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Summary: This is a work of fiction people!
Review: Whether Dan Brown intends to educate or entertain lies in the minds of each reader. I picked up this book to be entertained. I went in knowing it was a work of fiction. A good author can blend fact and fiction to present a plausible story. This story was compelling enough to keep my interest without wanting to put the book down. Others have commented on the one-dimensional nature of the characters and that is pretty accurate, however, it does not detract from the story. Religious zealots will hate this book because it presents a thoughtful alternative to the mindless following that is all faith. There is nothing wrong with faith. Just don't disagree with those who will not believe anything other than their own. These are some of the people that hated this book. Others who hated it are critics who aim to discredit the character development. I'm simply a guy who doesn't get a chance to read much because I lack the free time others might have. This book consumed most of my free time and kept my attention until I was finished. If you want a good story that entertains and sometimes amuses but clearly lacks some factual basis (and you recognize that as being OK), then read this book. It's not for the dimwitted or close-minded.
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Summary: What a boring book
Review: Dan Brown seemed to be on every bestseller list in the world so I decided to find out what was so great about his books. I read The Da Vinci Code and I surely don't know why so many people want to read this boring book. The thin plot is spread through pages and pages of copy/page like information out of "more than you ever wanted to know about ... " pamphlets. I could skip a good deal of the book and still know what happened.
A good thriller is so tightly written that one doesn't want to miss a word. Dan Brown should read Frances Fyfield to find out about good thriller writing.
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Summary: Kind of Hard To Believe It's Fake...
Review: It is one a.m. You just got into bed a few hours ago. Suddenly the phone rings, and the hotel worker tells you that someone's on their way to your room. When the visitor gets to your hotel room, you discover that he is with the police. But what would they want with you? You've done nothing wrong. You're a college teacher for crying out loud! You teach art and symbolism, and have been writing books on your research. Jacques Sauniere, the head curator at the Louvre in France, had arranged for you to meet up with him somewhere, but he never showed. The policeman shows you a picture from a crime scene. The photo is of a body. Jacques Sauniere's body. He then invites you to the Louvre to help with the crime scene. But helping isn't really what you're there for. You are being questioned without even knowing it! The head of the police, Fache, is in charge of this case. He is determined to find you guilty in order to help support his job, being as he's currently in low esteem with French and American law keepers. Sophie Neveu , a cryptologist, meets up with you and Fache. She says she has a message from the U.S. Embassy for you, but when you listen to the message, you find that it is something much more important. It is up to you, Mr. Robert Langdon, to team up with Sophie Neveu and investigate Jacques Sauniere's death, find the keystone to the Holy Grail, while at the same time protecting the keystone, avoiding arrest by Fache, and keeping the evil Opus Dei from power. "The Da Vinci Code" by Dan Brown is a wonderfully written book. It is very relaxing, even in the fast sections. Although the book takes place in a 24 hour period, it seems to be much longer. Mr. Brown has a great knowledge of symbolism and history. As the little reviews on the flaps of the book say, the book is "pure genius!" Most of the clues in the story revolve around Leonardo Da Vinci, thus the name "The Da Vinci Code." In the book, the murdered curator Jacques Sauniere was part of a group called "The Priory of Sion," or P.S. The group is revolved around the "sacred feminine," worship female goddesses of fertility, and are the keepers of the Holy Grail. Opus Dei is one of the groups after the Holy Grail. Bishop Aringarosa is in charge of Opus Dei, and has been trying to get his hands on the Holy Grail in order to use it to boost his power. His assistant, Silas, does all the dirty work. ... This book refers to a lot of history and paintings, along with the Bible; although a lot of it is made up. Don't take it seriously, it's just amusing. This 454 book was worth the read, and I'm sure you'll enjoy it too. If the books you read need to be fast-paced, then I do not recommend "The Da Vinci Code."rtistic than Fabergé' ! than 'assorted cloissoné artisans' ! Did you know that ? I didn't know that ! I still don't know that ! There's lots more 'wisdom' on this victim, be warned. Not only does he relentlessly bungle his facts and couple them with unfounded and preposterous social commentary, he has the nerve to insert this comment, about a film : "Sadly the filmmakers had gotten most of the specifics wrong..." And if the reader is not sufficiently impressed with Mr. Brown yet, they get one more clue, by including this esteemed opinion on the supposed creator of the mystery: "...he was a frighteningly clever man." Where does it end ! On page 484, directly before the blessedly blank flyleaf, where I breathe a sigh of relief of not only being done with this bestselling drivel, but that my name is not defiled by being included in the acknowledgments. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition
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Summary: Best read I've ever had!
Review: I know a lot of bible thumpers and catholic sheep didn't like this book because it actually made sense, but to a person that is willing to go out of the ordinary and maybe even think for themselves, this book is a mindsaver! If you have an open mind and are at least a little bit intelligent, you will love this book. Not only does it have a great plot, it is more of a learning experience than most history books will teach you.
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Summary: Dan Brown makes best book I have ever read!
Review: The book the Da Vinchi Code is the greatest thriller I have ever read. It pieces together all the mysterys about the bible into a perfect suspence action thriller. I loved the way that the book starts out with a murder and that the whole book is on what the victim did to pass on Da Vinchi's code to his grand daughter who he hasn't seen in about 14 years. I think that Dan Brown took a big risk in publishing this book and I think that the risk totally paid off and he got a lot of people on his side. I liked the idea of showing the church's bad side and on how they like to keep things the way they are and that they would kill to keep the code very secret. All and all I think that this book is very good. Dan Brown, people may be against you in your controversial book but you can assure one thing, I am your fan.
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Summary: Re-define 'Bestseller'
Review: Like many other people, I bought this book simply out of curiousity. It appears to have made many waves and since I am interested in the history of Religion I thought it would make an interesting read. Far from it.
The characters are flat and one-dimension and the whole book is based on the so-called 'secrets' Brown reveals. Without the information on the history of the church (though their accuracy is debateable) the fact that the storyline is completely lacking would have been blaringly obvious. But even so, he obviously trusts that all his readers are as dense and uniformed on the subject matter as his character Sophie. Rather, I found myself laughing out loud every time it took Langdon and Leigh forever to figure out a 'riddle' I, the layman, had solved within seconds. Not to mention that the 'revolutionary' ideas portrayed by Brown are hardly new. I had heard most of this before at one point or another.
I should hope that everyone takes this book with a pound of salt.
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Summary: Nancy Drew goes to the Louvre
Review: This novel read like a bad Nancy Drew. It is full of cliches and melodrama that aren't really necessary. It is also impossible for any lay-person to participate in solving the mystery. Finally, the characters are terrible. There is almost no character development, every character is a total stereotype cardboard cut-out. Eventually, some of them really grate on your nerves. I found the protagonist Robert Langdon as barely tolerable almost from the beginning. I despised Sofia Neveau equally, though she grew on me a little at the end. And these were the central characters. It is possible I just didn't like the reader's voice or something, but you really have no empathy with any of the characters. You don't believe they are real for a moment. Despite all this, it is a good mystery that is very fast paced. The last 1/4 of the book or so are particularly good, fast, and tight. It keeps you on the edge of your seat. I really was sort of sad when it ended, the plot and mystery were that good. This is despite hokey dialogue, terrible characters, silly get-aways, and the overly melodramatic elements. This novel is not for the easily offended. It passes off a lot of alternative theories and thoughts on the life of Christ, and the early Church in particular, as fact. If you take it as fiction or something interesting, it is fine and actually pretty good. If you are easily offended about alternative theories on your faith, this book is not for you. The author also tends to have some sort of obsession with male nudity. How many times was Silas partially nude or nude when there was nothing about the plot that necessitated such nudity? I mean, the author goes out of his way numerous times to describe Silas' nudity all the time in scenes. Huh? Why? With all this talk of nudity, I was hoping Langdon and Neveau would do their own Proiry of Scion worship routine at the end and we might be treated to some hot action. No such luck, at least within the book's pages. Do I recommend this book? Yes, but don't expect it to be as amazing as it has been hyped. It's a good basic plot and mystery, but certain elements will make you laugh out loud at the hokiness. You might want to borrow it from someone, or check it out from the library instead of buying it. It did keep my full attention for the whole 11 tapes of the unabridged version, so that is quite a feat. But it has many, many flaws as well.
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Summary: Funny Reading the Reviews....Either LOVE IT or HATE IT....
Review: I loved the book....was trying to analyze why I enjoyed it so much.... It captured me from the very beginning, part of the appeal due to the familiarity of the setting and my interest in art, I suppose. It was so easy to envision the whole thing. I felt like I witnessed the murder and then was right there with Robert & Sophie trying to escape from the Louvre and elude the police. I enjoyed the entire chase, was fascinated by the emerging theories throughout. I have to admit, at times I was a tiny bit uncomfortable with some of the ideas he was suggesting, but in the end I was neither offended nor were any core beliefs altered! : ) Just a great ride, if you ask me!
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Summary: .....from Oprah to the beach, skipping the seminary
Review: Dan Brown's The DaVinci Code is an entertaining page-turner that deserves its blip on the pop culture radar screen . The novel's atmospheric foci on either side of the Channel, starting in the cultural heart of Paris, the Louvre, and moving to London's Westminster Cathedral, are so well portrayed that even the ancient scents of both iconic places seem to rise from the pages. In this regard, Brown's book has that added content layering of a quality tour replete with historical and cultural tidbits imbedded along the way. The most innovative inclusion in this particular narrative is Brown's use of GPS locaters, broadband connectivity, and cell phones - all of which, when one thinks of it, would have undone many of the great mysteries of our lives, both real and fictional. As for the overwrought defenders of the orthodox church, they must be reminded that this is, after all, a work of fiction, a mystery. Period. Overall, a thoughtful and instructive adventure, a three-word combo rarely appearing together.
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Summary: Take Only As Directed
Review: The Da Vinci Code follows the model that Dan Brown set in Angels and Demons. Robert Langdon, ostensibly a symbologist, visits Paris, where he is dragged into the investigation of a killing - not as a consultant, but as a suspect. In the Louvre lies the body of a famous curator, with Langdon's name beside the body. The sudden appearance of the curator's daughter triggers the opening glimpses of a plot nearly 2,000 years old and Langdon finds himself fleeing for his life across Europe with the beautiful Sophia. As the story deepens we discover that Sauniere's death was the opening salvo in a renewed conflict between the Priory of Sion and the Catholic Church. The target is the grail and its unlimited power. Typical of a Brown story, the plot unfolds frantically of a short time window (no one every sleeps in Dan Brown novel). Be prepared for a short course in the alternative history of Christianity and the forces around it. Brown creates the basis of his plot out of all the paranoid plots of the ancient world, as well as drawing heavily on some of the Catholic Church's less salient moments. I wouldn't say that the book is totally anti-Church, but a very grim picture is painted of both the origins of modern Christianity in the Council of Nicaea, and the present day Opus Dei movement. To say that this is controversial is to understate the point. Despite Brown's tendency to be overly didactic (everything gets explained in excruciating detail), the book is much better written than its predecessor. Adventure/suspense stories are rarely stages for much character development, and this is no exception. But in terms of a continuous flow of action and an intricate plot with countless twists, the book is quite readable. Keep in mind that Brown has woven this story out of an unlimited number of legends and half-truths. In other words, don't take it seriously or mistake the book for an attempt to defame the religious. Don't make it any more real than it actually is.
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