Rating: 
Summary: Not his unsual stuff
Review: I did not enjoy this like I have most of his earlier works. The plot wasnt all that gripping.
Rating:
Summary: Oh please....
Review: After enjoying the yarn Brown spun in THE DAVINCI CODE (albeit while overlooking the pitifully cliched characters), I picked up this prequel. However, you'll have read another review to find out if any of the story after page 9 is worth your time. I stopped there. When a briliant, handsome, single, wealthy Harvard "symbologist" walks into an airplane hanger to find a futuristic jet that travels 15 times the speed of sound and is owned by a private nuclear research company, and THEN climbs aboaord like it's no big deal to settle in for an hour's flight from Boston to Geneva....that's where I get off the boat. Au revoir, Mr. Brown.
Rating: 
Summary: Move over Michael Crichton, there's a new man in town...
Review: Just in time for the 21st century, Dan Brown jumps to the top of the mass-market suspense/thriller genre with a handful of intricately plotted and furiously paced novels. The best of these -- despite the incredible sales and longevity of THE DA VINCI CODE -- is by far ANGELS & DEMONS. Propelling it's lead character (symbologist Robert Langdon) and readers into an enigmatic plot that unwinds page by page, ANGELS & DEMONS touches on science, religion, history, art, architecture... With every turn of the page, you descend deeper and faster into a story in which the very existence of God hangs in the balance. The characters are thin, their motivations and actions are sometimes odd, but the relentless plot pushes you onward. The historical elements are recognizable enough to make you wonder about the truth of these details, but not overbearing. The pace is so quick anyway that you won't have enough time to be slowed down. ANGELS & DEMONS isn't aspiring to be a history lesson, a scientific thesis, or a critical essay, but it DOES aspire, quite successfully, to be a no-rest-for-the weary, no-holds-barred, white-knuckled, page-turner of a thriller. Sometimes that's all you need.
Rating:
Summary: My favorite Brown
Review: I've read all of Brown's book, and this one is by far his best--even better than Da Vinci Code. The two are VERY similar, but A&D is better written in my opinion and the plot is more believable. Also recommended: McCrae's BARK OF THE DOGWOOD
Rating: 
Summary: Kinda like Da Vinci code, just not as good...
Review: This book reads like a practice attempt at writing Da Vinci code. The plot, characters, mystery, and story line are good, just not as good as da Vinci. The thing I most disliked about this book are some of the way-over-the-top things that happen that seem to be stuck in to make the plot work (i.e. supersonic airplanes, anti-matter bombs, miraculous escapes from helicopters). If you loved Da Vinc, you'll like this... similar, just not as good.
Rating:
Summary: Childish, pathetic book
Review: This book is pathetic...it is almost a bad comic book translated into text. The personalities of the characters are stereotyped and unidimensional, things happen without reason. The vilains are as credible as Batman's Penguin. In fact, nothing in this book is credible, from the ultra-sonic space ship-like plane to anti-matter bombs. The heroin's father dies and she has the reaction and feelings of a Miss Universe competitor talking about world peace.
It is possible to write a book using fantasy, if you are able to have some drama and some good characters (check Jules Verne). This is not the case. This book sounds like two guys got together for beer, and after drinking a dozen, started to think about a story, adding a character here, an action scene there, a fantastic gun there. The they add the patches together and make a book.
It is a mystery to me how this book is a bestseller.
Rating:
Summary: An Absolute Work of Art - Don't Miss This One !!!
Review: Angels & Demons is an unbelieveably well conceived and written. It may be the most interesting and creative novel I have read in years! Kudo's to Dan Brown and his amazing talent. You will find Mr. Brown's style easy to read and character development is wonderful. This novel just sucks you in and doesn't let go until the end. Whether you are a mystery buff or just enjoy a good read, you shouldn't miss this novel. It also introduces Robert Langdon, who is a central figure in the DaVinci Code. After reading the DaVinci Code, I was interested in reading some of the other novels written by Dan Brown and picked up Angels & Demons, as well as Digital Fortress and Deception Point. I would suggest you do too, you won't be disappointed!
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Summary: I have always been fascinated with the Illuminati so...
Review: I was delighted to find this book. It is a great story, very fast moving.
Rating:
Summary: Okay, average paperback thriller
Review: This book is good beach reading. It moves pretty fast and the descriptions are vivid. BUT, the culprit is revealed very early with an aside that is the movie equivalent to a suspect looking directly into a camera after the others have left the room. Too obvious.
The story should have ended much earlier than it did. It would have made for a tighter novel. Instead it wound up with some very fantastic and insipid plot twists that kind ruined the first 400 pages. They seemed like afterthoughts, as if he had a 500 word minimum and had to tack on more stuff at the end. That was disappointing.
I have not read the Da Vinci Code yet, but I hope its written better than this, for the sake of all the people who say its a great book.
Good for beach reading, but not great, or even good, literature.
Rating:
Summary: Great read . . . great companion
Review: This makes a great companion book if you're traveling to Rome. The descriptions are wonderful and you can actually see the churches, statues, etc. while there. Read it on the plane going over--my suggestion. And while I read "The Da Vinci Code" first, I liked "Angels & Demons" so much more. The writing is better, the characters are better (even though some are the same as "Da Vince" they're more "real")and the descriptions are just riveting! I also enjoyed reading two other books recently: McCrae's "Bark of the Dogwood" and Steinbeck's "East of Eden."
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