Angels & Demons, Special Illustrated Edition (ISBN 0743275063)

Amazon.com Review:
It takes guts to write a novel that combines an ancient secret brotherhood, the Swiss Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire, a papal conclave, mysterious ambigrams, a plot against the Vatican, a mad scientist in a wheelchair, particles of antimatter, jets that can travel 15,000 miles per hour, crafty assassins, a beautiful Italian physicist, and a Harvard professor of religious iconology. It takes talent to make that novel anything but ridiculous. Kudos to Dan Brown (Digital Fortress) for achieving the nearly impossible. Angels & Demons is a no-holds-barred, pull-out-all-the-stops, breathless tangle of a thriller--think Katherine Neville's The Eight (but cleverer) or Umberto Eco's Foucault's Pendulum (but more accessible). Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is shocked to find proof that the legendary secret society, the Illuminati--dedicated since the time of Galileo to promoting the interests of science and condemning the blind faith of Catholicism--is alive, well, and murderously active. Brilliant physicist Leonardo Vetra has been murdered, his eyes plucked out, and the society's ancient symbol branded upon his chest. His final discovery, antimatter, the most powerful and dangerous energy source known to man, has disappeared--only to be hidden somewhere beneath Vatican City on the eve of the election of a new pope. Langdon and Vittoria, Vetra's daughter and colleague, embark on a frantic hunt through the streets, churches, and catacombs of Rome, following a 400-year-old trail to the lair of the Illuminati, to prevent the incineration of civilization. Brown seems as much juggler as author--there are lots and lots of balls in the air in this novel, yet Brown manages to hurl the reader headlong into an almost surreal suspension of disbelief. While the reader might wish for a little more sardonic humor from Langdon, and a little less bombastic philosophizing on the eternal conflict between religion and science, these are less fatal flaws than niggling annoyances--readers should have no trouble skimming past them and immersing themselves in a heck of a good read. "Brain candy" it may be, but my! It's tasty. --Kelly Flynn

to the point:
Angels and demons is a taut,suspenseful novel that will keep you on edge while symbologist Robert Langdon races against time to save Vatican City from apocalyptic terror.

most amazing book ever:
best book ive ever read. its fast and smart. its one of those books that you cant believe didnt actually happen in real life. read before you go see the movie when it comes out. plus it never gets old nomatter how many times you read it.

Worth the read, great thriller:
This book is much better than the DaVinci Code. There is a lot more attention to detail and historic figures that give a much better background suspense. There is still this great sense of cover-up conspiracy from the vatican; but the plot to this book is much thicker. A great read.

Dan Brown's Series:
A wonderful and thrilling read from chapter one. Looked forward to every free moment to continue were I left off.

Another Classic from Brown:
If you like DaVinci Code and just about any other conspiracy theory book you'll love this one.