Rating: 
Summary: INTELLIGENT & THRILLING
Review: Remarkable book. Love the premises. I could not put it down. I love to learn interesting historial facts while being drawn into a great mystery. If you liked this one try Killer on the Canvas by R.W. Wright
Rating:
Summary: A fun ride on a historical rollercoaster
Review: This book is is great fun, and written in a way that the plot keeps moving forward and keeps you guessing. Within the book, are series of little puzzles which the reader can try to solve before the characters in the book do. It contains a lot of information of history and art, and specific examples of Pagan rituals hidden in modern catholicism. It also presents many feminist ideals as important to religion.
The premise of the book is mostly based on a 1983 conspiracy favorite Holy Blood, Holy Grail. Despite the specualtive nature of this source, many of the organizations, buildings and artwork are real. Brown plays with this idea to make an incredibly amusing story that will leave readers looking into history books and examining old paintings with a microscope. I highly recommend this book, especially for people who like puzzles and riddles, conspiracy nuts, history buffs, or anyone looking for a good story.
The only people who seemed to dislike it are Catholics who got offended. Don't be so sensitive. :)
Rating: 
Summary: DaVinci Hype
Review: I bought this book based on the NY Times ecstatic review. It certainly did not live up to the hype. The most interesting parts were those giving the "historical" background to the grail legend. The rest was substandard suspense fare--one contrived cliff-hanger after another, written in some of the most amateurish prose I have ever read in a published novel. The characters are cartoonish, and the plot is so transparently mechanical you can see the gears turning as the author cranks up yet another improbable twist. The final revelations are of the type that give you a sinking feeling in your stomach. Botton line: this is a purely plot-driven book with interesting arcane religious lore thrown in.
Rating: 
Summary: Need some water to wash down that yummy marketing pill?
Review: I liked this book more the first time I read it, when it was called Holy Blood, Holy Grail. The Priory of Sion, Leonardo da Vinci the occultist, Catholic conspiracies, this material has all been covered many times before, Mr. Brown's much touted "research" notwithstanding. The author's main achievement has been putting these polished little gems of Western religious counterculture in a briskly entertaining format with genuine mass market appeal, something that Mr. Eco and the authors of the aforementioned title lacked the marketing savvy (or desire) to do in their own efforts. So chalk this one up as a success in the emerging paranoid-religious-occult genre, the title keywords being Freemasonry, Rosslyn, Templars, Holy Grail, and so on and so forth. If you're looking for something a little meatier, I suggest the book I mentioned previously. It is especially delectable for the way in which the authors are manipulated by the propaganda they are researching.
Rating:
Summary: A great mystery novel not to be missed!!
Review: A book with some strange and alarming news about the last supper!! and a book that will keep you up throughout the night. The story revolves around a symbolist, who hails from Harvard, and who is invited to the louvre to meet the curator while he is in Paris. But before they meet the curator is attacked, and as he is dying, he leaves clues which he illustrates with his own blood for the police. Sure enough he writes the professors name, which is enough evidence to book him. Then comes Sophie Neveu, the curators granddaughter who happens to be a cryptologist; she believes in the professors innocence and together they set out to solve the Da Vinci Code. It's a great adventure, a real page-turner and I recommend it for sheer entertainment. Now if you're looking for a few other interesting titles that will keep you glued to your seat look no further than these, Buckland's Hot List: most creative, The Butterfly: A Fable (Singh); most engaging, The Alchemist (Coelho); most interesting, Life of Pi (Martel); most enlightening, 9-11 (Chomsky); most thrilling, The Lovely Bones: A Novel (Sebold); and finally, the most creative, engaging, interesting, enlightening and thrilling book of all, The Little Prince (Saint-Exupery). These are the books I'd recommend to my family, friends, students, and wife. There are many more, trust me, but these are the first that come to mind (for having left an impact slight or proud as it may be). If you have any questions, queries, or comments, or maybe even a title you think I should add to my list, please feel free to e-mail me. I'm always open to a good recommendation. Thanks for reading my brief but hopefully helpful review. Happy reading. Donald S. Buckland.
Rating:
Summary: Who wrote this stuff?
Review: It is amazing to me that this book is a number one best seller. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, when murderers of the language like Tom Clancy and John Grisham can be at the top of the list. The writing in this book is TERRIBLE. Although the intellectual puzzles posed are interesting, it is completely implausible that characters under such stress, lack of sleep, etc. could suddenly have the solutions to these puzzles dawn on them. In addition, the plot has more deus ex machina moments than the entire history of Greek theater. Very disappointing, and not even a good read.
Rating: 
Summary: Echo's of Eco
Review: It has been over ten years since reading Umberto Eco's playful though erudite fictional response to the myriad of Grail theories that surfaced throughout the eighties in his novel, 'Foucault's Pendulum'. One reviewer called this book a mental adventure and a cross-referencing nightmare. So it was with great curiosity that I finally read ~The Da Vinci Code~ last week to find another intelligent approach to this intriguing subject in the form of a paperback thriller. It is a majority consensus that Brown writes this genre as it should be written: one simply cannot put the book down until all the mysteries are solved and you read the last page. Most would agree that this genre of novel has developed into an art form, and it is obvious that Dan Brown, along with his editors, have taken the form to near perfection in this book. If it weren't for the sun making a surprise appearance through my window, and the terrible realization that I had to work that day, this excellent novel would have been read in one sitting.To be fair, one really cannot make a comparison between Eco's novel and ~The Da Vinci Code~. Both texts cover similar ground in respect to Grail theories, the Catholic Church and that mysterious organization, The Priory of Sion. ~The Da Vinci Code~ slaps the subject matter into a fast-paced-thriller-context, that doesn't let the reader rest for a second, which is what this type of book is designed to do. In other words, this book only scratches the surface of the many secret societies and religious theories that truly exist all around us. Whereas Eco's 'Pendulum' explores these theories and societies from a variety of different angles and at greater depth. Eco does this, of course, with a sly wink and his tongue planted firmly in his cheek. It is obvious, however, that Brown is not playing any games, and uses this captivating subject matter to great effect, which amongst other things, is informative and extremely entertaining. If you're even slightly interested in religious conspiracy theories, and a fan of the thriller genre, ~The Da Vinci Code~ will give you everything you require...and more.
Rating:
Summary: Intelligent writing
Review: Seldom in popular fiction do you find such intelligent writing as that produced by Dan Brown. In addition to the superbly crafted mystery that we are privileged to enjoy it is as though you have attended a seminar on in this case art and religious iconology.
As Brown states at the start of his book, "All descriptions of artwork, architecture, documents and secret rituals in this novel are accurate. When I am reading a book by Dan Brown I never feel that I am wasting my time. You might ask if all this information bogs down the story and the answer is a resounding "NO". Brown has the ability to take dry facts and present them in a fascinating way. He also brilliantly weaves together many diverse threads into a coherent and intriguing plot. We first met Professor Robert Langdon in Brown's previous thriller 'Angels And. Demons'. This book continues our acquaintance with the compulsive and brilliant Langdon and introduces the equally clever Sophie Neveu. She is the estranged granddaughter of the curator of the Louvre, who is the victim of a savage murder. As he lays dying he leaves a cryptic message for his granddaughter and Langdon to decipher. Thrown together by the events that have occurred they must combine their considerable skills to solve the complex mystery before it is too late. This book is a must read for mystery buffs and anyone who enjoys intelligent literature!
Rating:
Summary: Enthralling murder mystery injected with Grail lore...
Review: This book captivated me within the first three pages and I didn't put it down until I read it from cover to cover. A friend loaned it to me along with an art book of Da Vinci's sketches and paintings that were mentioned in the novel. I was very impressed with Mr. Brown's research regarding the Priory of the Sion, Grail Lore, sacred geometry, Mary Magdalene, LdV's artwork, and the research on Rosslyn. What he has written is not new to individuals who are interested in this aspect of religious history. There are a myriad of books out there discussing the Grail Lore. I am just so impressed with his ability to take these facts and weave them into a modern murder mystery, starting out at the Louvre, winding around Paris and its outskirts, until the reader is flown to England and zipping around London. I could *not* put this down. Bravo!
Rating:
Summary: Worth The Read
Review: Brown can write and some of the things in this book are outstanding. However it starts to fall apart towards the end. If you are willing to be let down a bit, go for it.
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