Angels & Demons by Dan Brown Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Angels & Demons
Book Review: A Great Mixture Of Science Fiction And HIstory
Summary: 5 Stars
Dan Browns "Angels and Demons" is a wonderful story that gives thre reader not only the pleasure of a mystery, but also history and science fiction. The story takes place in Vatican City, and deals with the intricate system of electing a new pope. A system that has been in place since the beginning of the Catholic Church and one that will remain in place for years to come. The story also deals with the scientific explanaition of the us of Anti-matter as a source of energy, and also the destruction it cause.
The story revolves around Robert Langdon, a professor at Harvard teaching symbology. He is invited to visit a lab in Switzerland where a man was murdered and branded with a symbol of the Illuminati, an ancient cult throught to be extinct. Robert Langdon is put on an x-33 Jet that travels at 110,000 mph and makes the trip from boston to Geneva Switzerland in exactly one hour. Upon his arrival he is shown the mans murdered body and the Illuminati symbol and he is then introduced to the idea of Anti-matter. The story explains that Anti-matter is a tremendous source of energy and could fuel the world in the future. The only problem is that if a drop of Anti-matter comes in contact with one molecule of normal matter, it will explode, an explosion so big it would make Hiroshima look like a firecracker.
A canister of this Anti-matter has been stolen, and with the death of the pope, the college of cardinals in the vatican has ten days to choose a new pope. However the cardinals are dissapearing. Each being murdered, and branded with a different symbol that deals with the Illuminati. Robert Langdon is sent to the Vatican in the hopes to find the missing cansiter of Anti-matter, and to solve the mystery of the Illuminati before the time runs out and the Anti-matter explods destroying the Vatican.
This is a wonderful book, it is almost impossible to put down. It is written extremely well and gives a detailed explanaition of everything. As a person who does not like Mystery novels, I was suprised at how much I loved this book, it just kept me fascinated the entire time. The story flows perfectly, there is never a dull moment, and the plot is so fresh and new that you cant be bored of it at all.
I reccomend this book to everyone and anyone it is a fantastic story that not only entertains you but also teaches you about the history of the Vatican and the interesting system of electing a new pope. It doesnt stop there, going farther and teaching you about Anti-matter and the futuristic flight technology that will be here sooner then you imagine. The story is great it is a wonderful book and once you start to read it, you wont stop reading it. Everyone should read this book, and then after they read this they should read "The Da Vinci Code." Dan Browns follow up to this story. After you read "Angels and Demons" you will want to read "The Da Vinci Code."
Book Review: A Great Read...
Summary: 4 Stars
Although this title actually came before The Da Vinci Code, made people get around to reading it following it. This is the first of Dan Brown's books to employ Robert Langdon as its main character and although not quite up to the level of Da Vinci Code, it is very close. The pace is fast -- I read the book in two days -- and the excitement high. If you like intelligent thrillers and liked the Da Vinci Code, you will love this book. If you haven't read the Da Vinci Code yet, even better -- start here and read both back to back!Book Review: A Great Work of FICTION
Summary: 4 Stars
I read Dan Brown's Angels and Demons about six months ago and decided to re-read it recently. It's still a good read through but I feel that there are a few things I should mention so that potential readers don't get taken for a ride.While Dan Brown has done extensive research on the pieces of art in this book, this is by NO means a work of NON-FICTION. I've already noticed people praising the extensive research undertaken by Brown but as he is an author and not historian, he is not bound by the same rules.
For example, Brown writes that the statue The Ecstasy of St. Teresa was originaly intended for display in the Vatican but Pope Urban VIII ordered its removal due to its pornographic content thus 'allowing' Bernini to move the statue to its present location.
This is incorrect. The Statue was comissioned specifically for the Cornaro chapel within the Discalced Carmelite Church Santa Maria Della Vittoria. It was comissioned by Federico Cornaro of Venice with the permission of the monks. St. Teresa was chosen not because she was pierced by a 'flaming' arrow but because she was the founder of the Discalced Order.
And I'm sorry but I don't buy the idea that Bernini was some how an illuminati. He loved the Catholic Church too much and anyone who does any research into his life will see his devotion to the Church in not only his work but his own words.
So remember that when you read this book that it is indeed a wonderful work of say it with me now! FICTION!
Book Review: A Hardy Boy's novel for an older generation
Summary: 3 Stars
This novel attempts to breath life back into the ancient struggle of science vs. religion. Along the way, it introduces the average person to some startling facts about European history and modern science. However, this book shows a surprising lack of thought and depth when wading through an otherwise interesting plot line.Robert Langdon is a Harvard "symboligist", which the author never lets us forget, through numerous flashbacks to Harvard and numerous references to Harvard life. As I read through this book, I began to wonder if attaching Harvard to Langdon's name was intended to make us believe he was more intelligent than he came off as. This story revolves around Langdon's impressive knowledge of "symboligy" and the Illuminati, which might have made for a stunning novel if the author had bothered to do more than Internet research on both.
One of the most disappointing aspects of this novel are the puzzles, which are often so quickly solved by the reader, that one will find themselves tapping their foot for two chapters as the characters laboriously trudge through these simple clues. Furthermore, despite being an English major, Brown completely missed the fact that modern English is spelled differently than olde English, something that all of the clues in this book hinge upon.
Another issue I have with this novel is Brown's puerile writing style. For a best selling author, and he being an English major to boot, I was expecting better structure. His chapters almost fall into a formulamatic sequence with awful foreshadowing such as "...if he had only realized the trouble he would be in, he wouldn't have boarded that helicopter." (sic) While not a direct quote from the novel, I recall something very similar. Additionally, he attempts to complicate the plot by giving the reader insight into the mind of several characters, however looking at the case of the novel's ultimate villain, he changes the character's personality 180 degrees in order to explain the ending, which really soured me to the novel.
Despite glaring mistakes on the author's part, this book is entertaining to read. However, like his book "The DaVinci Codec" this book offers very little in substance for the smart reader, but is a very enjoyable novel to pass the time with nonetheless. I realize that I somewhat trashed this novel, but I do feel that this novel is entertaining, much like a Hardy Boy's novel. It should not be compared Umberto Eco, who is the real version of Robert Langdon, a true philologist.
Book Review: A Heavenly Read
Summary: 4 Stars
I really enjoyed this book! An easy comparison with The DaVinci Code, I thought this book touched on some excellent socio questions and the research was evident and thorough.
Worth a read!