The Da Vinci Code

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Summary: Book with an agenda!
Review: It is poorly written, atrociously researched mess although the author claims are facts. But despite Brown's scholarly airs, a writer who thinks the Merovingians founded Paris and forgets that the popes once lived in Avignon is hardly a model researcher. And for him to state that the Church burned five million women as witches shows a willful-and malicious-ignorance of the historical record. The latest figures for deaths during the European witch craze are between 30,000 to 50,000 victims. Not all were executed by the Church, not all were women, and not all were burned. Brown's claim that educated women, priestesses, and midwives were singled out by witch-hunters is not only false, it betrays his goddess-friendly sources. So error-laden is The Da Vinci Code that the educated reader actually applauds those rare occasions where Brown stumbles (despite himself) into the truth. A few examples of his "impeccable" research: He claims that the motions of the planet Venus trace a pentacle (the so-called Ishtar pentagram) symbolizing the goddess. But it isn't a perfect figure and has nothing to do with the length of the Olympiad. The ancient Olympic games were celebrated in honor of Zeus Olympias, not Aphrodite, and occurred every four years. If the above seems like a pile driver applied to a gnat, the blows are necessary to demonstrate the utter falseness of Brown's material. His willful distortions of documented history are more than matched by his outlandish claims about controversial subjects. But to a postmodernist, one construct of reality is as good as any other. Brown's approach seems to consist of grabbing large chunks of his stated sources and tossing them together in a salad of a story.
Read http://www.crisismagazine.com/feature1.htm
The Da Vinci Code takes esoterica mainstream. It may well do for Gnosticism what The Mists of Avalon did for paganism-gain it popular acceptance. After all, how many lay readers will see the blazing inaccuracies put forward as buried truths?
What's more, in making phony claims of scholarship, Brown's book infects readers with a virulent hostility toward Catholicism. Dozens of occult history books, conveniently cross-linked by Amazon.com, are following in its wake. And booksellers' shelves now bulge with falsehoods few would be buying without The Da Vinci Code connection. While Brown's assault on the Catholic Church may be a backhanded compliment, it's one we would have happily done without.

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Summary: How is This Book a Bestseller?
Review: It is remarkable to me how the success of "The Da Vinci Code" has catapulted Dan Brown's career. It has caused his previous under read works to hit bestsellerdom years after first being published. And as a matter of fact, it was based solely on this book's significantly long ride at the top of the New York Times Bestseller list that finally (after nearly a year) convinced me (against my better judgment) to see what all the interest was about. And to my deep disappointment (not in Dan Brown but rather in the seemingly abhorrent taste in fiction that pervades our culture and has been cemented by pitiful works of fiction such as this one) this novel is little more than a fictional account of some historical research, dragged along for 450+ pages with extremely bad prose, truly one-dimensional characters, and what can only be considered barely plausible action. If you want to read a good book (one that is actually written well, has good characterization, and a meaningful and plausible plot) then please, please do NOT read "The Da Vinci Code".

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Summary: DAVINCI CODE RIGHT IN THAT NICEA DIDN'T END CONTROVERSY!!
Review: It is so nice that this book is bringing a controversy that never ended to our attention again!! Major scholars are also backing this up!! Richard Rubenstein, a Rhodes scholar AND professor of conflict resolution SPECIALIZING IN RELIGIOUS CONFLICT, in WHEN JESUS BECAME GOD, "With vivid detail and meticulous research recreates the political intrigue, riots, and power struggles of one of the most critical moments in history - one with startling parallels to our own time." This CONTINUING STRUGGLE split the eastern and western church YEARS LATER and is playing out today, thanks to books like Dan Brown's.

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Summary: Mind-Blowing
Review: It is such a cliché in popular fiction today for over excited readers to exclaim, "I couldn't put this book down!" Seriously, what kind of life do you have that you cannot afford to never put a book down? That said, I have rarely had a book grip me as this new novel from Dan Brown has. It really is addictive, I avoided such trivial things as school and eating just to read some more of this book, any chance I could get. After I read Brown's earlier Robert Langdon thriller, Angels and Demons, I knew he had a real talent as a thriller writer. The DaVinci Code solidifies this opinion, as it puts Brown on the pedestal as one of the best thriller writers going.

Brown?s stories are so great because the settings and the history behind them are absolutely intriguing. This is evident on almost every page of the book. The main thrust of the story is the mysterious death of an art academic at the famous Paris museum, the Louvre. At first, it seems to be a fairly simple homicide, but it becomes much more confusing when Harvard symbiologist Robert Langdon gets to the scene, at the request of the French National Police. Upon examining the body, he begins to realize that there are mysterious messages all over the crime scene, some connected to the masterpieces themselves. Aided by a French police cryptologist, Langdon begins to put the pieces together. The puzzle paints a disturbing portrait, and powerful international interests begin targeting Langdon.

For the conspiracy Langdon has discovered is no simple matter of politics or money, he has come upon the basis of Western Civilization itself. Hidden in the works of master painter Leonardo Da Vinci is a secret so controversial, it would change the world forever. Guarding the secret and the power it possesses is a shadowy ancient brotherhood, known as the Priory of Sion. For centuries, this group of men has passed the secret down through the ages, guarding it by taking extreme security measures. The secret, now, is up for grabs, and everyone wants to get their hands on it. The real life Catholic sect known as Opus Dei is also in the mix, with a group of their officials conspiring to bring ruin to the hated Priory and seizing the power themselves. They employ a horrifying assassin to hunt down the ancient secret. Langdon finds himself stuck in the middle, with groups following him and the police hot on his trail. He and his companion never give up though, and, using their combined knowledge, begin to unlock the maze of codes and clues that lead to the secret of the ages.

The best part about Browns novels is that they are just non-stop excitement and intrigue. Every page has something going on, some new code, some new development. It is just insane. Some might complain that he throws in too much history, but I found the informational really enthralling. Another attribute of this novel is its mysterious and haunting tone, the reader feels like he or she has been let into a secret chase for an amazing artifact. Also, his setting descriptions are wonderful, I fully plan on taking Angels and Demons with me when I go to Rome, and The DaVinci Code would be good for a trip to Paris or England. It is clear that Brown really goes the extra mile for his readers by giving them well-researched and exciting books. You really learn a lot when you read his books, including little snippets of information you will just shake your head at. Nowhere is this more evident than when Brown describes some amazing mysteries in the actual paintings. I guarantee you will never look at the Last Supper the same way again. There are some downsides. I did not like how Brown portrays "the secret" as if it had some basis in fact, real life. In reality, the idea he presents has been disproven many times. I wish he had included a bibliography of his research materials, I would really enjoy reading those also. The ending is way too incomplete, I wanted to throw the book against the wall in frustration. How could you do that to us Dan? Oh well, I will just have to wait patiently for the next novel.

Rating:
Summary: Good read, well researched - weak ending
Review: It keeps your interest 3/4 of the way through the book. Unfortunately, it appears all the author's research and clever storytelling falls victim to a rather loose-ended, 'I wrote the ending in one afternoon' finale. It would have been hard to write a believable ending anyway. Still a good read. Two obvious blunders in a highly detailed and researched book (they aren't pivotal to the plot). Adam was offered a 'fruit' in the bible not an 'apple' and Sir Isaac Newton was a virgin his whole life.

Rating:
Summary: Very Good Read
Review: It managed to hold my attention to the end, though I got tired of excessive detail in some scenes and other perceived literary sins that I suppose others think to be particulary admirable strengths, opinions varying as they do. As a novel this is a very good book, the author has a rabbit in the hat and produces it at the right time and in a manner calculated to thrill the reader. He certainly had me fooled. Very entertaining book, no doubt about that.

However: as a source for symbolic anecdotes and occult lore, it is not a very good book, caveat emptor. Before quoting the great revelations herein as "facts" make sure that you check them through multiple sources on the web or in a reference library if you have one handy.

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Summary: This book is truly astounding.
Review: It manages to explain the meanings behind so many things in our culture and life and completely rewrite the christian religion in the process. It's just amazing. He's taken essentially a massive amount of historical research and groundbreaking revelations and wrapped it around a very fast moving and exciting 'fictional' plot which keeps you going for more. I read the book in two days I was so amazed by it. The author is a genious.

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Summary: Revisionist History
Review: It never ceases to amaze me how easily the uneducated masses will believe the enemies of the Church. Blasphemy!

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Summary: DaVinci Code, What has Brown done for you lately?
Review: It seems as though there are no middle of the road reviews on Dan Brown's DaVinci's Code. Either they are wildly euthusiastic or a complete pan. The story's premise has an interesting hook that grabs almost anyone (Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene) but, delivers it with such lameness that the reader becomes annoyed. Not even the fast facts nor the historical trivia can keep you from noticing the all too convenient discoveries and formula type writing. For example the multiple uses of the second look at any situation yielding much more information than the first. I would imagine this is to create suspense or intrique. It accomplishes nothing when used twenty times in the book. We end up wishing the main characters would purchase a pair of dime store bifocals to see what is patently obvious to the reader. All in all I was left on completion of the book with the feeling of how good it could have been.

Rating:
Summary: Not the best but worth reading
Review: It seems most people love it or hate it, but I would say it's somewhere in between. The novel is a great thriller and kept me reading on, particularly for a good handful of riddles to keep us thinking. The highly-researched mystery of the Grail is a good introduction to people less familiar with the historical theories on early Christianity and even leaves a good start for how to do more research on the subject.

Certainly, it is not flawlessly written- Dan Brown insists on repeating information rather than trusting the reader to catch everything the first time and is unfortunately fond of cliches. Still, the fast pace and intriguing treasure hunt made up for it all.