Inferno

Almost to the end of the series. After the low point of The Lost Symbol I do not know if I want to keep going. It was at this point that I took a break to read a completely different book, which I will get to at a later time.

Robert Langdon finds himself in a hospital this time with a case of amnesia in Florence, finding right away that he is being hunted by a hired organization. All he knows is that he had acquired a cylinder with a bio hazard symbol on it [Spoiler] that shows a modified Botticelli painting describing Dante’s Inferno. Robert finds himself on another race against time to stop a deadly disease from breaking out provided by a incredibly wealthy scientist who believes that culling the world population is the only way to save the world itself… too bad the guy killed himself in the prologue.

I think this volume was a lot more entertaining and felt like a return to how the first two books played out, what with the setting being back in Europe and Robert working with older pieces of art again. It was a return to Robert solving an issue that had a global impact; he also had a beautiful woman intellectual running around with him again. 

There were also some changes to the formula. Robert did not have to deal with secret societies or the Vatican; instead, he had the WHO to answer to. I appreciate how two completely different fields can interact with one another and lead to a conclusion. 15th century art and medical science; who knew? 

I liked the different take on the role of the female lead. In the first two, they were lawful good, each an expert in their respected field, and there was romance and decent camaraderie that grew throughout the books. In the third, yes, she was an expert in her field, but to me she did not contribute to Robert’s quest to solve the issue, she was more or less a damsel. Sienna, the female lead in Inferno, was an expert in her field, but she was more negatively secretive to Robert. Their relationship was not so much romantic this time, but on the flip side we see Robert be a genuinely good person who wants to see Sienna through to a positive ending. This was probably the better change up to the books so far.

The take on the villain was once again different. Zobrist was not a complete psychopath like the last guy, but the culmination of his plot that happens in the book was something that took years to study and formulate. Zobrist also brings up a huge discussion point that leaves everyone very sore: in order to solve overpopulation of the earth, is a culling by whatever means the answer?

I never saw the movie adaption to Inferno, and to be honest I probably will not see it. From what I have read on the premise, the movie dramatically changed from the book to the point where, again, I would not be a fan.

This book was another one and done for me. To be honest again, I am ready for this series to be over. I am finding that I am not so much of a fan of a series over three volumes. I would say that as an individual book, Inferno was pretty good.

If you are looking to continue in the Robert Langdon series, you will be able to find it here.

8/10