Rating: 
Summary: Fascinating story, nice philosophical interjections
Review: Expertly woven story, a real page turner. At the same time, the author is able to insert history and philosophical arguments without breaking the continuity of the story but rather enhancing it. What a master of story telling! What great insights into religion and history!
Rating:
Summary: GREAT NOVEL
Review: Extremely entertaining and informative - the anagrams and riddles blew me away, and the plot twists at the end were fantastic
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting research but cheesy writing
Review: Fact or fiction aside, I'm amazed that so many people are raving about this cheesy thriller. Two and three-page chapters with holes in the logic all the way through -- how irritating. I know of course that this is fiction -- why even argue the point? -- but what I honestly could barely tolerate in this book was the great big gaps in logic and sense: for instance, why would the Parisian police determine immediately that Robert murdered Jacques? What would be the motive? Why would they link the murders of the other 3 Sion members to one another, let alone to Robert? Why would Robert trust Sophie to the extent that he does, this slightly madcap stranger forcing him to run from a murder scene? On top of all this, the characters are not developed well (they just happen to be thrown into the same pot of soup) and the dialogue is terrible. What I did appreciate is the background info, but even that can't be trusted. Terrifically overrated -- don't expect much higher thinking from 'The Da Vinci Code' -- extra cheese masquerading as higher thinking.
Rating: 
Summary: Somewhat Interesting.....Somewhat Fun..... But Mostly Hype.
Review: FACTUAL CONTENT: Most of the actual solid facts and research contained in the book, while interesting, have nothing to do with proving the ultimate point of the book. They are put in as a smokescreen to interest the reader while Brown hands them manipulated pseudo-fact or fabrication that is the attempted actual "evidence". Was he actually trying to prove something here, or just writing a thriller novel? I'm still not sure. In either case, repeatedly stuffing the same pseudo-facts and leaps of faith down a reader's throat over and over does not make them more true, it just gets irritating. Investigate on your own, and you will learn some things. Mona Lisa was the wife of Francesco del Gicondo, not a picture Da Vinci himself as the book claims. If you believe that's Mary Magdalene in the cleaned version of Last Supper instead of John, take a look at James the Less (second from the left end) and Jesus in there too, and then take a look at the Da Vinci painting called "St. John the Baptist". They all look female, and alot of Da Vinci's females look potentially male. Old news. The "perfectly formed M" in the painting does not exist. And the list goes on. The supposed stunning factual research of the novel does not hold up. PLOT CONTENT: Imagine this: A huge bound & gagged semi-conscious man, another smaller man regaining consciousness from a bad blow to the head, a polio victim with legbraces and crutches, a small exhausted woman, and a tired butler manange to outrun on foot, a police-force in the act of storming the house. They get out to a barn on a massive estate and drive away, with no workable explanation other than distracting the police with an intercom. No police went around the back of the house during the raid? Who carried the huge bound man, was it the small woman? The guy with the headwound? The polio sufferer? This is the type of plotwork you're in for. Along with the same cliff-hanging chapter ending he uses over and over, "what did the heroine see in the basement one night all those years ago??" which is a poor plot ploy. BOTTOM LINE: This novel has more work, information, education, and research put into it than most do, certainly, and it gets the reader's brain working, if only to investigate some of the claims and find them insubstantial. But it also has a large amount of misconstrued nonsense and the massive media circus surrounding it is nothing more than that, a circus. Wait for the paperback.
Rating:
Summary: An Astonishing Book
Review: Factually flawless and thoroughly thought provoking, this book will make you think, make you question, and it might even make you angry. The research that went into this book was extensive. Brown then demonstrates the ability to present all the research in a mystery so full of intensity, interesting characters, and believabilty that you feel yourself scrutinizing everything you have been taught since you were born as you journey through the steps of the puzzle with the characters. Even Brown's detractors have to have learned something from this book. The material on Da Vinci alone was worth the read. To say this book brings into question much of current day religious doctrine is quite an understatement. The style however, allows the reader to believe or not believe the premise, while still enabling one to enjoy the mystery. I finished the book quite looking forward to the possibility of new revelations of a religious nature which may be earth-shattering or merely enlightening, but decidedly new and provocative. Archetypes, symbology, subliminal embeds, historical concepts and events out of the mainstream, and language clues make this book a challenge to one's intellect, yet it is such an enjoyable and easy read that the experience is genuinely delightful. (It was so good I postponed cracking open my new Harry Potter!)
Rating:
Summary: Spectacular
Review: Fantastic fiction, mixed with a perfect amount of historical facts that are unknown to most. Mystery, suspense and ... art history. Ya gotta love it. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: MD in NY
Review: Fantastic, gripping, colorful, ingenious! I listen to the tapes during commute to and from work and although I would be happy to be home after a long day, I found myself several times sitting in my car in the driveway to hear the next chapter!! Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Engaging.
Review: Few books keep you as interested in continuing to read as Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code. Without question, this is one of the most engaging books I have ever read. After reading through the first fifty or so pages, I decided to start over with a highligher in order to mark points of interest worth researching on my own. One comment from a reader's eye: I found it amazing how Brown was able to keep the story moving in such a short time span. Simply put: this is an outstanding novel.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining read but not much else
Review: Fiction has gotten more interested in fast and cheap thrills. While "Code" is a good read, it conscientiously brings the reader to turn pages through use of short one-two page chapters and outcomes that are only casually disguised by superfluous reasonings. Regardless of the facts and conspiracy truths, Dan Brown's writing is simple minded and seems to be engendered toward the reader who has only a bare minimum time for sitting down with a book. No thought required, other than remembering what you read in the previous page.
Rating:
Summary: Fun Yet Educating
Review: Filled with riddles, intrigues, and unexpected outcomes, "The Da Vinci Code" by Dan Brown can practically be called a puzzle book. Not only does it keep the reader's mind alert, it also quenches the reader's thirst for knowledge. Filled with interesting facts and opinions on art and religion, the book challenges the reader to question his own beliefs about religion.
"The Da Vinci Code" follows Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu's desperate search for the Holy Grail in order to preserve its ancient secrets. Along their journey they find themselves connected with these secrets in more ways than they could have ever imagined. "The Da Vinci Code" is destined to become a well-loved classic.
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