The Da Vinci Code

In The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown masterfully concocts an intelligent and lucid thriller that marries the gusto of an international murder mystery with a collection of fascinating esoterica culled from 2,000 years of Western history.

A murder in the silent after-hours halls of the Louvre reveals a sinister plot to uncover a secret that has been protected by a clandestine society since the days of Christ. The victim is a high-ranking agent of this ancient society who, in the moments before his death, manages to leave gruesome clues at the scene that only his daughter, noted cryptographer Sophie Neveu, and Robert Langdon, a famed symbologist, can untangle. The duo become both suspects and detectives searching for not only Neveu's father's murderer but also the stunning secret of the ages he was charged to protect. Mere steps ahead of the authorities and the deadly competition, Neveu and Langdon embark on a breathless flight through France, England and history itself.

Brown has created a page-turning thriller that also provides an amazing interpretation of Western history. Brown's hero and heroine embark on a lofty and intriguing exploration of some of Western culture's greatest mysteries--from the nature of the Mona Lisa's smile to the secret of the Holy Grail. Though some will quibble with the veracity of Brown's conjectures, therein lies the fun. The Da Vinci Code is an enthralling read that provides rich food for thought. --Jeremy Pugh, Amazon.com

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A great audiobook - Rated
I've read a couple of Dan Brown's books but Thrillers are not a genre I favour and so I'd put off picking up my copy of The Da Vinci Code. When I came across the audio book I decided this was the perfect way to find out why the book had been so popular.
It was excellent and eased several hours of driving with no effort. The narrator was very good and did a number of excellent voices, including the female characters. It did feel a little abridged but I haven't read the book so I can't fairly compare.
I now think I will read the book at some time in the future - just give me long enough to forget the details :)

Definitely a great way to "read" The Da Vinci Code - recommended.

One of The Best Books Ever! - Rated
I don't know how anybody can have any negative comments about this book. It is a fact-filled, amazing, un-put-downable roller-coaster ride of a great thriller and if someone reads this and doesn't like it then they are absolutely mental and i wouldn't be surprised if they were born in an asylum.

I have read all of Dan Brown's book's and I have never been disappointed by his unique writing style and i would go so far as to say he is my favourite author. I am eagerly awaiting the next Robert Langdon installment in September.

The book was surrounded by a lot of controversy about the religious ideas in it and that has put some people off and is the basis of some of the other reviews on this site. I am not a religious person and thoroughly agree with some of his ideas especially after reading Holy Blood, Holy Grail. The fact that someone could not enjoy this book just because it clashes with their beliefs is angering as they are missing out on a truly great piece of modern literature.

In short, buy this book immediately. Don't think just do. You will not regret it after reading it as it is truly AMAZING!

I love it. - Rated
There is so many thing's I love about this book. I love the story, I love the thrill, I love the characters and I love that so many people took this book so seriously. To me, it only goes to prove what a fantastic book The Da Vinci code is. It's a page turner and a good fiction novel. Read it, smile at it and move on.

Brilliant! - Rated
If you haven'rt read this book where have you been for the past 6 years.
Definiately a book worth your time.

Buy buy buy!

the da vinci code - Rated
This book has been divisive, contentious and reviled, It even led to claim's of plagiarism, which later went to court. The thing that I think everyone forgot, after reading it is that it's a work of fiction,

It's a good story with plenty or twists and turns to keep you interested, its been said by reviewer Anthony Lane it's "unmitigated junk" and decries "the crumbling coarseness of the style.", which is wholly unfair, you wouldn't expect the Enid Blyton books to be vilified in the same way. Some of Enid Blyton's works are adventure/ mysteries just like The Da Vinci Code. But no-one feels they need to tell you they don't like it or don't rate it as a book, The plain truth is it's been read by millions and millions of people who have enjoyed it, myself included. Some of the people though seem to think that they shouldn't like something because of the likes of Anthony Lane and Stephen Fry who referred to Brown's writings as "complete loose stool-water" and followed that up with "I just loathe all those book[s] about the Holy Grail and Masons and Catholic conspiracies and all that botty-dribble. I mean, there's so much more that's interesting and exciting in art and in history. It plays to the worst and laziest in humanity, the desire to think the worst of the past and the desire to feel superior to it in some fatuous way."

The story follows the attempts of Robert Langdon, Professor of Religious Symbology at Harvard University, and Sophie Neveu to solve the murder of renowned curator of the Louvre Museum in Paris, -Jacques Saunière. Who is found murdered in the Denon Wing of the Louvre, naked and posed like Leonardo da Vinci's famous drawing, The Vitruvian Man, with a cryptic message written beside his body and a pentacle on his stomach drawn in his own blood. A confusing phrase is written by the dead man on the floor along with Robert Langdon's name written below. Saunière's granddaughter, -Sophie Neveu and Langdon attempt to solve a bizarre set of riddles, codes, cryptex's and cipher's, all of which lead from the Louvre to another country in pursuit of the Holy Grail.

Being the main suspect in the old man's murder, Robert is told to run by Sophie, who goes with him, herself now a suspect she has to succeed as badly as Robert not only to prove her innocence but to catch the man who murdered her grandfather. They are left with 2 option's stay, and be arrested and possibly charged for something they didn't do or, run. Or become a fugitive avoiding the police and attempting to solve the murder of the beloved grandfather of Sophie Neveu, using the clues and riddles left by the old man in his dying minutes. They are stunned to discover a trail of clues hidden in the works of Leonardo Da Vinci. A rumoured Grand Master of the Priory of Sion, The rumoured safe keepers of the Holy Grail, Was Jacques Saunière a member of the Priory of Sion or was more than that?. Was he the current Grand Master? Of the Priory? who were said to have been the keepers of the Holy Grail dating from the very first known Grand Master Jean de Gisors (1188-1220) all the way through the years with previous Grand Masters including some of the greatest minds in history, from Leonardo da Vinci, Victor Hugo, Claude Debussy to Isaac Newton.

For the two of them to solve and unravel the mystery requires them to find the solutions to a series of brain-teasers, including anagrams, number puzzles and ciphers. The final solution is found to be intimately connected with the possible location of the holy grail.

With the addition of bucket loads of conspiracy thrown in and a sprinkling of the Knights Templar, Opus Day and the catholic church, You follow Robert and Sophie on a hunt for the Holy Grail, On the run from the French police, the catholic church and Opus Dei as well as mysterious duo of "the teacher" and Silas -an albino monk. They struggle to solve the mystery left for them by possibly the last of the Grand Masters