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Langdon isn't at his best, but Brown still impresses.
adventurous
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
This story started of very very slow for me. The build up felt overly lengthy, which is not something I normally say about Dan Brown novels but I enjoyed being back in Robert Langdon's world one more time.
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
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:
Complicated
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
One of my favorite parts of Dan Brown's writing is the sheer amount of research that he puts into his books. This review is following a reread because I wanted some additional context for when I visit Florence and Venice later this year. I wanted to see if there were any off the beaten path places suggested in this book I could explore (maybe) and gain some insight into the history of these cities (definitely provided).
As a biologist, I find the premise of this book exceptionally interesting, though a little out there. Not in terms of the threat of a virus/global pandemic (and our exceptionally poor systems to deal with them as exemplified further by the response to the COVID-19 pandemic), but because of the slightly mad scientist who created an utterly ridiculous series of clues for his nemesis (the head of the WHO) to follow.The absurdity of this is heightened by the fact that his nemesis could never figure out these clues on her own and also that there was absolutely nothing that could have been done to prevent the inevitable plague. .
This book has some of my favorite "wait, what?" moments for a mystery/thriller as you try to figure out what's happening, which side is good, and who is working together. I love how this story begins, with Robert unable to remember the past two days, and how he and Sienna have to piece together what happened to him and what he was trying to accomplish.
I do think that the ending of this book leaves a little bit to be desired, as the characters all just seem to sweep everything under the rug and move on. I wish they spent slightly more time dealing with the implications of what has happened and how the world could be impacted moving forward.
As a biologist, I find the premise of this book exceptionally interesting, though a little out there. Not in terms of the threat of a virus/global pandemic (and our exceptionally poor systems to deal with them as exemplified further by the response to the COVID-19 pandemic), but because of the slightly mad scientist who created an utterly ridiculous series of clues for his nemesis (the head of the WHO) to follow.
This book has some of my favorite "wait, what?" moments for a mystery/thriller as you try to figure out what's happening, which side is good, and who is working together. I love how this story begins, with Robert unable to remember the past two days, and how he and Sienna have to piece together what happened to him and what he was trying to accomplish.
I do think that the ending of this book leaves a little bit to be desired, as the characters all just seem to sweep everything under the rug and move on. I wish they spent slightly more time dealing with the implications of what has happened and how the world could be impacted moving forward.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I loved the plot of this book, especially when compared to the movie although I understand why the changes were made when it was adapted to the screen. I found that this book is the most haunting of all the Robert Langdon books, especially when reading it after the COVID pandemic. As usual, the thought and research into this book is especially fascinating and I was interested the whole time!
This was an okay, but not amazing entry in the Langdon series. The main issue I had wasn’t the idea, but how quickly everything was presented and/or how long the book is. By about 150 pages in out of 450, you know pretty much the whole idea. The next 300 pages are reading through to learn the last specific detail, which you cannot deduce from clues. The plot twists are somewhat predictable. That said, the main idea is somewhat interesting and thought provoking, the scenes and historical detail are on point (as usual with Dan Brown). It’s not the best Langdon book, but worth a read for fans of the character and style.
So I've been reading this book day and night, I was so caught up in it that I expected a big grand finale , but it turned out to be an absurd ending. I know infertility is a serious matter but it doesn't qualify to be the ending of the book. The videos's description solely was chilling and scary, the mask of plague and Dante's inferno and all the creepy nightmares Langdon had had, eventually cannot possibly/logically result to that ending. I anticipated a more gory horrifying end but I guess Dan Brown chose to play it safe. It was a disappointment honestly..