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purplehulk713's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
The Catholic Church’s circus tent is about to come crashing down. Dan Brown is incredible at creating a fast-paced while still multi-layered thriller that at the same has the spectacle and religious esotericism as an Indiana Jones film. (Robert Langdon is effectively Indiana Jones without the aesthetic) The religious and artistic history entranced me like hypnosis—Christians stole the practice of “god-eating” from the Aztecs after conquering their empire. Some of the plot points seemed a little unnecessary though—why does Robert go into the helicopter? I did the love the fast pace but slow burn of the reveals, like the dead Pope actually being the camerlengo’s father and not just his foster father, and the camerlengo’s reveal as Janus. Vittoria and Robert are a cute couple, and they are definitely a good match—she’s determined and flexible (literally and figuratively) and he’s quiet and compassionate. The scientific theory, though advanced, is clearly and concisely explained to the non-scientific mind. The backstories (for Langdon and Vittoria especially) are incredibly compelling, like how Vittoria came to meet and grow up with the man that would adopt her. The Hassassin’s deadly inspiration and glorious delight in his cruelty weave a spell-binding villain. But the one of the most significant elements of the story is the fact that you can truly walk this Path of Illumination—from “Habakkuk and the Angel” in the Chigi Chapel in the cathedral of Santa Maria del Popolo (Earth—Terra) to the “West Ponente” relief in St. Peter’s Square (Air—Aria) to “The Ecstasy of St. Teresa” in the church of Santa Maria della Vittoria (Fire—Fuòco) to the Fountain of the Four Rivers in front of the church of Saint Agnes in Agony in the Piazza Navona (Water—Acqua) and finally to the Church of Illumination within Castel Sant’Angelo. The path is real though the story may not be. Let angels guide thee on thy lofty quest…
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Death, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Islamophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Rape
rachelditty's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I wanted to reread The Da Vinci Code but decided to read the first of the Robert Langdon series before getting to the second book again. Angels and Demons was a fine enough read, definitely wasn't as pulling for me as I was hoping. I didn't love that the villain of the first three-quarters of the story was a stereotype, and I also disliked the insta-love between Langdon and Vitoria.
What I did like about the story was how Langdon just seemed to be Some Guy for the first two and a half hours of the audiobook--he had no idea why he was there an neither did anyone else; he was just the first person they found who was a professor of religion when they googled it, which I find so funny. He was basically useless for three hours and just acted as a walking purse for Vitoria. I thought it was hilarious.
I also think a lot of male authors try to make good female characters and fail horribly. Dan Brown, however, seemed like he was trying to make a cookie-cutter female support character and accidentally made a pretty cool woman. I really liked Vitoria. Again, thought her relationship with Langdon was pretty rushed and didn't feel right, but I liked their friendship, it was fun. Plus, their final interaction where Vitoria said Langdon only wasn't religious because he hadn't let her fuck him yet was. Pretty great, I'm not going to lie. It was fun.
I also liked the balance that seemed to iron out by the end of the story between religion and science. Learning about the Pope and his own utilization of both polarized opposites was interesting, and I thought it was cool.
Didn't love this book, and it wasn't as fun as I was expecting, but I appreciated the twist at the end, and I like that Robert Langdon was kind of pathetic. Love that for him.
What I did like about the story was how Langdon just seemed to be Some Guy for the first two and a half hours of the audiobook--he had no idea why he was there an neither did anyone else; he was just the first person they found who was a professor of religion when they googled it, which I find so funny. He was basically useless for three hours and just acted as a walking purse for Vitoria. I thought it was hilarious.
I also think a lot of male authors try to make good female characters and fail horribly. Dan Brown, however, seemed like he was trying to make a cookie-cutter female support character and accidentally made a pretty cool woman. I really liked Vitoria. Again, thought her relationship with Langdon was pretty rushed and didn't feel right, but I liked their friendship, it was fun. Plus, their final interaction where Vitoria said Langdon only wasn't religious because he hadn't let her fuck him yet was. Pretty great, I'm not going to lie. It was fun.
I also liked the balance that seemed to iron out by the end of the story between religion and science. Learning about the Pope and his own utilization of both polarized opposites was interesting, and I thought it was cool.
Didn't love this book, and it wasn't as fun as I was expecting, but I appreciated the twist at the end, and I like that Robert Langdon was kind of pathetic. Love that for him.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Blood, Body horror, Murder, and Death
alexandramrtin's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
only thing to say is that the antagonist was deliciously crafted and led to (a) nice plot twist(s)
obviously long but an enjoyable read, especially once things start coming together in the second half of the book
obviously long but an enjoyable read, especially once things start coming together in the second half of the book
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Blood, Death, Murder, and Violence
m4rtt4's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I admire Dan Brown for his ability to create these kinds of page-turners full of interesting facts. I'm not a huge fan of action books or movies where everything is centered around villains and violence, but all the nerdy stuff in this book surely made up for it :)
On the other hand, I really dislike Brown's way of writing characters, everything from creating backstories interesting enough to describing them in present day and action. I mean, of course Robert Langdon is as perfect as Brown's wanted him to be (bet he created him as a perfect version of his own self), but oh god, ARE THERE MORE TO FEMALE CHARACTERS THAN THEIR BODIES? Obviously there should be, but I wouldn't recommend using Brown's books as a guide to writing women. Or, tbh, any other characters either, so very one-dimensional, stereotypical, (and even racist) he made them all (apart from Langdon ofc). Especially the assassin — his actions and overall villain-ness didn't frustrate me nowhere near as his personality was written to be.
So, overall the story was adventurous and entertaining if you just treat most of the chacters as "necessary implementers to the required actions" and ignore their personal traits. Wouldn't recommend if you dislike science and/or history.
On the other hand, I really dislike Brown's way of writing characters, everything from creating backstories interesting enough to describing them in present day and action. I mean, of course Robert Langdon is as perfect as Brown's wanted him to be (bet he created him as a perfect version of his own self), but oh god, ARE THERE MORE TO FEMALE CHARACTERS THAN THEIR BODIES? Obviously there should be, but I wouldn't recommend using Brown's books as a guide to writing women. Or, tbh, any other characters either, so very one-dimensional, stereotypical, (and even racist) he made them all (apart from Langdon ofc). Especially the assassin — his actions and overall villain-ness didn't frustrate me nowhere near as his personality was written to be.
So, overall the story was adventurous and entertaining if you just treat most of the chacters as "necessary implementers to the required actions" and ignore their personal traits. Wouldn't recommend if you dislike science and/or history.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Blood, Body horror, Chronic illness, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Torture
Moderate: Ableism, Racism, Sexism, and Suicide
gundegaaa's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Sexual violence, Torture, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Death of parent, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
gurkanwal27's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Torture, Rape, Death of parent, Death, Chronic illness, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Hate crime
Moderate: Emotional abuse
elodie_melodie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Alles in allem hat es mir viel Spaß gemacht dieses Buch zu lesen.
Die meiste Zeit mochte ich den Schreibstil und die Cliffhanger und Plottwists, ich hatte das Gefühl, dass ich dadurch immer mehr lesen wollte und die Spannung gut gehalten wurde. Dennoch muss ich leider sagen, dass genau das mich gegen Ende, ungefähr im letzten Viertel, extrem genervt hat. So nach dem Motto zu viel des Guten. Alles war ein Plottwist... Dadurch hat sich das Ende meiner Meinung nach viel zu lang gezogen.
Tatsächlich hat es mich auch ein bisschen enttäuscht, dass so wenig in der Geschichte der Wahrheit entsprochen hat. Mir ist klar, dass es ein fiktiver Roman ist, aber da der Autor sich an viele echte Gebäude und Skulpturen in Rom und im Vatikan gehalten hat, hatte ich gehofft, dass er bezüglich des Illuminatenordens sich auch an den bekannten Fakten orientiert und dann seine Fiktion darum bastelt, anstatt den Großteil frei zu erfinden. Vor allem weil ich finde, dass der Prolog/das Vorwort den Anschein erweckt, als würde alles außer die Charaktere und Handlung wirklich existieren.
Naja, trotzdem hab ich es gerne gelesen und schnell verschlungen. Ein gutes Buch, wenn man mal was spannendes will.
Die meiste Zeit mochte ich den Schreibstil und die Cliffhanger und Plottwists, ich hatte das Gefühl, dass ich dadurch immer mehr lesen wollte und die Spannung gut gehalten wurde. Dennoch muss ich leider sagen, dass genau das mich gegen Ende, ungefähr im letzten Viertel, extrem genervt hat. So nach dem Motto zu viel des Guten. Alles war ein Plottwist... Dadurch hat sich das Ende meiner Meinung nach viel zu lang gezogen.
Tatsächlich hat es mich auch ein bisschen enttäuscht, dass so wenig in der Geschichte der Wahrheit entsprochen hat. Mir ist klar, dass es ein fiktiver Roman ist, aber da der Autor sich an viele echte Gebäude und Skulpturen in Rom und im Vatikan gehalten hat, hatte ich gehofft, dass er bezüglich des Illuminatenordens sich auch an den bekannten Fakten orientiert und dann seine Fiktion darum bastelt, anstatt den Großteil frei zu erfinden. Vor allem weil ich finde, dass der Prolog/das Vorwort den Anschein erweckt, als würde alles außer die Charaktere und Handlung wirklich existieren.
Naja, trotzdem hab ich es gerne gelesen und schnell verschlungen. Ein gutes Buch, wenn man mal was spannendes will.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Sexual violence, Violence, Torture, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Murder, and Self harm
laurawoods13's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Confinement, Gun violence, and Sexual assault
bronzeageholly's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexism, Violence, Torture, Suicide, and Sexual content
monicavillasb's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Plot: I love love love Dan Brown's plots, always! They are so fast-paced, full of interesting information and packed with plot-twists from beginning to end! Unfortunately I discovered quite early who the main villain was (from experience reading all of his other books), but the ending was insane anyway. One thing that I always like about Brown's book are that they teach you interesting things about history. This one, being the first book in the series, lacked a bit of it in my opinion compared to other of his books such as Inferno.
Writing: I already knew what to expect from the writing. Dan Brown has a very signature writing style and you can easily recognize it. It's valid to say that he mixes history scenes and action scenes very well. The one things the author could do different is to put more effort in making his female characters more diverse (I feel like they're always the same in his books) and stop the MC from having an affair with them in the end of every.single.book.
Characters: I already knew Robert Langdon from other books, but I feel like he was well-written enough that, if I had never read another book in which he is the MC, I would still have gotten to know him very well. Vittoria was a compelling character too, but I wish we had seen a more emotional side of her, she was grieving and this seemed to be forgotten sometimes. All the other characters introduced were essential to the story too.
Writing: I already knew what to expect from the writing. Dan Brown has a very signature writing style and you can easily recognize it. It's valid to say that he mixes history scenes and action scenes very well. The one things the author could do different is to put more effort in making his female characters more diverse (I feel like they're always the same in his books) and stop the MC from having an affair with them in the end of every.single.book.
Characters: I already knew Robert Langdon from other books, but I feel like he was well-written enough that, if I had never read another book in which he is the MC, I would still have gotten to know him very well. Vittoria was a compelling character too, but I wish we had seen a more emotional side of her, she was grieving and this seemed to be forgotten sometimes. All the other characters introduced were essential to the story too.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, and Hate crime
Moderate: Death of parent, Blood, Body horror, and Fire/Fire injury