Rating: 
Summary: Too over the top
Review: Much preferred Da Vinci Code. The scenarios in A&D are outrageous and the motives, reactions and responses of characters are too often unrealistic. The last few chapters are laughable with unsatisfying twists, coming off as twists for the sake of twists. Made-for-TV thriller material here with awkward commentary on the so-called spiritual state of the modern world. Da Vinci Code is somewhat better researched, a better paced thriller and its weaknesses are generally forgivable.
Rating: 
Summary: A WONDERFUL ROMP THRU TERROR AND HISTORY
Review: This story pulls you in, especially if you love exotic settings and occult intrigue, as I do. The story's hero thinks that he, as a Harvard professor, knows all about the mysterious Illuminati, and he believes they are extinct. But he learns he may be mistaken when a distinguished scientist and priest at CERN turns up dead with the word "Illuminati" branded on his chest. But this is no ordinary brand; it is an "ambigram" -- a word scripted to look the same upside down as right side up. This is the first of six amazing ambigrams we see illustrated in this book. The Illuminati, it seems, are out to get revenge against the Vatican for its past sins, which are many. The illusive Illuminati have hired a "hassassin" (a more ancient form of "assassin") to kill the four cardinals who are candidates to replace the pope, who has recently died.The story takes Robert Langdon, the Harvard professor, and Vittoria Vetra, the sexy (adopted) daughter of the dead scientist-priest on an incredible day-long adventure in a mostly futile attempt to stop the murders, along with a deadly jar of anti-matter hidden somewhere in the labyrinth of Vatican City. The anti-matter is counting down to midnight when it will work the final revenge on the church: the complete destruction of the Vatican complex with its priceless treasures. What makes the book special is the historic clues that Langdon pursues, as he tries to find the markers left by the Illuminati at the time of Michelangelo and Bernini, whose work is resplendent in the numerous churches and monuments of Rome and Vatican City. I loved the details woven into the story, especially the descriptions of secret places within the Vatican. The characters in this story are Vatican Swiss Guards, Cardinals of the Church, the camerlengo who is left in charge at the pope's death, and the bitter, wheelchair-bound Director of CERN in Geneva. I can't help but wonder how much of the descriptions and characterizations (certainly not the actual characters) are real. Emotions build as the characters realize the unfolding events transcend their own situation and I actually found myself crying at one point in the book. But I experienced a kind of let-down near the end. The final twist of the plot was one I did not anticipate and it left me without the kind of wrap-up that I had expected. I thought everything would end tidy and sure, with the good guys and bad guys clearly identified. Maybe the final ambiguity was by design; maybe the author wanted us to think about who was more correct: the Illuminati point of view that the Church had committed too many atrocities and outlived its usefulness, or the Church's point of view that science can never give us all the answers. A really great book delivers not only adventure and thrills, but also provocative ideas. This book seesaws between the opposites that are implied by its title. We move from scene to scene, character to character in a dance of intrigue. Dan Brown is one helluva story-teller and this book left me always wanting to know what was on the next page.
Rating:
Summary: It Illuminates
Review: For anyone with a love for art and thrillers, this is the deffinite book. Dan Brown is amazing! This book keeps you chasing page after page along with the characters to see how it unfolds. Robert Langdon is quick and intelligent. The plot is unique and breathtaking. The Illuminati is a brotherhood you'll never forget.
Rating: 
Summary: Still not DaVinci Code... but worth the read
Review: I guess I had higher expectations for this book since I read The DaVinci Code first... nonetheless it was a good story that brought in elements of physics and antimatter technology, a Satanic cult, and Italian art... Dan Brown has an interesting way of doing that! Robert Langdon is a great character--sometimes his feats seem a little too extraordinary, but they are still fun to read about. I found the Illuminati history interesting, as well as the discussions about the art and symbology. Overall a pretty good book, but DaVinci Code still is my favorite!
Rating: 
Summary: A Fun Ride, But It's Still Pulp
Review: Make no mistake, this is a fun summer read. But that's all it is. There's a review on the cover of the book that says that it's a thriller with an "unusually high IQ." That's a bit of a stretch. Dan Brown combines an impressive knowledge of science, architecture, and art with a shallow understanding of (and apparent bias against) Christianity to produce a fun book that shouldn't be taken seriously. And there are parts where the author says things like "if he'd only known what would happen later that day, he would have stayed in bed." This is unspeakably awful and gives the feel that you're reading a Hardy Boys novel instead of a "high IQ" thriller. I also had a hard time routing for the main character because he was such a weenie. This made the more suspenseful parts less exciting because I was secretly hoping the guy would get killed. Still, the idea for the plot is great and there are parts of the book that are pure pulp euphoria. But I don't think holding a tarp over your head would help much when you're falling from a helicopter far up in the sky. Maybe that's just me.
Rating:
Summary: A terrific and informative book
Review: This book makes you think....a fine thriller loaded with interesting facts and theories. The style is a bit trite but this is a book well worth reading...then grab the Da Vinci Code
Rating:
Summary: Angelic Plot, Demonic End
Review: This is a wonderful thriller, full of twists, turns and mysteries galore. The story centers on the Catholic church, conspiracies, and the art world. It's a very enjoyable read but I couldn't give it a 5 because this author suffers from, what I affectionately call, Crichton Syndrome. This simply means that the book builds to amazing heights but the end is less than satisfying...in most cases, downright dumb. You'll love the book, just turn your "suspension of disbelief" button to high for the ending. You'll need it to believe parts of the climax.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely fabulous!
Review: I've been hungry for a book like this for years. Ever since being disappointed by other vatican thrillers titled BASILICA and REQUIEM (ugh). I would highly recommend ANGELS AND DEMONS, as well as THE DAVINCI CODE to anyone who enjoys mysteries, thrillers, or just a darn good read. Just delicious. Could have done without the little romance, but hey what the heck. I enjoyed the puzzle, the history, the scientific aspect, etc. What fun!
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good, pretty annoying
Review: I read this book because a bunch of people told me I should read "The Da Vinci Code", and I learned that this was an earlier book in the same "series". I felt i should read this one first, especially since I could get it in paperback. I am not usually a thriller fan (I've only read two thrillers previously that I really liked, despite occasionally trying others). Anyway, I got the book and started reading it with some trepidation. The extremely gruesome beginning nearly put me off the book, and certainly made me think it was going to be a lot more viscerally gross than it turned out to be. However, I kept with it, and finally made it to the end. It's a pretty good book, but a couple times, I nearly threw it across the room. Other reviewers here have donee a good job of explaining what is good about the book (lots of interesting puzzles, a fast-paced twisty plot, decent pacing, the concatanation of myriad random things into a rational pattern, and some interesting philosophical issues to wrestle with), so I won't belabor them. it was a fun book to read, and at the end, I did not feel I had wasted my time, as I so often do when I read thrillers. That having been said, I found lots of things annoying about the book, and sometimes, it was hard to keep myself from flinging it out the window. The heavy-handed foreshadowing (starting with the comment on page 23 -- paperback edition -- about how some random fact he had just learned was going to save his life later tonight in another country) drove me nuts. I don't mind cardboard characters in a plot-driven novel like this, but I think that cardboard characters should refrain from changing their fundamental natures with no explanation. When the final plot twist depends on someone being other than who the reader thinks that person was, there should have been subtle signs of that earlier, which the reader can review in her mind and say, "Aha! I missed that!" Plus, the entire plot depends on Langdon's intuition being very very shrewd, so the occasional failures of his intuition were very noticeable. (like when he climbed onto the helicopter so he could make use of the random fact he had learned on page 23). Finally, the notion that a bunch of Renaissance scientists would have chosen English as their "pure language", while explained cleverly in the plot, is just too convenient, and broke my suspension of disbelief. I had to put the book down for a day or two after that happened before I could resume the roller coaster ride. I've heard that many of the heavy-handed writing problems are gone in the sequel, so I will probably read it. In the end, this book was not a waste of my time, but it did not make it onto my list of "thrillers for the ages". Oh, and comparisons to Umberto Eco simply serve to underline the deficiencies of this novel.
Rating:
Summary: Don't plan to do anything else
Review: Don't plan to do anything else but read, when you start Dan Brown's Angels & Demons. If I could give it more than five stars I would. I usually read for a half hour or hour at bedtime, but this book was so intriguing that I devoured it in a day and a long night - literally could not come up for air. (sorry about the cliches, but they really fit this book!) The loss of sleep was worth it. Brown's research into the Vatican, physics, the science-religion debate, churches and architecture and statues in Rome, and the Illuminati was really intricate, and made the book seem very realistic. I do not like books with a religious theme or sub-theme, as they tend to be preachy. However, here Brown raised various sides of issues that really got my mind engaged. The science-religion issues were essential to the book and seamlessly interwoven with the thrilling chase through the Vatican and Rome to find the killer and stop the anti-matter explosion. Brown put lots of twists in the book - some were easy to anticipate, but the obvious isn't always correct. Each time I thought the book had reached its climax something new happened and it kept going. If you don't like too much violence (I don't), you may be turned off by the first chapter - but stick it out - there are only a few graphic parts, and Brown doesn't stretch them out too much. The book was full of tension, and I was delighted at the end to crack up laughing out loud at a line that was totally unexpected and helped bring me back to reality. Be sure to allow yourself plenty of uninterrupted time for this one, because you may find it hard to put down!
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