The Da Vinci Code

Rating:
Summary: Leonardo would have liked it!
Review: The Da Vinci Code is a very good mystery/thriller, tying many historical facts and historical theories together in a modern background. Politics, religion, deceit, international intrigue, all rolled together in a compelling story. There are many unexpected twists and turns in the plot, and the reader never knows what will happen next. The book is hard to put down, and the characters are believable and likeable. A highly recommended book.

Rating:
Summary: Intelligent and intriguing. This Christian loved it.
Review: The Da Vinci Code is a well-crafted high-suspense story, loaded almost to overflowing with history, architecture, theology, art and literary commentary, all centered around one intriguing question. Is it possible that Jesus was actually married to the woman known as Mary Magdalene, and to what lengths would anyone go to keep the world from believing this? You'll get your money's worth from this novel's 454 pages. Be prepared for a lot of information to absorb, but also for a fast-paced story, lots of action, high-suspense, frequent viewpoint shifts, more flashbacks than you can count, multiple cliff-hangers, and tons of riddles and rhymes to ponder.
ABC devoted an entire hour recently to examining the veracity of the Jesus/Mary Magdalene theory. As if this weren't enough to wonder about, there is also the belief, held by some, that Mary Magdalene fled to France following Christ's crucifixion and gave birth to a daughter whose descendents are supposedly part of a bloodline that includes Jesus Christ and King David. You may not buy any of this, but the fact that the Priory of Sion is a real society with such illustrious members as Da Vinci, Hugo, and Isaac Newton, is something to think about.
I had no idea that the Mary Magdalene story was so pervasive, and has been told allegorically in such classics as Sleeping Beauty, Wagner's Parsifal, and Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Even Disney's The Little Mermaid allegedly reflects what Dan Brown's symbologist Robert Langdon calls "the sacred feminine."
The Da Vinci Code is not for the easily offended. I disagree that Dan Brown had any ulterior motives for writing this story, other than to bring to readers' attention the fact that there are many unanswered questions about the life of Jesus Christ - questions that even the staunchest believers will not find answers to in this life. The author had no vendetta against the Catholic Church, no wish to embarrass anyone, no wish to destroy anyone's cherished beliefs. As the daughter of a minister myself, having grown up quite familiar with biblical stories as they are conventionally told, I very much enjoyed the results of Dan Brown's in-depth research. I have long believed that one must be able to read between the lines of the Bible to understand what is and is not there. The four Gospels do not tell the complete story of Jesus' life, not by a long shot.
I have read several reviews claiming that the information Dan Brown presents is flawed, biased, or simply false. I respect the opinions of others who were not pleased with The Da Vinci Code, but I strongly resist hearing criticism that does not explain itself. If what Dan Brown has presented is erroneous or untrue, please tell us why. Be specific.
The best fiction has always been whatever makes us think - about ourselves, about others, and about the incredible universe we find ourselves inhabiting. To quote one of my favorite Shakespeare lines, "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."

Rating:
Summary: Very Pleased
Review: The Da Vinci Code is a well-written suspense novel that is a fun and engaging read. To claim that an 'educated' person would not like the book is quite false. Many of the most intelligent historians I know truly enjoyed it, along with nearly half my class at Harvard College.

Rating:
Summary: READ IT .READ IT. READ IT. You will love it.
Review: the Da Vinci Code is a wonderful book. It made me think, it made me do lots of research and it got me take another look at historical events and religious beliefs. Yet the story does not imply that faith is any less divine, it introduces other mysteries. It just brings up a lot of points and theories that are fasinating, yet I felt it was presented in a great story filled with mystery, intrigue and high action. I read so many books that I am rarely surprised or enthusiastic about what I read -not anymore! This book surprised me, made me question things I thought were written in stone, and I looked up every detail on the internet- go to Dan Browns web-site. The book cover is interactive! This book is just great! I mean it IS a story, but a lot of the theories check out!

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic! Interesting Ideas...
Review: The Da Vinci Code is a wonderfully written thriller that seeks to excite the senses of its reader. The story weaving is both flowing and interesting at the same time. In this book, Brown also managed to combine important details within a fast moving, action packed book.

Robert Langdon, a Harvard professor, receives a telephone call late at night while on business in Paris. It is revealed that the curator of the Louvre, Jacques Sauniere, has been murdered in a brutal fashion. This single incident ignites an electrifying chain of events - and Robert finds himself in the middle of all of it. Together with a French cryptologist, Sophie Neveu, he sets out on a trail of discovery and back into the very roots of history.

Fact or fiction? Readers need to discern for themselves the actual facts within this book. Fact and fiction are so cleverly blended together by the author as he creates scenarios that will take his readers for a ride throughout the streets of France and London. I had to check up on various things in the book to make sure they were true - and many of them were.

I personally found the book very interesting, with all its riddles, works of art (by Da Vinci) and edge of the seat plot. However, some parts of the story are too far fetched to be true to real-life scenarios. For example, it seems far too incredible that Langdon and Sophie manage to escape the vices of the French police at every turn - with all their sophisticated technologies and such. But of course, I tend to ignore that flaw because a part of it is a work of fiction. Secondly, the author tends to repeat the same idea over and over again. Readers are given doses of the importance of the "Sacred Feminine" every few chapters and it gets worse towards the end. Is the need to enforce the "Sacred Feminine" so important that it needs to be spoon fed? I think not. Also, the connections made with the feminine 'chalice' and various existent icons become more vague and incoherent towards the end of this book. Thirdly, Brown makes some claims that cannot be regarded as real evidence. After all Leonardo Da Vinci was a member of the Priory of Sion, and what he believed had happened two thousand years ago cannot be regarded as historic fact yet.

All in all, this book is still a great read. The factual references are great - I have to say I've learnt quite a bit about iconology in history and the links that it has with today. It's a book not to be taken too seriously, but purely as a fantastic thriller not to be missed.

Rating:
Summary: An Entertaining Piece of Fiction - The Operative Word
Review: The Da Vinci Code is a work of fiction - If you relax, and take it for what it is, this novel will be an enjoyable, quick read. It has a smoothly flowing, Clancy-esque pulp fiction type of plot that manages to exude an aura of intelligence without getting bogged down in explaining the physics of a cruise missile to uncaring readers. The characters are a stumbling block - The only ones who get their fair share of background explanations are an albino monk named Silas and a codebreaking, gun-toting grandaughter of the Louvres' murdered curator. The rest are mere plot devices, or major characters without a history, let alone a personality. The author's research, though extensive, is flawed at times. To call it research is an insult to historians - He draws most of his information from numerous conspiracy theories relating to the Knights Templar, not a scrap of which has been proven true. One must remember that this is a work of fiction, and, just as it is fun to read about government UFO coverups or the like, it is fun to read this as well. This, however, is not a work of nonfiction, and if you wish to treat it as such, then a good, well-written novel becomes an unoriginal book filled to the brim with far-fetched, recycled conspiracy theories and slanted history.

Rating:
Summary: Da vinci in a hole new perspectvie
Review: The Da Vinci code is about a man and a women who set out on a quest for the holy grail. yes believe it the holy grail. but there arre those who dont what the grail to surface. those being the holy catholic church and the notorias group of Opes Dei. Landgon and Nuvier are on a quest for the greatest of treasure. this book features many twists and turns such as some truths and some lies that you are lead to believe.
It all begins when Sophie Nuvier's grandfather whom she hasn't sponken to in ten years was brutally murdered by Selis an Opes Dei member in search of the keystone, wich is the key needed to unlock the grail. Sophie dicovers that her grandfather has been murdered and a message left by her grandfather told her to find Robert Langdon, a sybloigest. With Sophie being a cryptologist together they join there knowlege to solve the most complicated of mystery of all time.
along the way the meet up with Fache, who is the head of the D.C.P.G wich is the london police. Salis, is also hunting Robert and Sophie as they struggle to find the grail. Mean while while looking for the grail and running from salis Sophie learns more than she imgined about her all to normal and boring life and secrets about her grandfather that she was never supposed to know.
Do Sophie and Robert taste the sweet friuts of there laong and dangerous labor, and does Sophie discover all to much about her past, and does Langdon trust to many people? To find out about this captivating qwest for enlightenment and understanding read the addicting novle you won't be able to put it down from cover to cover.
a Review by Jared lowdermilk
and 8th grade student

Rating:
Summary: The Best Book I've Ever Read!
Review: The Da Vinci Code is absolutely magnificent. I can't find any words to describe it. This is a MUST READ book.
I wish you have the priviledge of reading this fabulous book.

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Fabulous!
Review: The Da Vinci Code is absolutely the best book that I've read this year. The characters are so believable, the research so meticulous, the premise so strong that I had to keep reminding myself that it is FICTION. It definitely rocked my "cradle-Catholic" upbringing! I finished the book in one sitting, you probably will too!

Rating:
Summary: A Treasure! Don't hesitate to pick up a copy!
Review: The Da Vinci Code is an "intelligent thriller" in every sense of the term. Not only is this an intense tale of murder and mystery, but is an art history lesson, a conspiracy theory and an eye-opening provocation all in one. That's not to mention that the characters are very well-developed, interesting and mostly charming and likable. This is a fiction story, but major parts of the book are based on facts that I had never been aware of until now.

The novel opens up at the scene of a murder taking place. The characters and events surrounding the murder are suspicious and uncertain. Over the next few chapters, the pieces start falling into place slowly but surely. You learn that the murdered man, Jacques Saunière was the curator of the Lourve in Paris, France. He was also the Grand Master of a secret society known as the Priory of Sion. This mysterious organization has had the mission of protecting the secrets of the Holy Grail, and members of the society have included such prominent figures as Sir Isaac Newton, Botticelli, Victor Hugo and... Leonardo Da Vinci.

The first few chapters also reveal that 3 other murders had taken place on the same night, all 3 victims being other members of the Priory of Sion. The killer is an albino monk named Silas, a member of a sect of the Catholic Church called Opus Dei, working for a Catholic Bishop, Manuel Aringarosa. Both collaborators are working for a mysterious man who calls himself The Teacher and has revealed his identity to no one.

Robert Langdon is an American visitor in Paris, as well as a Professor of Religious Symbology at Harvard University, in town for a lecture. Langdon had been scheduled to meet with Saunière on the night of the murder, and yet Saunière had not shown up (obviously). Langdon is summoned to the murder scene by the French police captain Bezu Fache under the guise of needing Langdon's expertise. Before Saunière died, he had locked himself in a section of the Lourve and left several clues that suggested that Langdon might able to help the police determine who had killed him and what the motive might have been. However, it isn't Langdon's expertise that was the sole reason for bringing him to the scene of the crime. Langdon is Fache's primary suspect. Before he can be arrested, Langdon is unexplainably rescued by a cryptologist named Sophie Neveu who believes Langdon is innocent... And then all Hell really breaks lose as both of them become fugitives from the law while trying to decipher the clues left by Saunière to determine who the killer really was and why he did it.

The clues Saunière left are nothing short of genius. What's even more brilliant is how Dan Brown is able to intertwine facts and conspiracy theories while coming up with double meanings and applying them to the story line. Most of Saunière's clues are left in the form of codes and symbols, most of which could be found and traced through "pagan" symbols embedded in the paintings of Leonardo Da Vinci, as well as Da Vinci's history, lifestyle and beliefs. There were several moments while reading this book when I had to jump up and run to the internet so I could call up pictures of Da Vinci's paintings, as well as his biographies, so I could see if the symbolism and relationships described in the book were founded... and they are. I was completely and totally astonished and blown away by how much I was able to learn and ponder about Da Vinci from reading this book. I am so inspired in fact, that now I want to get my hands on anything I can learn about the man.

The Da Vinci Code is a smooth book to read. The chapters are extremely short, which makes it convenient to find stopping points - not that you'll want to stop (this book is so engulfing). The flow of the story is really easy to follow, even though it often splits up, switching from scene to scene. Brown is masterful at telling the story from one viewpoint, and then switching and telling it from the eyes of a different character.

I cannot give this book enough praise. Not only is it chocked full of information guaranteed to spark the imagination of the conspiracy theorist in anyone, but it is so complex, with intense and unexpected twists and turns all the way until the end. You will be guessing and trying to crack The Da Vinci Code the whole time. What's best, is that the person behind it all, is the one person I would have never even suspected, not even for a moment - and yet it makes perfect sense. I am blown away.

The Da Vinci Code is one of the most intoxicating, cinematic, thought-provoking books I've ever read. I highly recommend it to those who enjoy a good murder mystery and conspiracy theory, as well as to those who are interested in religious symbolism and are fans of Leonardo Da Vinci. In order to appreciate the brilliant complexity of this story, you simply MUST get your copy and start reading it today! A Must-Read!!! And with the holidays upon us, let me take this opportunity to recommend two other recent outstanding [e-mail] by Tom Grimes, The Losers' Club by Richard Perez. I purchased all these books through Amazon, with no special rush delivery, but received them within a week. Outstanding service, I'll admit. Happy holidays everyone!