Rating: ![5 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-5-0.gif) Summary: Catholics: this book will open your eyes! Review: This exposes truths the vatican wants to hide.
Rating: ![3 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-3-0.gif) Summary: Only if you're bored Review: I've read a few reviews on this book and I think the overall average review for this book is pretty accurate. This book reads pretty fast, which is good. For those who didn't get pass the 2/3rd mark you were smart. The ending, as usual for Dan Brown, was disappointing. I just have 1 word, "Hollywood." After reading Angels & Demons and Da Vinci Code I have to say that's the last of Dan Brown for me...unless he kills off Robert Langdon. Of course, if the anti-matter, the Hassassin, or any of the secret frats couldn't kill the little nerd I don't think anything or anyone else could...except Mr. Brown himself. The one bright spot was this book was an improvement over Angels & Demons.
Rating: ![4 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-4-0.gif) Summary: Rich Plot.. .. Heavily Researched... Faced Paced Review: THE DA VINCI CODE - the name of the book alone gets a reader's attention. This tome is a suspenseful, intelligent thriller using coverups, vengeance and secret societies. Holding one's interest throughout the book, Dan Brown catches the reader's eye and mind beginning with a violent, sadistic murder in the setting of the famous Louvre in France. A riddle is found by the victim's body which lends and leads to clues found in artist Da Vinci's work. The reader is transported on a journey of search for the Holy Grail. The author's ability to use consistent, thorough research adds to the prominent interpretation of Western historical events, as exciting as the believable methods of the murder investigation. Setting aside one own's personal beliefs in the existence of truth... THE DA VINCI CODE is among the most interesting, entertaining novels. On a negative note, Dan Brown could have been more descriptive about the physical appearances of the heroes allowing the reader to better image the characters. On balance it is a good read. Recomended read - THE NUMBERED ACCOUNT by Christopher Reich
Rating: ![5 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-5-0.gif) Summary: Not for the simple-minded. Only for the open-minded Review: If you don't think for yourself, don't bother with this intellectually and spiritually challenging work by Dan Brown. This book is an highly provocative mind-opener, so you really have to be a courageous, free-thinking person in order to really get into it and explore new territory. It throws into question many of our comfortable traditions and truisms, our cherished and well-defended beliefs and practices(like going to church every Sunday and trusting the cliches coming from the pulpits above us). I believe that this novel is a landmark on our journey toward greater self-awareness and freedom of intellectual exploration- but you have to be gutsy enough to shed a lot of mental baggage and inherited illusions to get there. If you want to be brave and expand your consciousness, read this work. If you want to remain a sheep amongst the flock with the same color of wool over your eyes, then do not even venture into the first chapter. It will shake you to the foundations of your uncritical thought. Stay where you are. Pray. Smooze. Follow the dicta and the routines of your Church. The pure sunlight out here in Dan Bown-land can be blinding, especially for sheep.
Rating: ![2 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-2-0.gif) Summary: Good in a cheap thrill way Review: Anyone who thinks this is a great piece of fiction does not know a thing about writing. But I'm willing to admit that this book is great fun to read - there are times when I do crave a mindless ride through formulaic cheap writing techniques, eg, plot postponement, multiple climaxes, deja vu, blah blah blah. This book is "good" only in the sense that it fulfills a niche of bad fiction that somehow still remains entertaining. It is bad fiction because every element - every twist of plot, every detail of "history" and art, every character - is a slave to the author's attempt to continually surprise and keep the reader on edge. when characters are enslaved by plot, there can be no depth or meaning or DEVELOPMENT at all throughout the book. but dan brown was successful in surprising the reader - albeit, in a predictable way - the careful reader of literature knows what i mean by "surprise in a predictable way"this book is good for what it is - lazy reading that is simply entertaining, nothing more - not informative nor meaningful. it is entertaining if you love superficial suspense thrillers; it is also entertaining if you love to make fun of artificial suspense thrillers. this book is NOT, i repeat, NOT intellectual in any way, nor does it possess any "meaning" - in the cognitive or affectual sense of the word. it's about as deep as a petri dish, and if you know what that is, you probably should not read this book unless you have a good 8 hours with absolutely nothing to do.
Rating: ![4 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-4-0.gif) Summary: A GOOD Book! Review: Annotation: A mysterious Death takes place at a famous art museum. The French Police are convinced that the killer is Robert Langdon, which gets him involved in finding the killer himself. After a sequence of events he learns who the true killer is and the reason he killed the famous curator of the art museum. Author bio:Dan Brown is the author of many bestselling novels. His novels have been translated and published in 40 different languages. Dan is the son of a math professor and a professional sacred musician. Dan's wife, Blythe, is an art historian and painter who helps with his research and goes on reasearch trips with him. Evaluation: This was a good book. The keyword being good. It was an entertaining book and kept me wanting to read more, most of the time. At parts, the book was extremely boring and I wanted nothing more that to put the book down. But then it would get interesting agin. One thing that really irritated me about the book was the way it seemed to preach to me and it had a lot of information that really wasnt needed. I found myself skipping over many pages and picking up again and still I knew and understood what was happening in the book. The last few chapters make of the book were incredibly awesome. they made the book compltely worth sticking with and worth reading. If you're into mysterious thrillers that keep you guessing, or if you are in the mood to read a historical fiction book with good factual information than this is a book for you.
Rating: ![1 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-1-0.gif) Summary: Utterly boring Review: A "cut and paste" replay of the author's "Angels and Demons". Badly written, not a trace of humour, stuffed with boring non-information. I stopped reading when I reached 2/3 of the book. What is the sense of this all? I have still no idea. People who dare to compare this inane scribbling with e.g. Umberto Eco's work should be flogged on the spot. Incomprehensible that these nonsense should be on top of bestseller lists, which proves the craziness of the booksellers world.
Rating: ![4 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-4-0.gif) Summary: Great Read and Introduction to Interesting Topics Review: Dan Brown has written a fine little book here. He broaches alot of interesting ideas that encourage people to go out and read more, and I am ALL ABOUT getting people to read more! Now, that said, some of the ideas in the book he puts forward as fact and are not and then some of the ideas that are factual are misrepresented in the book. I guess we'll just have to call it creative license. So when you read the book, don't just swallow it all hook, line, and sinker! REMEMBER: It is fiction. Dan Brown's writing was good, not amazing, not breathtaking, not extraordinary, just good. There was nothing impressive about his structure either, pretty formulaic, the plot flowed pretty well and even and the pages kept turning as the interest built. The worst I can say about his style is that he keeps alluding to the mysteries behind the characters way too much. Like Sophie has a dark secret. He doesnt mention it just once or twice, at least 20 or 30 times you read something like "..and sophie again thinks on that terrible dark secret." And i just feel like strangling the author, "Tell me or shut the hell up!" he does eventually tell you, but you'll have it figured out way prior. Altogether, though, a good read, a good conversation type book that could be a gateway to interests you never knew you had!
Rating: ![2 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-2-0.gif) Summary: An absolute scream Review: This book is a hoot from start to finish. Having researched Opus Dei, the Knights Templar, Holy Blood, Holy Grail, and the facts known about Mary of Magdala, I thought it proposterous from start to finish, but very clever. I bought copies for friends so they could laugh at it. That anybody would ever take it seriously never occurred to me. To write something like this, you have to take egregious liberties with historical facts, and have utter disregard for the reputations of people living and dead. A laughable story. That it would be so widely successful never occurred to me. Dan Brown, enjoy it while it lasts. Any time an author scores like this, the rest of us have to be happy for you! You have pulled off an incredible joke on everybody! Anne Rice, 1239 First Street, New Orleans Louisiana, 70130
Rating: ![1 stars](http://www.reviewfocus.com/images/stars-1-0.gif) Summary: Overrated Review: I was really excited to read this book, and was really dissapointed to find that it did not live up to the hype. Dan Brown obviously did a lot of research to write the book and about the only thing that I found interesting was the art history. The storyline is weak and somewhat boring. The cliffhanger chapters get tiring after a while, and the end is unbelieveable and far-fetched. It is extremely overrated and is probably one of the worst books I have ever read.
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