Rating: 
Summary: Not Da Vinci, but not bad
Review: The advance word on 'Rule of Four' was that it would be the next 'Da Vinci Code.' Comments like this always make me wary! It tells me that the main reason the book got published was because it is similar to a recent bestseller. Alas that seems to be the case here. While over all the book is entertaining it does have some flaws typical of an authors freshman effort. The main problem I had, was I'd have liked the characters to be more fleshed out. The book also has a bit of a snobby tone that I did not care for. On the good side, the author does develop a hell of a puzzle, and riddler solvers every where will have fun with it. The biggest problem this book will have is trying to live up to the Da Vinci code hype! I Also recommend: 'A TOURIST IN THE YUCATAN' A little thriller that has become an underground hit!
Rating: 
Summary: overhyped
Review: My review would probably be more positive if it weren't for all the hype, which led me to expect something truly out of the ordinary (like "Cryptonomicon", maybe). This book isn't bad, but it's not exceptional either. Beyond that, the most useful thing I can say, probably, is that it is more of a "coming of age" story than a "treasure hunt" story. It reminds me more of "A Separate Piece" than "the Da Vinci Code." While there is a lot about the way the mystery book has affected the narrator, his father, his friends, etc. the actual "mystery" of the book itself is secondary to these relationships and characters. In fact, I could not make myself care about the mystery book. To put my views in context, I am not much of a "da Vinci Code" fan either -- I think it goes too far in the other direction with cardboard characters and awkward dialogue. If you like mysteries about art and art history, or codes, read the "jonathan and flavia" mysteries of Iain Pears or "Cryptonomicon" by Neal Stephenson.
Rating: 
Summary: A novel, whatever it might be like, is always something new
Review: The comparisons made between "The Rule of Four" and various other works are not completely spurious, but they are somewhat beside the point (except for insofar as they alert potential readers to a book they'll likely enjoy). This is a fine novel, a real book far more than it is an exercise in any particular genre; I recommend it to all readers, including: those about to go to college; those attending it; those who have; those who have ever felt the power of love and trembled; those who know, as Borges has it, the "lazy pleasure in useless and out-of-the-way erudition"; those who like puzzles; those who have friends; those who have lost them; those who have adventures, and those who like to dream of them. I know I am pleased with a book when I miss my stop on the subway wrapped up in the pages. This happened yesterday, but I was only glad, as riding the train back in the opposite direction gave me more time to read. Readers of (to name a few other books) "The Club Dumas," "Three Musketeers," "The Name of the Rose," "Lords of Discipline," or "The Secret History," take note!
Rating:
Summary: More like "Raiders" than "Da Vinci"
Review: I can see where some would compare this to "The Da Vinci Code," but for me it was more like "Raiders of the Lost Ark." Actually it was a combination of those two with some Umberto Eco thrown in for good measure. It's basically the story of four Princeton guys, and the narrator is the son of a scholar who has made it his life's work to study the book they're all trying to decipher (don't ask me to spell it here). There's a little of everything in this Caldwell/Thomason collaboration (as there is in the book they're studying) and you won't be wanting for something to keep the pages turning, but "Da Vinci Code" it isn't. Seemingly well written with some good twists and turns, I'd recommend it, along with two other books: "Birth of Venus" and "Bark of the Dogwood," both of which are excellent and on the same level as this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't believe the Hype!
Review: All the advance word was that this book would be the next "Da Vinci Code," even better. Well, don't believe the hype. This is a first novel and it shows. This is a freshmen effort with all the weaknesses one expects from new authors. There is nothing special about this book. "The Da Vinci Code" has been a bestseller for over a year now, "The Rule of Four," once word gets out will be lucky to last a month! I was very disapointed by this book.
Rating:
Summary: The next big thing...
Review: The only thing negative anyone will have to say about this book is that it is "a lot like the Da Vinci Code." I think such a statement does this book a disservice. In fact, it is much BETTER than the Da Vinci Code. Yes it is as engaging as Dan Brown's work, but it happens to be much better written, at times even lyrical. It is also more than just a suspense story. The Rule of Four is a story about friendship and growing up, about making choices, and about history. The historical knowledge Caldwell and Thomason possess is truly impressive, and they do a wonderful job of leaving the reader feeling enlightened and entertained. A first rate novel that you too will want to recommend to your friends.
Rating:
Summary: Word of Mouth Success Summer 2004!
Review: Everyone is going to want to get their hands on "The Rule of Four" this summer. But be aware that it is not "The Da Vinci Code". It has more in common with "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt. The writing is much more literary and I actually jotted down several phrases to savor later ("...and the needle of destiny tightened its stitch and shuttled on."). The story is not particularly unique but it doesn't matter. You won't put this book down until the end. Two young men ready to graduate from Priceton University in 1999 are on the brink of solving the mysterious puzzle of a book published 500 years earlier in 1499. The "Hypnerotomachia Poliphili" is a real book and remains an enigma today. It contains coded messages and discusses "cinematic visual images" and other concepts ahead of the time in which it was written. The "Rule of Four" is totally fascinating.
Rating:
Summary: Princeton campus mystery about the Renaissance
Review: What should a couple of Ivy League graduates write about? Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason have set their debut novel on the campus of Princeton University and populated it with academics, scholars and students. Four undergraduate room-mates are drawn into the obsession of one of them, understanding the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, a book published in 1499, part illustrated encyclopaedia, part erotic novel. Scholars have been trying to unravel the secrets hidden in the pages of this strange book for 500 years. As it finally starts to yield its encrypted message, the fight to become the first to publish turns murderous. The authors rely on a large cast of mostly classical and Renaissance players for quotations and ideas: St Augustine, Browning, Dante, Descartes, Galen, Goethe, Michelangelo, Ovid, Al-Nafis, Milton, St Paul, Pliny, Savonarola. Even Schrödinger and Stoppard drop by. This is very much a book for readers. For anyone who wants to dig deeper, a copy of the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili is available free on the web courtesy of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or in English translation from Amazon. The real book may not contain a steganographic treasure map, but the authors make the idea credible. According to the dust jacket, Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason have been friends since childhood and they have been collaborating on this book for six years. In that time, they have cleansed the story of every awkwardness, hyperbole or inconsistency. The result is good, plain English and a satisfying story that finishes with a bang.
Rating:
Summary: Suckered
Review: I thought there might be a good reason Amazon.com was selling this thing for only $14, and I was right. It's a L.O.S.E.R. Now, if I can just figure out how it climbed onto the Best Seller List. Believe the others who scorned it; their comments say it all. Aimless plot, trivial insight and sensitivity, sophmoric character development, and really bad writing. Which took these guys six years to write? How did they even get an agent? I read the "Da Vinci Code," and yes it's for 8th graders, but at least it delivers a story. This book? Gives you nothing but 300+ pages of quasi-nuanced dialogue and narrative. Pee-you!
Rating:
Summary: No label applies
Review: This is not a thriller; nor is it a coming of age novel; nor is it an exercise in literary intellectuality. But it is enough of all three to present an interesting and singular read. If you look for the thriller you will find the book pretentious and trite of plot. If you look for the coming of age book you will find it lacking in characterization and depth of feeling. If you seek intellectuality you will find it too much of a hodge-podge. Stripped back to essentials there are two 70 page novelettes and a short masters thesis or compendium of the pompous opinions of intellectual youth. These are held together by flashbacks, discussion of code cracking (rigorously encryption), and other matters largely unrelated plot-wise to the three basic efforts. In particular there is too much Princeton, almost none of which contributes to plot. I speak as an alumnus. I had all this figured out by the end of the first 50 pages and went ahead to see how the authors managed to string this all together and come out the other end with a whole. I also wanted to know what had so charmed the literary arbiters. I discovered that the authors had managed their combined tasks, as a combination, rather well while incorporating all the biases of the humanist literary establishment without being pushy about it. It's unfortunate that there is no appropriate name for what the book is. So there is no particular approach to take in reading it. Together, this is an almost guaranteed recipe for effete reviewer approbation. On no level is this a ripping good read. But neither is it boring. It passes the Ha-ha test of "I want to know what happens next" with room to spare. But it leaves too many questions unanswered, questions raised in the novel to no particular purpose. And it often presumes that the reader can fill in the blanks of sketchy conclusions or dropped plot elements. And, sin of sins in the world of Agatha Christie, the authors continue to raise new issues practically to the last page. Read this book with an open mind and you will likely not be disappointed. Expect anything in particular and you may not get very far before putting it in the "to be finished later" pile. If you are upset by the pretentions of pressure cooker intellectual teens you will be offended here. If you are the product of such an environment you will chuckle as you stretch forgotten intellectual muscles and replay memories. Meanwhile I'm taking bets that the movie script sticks to the thriller with minor excursions into the exercises of adolescent libidos. This is one or those rare works you must begin to read before deciding whether or not to read it. I suggest you try.
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