Suspense (and FOREWARNING)

FOREWARNIG...

     ...Hey Everyone! I'm coming to you live from my couch, post-surgery from getting my wisdom teeth out! Let's see how this goes, as I am on painkillers and every time I stare at the computer screen I REALLY want to go to sleep. (NOTE: this is my third attempt to log in and finish my post today and I keep dozing off, but I am bound determined to get this post completed!)...

     Dan Brown exemplifies suspense in and of itself within his Robert Langdon Series. No one would want to read these books without suspense, and I honestly don't see how one possibly could write books like Angels and Demons, The Da Vinci Code, The Lost Symbol and my latest and greatest (also current) read Inferno. He ties together SO many different styles and underlying tones throughout his books that they appeal to a widespread audience. MY particular preference that shines through is the conspiracy element. I wouldn't go so far as to necessarily call it a "conspiracy-novel", but it's those elements within the book that really excels it suspense factors and thus the plot.

 

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     ...Sorry! Dozed off...Ok, more like crashed. That's an hour and a half I'll never get back... oh well, I'm back and ready to finish! But there's another round of painkiller meds in 7 minutes, so it's not looking very promising)...

     One of Dan Brown's signature moves in his books is the ever famous "to be continued..." ending of a chapter or scene and then you as the reader hurry up and turn to the next page and it isn't talking about anything related to what you were just reading about. Then, he gets you hooked on another big seemingly storyline twist and then he'll sometimes end up switching back to that first "to be continued..." ending, which you're happy to have finally found out, but then you're mad because you want to know what's going on now. It's a seemingly vicious, irritating cycle, but it definitely holds readers' attention.

     "'I can't get a signal,' Sienna said, climbing down from the light well and coming toward him.

'You don't need one,' Langdon managed. 'The gilded *mouseion of holy wisdom ...' He took a deep breath. 'I ... made a mistake.'

Sienna went pale. 'Don't tell me we're in the wrong museum.'

'Sienna,' Langdon whispered, feeling ill. 'We're in the wrong country.'" (Inferno 72%)

     This is obviously a very "suspenseful" ending to CHAPTER 75. However, the opening line to CHAPTER 76 is

"Out in St. Mark's Square, the Gypsy woman selling Venetian masks was taking a break, leaning against the outer wall of the basilica to rest..." (Inferno 73%).

     This particular entrance does in fact end up relating to the previous events, just set up through a bystander's point of view, however Brown doesn't at first make it appear that way. This is another of his strategies, where he changes the character point of views who often aren't even named, yet sometimes it's often humorous to hear the crazy events surrounding Langdon and his companions' adventures through just an ordinary bystander because it is often very "WHAT in the WORLD!? Those people are crazy! Should I call the police, or act like I don't see them... Crazy Americans..."
or something to that effect.

     I hope that you find this intriguing and plan to try out one of Dan Brown's books now. On a side note, you do not necessarily need to read them in order, but if you do, you will sometimes understand witty commentary throughout the books that are technically "sequels". The Robert Langdon series is as follows:

 

 Angels and Demons, The Da Vinci Code, The Lost Symbol and Inferno

     Well folks, we survived this round of pain meds! Now if you'll excuse me, I.....

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Check out this interview with Dan Brown on Inferno, his writing style/quirks, etc.

*NOTE: I realize this is a really weird looking word and my spell-check thinks I'm crazy, but that is how it's written in the book, and it's some kind of archaic art history something or other that over time transformed into the modern day "museum".

Sienna Brooks' Character Development

    

     Sienna Brooks is first introduced in Inferno as a young doctor who was one of the first people that Robert Langdon (the main character) saw when he woke up in a hospital in Italy.

     "'I'm Doctor Sienna Brooks,' she said, giving Langdon a smile as she entered,"(Inferno 3%)

     "...Langdon knew the medieval structure well.
    
     It was unique in the world.

     Unfortunately, it was also located four-thousand miles from Massachusetts," (Inferno 4%)

     Throughout the book she helps Langdon by alluding the SRS team, along with their drone, AND a presumed assassin named Vayentha. Her motives appear rock-solid as it appears she is working in Italy illegally while using false papers. She also has quite a mysterious past, as Langdon finds out while observing her apartment. He finds that she was a child prodigy with an off the charts IQ, who was a Shakespearean actor at a young age.

     They eventually through a turn of events (yeah, I know that that is a really descriptive summary of events, but if you have ever read any Dan Brown books, you would know that there are way too many plot twists to try and explain everything!) discover that Robert was in Italy attempting to unravel the clues left by the late Bertrand Zobrist who was convinced that the word would reach its apocalypse due to overpopulation within the upcoming years. Sienna provides insight on Zobrist and his work by attributing to how he contributed much of his life to advancing modern medicine. However, we come to find out that her relationship with Bertrand Zobrist far exceeds that of a doctor following up with the latest medical journals.

     "According to the provist, Sienna Brooks and Bertrand Zobrist had been longtime lovers. They were active together in some kind of underground Transhumanist movement," (Inferno 77%)

It goes to show how deceptive our first impressions of characters can be...

Favorite Book of 2nd Trimester

     Hands down, my favorite book that I read this past trimester was Divergent by Veronica Roth. I know, I was a little behind on jumping on the bandwagon with this series, but I made up for it with how fast I read the book. I tore through it in only 2 days because I just couldn't put it down! I definitely recommend this to any of my fellow dystopia fanatics or just anyone wanting to give it a try. I felt like this book was a very good balance of action, romance, etc. so that no one element over powered any other, so that way this book is tailored to a very broad audience.

     My one highlight that I will share is how Roth immortalized the "coming-of-age" story of Tris Prior, and why I loved it so much. I loved how she (Roth) showed the main character, Beatrice Prior's development and transformation throughout the book. This was both cleverly interwoven throughout the book as Roth exhibits a mental shift within Beatrice, but also to exhibit these changes, Roth pays special attention to how Beatrice (now "Tris")'s physical changes showcase  her new personality and inner strength. An example of where her "physical alterations" reflect both her past, and yet also her progression towards her "new-self" is when she got her bird tattoos on her collarbone. She was inked with three black birds to remember her parents and her brother that she left behind when she switched factions and joined *Dauntless.

Here is the Divergent movie trailer... I can't wait!



*Special note to those who are unfamiliar with the series' premise~ the society is split into what are called factions and this is like these people's own individual "families" (think the districts in The Hunger Games) When citizens turn 16 they take a test to determine what faction they belong in, and they can either go to that faction, or stay in their birth faction (parents' faction).