maxierosalee's review against another edition
2.0
Hmm...
So, I have a lot of mixed feelings about the book that I'm not really sure how to write out. I knew before reading this that Dan Brown and The Davinci Code was pretty controversial. It dealt with some pretty heavy subjects, like religion. I, myself, am not religious so I consider myself pretty ignorant in matters like this. Because of that, I kind of avoided the book and Dan Brown for the longest time because I wasn't sure if I would really get it. But, after a while, I decided to just go ahead and read it. Maybe a lot of things would fly over my head or wouldn't affect me, but it would be an interesting read to say the least.
My final thoughts on it were eventually this: It's an entertaining read at the least, but you have to sort of "turn off your brain" if you want to enjoy it. I'm sorry if that doesn't make much sense, I'll try to explain it down below.
I knew that Dan Brown tended to be very "liberal" about interpretations on historical events religious matters, so I read with that in mind. There are different things that Dan Brown changes around about history and other similar subjects. Some of these are pretty hard to suspend disbelief for...so it's something that's very hard to work around (I personally just pretended this all was happening in some parallel universe, haha). I don't know if this means that this novel is very poorly written or if Brown just took a lot of artistic licenses, but that's a hurdle I had to overcome in reading this book.
Another thing that Brown does in his writing is that he jumps around a lot from different characters and events. I know that this is supposed to be showing the entire story through different perspectives, but I sometimes feel that it really contributed nothing or was just a waste of space. It also felt jarring at times. Sometimes it would feel there was no focus, and other times it felt like it was cutting off a good action sequence.
Also, there were some things that just seemed...implausible to me. I mean, this entire books kind of relies on you having to suspend your disbelief and having to accept some unorthodox interpretations and whatnot, but it got too unbelievable to me at some times. Like, there are countless researchers and scientists studying these topics, and Robert Langdon was the only guy who could figure these puzzles out? There are quite a few other examples, but they're spoilery so I won't get into them. I'll just say this: some scenes were making me scratch my head.
I don't know if this was just me or not, but did anyone else feel like Vetra could have been completely taken out and the novel wouldn't have really lost anything of substance? I feel like she just fulfills the "Sexy Foreign Love Interest Trope". I don't know, it might just be me. The romance itself was poorly written, and I cared very little for it.
There is a whole theme about science vs. religion, which I know is a pretty powerful debate, but the theme didn't really resonate with me, so I can't comment on it. I'm sure people that are more knowledgeable with the subject can comment on this.
One of the biggest issues I had with the book was Brown's writing itself. I can usually overlook bad prose if the story / characters are good, but this wasn't the case here. The writing was pretty choppy to me and not paced really well. There are some weird descriptions here and there and it sometimes felt like a juvenile trying to write more advanced.
But, with everything said and done? I still found it entertaining. It wasn't a boring book at all. I got some enjoyment out of reading it, if just for the fact that it was a mediocre thriller that was able to hold my attention until the end. I've read a lot of books that are so bad or so boring that I wasn't able to finish it. Angels & Demons didn't fall in either of those categories. It's just a fun book with some action that's decent to read. Yes, you have to overcome many hurdles to get some pleasure out of reading this book, but it wasn't absolutely terrible. This might be because I don't know a whole lot about the controversy surrounding Dan Brown and the Da Vinci Code. But if you can suspend your disbelief far enough (and I mean REALLY far) and have a tolerance for mediocre writing...it's not terrible.
And like I said, if you just pretend this book takes place in some alternate universe, it makes it a lot easier.
So, I have a lot of mixed feelings about the book that I'm not really sure how to write out. I knew before reading this that Dan Brown and The Davinci Code was pretty controversial. It dealt with some pretty heavy subjects, like religion. I, myself, am not religious so I consider myself pretty ignorant in matters like this. Because of that, I kind of avoided the book and Dan Brown for the longest time because I wasn't sure if I would really get it. But, after a while, I decided to just go ahead and read it. Maybe a lot of things would fly over my head or wouldn't affect me, but it would be an interesting read to say the least.
My final thoughts on it were eventually this: It's an entertaining read at the least, but you have to sort of "turn off your brain" if you want to enjoy it. I'm sorry if that doesn't make much sense, I'll try to explain it down below.
I knew that Dan Brown tended to be very "liberal" about interpretations on historical events religious matters, so I read with that in mind. There are different things that Dan Brown changes around about history and other similar subjects. Some of these are pretty hard to suspend disbelief for...so it's something that's very hard to work around (I personally just pretended this all was happening in some parallel universe, haha). I don't know if this means that this novel is very poorly written or if Brown just took a lot of artistic licenses, but that's a hurdle I had to overcome in reading this book.
Another thing that Brown does in his writing is that he jumps around a lot from different characters and events. I know that this is supposed to be showing the entire story through different perspectives, but I sometimes feel that it really contributed nothing or was just a waste of space. It also felt jarring at times. Sometimes it would feel there was no focus, and other times it felt like it was cutting off a good action sequence.
Also, there were some things that just seemed...implausible to me. I mean, this entire books kind of relies on you having to suspend your disbelief and having to accept some unorthodox interpretations and whatnot, but it got too unbelievable to me at some times. Like, there are countless researchers and scientists studying these topics, and Robert Langdon was the only guy who could figure these puzzles out? There are quite a few other examples, but they're spoilery so I won't get into them. I'll just say this: some scenes were making me scratch my head.
I don't know if this was just me or not, but did anyone else feel like Vetra could have been completely taken out and the novel wouldn't have really lost anything of substance? I feel like she just fulfills the "Sexy Foreign Love Interest Trope". I don't know, it might just be me. The romance itself was poorly written, and I cared very little for it.
There is a whole theme about science vs. religion, which I know is a pretty powerful debate, but the theme didn't really resonate with me, so I can't comment on it. I'm sure people that are more knowledgeable with the subject can comment on this.
One of the biggest issues I had with the book was Brown's writing itself. I can usually overlook bad prose if the story / characters are good, but this wasn't the case here. The writing was pretty choppy to me and not paced really well. There are some weird descriptions here and there and it sometimes felt like a juvenile trying to write more advanced.
But, with everything said and done? I still found it entertaining. It wasn't a boring book at all. I got some enjoyment out of reading it, if just for the fact that it was a mediocre thriller that was able to hold my attention until the end. I've read a lot of books that are so bad or so boring that I wasn't able to finish it. Angels & Demons didn't fall in either of those categories. It's just a fun book with some action that's decent to read. Yes, you have to overcome many hurdles to get some pleasure out of reading this book, but it wasn't absolutely terrible. This might be because I don't know a whole lot about the controversy surrounding Dan Brown and the Da Vinci Code. But if you can suspend your disbelief far enough (and I mean REALLY far) and have a tolerance for mediocre writing...it's not terrible.
And like I said, if you just pretend this book takes place in some alternate universe, it makes it a lot easier.
vitigigergore's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
kiddxrock's review against another edition
5.0
This is a favorite for me. Book 1 of 5 for this series.
It’s about mysterious deaths happening around the Vatican. Symbols, deaths and religion - oh my!
It’s about mysterious deaths happening around the Vatican. Symbols, deaths and religion - oh my!
underscripted's review against another edition
2.0
Among other things, this book was physically exhausting.
codyjne's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
celestihel's review against another edition
2.0
I just can't get there from here. I find the subject matter fascinating, and the plot should be, but there is something in the writing of this book that makes it a chore to pick it up.
booknerd_therapist's review against another edition
2.0
I am going to try my hardest to give this book a fair review. I really am. And I welcome discussion in the comment section from people who disagree with me. Maybe I just missed something in this celebrated book.
First, I must say that although the author tends to be long-winded, I did enjoy the writing style of it. I liked the details and descriptions of things the characters were seeing: the churches, the cathedrals, the sculptures, etc. After reading the book I searched for pictures of some of the sculptures and I must say that the real thing matched pretty closely with the image I had in my mind's eye. So bravo to Mr. Brown for his word-smithing. Additionally, although the writing *appears* to be complex and intelligent, it is actually very accessible and the 600-ish pages really seemed to fly by. I finished this book in just a few hours. It is very easy to read. Furthermore, hats off to John Langdon for the clever ambigrams!
However, parts of the story just seemed... outright silly. Impossibly silly. Sometimes silly is good, like when you write a children's story about entering a fantastic world called Narnia through a closet. But it's not appropriate for a story in which the author is trying to convince his readers that these are real places and this can happen with real people. For example, would YOU follow a dangerous assassin into a dark place, by yourself, armed only with a little pistol? Would YOU jump out of a helicopter that is 4,000 feet in the air with just a little sheet to break your fall? Would YOU confront a dangerous man alone and tell him to "confess your sins?" Every time one of these things happened (and these are just a few examples), I rolled my eyes. It didn't feel suspenseful, it just felt stupid. And -- I don't want to give anything away -- the plot twist at the end of the story... Let's just say it left much to be desired.
And finally -- here comes the controversial part -- the portrayal of the church left me with a sour taste in my mouth. Here we have a book with many, many complaints about how the Church has stifled science for centuries. Many portrayals of corrupt individuals inside the church. Yes, I understand that history can't be denied, and these things happened, but out of all the characters in the book, there were perhaps two that actually came across as real Christians. And there are people who say, "In this book, the Church comes out looking pretty good, what are you upset about?" The only reason the Church comes out looking pretty good is because of an elaborate deception. The string of events in this book is shameful, really, from a Christian point of view. The person behind the killings is a jaded Catholic priest -- forgiveness comes with the territory! And then the deception, that was the most insulting of all: Please, don't tell anyone who murdered these people because it will make people lose faith in God? Really? Are Christians so empty-headed that they need an elaborate lie to maintain their faith? What's next, Mr. Brown? Are you going to write a novel about how Robert Langdon walks on water to give Christians faith in God? Hmm?
In short, I found this novel just a little too shallow for my taste.
First, I must say that although the author tends to be long-winded, I did enjoy the writing style of it. I liked the details and descriptions of things the characters were seeing: the churches, the cathedrals, the sculptures, etc. After reading the book I searched for pictures of some of the sculptures and I must say that the real thing matched pretty closely with the image I had in my mind's eye. So bravo to Mr. Brown for his word-smithing. Additionally, although the writing *appears* to be complex and intelligent, it is actually very accessible and the 600-ish pages really seemed to fly by. I finished this book in just a few hours. It is very easy to read. Furthermore, hats off to John Langdon for the clever ambigrams!
However, parts of the story just seemed... outright silly. Impossibly silly. Sometimes silly is good, like when you write a children's story about entering a fantastic world called Narnia through a closet. But it's not appropriate for a story in which the author is trying to convince his readers that these are real places and this can happen with real people. For example, would YOU follow a dangerous assassin into a dark place, by yourself, armed only with a little pistol? Would YOU jump out of a helicopter that is 4,000 feet in the air with just a little sheet to break your fall? Would YOU confront a dangerous man alone and tell him to "confess your sins?" Every time one of these things happened (and these are just a few examples), I rolled my eyes. It didn't feel suspenseful, it just felt stupid. And -- I don't want to give anything away -- the plot twist at the end of the story... Let's just say it left much to be desired.
And finally -- here comes the controversial part -- the portrayal of the church left me with a sour taste in my mouth. Here we have a book with many, many complaints about how the Church has stifled science for centuries. Many portrayals of corrupt individuals inside the church. Yes, I understand that history can't be denied, and these things happened, but out of all the characters in the book, there were perhaps two that actually came across as real Christians. And there are people who say, "In this book, the Church comes out looking pretty good, what are you upset about?" The only reason the Church comes out looking pretty good is because of an elaborate deception. The string of events in this book is shameful, really, from a Christian point of view. The person behind the killings is a jaded Catholic priest -- forgiveness comes with the territory! And then the deception, that was the most insulting of all: Please, don't tell anyone who murdered these people because it will make people lose faith in God? Really? Are Christians so empty-headed that they need an elaborate lie to maintain their faith? What's next, Mr. Brown? Are you going to write a novel about how Robert Langdon walks on water to give Christians faith in God? Hmm?
In short, I found this novel just a little too shallow for my taste.
notarobot's review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0