilio been Illumatatus? Gianlorenzo Bernini? Renowned Poet John Milton? The Illumanati has recovered a dangerous new breakthrough in science known as antimatter. Antimatter is more explosive than a nuclear bomb! Somewhere in Rome, they have placed a canister of this antimatter which will explode at midnight!
Robert Langdon, accompanied by Vittoria Vetra, the daughter of the scientist who was murdered and co-inventor of antimatter, must work with Rome's highest officials and the Swiss Guard to find this antimatter. The Illumanati make it even more difficult as they kidnap 4 cardinals who were suppose to be attending conclave due to the recent death of the Pope! What will they do to these men of God? Will they find these cardinals and save them AND retrieve the dangerous canister of antimatter all before 12 am? Neg.--There was not much that I really disliked about this book. The main reason I took a star off was because of the character Vittoria Vetra and how she developed. In the beginning, she seems to be presented as a strong-willed woman with high moral values. She started off more known as a woman with wits. Her wit seemed to fade slowly as the book progressed and that is what I was slightly confused by. Pos.--I loved this book overall. It was a fantastic book full of suspense. And of course, it related to a controversial topic based around Science vs Religion. Dan Brown put together a brilliant novel I would strongly recommend to readers who love suspense and thrill rides. It was obvious that there was heavy thought and research put into this book in order to further the reality concept it brought to it, although obviously a fictional book. I would not mind reading this book over again, either. I could see it as a great film, too!
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable novel but historical hooey
Review: "Angels and Demons" is a recent entry into the secret society/ancient conspiracy genre. With seemingly great erudition, Brown mixes facts and fiction to create a genuine page-turner. All the standards are here--religion in the form of the Catholic Church, hidden secrets, modern science and gadgetry, arcane facts, and lots of twists and turns in the plot. Taken as a novel, these ingredients make for a fun read and a true page turner. The characters are a bit wooden, but that's par for the genre. It's the story that matters, not the characters. My major problem with this novel lies in its presentation of wide-eyed paranoic conspiracy theory as "historical fact." In an "Author's Note" preceding the novel, Brown claims that his description of Roman landmarks and art are accurate (really? other reviewers disagree) and then adds that "the Brotherhood of the Illuminati is also factual." This statement is deceptively incomplete, since it implies that what he says about the group's history is true and that there actually is a secret, world-wide elite whose nefarious doings control our lives. The truth about the Illuminati, however, is far different. Yes, there was a secret society of Illuminati and yes, the eye within the pyramid on the American dollar bill is taken from Masonic imagery (reputable historians have written about this for years). But the Illuminati were founded in the 18th century and are long-extinct. They have no connection with Gallileo or Bernini. Check the net--if you do a google on Bernini and the Illuminati, for instance, you get discussions of this book. The sites that come up for Illuminati themselves are mostly fringe sites and wide-eyed reviews of this book, with an occasional historical and/or skeptic site thrown in. I find it ironic that Robert Langdon, the symbologist and hero of "Angels and Demons" was chosen by Max Kohler because on a web search, his "credentials seemed authentic." Kohler adds that, "as a scientist," he has "come to learn that information is only as valuable as its source." (p. 30 of the paperback edition) Considering Brown's likely sources, I wouldn't bet the farm on the accuracy of his conspiracy theorizintg. That said, the book is an enjoyable read if you don't mind an occasional over-the-top or teetering-on-the-edge-of-the-top scene. But beware of any claims by the author to historical accuracy.
Rating:
Summary: Damn Good Book
Review: I have to admit, until the DaVinci Code, I have never heard of Dan Brown. Since I only buy my books in paperback, I decided to give Angles and Demons a try. Now, after having finished, I am glad I did! Angles and Demons gets off on a good pace. There is a mysterious murder, in which the body has an unsual symbol branded upon the chest. A Havard Symboligist is called in to investigate the situation. After the first couple of chapters, Angles and Demons slows down a little and I senced I was getting a little bored. However, Dan Brown quickly picks up pace and were off on a thrilling roller coaster ride. Shortly, I was unable to put the book down and was rivited through the end. Generally, I find most authors now days are unable to really complete their books with good endings and I often finish feeling cheated. However, Dan Brown throws in a unique twist and keeps the action going. When I finished the book my first thought was, "wow this was damn good" and my second thought was, "I need more". This of course is the sign of a good book! Dan Brown does an excellent job in describing the details of Rome, the papacy and keeps the story alive with stunning details and entertaining dialog. He is quite capable of stretching reality, but not far enough that it loses touch with reality either. I was deeply impressed and seeing how long the Da Vinci Code has been on the best sellers lists, I cannot wait to read it as well. But, my next book for now will be Deception Point by Dan Brown. If your looking for a good book which will keep you on your toes, this is the book for you!
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