An exciting thriller, difficult to put down. Mystery about breaking a code to save the NSA database. Since the book was written in 1998, some of the "state-of-the art" technology is now commonplace. But the story is still exciting, and full of surprises through the end. A fun, entertaining read. ( )

Good thing I bought my copy at the Thrift store. On page 23 you find out the Commander has a thing for his golden girl. No surprise when he sends her professor boyfriend on a mission he plans will be the death of him. Page 85 graphically gives away the pass-key. The only reason to finish the book is to find out what the boyfriend meant by "without wax." Could have Googled for that. The book was copywrited in 1998 but must have been written a good deal earlier if Mr. Brown thought people didn't know about the NSA or use better security than this on their own job. When was the last time you were allowed to use a password that wasn't a minimum of 6 alpha-numeric characters with a combination of upper and lower case letters? Who hires someone that hates your agency and then lets him come in on the weekend unsupervised? This plot is way to simple for someone who devoured all the Sherlock Holmes books in grade school instead of the easy readers they call YA books now. ( )

What a load of cobblers…NSA expert fails to see connection between N Dakota and ... ( )

Awful. ( )

Clearly Dan Brown uses the same formula for this book as for Da Vinci Code. What is there to say, written for an audience who likes quick actions, with shallow characters, and, again for someone who has read the Da Vinci Code a plot so predictable the only reason I finished this book was because I was on a bus and had nothing else to read. ( )

I thoroughly enjoy Dan Brown's style of writing. This book was hard to put down. Just when you thought you had something figured out, a new surprise was around the corner. It was as gorey or graphic as the DaVinci Code or Angels and Demons, so it was more to my liking. :) ( )

Dan Brown is a master storyteller, exciting plot, fast-paced, and suspenseful with the formulaic twists and turns. This guy is just so into codes and it's very interesting. ( )

Enjoyable and fun read. ( )

This is about a top secrey government agency that cracks codes. There is a new code that is unbreakable, and everybody is racing to solve it. Susan Fletcher, the top cryptographer, is close to the head of NSA, but what does she really mean to him? Will David find the ring, and save the information in the data base? Read the book to find out who will solve the mystery first, and who is responsible for this crime. ( )

Digital Fortress is a thrilled read. To me it came off as a completely unexpected conclusion in the end. Not many books have that these days, do they? One thing that excites me about Dan Browns books is the fact that he brings historical facts into his fictive novels which he is able to back up. ( )

Read it on the beach. Short book. If you like computers and melodrama, this book fits the description. ( )

Dan Brown is great at mysteries and taking your breathe away at the very end with a crazy ending that you could never have thought up of in your lifetime. Although it is not a very well known book of his, if you like mystery book, you will surely enjoy this one. ( )

Yay for nerds! An exhilarating ride from start to finish.

http://stuff-ive-read.blogspot.com/20... ( )

This is the first time I've read anything by Dan Brown and I have to admit that I'm not sure why so many people love his books. In Digital Fortress, the suspense is enough to keep you glued, although a lot of the plot twists are predictable. In general, the characters are flat and/or stereotypical and mostly not people who the reader engages with and therefore cares what happens to them. In the beginning of the book, there is a fair amount of exposition about the National Security Agency and the technology employed there, which is not the most interesting thing to read, especially in a work of fiction, although it is necessary for the reader to understand the rest of the book. However, Brown has a habit of restating an idea a few lines later with only slightly different wording, which becomes annoying after a while. The end of the book contains a section where some of the most brilliant minds are gathered together and cannot figure out the simplest things, which is maddeningly frustrating to read. Overall, this book is okay for a beach read or something similar, but not anything of significance. ( )

This was, to be blunt, complete pants. A really stupid story about a central US computer/code breaker, with a ridiculous number of plot holes, making the whole thing pointless. One to avoid. ( )

once again a book that had such good potential is ruined by Dan browns awful writing style. For all the character development, if they turn this into a movie they may as well use stickmen. This book is a better story than any of his other novels but it is barely readable because of poor penmenship. I must admit by the time i finished it i was paying no attention, but i sincerly doubt that i missed anything good. ( )

I'm embarrassed I have this book after thinking the "Da Vinci Code" and "Angels and Demons" were both overrated. I recall being out of reading material in a small airport with limited selections and hoping for the best. As with other Brown books, character development is minimal and the writing is weak. It's like reading a Hollywood movie - and in this case, a pretty bad one. ( )

Amateurish, with a nonsensical plot that still manages to be predictable, careless characterizations featuring NSA experts that, like the author, know absolutely nothing about computers or cryptology (not even the difference between 'codes' and 'cyphers'). If this had been the first Dan Brown book I'd read, you'd NEVER have gotten me to read the enjoyable Angels and Demons (or the less enjoyable but more controversial Da Vinci Code). ( )

Not bad as in "don't buy or read" but much more predictable than the other books Dan Brown wrote. ( )

Y - A - W - N. I suspected he borrowed Hale from the Nedry character in Jurassic Park, and the rest of it was formulaic and really, REALLY dull. Forget "Airplane Thriller", it wasn't even a good "Commuter Rail thriller" - I fell asleep in the middle of it and almost missed my stop.

This is a good airplane thriller. Not nearly on the scale of Angels and Demons or The Da Vinci Code, but a decent thriller nonetheless.

The story is set at the NSA, where a top-secret computer know as TRANSLTR can break any encryption, and has enabled the US to amass a huge database of worldwide secrets. This powerful asset is compromised when a disgruntled former NSA-programmer claims to have created an unbreakable encryption algorithm - so complicated not even the NSA computer can crack it.

The tension mounts as the risk that a message presumably encrypted by this algorithm and fed to TRANSLTR threatens to destroy the computer, exposing the NSA's database, and making public the existence of TRANSLTR and its capabilities.

The plot turns one too many times for my taste, and threatens credibility. But it still keeps the pages turning until the end. ( )

If you know anything about computers and cryptography, stay well away from this book. It will drive you barmy! Such utter drivel is hard to imagine, but you just know Brown was thinking "movie rights" as he concocted his race against time hacker attack finale. Good for laughs only.

Series science fiction fans, people with a knowledge of cryptography, or indeed, anyone with basic critical thinking skills need not even try to analyse the mistakes in the very concept of this book - they are too many, too obvious and frankly your time would be better spent reading something else!

Like all Brown books, don't believe any information snippets given to you. These are invariably wrong as Brown has a tendency to believe urban legends and pass them on in his work. ( )

very good book, but after i've read the other Dan Brown novels, the outcome and what will happen next is a bit predictive for me.... ( )

Ho hum.

I read and enjoyed Angels and Demons, allowed myself to read The Da Vinci Code guilt-free, and slogged my way through Deception Code. When at a loss for what to read next, I picked up Digital Fortress, remembering that Dan Brown's other books were quick and easy to read.

I realize that it was his first book, and boy, did it show. His plots are usually completely over-the-top and ridiculous; his main characters are wooden and probably don't have auras; his minor characters are 100% stock; his dialogue is choppy...and let's just say he takes a few 'liberties' with his fiction/fact/who-knows-who-cares plots, themes, locations, and historical figures. Digital Fortress had some of these qualities in abundance - characterization, dialogue, etc. At least this time he didn't try to reinvent history.

Digital Fortress is about Translators and Code-breakers in the NSA (National Security Agency). They've secretly created a machine that can break any code and the main characters are in charge of maintaining it. One fateful day, a code comes in that cannot be broken. Hell breaks loose. The creator of the Unbreakable Code (called Digital Fortress) threatens to make it available to the highest bidder as the only safe encryption for electronic media: even the US can't read your email, get into your databases, whatever. He has the only passcode to turn it off. The NSA needs to find him or the passcode so that they can shut down Digital Fortress - which is slowly destroying their Translating Machine. The main heroine is 38, really hot, brilliant, and in charge of the Translating Machine. The main hero is her boyfriend who is also in his late 30's, really hot, brilliant, and in charge of tracking down the creator of Digital Fortress. Thrilling exploits ensue.

I suppose I should have known what I was getting into, but this one was so bad compared to the very good Angels and Demons and the passable other two. I thought, "I'll give it a sporting chance." So many people DON'T read these books BECAUSE they're popular...I didn't want to be one of those people who wouldn't do something because they didn't want to associate themselves with mass culture. Well, it's kind of my job to keep up on mass culture. I suppose that's a lame excuse, but people who say things like "I've never seen or read a Harry Potter and I never will!!!!" with a haughty, holier-than-thou attitude really piss me off. I could go on and on about this, but it would be incoherent because I can't put my finger on what exactly irks me about that. I'm much more receptive to "I read the first book and couldn't even get through it. It sucked." because the person actually made and effort, instead of distinguishing themselves as the one 'too cool' to even bother.

Anyway, Dan Brown, Digital Fortress - don't bother. Not worth it. ( )