The Da Vinci Code

Customer Reviews

Much More Than A Super Suspense Thriller!!

Once I began this extraordinary book, I could not put it down. "The Da Vinci Code" is so much more than a gripping suspense thriller. Dan Brown takes us beyond the main plot and leads us on a quest for the Holy Grail - a Grail totally unlike anything we have been taught to believe. With his impeccable research, Mr. Brown introduces us to aspects and interpretations of Western history and Christianity that I, for one, had never known existed...or even thought about. I found myself, unwillingly, leaving the novel, and time and time again, going online to research Brown's research - only to find a new world of historic possibilities opening up for me. And my quest for knowledge and the answers to questions that the book poses, paralleled, in a sense, the quest of the book's main characters. What a trip! What a read!

A violent murder is committed in the Louvre Museum. The museum's chief curator, who is also the head of a remarkable secret society that has existed since the death of Christ, is found dead and gruesomely positioned on the floor near The Mona Lisa. In the minutes before he died, this very complex man was able to leave clues for his daughter to follow. The daughter, a brilliant cryptographer, along with a famed US symbologist, follow her father's codes and leads, hoping that he will, through his death, finally tell her what he wanted to confide in her while he lived. The secret society included members such as: Leonardo Da Vinci, Boticelli, Gallileo, Isaac Newton, Victor Hugo, Jean Cocteau, etc. These folks really Did belong to this society, which Really existed! This is when I first began my online search.

The mystery, or mysteries, take us through England, France and far back in time. We learn about the secret of the Knights Templar, and the symbolism in many of the world's most treasured paintings, as well as architectural symbolism in some of history's most sacred churches. Of course, we also learn who committed the murder and why - although this is almost secondary next to the real epic mystery the novel uncovers.

If there are flaws in the plot, I was too busy reading to discover any. That is probably the sign of a terrific book! The writing is excellent and the characters are a bit on the super-hero/heroine side, but who cares? Is what "The Da Vinci Code" proposes true? Well, the research is correct. The historical events and people explored in the book are real. But no one knows the Truth...nor will we ever, probably. I think that some things are meant to be a mystery. With all the world's diverse religions and each individual's belief in what is Divine - the Truth would have to destroy the beliefs, hopes and lives of many of the world's population. So, perhaps, in the divine scheme of things, there are many more Truths than one. Don't take the book too seriously. Just read it and enjoy!

Sub-Jeffrey Archer

I couldn't put this book down, such was my desire to finish it and to move on to something written with an adult audience in mind. It failed entirely to stimulate the right side of my brain (that's the RIGHT side, dummy). But it has done a fine job of stabilising an erstwhile wobbly coffee table.

I'm all in favour of debunking the myths on which organised religions are built. But the only myths this airport trash debunks are that the author is capable of (a) writing literature and (b) getting his facts straight.

A research paper disguised as a novel...

I'm glad some other people have had the same experience as me. When I first read all the reviews, I thought this might the book of the decade or something.

I'm not going to spend time debunking the facts vs. fiction or whether I believe any of what is stated in the book... smarter, more well-read people than myself have done so at great length. However, I am a writer, and so I'll base my opinion the quality of writing, storytelling, plot, foreshadowing, and the like.

I could forgive lack of character depth if the writing itself was tight (M. Crichton is the best at that), but its not. There were so many flashback's I often forgot where we were in the story. I still don't know anything about the characters even after finishing the book. Everything about them is told, nothing is shown. It's like being spoon fed pre-digested food; your brain never has to work at understanding them.

Part of the problem with writing about secret societies is, well, they're secret. So witholding information in a mystery-like fashion is a bit unecessary... since the vast majority of the readers wouldn't know the first thing about them.

Over all, the plot is interesting, but the story is abysmal. When they were on the plane and whats-his-face kept flashing back to his lectures, I actually decided I wasn't going to listen anymore. It was as if Mr. Brown had done all this research, put it in order, then tied it together with a couple of lame characters and then sent it to his editor. But I plodded on, hoping it would become better. I mean, come on, 80% of this book takes place either riding in cars or riding on planes... who would call that exciting?

Anyway, I'm probably being a bit over critical, but I've tried for years to break into the 'published' world, and I can tell you if you weren't Dan Brown and this was your first novel, they'd laugh you out of their offices.

oh well...