The Da Vinci Code

Rating:
Summary: Lest you be confused by the facts...
Review: The less you actually know about anything, the more you will enjoy this book. I managed to suspend disbelief enough to enjoy the story but would never bother to read it again. I was not dazzled by the author's wit because I figured out too many of the riddles ahead of time (including, without even putting down the book to use paper or pencil, one of the initial cipher-clues that apparently the Parisian cryptoanalysts never did solve, as well as the solution to the ultimate puzzle). Yet this riddle solving process sorta kept me reading - like working a crossword puzzle. However, I was constantly annoyed and distracted by the author's misrepresentation of all sorts of "historical facts." (These included, among others, how, why, when, and by whom the gnostic gospels were "suppressed." They're so suppressed, I read them years ago even before I ever heard of Elaine Pagels. The RC Church is portrayed as a bunch of paternalistic male misogynists determined to keep women pregnant and powerless and the fruit of Jesus' sexuality concealed from all those to whom they pretend to preach the Truth. Ironically, of course, the Church was one of the few places women could actually live a truly productive, dignified, alternate lifestyle to that of mother.) The Church, having endured centuries of scandals that were actually true, is not likely to suffer unduly for the various slanders in this book and should be able to take care of itself. It is History and Intelligence that are most abused by Brown. The gnostic gospels were not accepted into the canon for the same reason this book should not be considered a source for much more than entertainment. That is: both are patently unreliable as sources of genuine information. Ironically, most of the gnostic gospels were "suppressed" in part because their attitude was absurdly hostile to human sexuality contrary to what Brown would have you think. But this was but one of many absurd distortions. Imagine a story of a trip in and through the jungles of South America, to the source of the Congo River wherein, along the way, tigers, elephants, and tribes of Aztec, Ibo, and Aleuts are encountered. It could be entertaining for those who don't know their geography, but for the rest of us, no matter how well the plot were developed, it would be exasperating. Nevertheless, if the book actually gets people interested enough to find out for themselves what is true, it will have done even the Church a great service.

For yet another example of how actually knowing anything can spoil your pleasure from this book: At the end, I had to wonder why both trivia-meister Brown and Harvard-professor-genius symbologist Langdon missed mention - even in passing - of the fact that the "Rose Line" is the name of one of Paris Metro lines (eg. it serves the Louvre). (Harvard may indeed be slandered worse than the Church.)

Rating:
Summary: I'd give this no Stars if I could...
Review: The level of my disapointment in this book has it tied as one of the worst novels I've ever (tried to!) read.

Now I never, ever stop reading a book. I've spent precious time and money, and feel I owe my investment to the author as well as myself to finish their story. I read every genre of fiction: mystery, romance, western and sci-fi so my tastes are broad and sometimes quirky, so I expected to enjoy this book. Instead, I had to put it down before I threw it out the window. The story was infamatory towards religious groups and oddly lacking in truly interesting characters. The synopsis was the most entertaining part of this book. The author (or his publisher) obviously has an exceptional P.R. machine, because that seems to be the strongest point of this endevor.

This reader's review is save your money on this over-hyped, boring, bizarre book.

Rating:
Summary: What the . . . . ?
Review: The main character is described as looking like "Harrison Ford." The villian is an albino. Subliminal images are said to be hidden in Disney cartoons.

To quote Marge in Fargo when she tells the killer she can't fathom his motivations: "well, I just don't understand it...that's all there is to it."

Rating:
Summary: Annoying
Review: The minute I knew who the knight was, the "orb" was obvious, but I had to spend the next 50 pages reading about a "Harvard professor" and a police cryptolgist who were not readily able to figure it out. While that ought to be enough, I would also mention that the alleged right/left masculine/feminine equation is factually inaccurate. This book has pretenses of being intellectual and clever, but the characters are shallow, the plot not unpredictable and the pretense somewhat outrageous. I am not catholic so that aspect of it did not offend me. One might read Umberto Eco, Phillip Kerr or others instead.

Rating:
Summary: Good Story Poorly Handled
Review: The mix of reviews here is an accurate index of what this book offers. If all you want is a fun mystery and conspiracy story based on intriguing and alleged secrets in the history of Christianity, you'll get it. Discerning readers will be disappointed. The book reads like a Marvel Comic stirred up with soap opera and B movie scripts. Believable characters, action and dialogue - in short, good writing - would make it far more worthwhile.

Rating:
Summary: Inventive and exhilarating
Review: The most clever novel I've read in years! Brown has created a labyrinthine plot full of suspense, style, and damned good writing. If you read only one book this week, make it The Da Vinci Code.

Rating:
Summary: Inventive and exhilarating
Review: The most clever novel I've read in yesrs! Brown has created a labyrinthine plot full of suspense, style, and damned good writing. If you read only one book this week, make it The Da Vinci Code.

Rating:
Summary: fantastic
Review: the most entertaining,educating and exciting book i have ever read. thanks to the book now i know about Opus Dei, secrets of the works of Da Vinci. ohhhh, and the number PHI!
bravo Dan. thanks.

Rating:
Summary: Clever plot with a dose of suspense and mystery
Review: The narrative style is very much the same as in Angels & Demons (which you should probably read first) - with ample use of symbolism and wonder to keep the reader hooked. The ending - predictable in kind, but not in substance makes it sufficiently distinguished to make the book a worthwhile read. There is also enough substance on the history of the Christian religion to lure the reader into further discovery of this fascinating subject.

Rating:
Summary: An "OK" Mystery
Review: The novel was interesting enough to keep me reading, but as I neared the half way point I realized that the characters were "cardboard" cutouts and their actions were very predictable. The only thing that kept me reading was the plot line about the history of the secret society and it's charge to protect a very important secret.
When I finished reading the book, I felt that as a novel this was just an average book. As I mentioned above, the characters were not very real and the plot of their adventures was pretty dull. However, I was also confused about all of the "historical" information presented. I just did not know which part was fiction and which was real. So in the end this book has sparked an interest in me to do some more reading and see if I can learned somethig new. For that reason I gave the book 3 stars instead of 2.