Before beginning with the review, I'd like to appreciate the artist who designed the Illuminati brands, they were perfectly symmetrical, I was awed!

"Angels and Demons" begins with a gruesome murder of a physicist at CERN. The victim is also branded with a mysterious yet symmetrical brand, "Illuminati". Along with Langdon, we learn about a certain deadly technology, now being used to endanger the Vatican.

At the Vatican, Robert and Vittoria (physicist's daughter) realize a bigger conspiracy involving the Pope, the select Cardinals, and the deadly technology. Murders are about to be committed and there is limited time. While Langdon tries to discover the locations of the murders, he's unknowingly put on the Path of Illumination. Each destination demands a description of its ancient architecture and the hidden, subtle Illuminati symbols. Alas, at every step, we witness a murder so gruesome yet so symbolic that it sends chills up the spine.

Throughout the book, I felt a certain sense of attachment to this particular character (no, it's not Robert Langdon). Every time he suffered or was at unease, it pained me. Towards the end, when I guessed what this character was about to do (at least what I felt he would do) left me speechless. But man, I was wrong!! Having read Da Vinci Code, I could not understand how or why Dan Brown was placing the church in a good light. How mistaken I was!

While the plot, in general, was decent, the ending was what changed it for me. If I'm not reaching, I'd say the who or what the end result is, is symmetrically opposite (or a negative) of what one would guess initially (XD). But what made me give this 4 stars instead of 5 is the formula plot. Those who have read The Da Vinci Code know every character is formulaic, churned out to play set roles across his book series.

Overall, it was a good read.