All of Dan Brown’s novels revolve around a world of symbols, a mystery that must be solved, a race against time and a quest to save the world. The tradition is continued in Inferno. It is the fourth book in Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon series, taking its name from the first chapter of Dante Alighieri’s “The Divine Comedy,” which describes the author’s descent into hell and was published in the 14th century.
Dan Brown has made excellent use of Florence’s history and famous monuments to develop the story. The first chapter of Dan Brown’s “Inferno” opens when renowned Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon wakes up in a hospital bed in Florence, Italy, and learns that he has no memory of the last two days. Robert has no clue what or why he is there.
He soon learns that a global organisation called “The Consortium” has him on its radar. He must interpret Boticelli’s “La Mappa dell’ Inferno”—also known as The Map of Hell—to find the answers to his questions.
Dan gives the readers many chances to guess and make assumptions throughout the novel, only to have those assumptions disproven in the next scene. In the puzzled situation, Robert can only rely on himself and Sienna, who rescued him.
A trail of hints starts with one and continues with another. Langdon learns that a mad scientist is trying to duplicate the “Black Death,” one of the most terrible diseases that took off one-third of Europe’s population, to end the world’s overpopulation problem. The scientist, however, is no longer alive and the virus has been stashed away in an unknown place.
Can Langdon make it in time as there is just one day left and the clock is ticking?
For hardcore lovers of thrillers, it is a good read. You won’t want to put the book down even for a second.