Dan Brown is back with yet another blockbuster. Published less than a month ago, it is already Number One on most best-seller lists. Brown takes the reader on another ride. Like his other recent novels, the author mixes art, history, exotic locales and an ever-ticking clock which his characters are trying to beat.
Dr. Robert Langdon returns in this his fourth Brown novel. Langdon, a Harvard professor who specializes in interpreting symbols, is called upon by the director of WHO to unravel a mystery dealing with Dante’s “The Inferno.” In previous novels, Langdon raced through Rome, Paris, the UK, and Washington D.C. In “Inferno” we find him racing the clock through Florence, Venice, and Istanbul.
The treasures of these extraordinary cities are described in great deal. Langdon in his quest to interpret the symbols presented in Dante’s “The Inferno” visits the Duomo in Florence, Piazza San Marco in Venice, and the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. For anyone interested in art history, this book offers detailed descriptions of the wonders of these great cities.
This is a plot-driven novel that deals with the concept of genetic engineering. With the exception of Robert Langdon, the characters are not who they seem to be. For about two-thirds of the book, Brown convinces the reader that the guys in the black suits are the bad guys. As we race, and everyone is always racing either on foot or in the air, toward the conclusion, Brown reveals and explains important key plot details that change everything.
I did enjoy “Inferno.” As a reader you have to race through the pages because the characters are driven by the need to unravel the mystery. Add to this urgency, the settings and Art History 101, and you have almost all the ingredients of a good story. Brown, however, leaves a major element of the story unresolved. Whether this is a lead-in to a sequel or whether he had to end the story at some point, I am not sure. Many will, no doubt, be very dissatisfied by this major flaw. Will it impact sales and readership? Somehow I don’t think so.