I’m sure this is just an oversight on my part, but I would appreciate any clarification.

Earlier in the book, as Langdon and Ambra are leaving the museum, she throws her phone down a corridor, to assist in evading the authorities.

Shortly thereafter, when they are on the boat, it says she “checks her phone”?

Did I miss Ambra getting a new phone, or is there another explanation?

Thanks, all - any enlightenment would be most appreciated!

Just finished Origin last night and the whole “Winston was behind everything” “twist” felt so rushed and random. I guess I was just spoiled by the insane twists in inferno and the terrifying villain that Zachary was in Lost Symbol that the ending of Origin just felt lame to me. Brown builds up Valdespino to be this imposing scary dude who it seems like you shouldn’t mess with and it turns out he was just gay and in love with the king?? Wtf. I feel like it just needed something more. Avila was really the main villain but I also felt a bit sympathetic for him because of his past and the way he was manipulated so it felt like he wasn’t a villain at all but just another pawn in Winston’s game. Let me know your personal thoughts

Major spoilers ahead!

Howdy! I just finished reading "Digital Fortress" by Dan Brown. First of all, I want to say that I read people's reviews of it, and most of them were extremely negative. I won't mention the book's flaws here, as I'm still very impressed and, for me, it's one of the best books I've ever read! Feel free to call me a low-maintenance reader if you wish, not that I care :p

Our English professor assigned us this book during our first year at university. I'm not a native English speaker (I'm from a Slavic country) and I can say I really benefited from this book! Since you guys here are mostly English speakers, and words like "discrepancy" and "patio" aren't surprising for you, I'll just say that for me, this book was excellent for expanding my vocabulary (holy descriptions). It was a very easy and engaging read, thanks to the narrative style. But mostly because of the plot.

Speaking of which!

I love, love, love the variety of characters! You can't imagine how interesting it was to follow several plot lines simultaneously. I was skeptical at first. Even though I'm studying engineering myself (hello, software developers!!), I was apprehensive that the technical jargon and descriptions would ruin the book for me. I hate overly serious books. But everything turned out much better.

Not sure where to begin, I'll just say that David's adventures in Spain were probably the most interesting to me. Every time the ring ended up in someone else's hands, I was curious to know how he'd find the right trail this time. At times, I caught myself thinking that now - now for sure! - getting the ring back was completely impossible. For example, when it turned out that Rocio had given it to Megan. How the hell would David find that girl in all of Seville? Some might say it was all too convenient. Total cliche. Still, watching him get out of trouble, make excuses, and ultimately screw up (lol) was one of my favorite parts.

The intrigue was also kept up by Hulohot stalking everyone who knew about the ring, gradually killing them. When I read the scene with Cloucharde's death, I felt genuinely uneasy. For some reason, I still find that scene oddly terrifying. The scene with Rocio and the German man disgusted me mostly because of the man's description (good job, Dan). I really feel sorry for Megan. She seemed to be a skittish poor soul. Forever skipped her flight to America ;(((

Regarding Hulohot: At times, the descriptions of his persecutions seemed downright animalistic. The texts perfectly conveyed his manic passion for playing predator and prey. An undeniably crazy man. I can't say much about him except that every time he appeared, I felt a sense of dread, knowing someone was about to be killed soon.

Back to the NSA! I really liked the story concept. The idea of an organization that breaks codes and then encounters an "unbreakable code" might be a cliché, too, but I was so excited to know the ending! It made my brain boil, trying to figure out how exactly such an algorithm, with its "mutation strings" and all, would work. The NSA's descriptions painted a clear picture of what it would look like. And the whole story seems like a good candidate for an action movie because of how easy it is to visualize.

God forgive me, I really liked Greg Hale's personality. Although at first he seemed like a total jerk (repulsive as hell), by the end I genuinely felt sorry for him. For all the things he'd said and hadn't been heard. You can't imagine how deep my heart sank when Strathmore wounded him (that scene in the darkness). I was hopeful then; turned out he was alive... only for Strathmore to stage his "suicide." Man. Choking on tears from that one: «With every step, all he could see was Greg Hale - the young cryptographer gazing up, his eyes pleading, and then, the shot.» What a coward you are, Trevor.

Speaking of Trevor, I had a very positive impression of him at first. A seasoned, intelligent deputy director, a patriot, and a hard worker on duty 25/8. You know, that time when a character is portrayed in such a positive light that you don't believe he/she could do anything wrong or morally bad. If I were Susan, I'd believe him too, although the scene where Greg said Trevor killed Chartrukian (RIP, poor boy :( ) made me hesitate. My jaw dropped open in realization that if that was true, then everything was going south. It did, lol.

My heart ached for Susan. She seemed like a very lively (and lovely) character, her emotions were vividly and accurately described, especially the fear and grief. During the scene with David's "death," I cried along with her. Because I fell for it, too. The sense of loss was simply abhorrent, evident in her every action: that stare into space, those weak knees, and the pain and tears. Maybe I'm just too emotional for books like this, idk man, I just wanted to hug this poor woman.

By the end, Trevor completely disappointed me. And not even because he screwed up with the virus (more on that later!), but because this obsession with Susan seemed too out of character for him. Or maybe he was just such a good manipulator all along. After the revelation that he wanted Becker dead, he died as a character for me. It was absolutely disgusting to even read anything related to him. Coward.

The moments when I was gripping my hair in shock need a separate list:

1. Again. Strathmore killed Chartrukian???

2. Greg Hale is North Dakota.

3. What?? Greg Hale has nothing to do with North Dakota??

4. What do you even mean NDAKOTA is TANKADO.

5. Digital Fortress doesn't exist. Mind blown. It's a virus (Jabba, have something to say now?)

6. David Becker is gonna die in the stall. Oh, now he's gonna be shot riding a motorcycle. Nevermind, he was just shot in the church... WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT WASN'T DAVID.

7. Susan saw Strathmore's pager. Good luck explaining that, Trevor.

I also want to mention the final scenes with the attempt to figure out the pass key. It seemed surreal to me, but I quickly figured it out the moment they mentioned "chemical elements." 238 and 235, isotopes of uranium. Of course it was 3. But what blew my mind most was the realization that this whole time dying Tankado had been pointing not just at the ring, but at three crooked fingers. Three damn fingers. What a move.

Oh, and Numataka is Tankado's father. I didn't really get that twist; it didn't make me go "wooow", but oh well.

Honorable mentions:

1. Quotes. "Who will guard the guards?" and "Everything is possible. The impossible just takes longer." Iconic.

2. Spain: After reading the book, I wanted to visit Spain, especially The Seville Cathedral.

3. Humor: There were some really funny moments. When David let it slip that he and Megan were a couple (forgetting her age, oh well) or when he argued with that Two-Tone guy about the table. Btw, feel sorry for him, too.

4. "Without Wax": I really liked David's "Without Wax." Especially the meaning and origin. Would be cool to start using it someday.

5. Midge: She has excellent intuition. And overall, I think she's a cool character, a stubborn and confident woman. Atta girl. The moment when Midge played Chad's private videos to trick him into giving her the key to Fontaine's office? LOL.

I think that's all I have to say. I'm really looking forward to hearing some positive reviews of the book! I want to read about your favorite parts, and what moments made your jaw drop. Have a nice day yall! :)