Rating: 
Summary: Great story with strong attention to detail.
Review: The Da Vinci Code is the first of Dan Brown's books that I have read and I truly enjoyed it from the very first page to the last. It was terribly difficult to put down as every single next chapter just becomes more and more intriguing. The chapters are kept short so it is easy to read. There's even some funny moments. It has good build up and an equally good ending. You are kept guessing, who the villians are, although closer to the end it would seem obvious. Still, it has the necessary twists and sub-plots. I liked the book because it was not just an interesting story, it is coupled with strong research into da vinci's works of art, the quest for the holy grail, ancient codes and religious sects etc. While some of the `facts' make sense, the book is still fiction. However, you are left asking yourself, just how much of it is true. That is how well written this book is. It is rare to find a book that is able to marry fact and fiction so well. This has inspired me to read Angels and Demons, and so far so good. And to Mr. Brown, more books with Robert Langdon please. I like his character.
Rating: 
Summary: Is this Fiction or Not? Must be fiction.
Review: The write claims this novel is fiction yet he tries to persuade the readers he has uncovered real facts during his story. What is it?
Rating: 
Summary: A fair entertainment, but a poor book
Review: At one level The Da Vinci Code is a good read. It moves quickly and engages the reader from the beginning. It's a piece of mind candy that can be digested in an afternoon. In the process, one can pick up a few interesting facts that can be shared over dinner or at a party - the Golden Ratio, the Fibonacci sequence, and a smattering of art history (though Mr. Brown's interpretation of "The Last Supper" shouldn't be considered definitive; don't tell people that Mary Magdalene sits beside Christ in that painting unless you want them to know that you learned all you know about Da Vinci from "The Da Vinci Code").At another level, this novel is a disappointment. It doesn't really matter much in this type of book whether the author gets his historical and geographical facts right. The book doesn't pretend to be an academic treatise on theology and history. It's a thriller and a mystery, and what matters is that the characters be convincing and the clues be consistent. In that regard the book fails. When an internationally renowned historian and expert on Da Vinci fails to recognize that a message written by another Da Vinci expert and placed in a box designed by Da Vinci is written as Da Vinci would write it, backward, wondering instead whether it's written in some arcane Semitic script, you can only roll your eyes and call him a dunce. When two highly educated and supposedly brainy characters are stymied (even if only for a couple of pages) by their lack of a numerical bank code, you're left wondering why they've forgotten the sequence of numbers left in the dying message of the man to whose bank box they're trying to gain access, a message they saw only hours before. Is he so besotted by her glorious hair and she by his rugged good looks that they can't remember numbers that were so important to them that very night? Over and over these brilliant dunces miss or forget the obvious, or at least what should be obvious to them. Well before one of these dim-witted geniuses has the meaning of the Holy Grail spelled out for her, the reader has already put the whole thing together. All that's left is to figure out who the master-mind is behind the book's murders. There Mr. Brown cheats. If a murder mystery (and at one level, that's what this book is) provides the reader with clues, it should provide clues that allow the clever reader to solve it before all is revealed at the end. Rigorous logic should lead to only one possible answer. This novel provides clues that lead logically to the wrong answer, and at the very end suddenly provides new information that requires a re-interpretation of the clues that came before. That's rather shabby. The story's denouement also serves to reduce the novel's shaddow of menace and sense of great and important events to a bit of feel-good pop religiosity and a comically pitiful villain. By the time we find the Grail and catch the killer, we wonder what the fuss was all about. I didn't like this book. That isn't to say that I wouldn't recommend it as light reading and entertainment, but I'd feel disappointed if I expected anything more from it. After all the hoopla, I did expect more. Mr. Brown has done some interesting research and written an interesting story, but he hasn't written it very well, and the editorial enthusiasm for his research speaks volumes about the low standards of editorial writers.
Rating:
Summary: Remember that it is fiction
Review: I thought this was an incredible book, and the sheer amount of people that said it was so full of historical inaccuracies just made me want to read it more. IT'S A FICTIONAL BOOK! The fact that so many people are griping about its historical inaccuracies is a true testament to how well it's written. These people are acting, like it's claiming to be a nonfiction book! I've read the true facts of the Da Vinci code, and for the amount of facts in the book it's surprising of how many ARE true. This book is still a wealth of knowledge; from religious symbolism to the mathematical golden ratio you learn a lot reading it. Plus, its gripping. the storyline keeps you guessing and makes you proud when you figure something out before the characters do. I enjoyed Angels and Demons more, but this still goes on my great book category
Rating:
Summary: If you like Grisham... maybe. If you like true literature..
Review: I must say this book is one of the most poorly written books I've read in quite a while. I suppose I must say it was entertaining, though not entertaining enough to buy, just borrow from a friend or the library. If serial novels and suspense thrillers are your thing, you might enjoy it. I personally could not even keep it. I bought it and swiftly returned it two days later. If you want suspense that is enriching too I would recommend Khaled Hosseini's "Kite Runner". That is a fantastic book.
Rating:
Summary: GOOD GOD YOU IDIOTS!
Review: THIS BOOK WAS SO HORRIBLE I CALLED MY MOM UP AND ASKED HER TO SEE IF IT WAS REAL AND IF IT WAS, THAT I WAS GOING TO HIDE FOREVER. THIS BOOK IS OBVIOUSLY THE MOST OVERRATED NOVEL EVER WRITTEN. YOU PEOPLE SHOULD BE ASHAMED. I COULD'VE SPENT THE 26 DOLLARS ON SOMETHING MUCH BETTER, LIKE A MAKESHIFT CATTLE PROD. IN FACT, I RETURNED ALL 5,621 COPIES I BOUGHT AND BOUGHT SOME BACK TO BURN THEM. I AM DISGUSTED AT THIS NOVEL. YOU KNOW THAT THING ABOUT IF YOU SET MONKEYS IN A ROOM WITH TYPEWRITERS FOR A THOUSAND YEARS, THEY'D WRITE THE ENTIRE WORKS OF SHAKESPEARE? WELL, THEY'D WRITE THE DA VINCI CODE IN 3 MINUTES! I MEAN, IT'S SOOO PREDICTABLE! YOU KNOW THAT JESUS ENDS UP IN FRANCE, WHICH BY THE WAY, IS A STUPID ENDING. I SPIT UPON IT! I NEED TO TAKE A BREATHER, I'M GETTING ALL WORKED UP. MAYBE SOME BADMINTON WILL CHEER ME UP. NO!! THE BOOK IS TOO HORRIBLE, EVEN FOR BADMINTON TO CHEER ME UP!! AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!Q
Rating: 
Summary: Okay...it's not bad
Review: Even though this religious thriller isn't exactly what I usually like to read, I was curious as to what all the good and bad reviews were about (thousands of them). I have to admit that I wasn't expecting much, but the books not bad. I really give it three-and-a-half stars. But, being a science fiction fan, I also recommend: STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND, PUPPET MASTERS, CHILDHOOD'S END, NEUROMANCER, SNOW CRASH, DARKEYE: CYBER HUNTER, etc.
Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic Fiction
Review: This is a great work of fiction and was delightful to read. It can open your thoughts to another aspect of how to look at the subject matter of the story. The settings are richly presented, the writing flows, and the story moves at a good pace. Do not select this book and expect historical facts in every aspect. It is a work of fiction based on some historical fact. Dan Brown is an excellent writer and presents his view in a spellbinding story. This book is thoroughly enjoyable and shouldn't be missed.
Rating:
Summary: Great Fiction!
Review: I've read a lot of the reviews about the historical accuracy of this fictional book and think that people are just missing the point. Similar to Michael Crighton's style, this author has done a tremendous job of wrapping an intelligently written fictional story around some factual historical locations, theories, items, etc... Don't try to anlyze the historical accuracy to death and just enjoy the story. It is an engrossing tale that once you start you can't put down until it's done. This book is excellent and I highly recommend it to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: "Code" Blues
Review: Watch out Michael Crichton, you've got competition. With "Da Vinci Code," Dan Brown rivals you for one-dimensional characters, preposterous plot and misogynistic flourishes. However, he does you one better with his crypto-paranoid conspiracy theories centering around the Catholic church and forays into third-rate art criticism. The appeal of "Da Vinci" is mystifying, especially when Brown's "Angels and Demons" is a far better book, if you want a religious thriller. That one actually thrills. This one just makes you snicker with its completely inept writing style, character development and plot. Never has Paris been so slighted in fiction-this book is supposedly set in the Louvre but Brown's Louvre has all the atmosphere of a mall poster shop. If you must read a thriller, try Dean Koontz. If you must read Dan Brown, try "Angels and Demons." This "Code" isn't worth cracking.
|
