Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

INTRO: Origin is another fun spiritual journey through history and the origins of religious belief. Although Brown’s writing will not rank well among the great classics, his books turned into film will pack theaters and encourage history buffs to travel Europe. Set in Spain, this book, ironically, was released just as the people of Catalonia voted for independence from Spain. Read on to learn more... *** ARE THERE PROFANITIES USED? *** Extremely few. Indeed, the f-word makes just one appearance and I didn’t find any s-words. BLUSH FACTOR Your 80-year-old grandmother will probably be begging you to read more books just like this. No worries here. POV Written in third person primarily from Robert Langdon’s POV. KEY POINTS Using history, science and religion for a thriller is one of the better ways to incite curiosity among readers. By this, I mean, curiosity to learn the truth. In other words, Brown’s books should not be regarded as actual history, although they certainly are fun and informative. LANGUAGE Written in everyday English, the book is not especially artsy. Yet, it is a quick, fun read because the writing is honest, clear, and concise. DOES THIS WRITER SHOW OR TELL WHAT WE SEE/FEEL/HEAR? Mostly, it is written to show us what is seen, felt, heard or feared. DOES THE WRITER EVOKE THE FIVE SENSES? Yes. IS THIS THE FIRST IN A SERIES OR SHOULD I READ AN EARLIER BOOK FIRST? CLIFFHANGER? Although it leaves us in knowledge that another tale is coming, this is a stand-alone novel. Q - How was this book obtained? A – I bought both the Kindle version and the Audible Whispersync copy so I could read and listen. Q - Are there a lot of typos/misspellings, grammatical errors or other editing failures? A – No. Q - Is this a fast, easy read or is it more of a leisure read? A – A page-turner leisure read. You’ll probably skip a meal or two. Q - My biggest pleasure or disappointment? A – Can’t wait for the movie. To give a feel for the editing, and the style and flow of this work, I am posting a brief excerpt below. Excerpt ‘…“If you’ve read my books,” Langdon’s voice continued, “you will have heard me use the term ‘God of the Gaps.’ That is to say, when the ancients experienced gaps in their understanding of the world around them, they filled those gaps with God.” The sky filled now with a massive collage of paintings and statues depicting dozens of ancient deities. “Countless gods filled countless gaps,” Langdon said. “And yet, over the centuries, scientific knowledge increased.” A collage of mathematical and technical symbols flooded the sky overhead. “As the gaps in our understanding of the natural world gradually disappeared, our pantheon of gods began to shrink.” On the ceiling, the image of Poseidon came to the forefront. “For example, when we learned that the tides were caused by lunar cycles, Poseidon was no longer necessary, and we banished him as a foolish myth of an unenlightened time.” The image of Poseidon evaporated in a puff of smoke. “As you know, the same fate befell all the gods—dying off, one by one, as they outlived their relevance to our evolving intellects.” Overhead, the images of gods began twinkling out, one by one—gods of thunder, earthquakes, plagues, and on and on. As the number of images dwindled, Langdon added, “But make no mistake about it. These gods did not ‘go gentle into that good night’; it is a messy process for a culture to abandon its deities. Spiritual beliefs are etched deeply on our psyches at a young age by those we love and trust most—our parents, our teachers, our religious leaders. Therefore, any religious shifts occur over generations, and not without great angst, and often bloodshed.” The sound of clattering swords and shouting now accompanied the gradual disappearance of the gods, whose images winked out one by one. Finally, the image of a single god remained—an iconic wizened face with a flowing white beard. “Zeus…,” Langdon declared, his voice powerful. “The god of all gods. The most feared and revered of all the pagan deities. Zeus, more than any other god, resisted his own extinction, mounting a violent battle against the dying of his own light, precisely as had the earlier gods Zeus had replaced.” On the ceiling flashed images of Stonehenge, the Sumerian cuneiform tablets, and the Great Pyramids of Egypt. Then Zeus’s bust returned. “Zeus’s followers were so resistant to giving up on their god that the conquering faith of Christianity had no choice but to adopt the face of Zeus as the face of their new God.” On the ceiling, the bearded bust of Zeus dissolved…’ Brown, Dan. Origin: A Novel (Kindle Locations 1554-1576). Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. Bottom Line: A bit of a challenge to decide between four stars and five. In the end, though, the story is just too darned fun to read for me to rate it lower than five stars. Five stars out of five. Comments regarding your opinion of this book or of my review, whether favorable or unfavorable, are always welcome. If you buy the book based on my review and become disappointed, especially, I do want to know that and I want to understand how I can improve as a book reviewer. Just please be polite. Thank you.