 |
I have so far read 4 of Dan Brown's books (Angel & Demons, DaVinci Code, Deception Point & Digital Fortress) and three features of his writings stand out. First, audacious plotlines; Brown does not believe in small measures but goes out on a limb. The plotlines are way over the top but have just that crucial amount of credibility to draw in a reader, even when he knows it is fiction. Second, the pace is mercilessly quick; the entire plot of the book plays out over a few days at most. Last but for me the best of all, his books have a wealth of esoteric information that one would not normally read about. I found myself enthralled by a never ending series of factoids that had me rushing to the Internet for explanation or elaboration. Digital Fortress follows the above lines. A quick capsule : Set with a cryptographic background, it describes a battle of wits between a governmental agency focused on breaking codes (used by good and bad guys alike in order to forestall terrorism) with a former employee who passionately believes in individual privacy. In a rapid-fire series of thrust and counter-thrust, the action cuts between Washington and Madrid with the standard does of blood, explosions and romance. Unlike Brown's other novels, this is very undemanding of a reader's intelligence - the average reader will see the signposts well before the protagonists themselves. Sadly, there are flaws aplenty that seriously impact the plot credibility. Apart from the likelihood of an amateur professor being used as a proxy agent, the ease of the bypassing of the Gauntlet anti-virus software, particularly when Gauntlet safeguards not only TRANSLTR but also the databank is simply not possible. In such a situation there would be multiple layers of safeguards, not just a single bypass attributable to a single individual no matter how senior. More to the point, having raised the whole issue of individual privacy vis-à-vis governmental oversight, Brown never follows through on the implications. A pity, as this is of key topical importance as well. Nevertheless, this is a good weekend read when you want to just enjoy a story and not get too caught up in the process. Three stars for that, with a star each subtracted for the plot credibility lapses and inadequate research.Read full review
Well, I love Dan Brown and can't wait for his next book to appear. But after reading all his others, I found this one a little below standard. I think it was because of the way the ring was passed from hand to hand and I thought the search for the ring would go on forever (owner - German bloke - female escort - punk - thank goodness it stopped here before continuing to others). The chase scene with D.B. and the killer goes on for far too long. The final scenes whilst they are finding the password is a bit hectic and I truly cannot believe that a programmer as astute as Tokanda would make the actual PW so simple (as far as length goes). I also have another meaning for David's ending his letters with the words "without wax". Seeing as wax was used for sealing letters, this could also be taken to mean "I am not sealing this letter with wax, but I am sealing it with a kiss". I can speak Latin but never thought of the "official" explanation :-)Read full review
The book was fantastic! Dan Brown (like all his books) keeps you on the edge of your seat in just about every chapter, from beginning to end. The book certainly has action and adventure, with and a hint of romance towards the end. Dan Brown also gives true facts about life, and places you may have never known before. The book made me think a lot about different perspectives of the book on who the good guy was versus who the bad guy was because Dan Brown uses a lot reverse psychology and false impressions of characters throughout the book. If you have read any of Dan Brown's other books and liked them, then you probably wont be dissapointed with this one. Only Criticism: They lead this certain guy (trying not to reveal anything) on a "goose chase" to find this one ring and that started to bug me just a little bit. Also, I thought this was not his best book he wrote. In fact, this was the least entertaining for me AFTER i read some of his other books (Deception Point, Angels and Demons), but it was definately the best book i read before reading some of his other books, and still nothing short of amazing. P.S. if you HATE computers and they are like quantum physics to you, you may not like this book.Read full review
I personally have not read a novel/book in over 8 years as I often find I could not make the time nor been able to finish a book without falling asleep. That was before I came upon Dan Brown. He to me is a prolific writer which captures your imagination and his literary style makes it easy to keep your fingers moving/gliding through the pages. I have read all his books and am waiting anxiously for the his next release coming soon. Yes not all his books were of equal standing, but for a writer to do the amount of research he does and variety of topics he covers is staggering. You cannot go wrong with a Dan Brown book.....while waiting for his next novel I've switched to Greg Iles another great writer. cheers
If you like computers, this is a very good story about computer and programming. I am a fan of Dan Brown, got familiar with this author since Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons. The only drawback of this book is it's kind of boring in the middle of the story. The beginning and the ending are both excellent.
Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- Best Selling in Books
Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- Save on Books
Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- You may also like
