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The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci Code

List Price: $26.95
Your Price: $17.79
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Un muy buen libro.
Review: Es un libro que aparte de ser interesante te mantiene muy intretenifo y puedo decir que interesado y divertido, ataca a sociedades y grupos como el opus dai y el poder que tienen actualmente en el mundo. realmente si quieres pasarte un rato a gusto y aparte teniendo otros puntos de vista en cuanto al cristianismo... compralo.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Atrocious writing style.
Review: Even if this were it's only shortcoming, readers should snub this book. The writing style is so poor that it is distracting, and the characters so uninspired and shallow, that I was not able to read more than a couple of chapters, before putting the book down in exasperation. The character development is dispensed with in the following manner: "He was tall and powerfully built, with his hair slicked back, and he wore a finely tailored Armani".

The author also seems to have forgotten that punctuation exists in English language, resulting in choppy, short sentences reminiscent of a High School English writing assignment. But I suppose this must be a device to keep the thriller thrilling...

I'll let the other reviewers, who were obviously more patient that me, tear the story to pieces, and will just content myself with saying that this book falls into the "cheap supermarket novel" category, no matter how lofty the subject matter may hope to be, and has no claim to literature status. For that, you are better off reading "The Name Of The Rose" or "Foucault's Pendulum", where style and substance co-exist.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great Read
Review: Even though it is a historical fiction, this is a very good book to read. True that some of the points he wrote about were true. But we should know that this is open to interpretation. What is also important is that as readers, we should be able to discern where historical truths end and where fiction begins. I have read a great deal of historical fictions, and know how misleading historical fictions can be. Nothing that is written in this novel is exact. The father of this theme that Dan Brown took in this book is Michael Baigent , the author of HOLY BLOOD, HOLY GRAIL. He said it succinctly that he did not believe about the grail story because he did not know. What he wrote was what people said, many of whom were hazy about it. So, he wrote using "it is said that". That is what makes writings glaringly historical fictions.

Another good historical fiction is DISCIPLES OF FORTUNE.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Okay...it's not bad
Review: Even though this religious thriller isn't exactly what I usually like to read, I was curious as to what all the good and bad reviews were about (thousands of them). I have to admit that I wasn't expecting much, but the books not bad. I really give it three-and-a-half stars.

But, being a science fiction fan, I also recommend: STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND, PUPPET MASTERS, CHILDHOOD'S END, NEUROMANCER, SNOW CRASH, DARKEYE: CYBER HUNTER, etc.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Yes, it is that good
Review: Ever since I read a review about this book in PEOPLE Magazine, I have been dying to read it. Now I know why- it has every interesting aspect any good novel should have tied into it: history, mystery, suspense, intellect, intriguing characters, and unfathomable reality connections. Dan Brown's wonderful, hands-down performance tangles the reader into the temporary discipleship web he has spun of the forgotten faith mentioned throughout the book. Excellent character foils double to represent the timeline generations of the Church and to create inticing reading.

Many times while reading this book, I found myself racing to and from the computer to check on facts created in this novel, which were very true, as far fetched as they may seem. The Da Vinci code not only opened my eyes to a world I never imagined could exist but reminded me that all things have ulterior motives.

Bottom line: At the final page, I found myself secretly wishing a second catastrophe would uprise so that the adventure could continue.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Incomprehensible tripe
Review: Every now and then I buy a book on the spur of the moment without looking up the usual reviewers or even flipping through a few pages. I almost always get burned doing this, and this purchase was no exception. A massive (and misleading) marketing campaign and relentless self-promotion are the only explanations for this book's success. Cloddishly plotted and populated with moronic caricatures instead of characters, this waste of paper routinely mixes spurious 'facts' with idiotic conspiracy theories while racing breathlessly--and with breathtaking dullness, not an easy task--to a senseless and contradictory conclusion. At first I was astounded that anyone could actually recommend this garbage, then I realized that movies like 'Dumb and Dumber' draw large crowds.
There really should be a 'zero star' rating available for this kind of puerile nonsense.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Forget the history, it's just bad writing.
Review: Everybody complains about the history. "These details are wrong, the history books say this..." and on ad infinitum. It's fiction. Says so on the copyright page. Fiction. Grounded in reality, but ultimately made up.

That people give this book one star for "being bad history" is just grossly ignorant. It is not a history text, it's a novel. And, it's a BAD novel. The plot speeds along, and is the book's saving grace. There is little to no characterization, and clunky prose that sticks out like a sore thumb on subsequent rereadings. (I admit that I was flummoxed by the quick pace of the book, only on review did I realize just how badly it was written.)

I bought this for my fiance for Christmas cause she likes DaVinci, and for making her happy, it gets five stars. No stars subtracted for being "bad history"; four stars subtracted for being too badly written for the money I spent on the hardcover, and one star added for a quick plot that glosses over all the obvious problems.

"Almost inconceivably, the gun into which she was now staring was clutched in the pale hand of an enormous albino."

?

-Evan

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: ignoring an issue
Review: everybody keeps talking about this dumb book

but what about this charge of racism?

why are y'all ignoring this Q?

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Sensation Frustration
Review: Everybody's talking about this book. A friend of mine has invited folks over to discuss it. I've no doubt this will springboard us into talking about 'the sacred feminine' (Eve was framed) and "Are there intergenerational, nay inter-epochal conspiracies, secret societies, etc, etc, etc." Well OK, the book is selling and it's a great springboard.
Other questions that I expect answers to in a book ballyhooed as much as this one: "What if I had the Holy Grail, the actual cup that Jesus drank the first communion with his disciples; what properties would the Grail convey on the possessor (or viewer)? Would it be like Dorothy's ruby slippers or Midas' golden touch? Another question- how is the Grail's authenticity verified? Tell me this, Dan Brown! No, <The DaVinci Code> never reveals this to my satisfaction. The whole 'thing' hinges on a riddle and the hero, Langdon never sees the Grail. So...it's DaVinci Code as in Crossword Puzzle, not as in the chromosonal genetic code that spells Jesus Christ. Admittedly, a clever read and if <DaVinci Code> serves you like it did me, to generate an invite to brunch, go for it. Another caveat; this is one of those stories where the hero was tired to begin with and stays up 48 hours. Don't start reading it after 9:00 PM or sympathy pains may convince you that sleep is all but impossible!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Conspiracy Theories
Review: Everyone loves a conspiracy, says Brown. Well, obviously many do from the way this book is selling. The problem with conspiracy theories is that they always have to torture the truth as this book does. It does for history what "Chariots of the Gods" does for archaeology.

The Dossier Secrets were not "found" by the Bibliotheque Nationale, they were deposited with them where they were judged to be forgeries and there is no substantiated evidence that the Priory of Sion was anything other than a modern invention of very creative minds. The account of the demise of the Templars in the book is a great example of history prostituted for the sake of a conspiracy theory. The real story is much more fascinating. In brief, the Knights Templar were extremely wealthy due to monopolies in banking and Near East shipping. Their vast wealth caught the attention of the King of France, Philip the Fair (a reference to his appearance, not his character) whose dreams of empire were going unrealized due, in part, to the bankruptcy of his treasury. He had confiscated the property of all the Jews in France and devalued the currency, but was still a little short of funds. He had also kidnapped and disposed of the previous pope for standing in his way and exerted enormous influence over Pope Clement V, who understandably did not want to suffer the same fate. Clement never made it to Rome, by the way. He was installed at Lyon and got as far as Avignon - the beginning of a period in papal history known as the "Babylonian Captivity". Philip first tried to get himself made head of the Templars. They made the mistake of rejecting him - probably realizing his intention was to rob them. So Philip rounded up all the Templars in France, trumped up charges against them, tortured confessions out of them, and seized their wealth. I could go on with reference to other misrepresentations of history in this book, but it would take pages.

OK, it's a novel. It does not need to be historically accurate. True. The book would just be good fun, except that the characters are completely unbelievable, the plot is transparent and the prose is about 5th grade level. I suppose Mr. Brown is unaware, or unconcerned, that red-eyed mammals are visually impaired and often blind? A rather cumbersome handicap for a hit-man, don't you think? As soon as I read that, I knew I was reading a made for Hollywood script. We have a Harvard symbologist who apparently does not know any foreign languages - a man who has studied Grail lore without any knowledge of French. He is a well-traveled, mature bachelor who is scandalized by the Bois de Boulogne and seems devoid of any sexual or romantic feelings. In fact, he seems devoid of any feelings at all. He does not express outrage at the police trying to pin a crime on him or real fear at being a fugitive. He is strangely removed from the events happening around him. Perhaps he has been in academia too long. Maybe he is just jet-lagged, which is kind of how I felt reading this. Then we have a Parisienne who does not know the meaning of "clef de voute". It is a common French term for the stone at the top of an arch, ie a keystone. When you find out what she saw that made her stop speaking to her grandfather for a decade, you really have to wonder what kind of repressed thing she is.

The puzzles are ridiculously simple. It is hard to believe that two supposedly intelligent people could not grasp the riddle of "Newton + orb + rosy flesh + seeds within". I got it in seconds. The ending of the book is apparent about half-way through and the big secret that would shake Christianity to its foundations just isn't such a big deal. As Sophie says "I wouldn't mind". After all, the same situation did not stop Siddhartha from becoming Buddha.

Really the whole thing is one big yawn.


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