Originally posted by GuidoA couple months ago I read "The DaVinci Code". I loved it like most everyone else. Quite a blend of fact and fiction.
Everyone tells me "If you liked that, pick up Angels and Demons by the same author".
Should I pick it up?
I haven't read Davinchi Code, but I did read Angels and Demons. It was an OK story and there were a couple things I didn't see coming. Of course, we've got a guy with a rather boring job job suddenly having some intense advantures and that might be a stretch. But it was a good enough light read. I hear that Davinchi Code is a sequel to Angels and Demons, so I might read it some day. I know of the story and may not read it because of the storyline (I did part of a masters paper on the heretical psuedophigripha that some of that story is based on and I was a bit grossed out after that paper), but I suspect the author (is it Miller... I forget) ) can make the subplot appealing. I can't understand all sorts of things in fiction.
I actually enjoyed Angels & Demons far more than DaVinci. The plot was even more over-the-top (antimatter terrorism) and the ending had me laughing out loud in stunned disbelief. Just a lot of fun in a Summer-blockbuster way.
If you read it now, though, it will probably feel a bit surreal, since it deals heavily with the Vatican and the selection process for choosing a new pope. Actually, it was enlightening in that regard; when reading in the newspaper about individuals like the camerlengo, I could say "I know what that means!"
"Remember, it's not a lie if *you* believe it." - George Costanza
I found Angels and Demons hard to read after DaVinci. Mostly because the main character is just SO DUMB at that point. He misses some pretty glaring plot points that are staring him in the face.
I've read Angels and Demons, Da Vinci Code and Digital Fortress. I liked them all, but had the same problem with all of them: He always has one character that ends up flip-flopping back and forth between supposedly good and supposedly evil that it eventually becomes almost unbelievable.
Other than that, they're all really good reads. A lot of fun and kind of educational if you enjoy cryptology, which is what they're all really about.
If you liked The Da Vinci Code, I'm pretty sure you'd like Angels and Demons. Having read TDVC first, you'll probably think of it as a kind of prequel, since the main character (Robert Langdon) is the same. It's a good fluff book, fun airplane or lazy weekend reading. I'll also second Pizza Pasta's comments: coming off the death of John Paul II, the fact that the book features the selection of a new pope, and all the possible intrigue surrounding it, will seem a bit bizarre and eerie.
But, like I said, it's a fun book. The only people I know who didn't like it were people with a similar background to mine -- history students, teachers, or wonks -- who got too angry at Dan Brown's perversion our outright ignorance of history to enjoy it. I think by the time I hit page 20 of the book, I'd run out of fingers on which to count the inaccuracies, distortions or outright falsehoods. But once I decided, "Oh, his history is utter crap," and just decided to treat the book like an amusement park ride, I had a good time. Switch brain off and take the ride... you'll enjoy.
I actually prefer "Gospel" by Wilton Barnhardt to either of these books, as a thriller/mystery devoting large sections of text to church history and conspiracy theory. There's more fun to be had in that book. The DaVinci Code just bored the ever-living crap out of me when I wasn't actively pissed off at the glaring inaccuracies.
Imagine no possessions I wonder if you can No need for greed or hunger A brotherhood of man Imagine all the people Sharing all the world
You may say that I'm a dreamer But I'm not the only one I hope someday you'll join us And the world will live as one
If you liked The Da Vinci Code, chances are you'll like Angels & Demons too. I'd suggest not reading them too closely together, though. I made the mistake of reading TDVC about a week after finishing A&D and it really impacted how much I enjoyed the book. Granted, it's the same author and one might expect similar plot lines, but TDVC just seemed too formulaic. They were both good fiction reads; A&D was harder to put down as it had a more suspenseful (to me) feel to it. Definitely pick up or borrow a copy of Angels & Demons but you may want to read something by another author in the interim.
"You rock, Rolfski. You are one hep cat." "Ya, ya, sock it to me."
Dan Brown writes a gripping page turner, I'll grant you that. But if you're looking for intrigue and adventure against a back drop of interesting historical and scientific ideas...
Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco blows anything Dan Brown has written clean out of the water (and so does The Name of the Rose for that matter).
(edited by Stilton on 12.4.05 2350) The Goal: SLACK The Method: The Casting Out of False Prophets The Weapon: Time Control The Motto: "Fuck Them All if they Can't Take a Joke"
And, interestingly enough, sales of Angels and Demons have spiked since the pope died, since it has a rather detailed description of the conclave _ or at least Dan Brown's version of it.
The Batman Inc concept is my biggest pet peeve in comics (character redundancy) X1000. Batman is a big seller, so let's put one in EVERY country. At least they haven't reached Marvel/Wolverine territory yet...