“Jam-packed with tricks… A book length scavenger hunt that Mr Brown creates so energetically.”
NO MAJOR SPOILERS
“The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis”
These lines appear at the beginning, several times through the plot and aptly in the epilogue and define the very essence of this gripping masterpiece by Dan Brown. I have read all his novels now and classify them into two distinct categories – Extraordinarily gripping, exciting and spell binding starring Robert Langdon (Da Vinci, angels n demons, the lost symbol) ; and downright lousy borefests without Robert Langdon (deception point, digital fortress).
Fortunately, Inferno joins the former category and Dan Brown even infuses a touch of Jason Bourne into the Harvard Symbologist who wakes up with a gun shot wound to his head in a hospital in Florence not being able to recall what, how, where, when of it all. No time is wasted and an assassin appears to finish the job ; enter Sienna Brooks – an extremely gifted and mysterious doctor to Langdon’s rescue.
Now, Langdon has no idea who are the people trying to kill him and what is he doing halfway around the world in the first place with the only clue being a tiny object he finds in his pocket. The clues that he discovers are all inspired by Dante Alighieri’s Inferno and the proverbial wild goose chase takes us from Florence to Venice and finally culminates at a city which has been the centre of so many civilisations and kingdoms over the last few centuries.
Meanwhile, it’s very clear that there is someone who is trying everything to stop Langdon at any costs and somebody else had enlisted Langdon’s help to stop a major catastrophe.
The Novel raises a very fundamental and relevant question – Is there any practical solution to the biggest problem humankind is facing today which may ultimately lead to its extinction – OVERPOPULATION!
The radical solution which is propagated by one of the main characters in the Novel, though extremely disturbing and cruel seemed like the only practical one and I could not help but agree to it in the end. I’ll not say much more as that is the biggest suspense in this novel.
There are enough twists and turns to keep you hooked throughout the Novel and the characters turn from positive to negative so many times mostly when you don’t see it coming. Dan Brown is an exceptional writer and he should stick to writing historical – mythological adventure – thrillers like this. Along the ride, I got to know so much about the greatest Italian poet ever – Dante Alighieri(about whom I knew very little ) and also added Florence and Venice to must visit places whenever I’m lucky enough to go to Europe.
Without doubt, a highly recommended novel.
5/5
“In dangerous times, there is no sin greater than inaction ”
Reviewed by:
Aditya Singh
Added 5th August 2017
