First is definitely not the worse! (Angels and Demons - Dan Brown)

Member Name: Absy_Baby

Product:	Angels and Demons - Dan Brown
Date:	24/06/09 (88 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great plot - well researched - indepth - keeps you gripped - so much better than the film

Disadvantages: Can be a bit far fetched - how many times can someone avoid death?

Angels and Demons is the 624 page turner that has just hit the big screens as the latest Tom Hanks blockbuster and book adaptation.

Return, Professor Robert Langdon. I say return because I had not read any Dan Brown books until the Da Vinci Code hit the big screens and like any book lover, I saw the film thought it was good, read the book and thought it was amazing, then proceeded to read all his books, so Angels and Demons was in fact the third book I read.

However Angels and Demon's is Dan Brown's first book, published in July 2001 and in my opinion the best! I can imagine after spending 6 years researching for Angels and Demons then being rushed in to producing the next big thing can be less flexible.

Robert Langdon a Harvard Professor who is a symbologist receives a call in the middle of the night from CERN Director Max Kohler who requests Langdon's company immediately, when Langdon declines, Kohler sends Langdon a fax, a dead body and a symbol that will change Langdon's life.

Langdon soon ends up in Geneva, Switzerland at CERN (a scientist organisation) where he is introduced to the victims daughter Vittoria Vetra, who explains the topic secret project she and her late father Leonardo were working on, along with the twist, the intruder not only murdered Leonardo but also stole a canister that held part of the top secret project, however the canister has 24 hours before its contents explode and cause a catastrophic explosion.

Langdon is in awe of the top secret project, yet still convinced the symbol is a fake, but when the Vatican come calling explaining there seems to be a canister within the Vatican, Langdon soon realises this could be a very real threat, that was pledged many hundreds of years ago by the Illuminati.

Langdon finds himself explaining who the Illuminati are, what they want, and how they don't exist, but on Langdon's journey to find the missing canister from CERN, he finds out a lot more than he bargained for.

I absolutely loved this book, it kept me gripped from beginning to end. There are twists and turns throughout I didn't see coming, and they make it all the more exciting.

The story is mainly set in Rome, and the history and the depth of the detail of Rome, it's Churches and the Vatican is immense, you can totally understand how this book took 6 years of research to write.

I like the way Dan Brown writes and I find it flows very well, I also like the fact in this book the brands are actually drawn, it would be pretty hard to imagine them. He does give enough detail though for even those with limited imaginations to be able to really visualise this book, although I bet some of it is nothing compared to the real thing (I'll let you know as going to Rome on Friday).

My biggest problem with films and TV are they do not give me enough information, I like the scene set and the background laid bare. This book definitely does this, the first 100 pages, I wouldn't say nothing happens but a lot of background stuff happens which continues the story on nicely, so come half way through the book, you can relate what is going on to what has already happened.

Like I said I found this book great, better than the Di Vinci Code and for those who love books that you need to think (not too much) about, and enjoy mystery, history and adventure this book is definitely for you!

Summary: Great read - best Dan Brown book, so much better than the film!