Angels & Demons - Movie Tie-In: A Novel
by Dan Brown
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Book Reviews of Angels & Demons - Movie Tie-In: A Novel
Book Review: Great Historical Read
Summary: 5 Stars
For the book Angels and Demons, there were several people and things that influence me to read it. First of all my love for history and ancient religion played a crucial role in my decision to pick this book. I have always been fascinated with recent and ancient conflicts that took place before my time. Second my cousin Rick also influence me to read it, because he shares the same passion that I do about the medieval time period. He is also very fond of literature that explores in detail, every side of an issue.
To summarize the plot of the book without spoiling, a Harvard Religious Symbology Professor named Robert Langdon is called to the scene of murder in Europe. When he leaves, he has no information or details on the subject. A long lost brotherhood, that was thought to be extinct, has risen again and began to claim victims. The brotherhood's infamy was due to the thought that they had discovered the secret to life. The book follows Langdon's adventures in an attempt to solve the mystery of the secret cult.
There were very few things I could criticize about the book, but some parts lagged in getting to the point. Brown would become focused on side stories and take away from the main story.
There are far more pros then cons though. Dan Brown writes with great historical accuracy and detail. The fantastic flow of the book can be attributed to its intertwining of storylines and characters.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in a thriller with historical twists. It ties in events from history to the plot. People with a knack for renaissance and medieval time periods will get great enjoyment out of this book.
Book Review: `Angels and Demons'
Summary: 5 Stars
`Angels and Demons' has all in it to be quoted as the `universal best seller' as it was rightly done in the New York Times. But the novel gained recognition only after the release of the controversial `The Da Vinci Code' a novel that faced a lot of opposition from the Vatican and other catholic sects. The author of this novel, Dan Brown is known for his wonderful gifted ability to weave fiction and fact as one. His familiarity with science and Vatican are clearly visible in this novel. Starring in this novel is the fictional Harvard University Symbologist, Robert Langdon. He is familiar to the ones who read Brown's previous novel, as he was the one who played the leading role in that novel too. The display of his academic skills in this novel once again has caught the readers' mind. The heroine of this novel, Vittoria Vetra is also a brilliant academic, whose father gets killed by the Assassin who is hired by the Janus. Janus is none other than the Camerlengo, in disguise, whose real face is revealed in the longrun. The author has portrayed all his characters in a fantastic manner. In the case of the Assassin, he is portrayed as a character of shear power and brut force. The reinvention of the Illuminati is a master stroke, although that does not have any impact on the end climax, as it was a tool used by the Janus to guise himself from the outside world. The Camerlengo's instant transformation into a God like thing comes in as a real surprise. But soon his real face is revealed in the climax. This novel when released was also not short of controversies. Despite all that, the novel has managed to come out as a universal best seller. All credits to Dan BrownBook Review: Fast-Paced Conspiracy Action
Summary: 4 Stars
Robert Langdon is a Harvard symbologist summoned out of bed to Vatican City, where terrorists claiming to be the fabled Illuminati have hidden a stolen bomb capable of wiping out the Holy City along with a chunk of Rome. As Robert attempts to find the bomb's location while simultaneously tracking down the four likely selections for the Papacy before they are all sacrificed to the altars of science, he must evade an assassin and a possible threat from inside the Vatican itself.
Angels & Demons is a non-stop thriller from the very get-go, and a very enjoyable read for history and religion fans. The book does have some factual flaws, but just remember: on the back, it says "fiction." This is by no means a history textbook and it isn't meant to be treated as such.
One issue with the book is Brown's style of writing. The oft-used italics to emphasize certain words become annoying and ill-placed, and the very plain description of the surroundings and actions can be cumbersome. The characters are not very interesting or hugely developed, which detracts from the adventure of the story. But these flaws shouldn't have any significant bearing on the story for someone looking for a quick thrill.
Angels & Demons is widely considered to be Dan Brown's best work to date, and for good reason: it improves leaps and bounds over Brown's previous novels despite mechanical issues and is a genuinely adventurous read. Would definitely recommend.
Book Review: Held Me Enthralled
Summary: 5 Stars
Maximilian Kohler, the general director of the Swiss nuclear research facility CERN, wakes Harvard Symbologist Robert Langdon in the middle of the night with a phone call. Kohler needs Langdon's help because one of CERN's star scientists has been horribly murdered, the body branded with strange symbols. This is no ordinary murder, but is murder ever ordinary, probably not, but this one is highly unusual. Langdon is on the case and so is his new sidekick, the daughter of the murdered scientist, the beautiful Vittoria Vetra, who is also a brilliant physicist.
In addition to the murder, a sample of the anti-matter the lab has been working on has been stolen, and it seems just a pinch of this stuff can set off a Hiroshima type explosion. And who's got it? Well a secret society, don'tcha know, the illuminati who have a long standing grudge against the Church. Add to the mix the fact that the Pope has been murdered and that those favored to replace him are missing and you have the makings of a thriller extraordinaire as Langdon and Vittoria race time to find the anti-matter bomb in the bowels of the Vatican before it goes off and turns the Holy See into rubble.
I know I might have been a little flip above, because some of this story seemed a little far fetched, but be that as it may, I couldn't put the book down. It held me enthralled from cover to cover, just an out of sight thriller, that's what this book is. What more can I say?
Book Review: Can't wait to see the movie
Summary: 5 Stars
I read this book last week. What a fantastic adventure! This book takes place over a space of hours. It is a fast paced race to basically save the Catholic Church and countless lives. It all hinges on the brilliance of a symbolist to help save countless lives from the brilliance of a scientist that has created a weapon of mass destruction. A brilliant scientist creates anti-matter only to be stolen and end up in the one of the most un-likely, most secure places on earth, The Vatican. Through a series of twists and turns the reader is caught up in this fast faced thriller that climaxes in the ultimate exposure of the Vatican and a very ugly face of the Vatican, with murder of the candidates most likely to be the next Pope, the proposed emergency of a secret society uncovered in the first book of this type by Dan Brown (The Illuminati), a terrorist, and a riveting end in which people that you assume are the "good guys" suddenly become the "bad guys". Assumptions that you made from the beginning of the book are proven wrong in an instant! The day is saved and people assumed dead are actually alive all in a great ending that has you gasping for breath. Fantastic read, but put your seatbelt on, don't schedule anything and get a tray of munchies to get you through this one. I liked this much better than the DaVinci Code!!!!!!!!