Rating: 
Summary: Controversial and compelling...
Review: With the recommendation of family and friends, I finally read The Da Vinci Code. This book has become the hot topic of debate and seems to be quite controversial in the religious forefront. Some might say this is just another crazy conspiracy theory against the church or just another wild goose chase for the Holy Grail. But, this book is so much more. It opens the door for many to understand our history closer to the way it happened versus the way it was previously written. It challenges the MEN of the church, NOT Christianity. I am a Christian and yet, I found this book to be the simple voice spoken to the common person bringing forth truths that have been buried for centuries. This book teaches its own lesson just by the writing of it: Look past the characters towing the story along and read the real message. That applies to religion as well. It doesn't matter why you read this book (the suspense factor, the controversial enticement, the religious tinge, the information, or just because) and it doesn't even matter if you believe what it says, but, READ IT!!
Rating: 
Summary: Creatively constructed puzzles, not much else
Review: The author has wrapped the highly bogus "Mary Magdalene and Jesus were lovers" tale around a generic thriller plot. Other reviewers have catalogued that all too well here to go into detail. Suffice it to say that some of the scenes would fit well in the next Austin Powers movie. Hairy-legged feminists and other Christian-haters may enjoy this book. The rest of you should not waste your money. Fortunately Mel Gibson's new movie, The Passion, is coming out soon to tell the real story of Jesus.
Rating:
Summary: I highly recommend this novel.
Review: I loved this novel. The author Dan Brown put so much research into the events, documents, religions, art work, and factual information so the readers could receive accurate information. The description given in the story made me feel as if I were there, whitnessing all of the action. This novel is thrilling and suspensful up through the very end. Many people recommended this to me and after reading it I definitely recommend this to you.
Rating: 
Summary: Maybe I just don't read enough...
Review: ...But I wasn't sidetracked (too much) by flat characters or formula writing. I admit I needed to hide inside a book, and this one was perfect. I had never heard of the Holy Grail theories, so that kept me going too. So I have to agree with most of the negative reviewers I read -- not knowing makes a big difference in enjoyment.
What *really* bothers me? Opus Dei has both bad and good sides presented, and gratitude expressed to both current and former members he was able to interview. Where is the mention of bad stuff by the cults? Where are the thanks? Does this mean Mr. Brown didn't need to *ask* people? His lack of objectivity on this really bothers me, given that his book is a best-seller!Lets just say I don't generally buy into conspiracy theories and I like to see fact supported by research (and I plan on learning more about so much in here), but far worse than this being a formula novel, I worry that it is a nice cult recruitment tool. And I am *not* a Christain so this isn't personal!
Rating: 
Summary: Nothing More Than A Cliché Thriller...
Review: Like every single other novel he wrote, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code is an over-the-top paranoid conspiracy thriller that's riddled with a poor plot and questionable "research". All religious controversy aside, the main problem with this book is just the godawful clichés that are everywhere. The unstoppable assassin (who despite being albino has no vision problems even though the lack of all pigments cause albinos to have bad vision), the forced romance, the ridiculous plot twist that's supposed to shock us all, but seems to lack reason, and inane puzzles. Additionally, the plot is rife with mere stupidity. How does someone dying of a gunshot wound manage to write a diagram and other various things on the floor? (It's rather like the scene from Monty Python And The Holy Grail with the Castle Aaarrrggghhh....) Why is it that the aforementioned dying character have the same last name as a priest who dabbled in the occult about 100 years ago (talk about obvious allusions)? Why do the main characters stop to look at a painting as they're being chased? Why are all the villains so stereotypically malicious without any motivation? Why does the villain do the old "tell 'em everything before you kill them" routine that's been in every single James Bond movie? Finally there's the whole religious issue. Obviously, Dan Brown has some issues with the Roman Catholic Church as evidenced by this book and his other work Angels & Demons (which by the way is EXACTLY the same as this book), but that is not what bothers me. What bothers me is that he claims all he is written is true, when most of his sources are of questionable integrity and much of what he writes is apparently woefully inaccurate. To conclude, The Da Vinci Code is a formulaic thriller that only stands out due to its subject matter, which cannot save it from the woeful clichés that pepper the novel. If you want a thriller based on fact, read The ODESSA File by Frederick Forsyth, or Spandau Phoenix by Greg Iles. These novels manage to combine fact and fiction and do not fail on such ridiculous cliché.
Rating: 
Summary: Great stuff!
Review: I love good fiction, and the Da Vinci code is just that. It brings up a lot of issues that most people are just too frigtened to look into. ONe of them is that, maybe, just maybe, Jesus was a human being who lived like a human being! I also like the idea of there being a conspiracy, since one of the best books on the subject of Christianity is "The Christ Conspiracy," which I think everybody should read. Hey, it might not go so far as we'd like it to, but the Da Vinci Code is sure a start to findiung out the truth about religion. Wake up everybody!
Rating:
Summary: Wow!!! Wow!!! Wow!!!
Review: A page turner that as soon as you are done, you will want to start all over. We bought this book only two weeks ago and already it has changed hands 4 times. Impossible to put down once you have started.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, but for the wrong reasons
Review: The Da Vinci Code is a page-turner of a read that has created a storm of controversy which, undoubtedly, has in turn created a fat bank account for the author. And that's even before it becomes a movie, which it undoubtedly will. As literature, however, the book can best be described as formulaic. The writing style is more than a tad wooden, and the protagonists careen from one narrow escape to the next. The author doesn't just foreshadow events, he all but rents billboards to announce them. Most amusing, those trying to unravel the puzzles and clues presented in the book are supposed to be skilled at cryptography and symbolism, but it took pages and pages for them to come up with the ancient word for wisdom. Hmmm. I guess they weren't quite as well schooled in those subjects as the author thought. From a historical perspective, the key word to remember here is "fiction." A lot of the art history in the book is fascinating, and the author weaves in plenty of intriguing (though not necessarily accurate) tidbits about everything from the Knights Templar to Opus Dei. But many of his "revelations" are either nothing new or totally untrue. This is somewhat ironic, considering that several characters talk of the need to keep the story of the Holy Grail alive and accurate. This is a great book on an airplane or at the beach--providing plenty of detail without slowing the pace. But when it comes to questions of faith or historical accuracy, I'll seek elsewhere.
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Summary: One of The Best Books I've Ever Read
Review: In addition to being just a good old fun and exciting mystery novel, this book is extremely enlightening as well. It provides an in-depth look at the history of Christianity and many secret societies that still exist today. It also explains how through centuries of propaganda, many ancient pagan rituals and symbols for life and beauty were misconstrued and demonized by the early church in order to convert the masses. If you are looking to read a book that is impossible to put down, and also learn a thing or two in the process, The Da Vinci Code is for you.
Rating:
Summary: Popcorn poppycock.
Review: Review: Popcorn poppycock The premise of Da Vinci Code shows promise: grisley murders, a secret set to shake the foundations of Christendom, and a series of (sometimes too easy) puzzles -- a "Whereisit" grafted onto a "Whodonit" connected to a "Whatreallyhappened." While Brown has no stylistic or descriptive talent whatsoever (you'd never want to read this book twice, that's the test), he did keep the juices flowing for me one time through. (So long as I pushed the "suspension of disbelief" meter up to its highest setting.)
The book's many inanities and historical blunders are hard to overlook, however. Brown doesn't know (what one embarrassed pagan historian pointed out) that fear of witches was a traditional part of European paganism, that this fear was squelched by the Church during the "Dark Ages" and then revived during the Renaissance; that tens of thousands, not "five million" witches were killed; or that these crimes occurred mostly in small towns on the margins of State and Church power, not in the shadow of the Vatican. Ironically, Brown himself exploits the psychological mechanism that launches witch hunts in his choice of villains. I myself am neither Catholic, albino, nor physically handicapped; but I find Brown's inability to rise above such pernicious type-casting unfortunate. And his attempt to get inside the minds of his characters is marvelously shallow. One half expects them to jump out of the book and cry, "Hang on! If I were this stupid, how did I get to be a Harvard professor / Catholic bishop / successful criminal?" As for Brown's chatter about early Christian history, lost Gospels, Church conspiracies, and the cover-up of Jesus' marriage to Mary Magdelene, which he and some rather breathless reviewers manage to take seriously, I admit I found his historical blundering mildly entertaining. For the record, though, the Dead Sea scrolls do NOT contain any Gospels (one scholar claims to have found a few words from the Gospel of Mark in one cave, but that is disputed). As for the so-called "Gnostic Gospels," Philip Jenkin's Hidden Gospels is a good place to start. Discovery of the Nag Hammadi documents rather proves the wisdom of the early Christians in dumping these bogus 2nd and 3rd Century writings: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John show every sign of historicity (as well as socially constructive thinking), and these rather spacey New Age works show no more of either than the Da Vinci Code itself. Still, in a mindless mood, it is possible to enjoy this book. Author, Jesus and the Religions of Man
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