"Inferno"

The last book in the 'Robert Langdon' series! Dan Brown uses his book, "Inferno", to perfectly bring Robert Langdon's story to a close. Langdon wakes up in a hospital room, having no memory of why or how he got there, and he is being told that he was shot. The doctors, in trying to figure out where he came from, let it slip that he is in a hospital in Italy. Italy! The last thing Langdon remembers is being on the Harvard campus. Not only can he not remember the last two days of his life, but someone is trying to kill him and he has no idea why. All of the clues he has tie into one of history's most mysterious pieces, Dante's "Inferno". In a race against time, Langdon feels the weight of the world as he tries to piece the clues together. The stakes are higher than ever before and he HAS to solve these riddles. The entire population of the earth is at risk if Langdon fails.

Oh my goodness, this book will get your heart pounding. It is probably Dan Brown's most thrilling book yet. If Langdon slows down too much, someone will catch him and he will die. If he moves too fast and makes a mistake, he will die. If he doesn't figure this out, everyone else will die. Who can he trust though? Waking up in a different country with absolutely no memories is confusing enough, but now he has this huge task to undertake and doesn't know who is friend and who is foe.

Pick up this book and read it. I would suggest reading "Angels and Demons", "The Davinci Code", and "The Lost Symbol" before reading this one. Simply because it gives you the background and history that you need to truly appreciate Robert Langdon's character. However, if you are just looking for a good book to read and don't want to start a series then I would still highly suggest reading this one. The stories don't actually tie together, so you can read them in any order. This book will make you question things that you have probably never even thought of before. It is entertaining and very thought-provoking and well worth your time. Check it out and let me know what you think!

"The Lost Symbol"

So I go through these phases where I read a TON, and then I will stop reading and get into a TV series or something for a little while, and then I will pick up a book and start reading a TON again. Well, I just finished my non-reading phase, which is why it took me forever to get this book on here. My apologies for the delay. 

I love these books, (Angels and Demons; The Davinci Code; The Lost Symbol; Inferno), because they have the same main character, Robert Langdon, but each story is different. You don't necessarily need to read them in order because the stories are all so different, but I would recommend reading them in order because of the background that they give for Langdon. The third book in the series by Dan Brown is "The Lost Symbol". This one is especially unique out of the four, because the story is set in our very own Washington D.C. The other books are in other countries that have histories that go way farther back than the U.S. I think that I learned more about the founding of our country from this book than from any of my history classes. More that I will remember at least.

Robert Langdon thinks that he is coming to Washington D.C. as a speaker for a conference, but when he arrives at the location of the conference he is met by an unexpected and terrifying surprise. This surprise is just the start to a night filled with many horrific and terrifying discoveries. With the help of Katherine, a brilliant scientist and old friend, Langdon has to go on a frantic search through Washington to find an ancient Masonic secret in order to save the life of one of his closest friends.

I love this book because all of the places and organizations are completely real. I've even been to a few of the places mentioned. Although not to the secret tunnels and conveyer belts that Langdon gets to travel. This book is deep and thought-provoking, while still being easy to read and attention grabbing. Your subconscious is being totally satisfied because it's getting the education that it wants while your conscious is getting a heart-pounding suspense story. You definitely will not come away from this book feeling like you wasted your time. Some of the rituals and events described in this book are kind of eerie, and there are swear words laced throughout the content. I would rate it PG-13. It is a gripping story though, so make sure that your 'chores' are done before picking this one up. ;) I hope that you get as much fun out of this book as I did! Let me know what you think!

"The Da Vinci Code"

The second book in the Robert Langdon series, "The Da Vinci Code", by Dan Brown, is arguably better than the first. They are probably an exact tie in my book. This book takes you on another incredible adventure through Paris after the curator of the Louvre is murdered in his own museum. Although not before leaving a message for whoever found his body. Encoded in his message is a second message that only his granddaughter, Sophie, and Robert Langdon can decipher.

This particular curator just so happens to be the leader of a secret society that keeps the secret of the Holy Grail. He, along with three other men, are the only ones that know it's exact location. Right before he is shot, his killer reveals that the other three are already dead, which means that if he dies, the secret dies with him. So he leaves a code that leads to a trail of encrypted messages that take Langdon and Sophie across Paris and London.

This book is a very intelligent thriller, and the intensity goes from the very start and doesn't stop until the last page. Dan Brown adds so much detail to his books. It's obvious that he knows his stuff, which really makes you feel like you are living in the pages. While it's not exactly an 'easy read' because of the thickness of the book and the intelligence of the writing, I can think of no reason for you to not pick this book up right now. After you have read "Angels and Demons" of course. This is the type of book that you will want to pick up as soon as you get home from work, try to squeeze in a few pages before work, and maybe even pull it out at stop lights because you just have to find out what happens next. Let me know what you think!  

"Angels and Demons"

I had this book sitting on my desk at work and one of my coworkers saw it and said, "Geeze, that's an old book". I laughed and said, "Yea, but it's SO good!" With all of the new books coming out all the time, sometimes we forget that there are already a lot of really good books out there. So, even though "Angels and Demons", by Dan Brown, is 'old', I want to make sure you know about it because it's a good one.

This is actually the first book of a series that follows the character of Robert Langdon, who is a well known symbologist at Harvard. When it comes to symbolism, Langdon is one of the most knowledgeable people in the world. Which is why, when a man turns up dead with an ancient symbol branded into his chest, Langdon is the first person called to the scene. He gets whisked away on a private jet to a Swiss research facility where he discovers more than he could have ever dreamed of. Not only is the dead guy branded with an ancient symbol that is so secret that most people don't believe it exists, but he was also a scientist that had just made a discovery that would completely change the world.

This world-changing work was stolen from his lab however, so Langdon travels to Rome to track it down. He has the brilliant and beautiful Vittoria Vetra (the dead scientist's daughter) in tow. The two of them get thrown into a whirlwind of uncontrollable events as they try to locate the device while also catching the killer. To make matters worse, the killer has kidnapped 4 cardinals and has threatened to kill one of them every hour. Landon and Vittoria have to translate an old map written in code that will lead them to the next murder location. They break laws, visit forbidden libraries and crypts, and uncover one of the best kept secrets on earth: the Illuminati lair.

This book will keep you on your toes the entire time! Dan Brown has obviously done his research and the details he adds truly makes his books come to life. The coolest part is that while the story is fiction, all of the places and details are factual! This is a thriller at it's best, and you feel like you are right there running through the churches of Rome with the characters. It's a very educated book, so it might not hold the attention of young readers, plus the material is probably pg-13 so I would keep this one for older readers. It does describe some of the bodies, and there is a part where the killer visits a high-class whore house, but it doesn't give any details. Nothing that I would consider innappropriate, but you are the best judge of that. It is a thick one too, so don't plan on only giving this book a day or two. It will take a little longer than that to get through. It is time well spent in my opinion. Check it out!  Oh, and I will have the next books in the series on here soon!

"Switchback"

Wow, did it take me long enough to get this book on here or what? As soon as I finished reading "Switchback", by Clair M. Poulson, I started "Angels and Demons", by Dan Brown. I got so swept up in that book that I didn't make time to write about "Switchback". My apologies because "Switchback" is a really good book, and I should have told you about it sooner.

An expensive roping horse goes missing and private investigator Rocky Revada is asked to take the case. Having a special love for horses himself, and a soft spot for Shanice Gridley (the beautiful daughter of the horse's owner) Rocky accepts. When he starts his investigation he realizes that not one but two horses have been stolen from the ranch and have been replaced with cheap look-alikes. Now he has two expensive horses to find. Shortly after this discovery the case gets even more complicated when a man is found dead on the Gridley ranch. What started out as a theft is now a murder, and the closer Rocky gets to the killer, the more his life is in danger.  With every new lead Rocky gets, he realizes that he has to solve this case if he wants to save his life, as well as the life of the amazing woman that he is falling in love with.

This is another amazing book by Clair Poulson. He really knows how to whip up the perfect mixture of suspense, mystery, and romance. This book takes so many twists and turns, you will be on the edge of your seat until the very end. Just when you think you have everything figured out, something new pops up and your completely lost again. If you like books that are unpredictable, then you will love this one. It's about 275 pages, so it might take a few days to get through, but it's clean and very enjoyable. Time definitely well spent. Check it out!