Best selling American author Dan Brown paints a rather dark and disturbing image of Manila in his latest novel, Inferno.
The fourth installment in the Robert Langdon series, Inferno depicts Manila as the “Gates of Hell” as seen through the eye of one of the fictional characters, Dr. Sienna Brooks. Brooks went to the Philippines to work for a mission that will feed poor fishermen and farmers in rural areas. However, her picture of a tropical paradise was turned into visions of hell as she saw firsthand scenes of poverty and crime as well as traffic jams, pollution, horrifying sex trade.
According to an ABS CBN News report, the experience traumatized the character in the novel and prompted her to leave the mission without informing her co-workers.
Dan Brown’s depiction of Manila is a stark contrast to the glowing reviews and praise from Hollywood actor Vin Diesel and A-lister Sarah Jessica Parker, who recently visited the country.
