Reviews

Angels and Demons by Dan Brown

Only show reviews with written explanations

remilauren's review against another edition

4.0

Before beginning with the review, I'd like to appreciate the artist who designed the Illuminati brands, they were perfectly symmetrical, I was awed!

"Angels and Demons" begins with a gruesome murder of a physicist at CERN. The victim is also branded with a mysterious yet symmetrical brand, "Illuminati". Along with Langdon, we learn about a certain deadly technology, now being used to endanger the Vatican.

At the Vatican, Robert and Vittoria (physicist's daughter) realize a bigger conspiracy involving the Pope, the select Cardinals, and the deadly technology. Murders are about to be committed and there is limited time. While Langdon tries to discover the locations of the murders, he's unknowingly put on the Path of Illumination. Each destination demands a description of its ancient architecture and the hidden, subtle Illuminati symbols. Alas, at every step, we witness a murder so gruesome yet so symbolic that it sends chills up the spine.

Throughout the book, I felt a certain sense of attachment to this particular character (no, it's not Robert Langdon). Every time he suffered or was at unease, it pained me. Towards the end, when I guessed what this character was about to do (at least what I felt he would do) left me speechless. But man, I was wrong!! Having read Da Vinci Code, I could not understand how or why Dan Brown was placing the church in a good light. How mistaken I was!

While the plot, in general, was decent, the ending was what changed it for me. If I'm not reaching, I'd say the who or what the end result is, is symmetrically opposite (or a negative) of what one would guess initially (XD). But what made me give this 4 stars instead of 5 is the formula plot. Those who have read The Da Vinci Code know every character is formulaic, churned out to play set roles across his book series.

Overall, it was a good read.

saaraaartt's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

4.0

apieceofskye's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

therestlessbookflea07's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Damn. Truly took me a while to finish it so that I may be able to savor the incredible twists and surprises in every chapter. The tugging poles of religion and science--discovery and mystery of faith--were written vicariously that vividly reminded me of the nostalgic journey of the conspiracies between the two co-existing powers. These conspiracies, of course, have probably advanced or evolved until today. With the after-read fever, this sort of wants me to dive more about the featured themes of the novel.

'Tis indeed a riveting read!

christa_spirit's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Well written and cohesive, with very different characters and plot twists till the end. I enjoyed it, though it isn’t something I’d pick up again, mostly because it’s just not something that interests me. I’m just not the target audience.
With how long it is though,

it’s hard to believe the whole book took place over less than 24 hours, much less that most of it took place over about 6 of those hours.

Content Warnings