I have read all of Dan Brown’s books, but I enjoyed Angels and Demons and Digital Fortress the most. I am not sure why. Maybe because I am a Catholic (Angels and Demons) and used to work in IT (Digital Fortress). Despite reading and enjoying all his books, I do find them formulaic. There is also always A LOT of explaining – some of it very patronising – and a female love interest that doesn’t need to be there at all. Despite this, I read and do enjoy the books.
I don’t enjoy the films I at all, even though I love Tom Hanks. The books feature too much standing around and explaining, and that does not translate well to film. I laughed at this quote from Wikipedia: BBC critic Mark Kermode criticized the film’s “silliness”, saying “Whereas the original movie featured Hanks standing around in darkened rooms explaining the plot to anyone who was still awake, this second salvo cranks up the action by having Tom explain the plot while running—a major breakthrough.
At Christmas time in Sweden, our television channels feature all the Dan Brown films. I made it through Angels and Demons (with my own sarcastic commentary) but could not watch the others.
What do you think of Dan Brown’s writing?