The Da Vinci Code

Yup, no "Angels and Demons"

this book is waaaaayyy more than just worth reading. although i had a hard time keeping up, it was definitely woth my time.

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown is a thriller mystery novel whose story revolves around two protagonists, Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu, who are on the journey of their life to crack the mystery behind the murder of Jacques Sauniere, the keeper of a secret. This isn’t just any secret: this secret has been heavily guarded by a secret society for two thousand years, the Holy Grail. It is up to Langdon and Sophie to solve the mystery before its secrets fall into the wrong hands.

The plot is intriguing and interesting because of Dan Brown’s use of language. Right from the start, this book draws readers in and hooks them until the very last sentence. Although simple, Brown crafts his words into thought-provoking ideas that reveal much deeper meanings. This can be seen throughout his book, such as when Langdon and Sophie visit a friend, Teabing, during their journey. Teabing explains, in this excerpt, that “History is always written by the winners. When two cultures clash, the loser is obliterated, and the winner writes the history books – books which glorify their own cause and disparage the conquered foe. As Napoleon once said, “What is history, but a fable agreed upon?’” (Brown 335). By this, he means that the history written by the losers are often lost in history and never get a chance to emerge. This is telling the reader that the most difficult job is to put together all the pieces of the puzzle so that one can see the entire picture, an unbiased view of history, or, in this case, the complete story without any piece missing. From this, one can see the care Brown uses to mold his ideas and words into a work of art, making this novel a masterpiece.

The two protagonists are also beneficial in making this story come to life because of their individual personalities. Robert Langdon is a Harvard professor who is portrayed as a trustworthy character. Throughout the book, he remains generally rooted in his beliefs and unchanged by the conspiratorial events that surround him. On the other hand, Sophie Neveu is a police cryptographer who is depicted as a smart and caring young woman. Over the course of the book, she changes in response to the events that unfold around her. Their attributes are complementary; they complete each other like yin and yang.

Overall, I would give this book four stars. Brown ingeniously leaves out the tiniest details until the climax, intensifying the suspense as everything falls into place. Even so, the book is, in general, historically inaccurate and is very controversial. I would still recommend this book, especially to those who love an amazing thriller that will keep them on the edge. Once you pick up this book, you won’t be able to put it down until you’ve unlocked the mystery of a lifetime.

Reader reviewed by John

This thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat as you watch the incredible journey of Harvard symbologist, Robert Langdon, on his chase for the Holy Grail. This book is amazingly describing and you can tell how much research was put into every detail by Dan Brown. You watch the plot unfold from the view of an all-seeing eye, looking into the thoughts of each character. The thoughts of each character are describe but there is just enough info given so you can understand their position on current events, but not long term things, which are used to surprise you in the final moments of the book.

                The story starts off from the view of Robert, who is on a trip in Paris, giving lectures on his to-be-released book. He is thrown into an intricate mystery involving the curator of the Lourve, his cryptologist granddaughter, Sophie, and two mysterious groups named the Priory of Sion (the good guys), and Opus Dei (the bad guys).  With the help of Sophie and an old colleague of his, Sir Leigh Teabing, he must race to unravel the mystery of the Priory and find the Holy Grail, before Opus Dei destroys it. The way that the parts of the plot are interlaced just blow your mind in the end. There is a lot of religious conflict and conspiracy in the book, of which Im not sure what is fiction or not, but either way its extremely intriguing how Dan Brown all put together in the end of the book. I am a Christian and the way that the religious scandals are presented makes me wonder a little. It just seems like everything falls right into place and leaves you thinking, Wow, how did I miss that. And believe me theres more than just one occasion where this occurs. This book is most definitely a thriller that will keep you turning pages like theres no tomorrow.

                The DaVinci Code has been made into a movie. Though it was a great movie, it was an even better book so I recommend that you read the book first. The movie does skip out on a few parts that are pretty interesting to people like me. All I can say is that I applaud Dan Browns work in both of these works of art. They are just breat-taking.

 

Reader reviewed by Mary Beth Miller

This book left me in suspense at every page. You can tell the author really put some thought into the plot of the book. I don't normally read a lot of mysteries, but this one broke the mold and I couldn't put it down. if you want something that will keep you thinking, I would recommend reading The Davinci Code.

Reader reviewed by EshInoBi

Yes, I did read this book because it was a movie, but no, I haven't seen the movie. After discussing the book with my mother, however, we agreed that they were quite different.
Still, though I haven't seen the movie, I can tell it isn't comparable with the book, because this book was amazing.
I learned a lot of new things, and it was just so amazing to learn, to realize, to discover.
This is another book with Robert Langdon and I read he hasn't lost his Robert-y touch. He meets Sophie, which was very interesting.
I don't remember much of everything in this book, but I think the beginning was boring, because I had no idea what was happening, but as the story progressed, I was focused entirely on the story.
This was a wonderful book and is now officially recommended by the great me! ^^

Reader reviewed by co-chan



I read this book a few years back and even though it was for adults, I found it really good. The self-injury was maybe a bit awkward, but there was not much of it. The plot is very well thought out and clever. Everything clicks in place and there is a lot of research put into it. It's a very engaging read and I found that I couldn't put it down once I started.

Reader reviewed by K. Hager

This book has carried a lot of controversy, but it is an interesting read. It's not well written, in fact it has a lot of sections that aren't realistic and the characters sometimes say or do things that aren't believable. The book starts to explain the rumor that John in the "Last Supper" painting was actually Mary Magnalene and that she was married to Jesus and pregnant at the time of the crucifixtion. Although the author has to explain it to us through the characters asking questions, the part where Roberts is objecting to what Teabing is saying comes across really fake. It's even worse when you watch it on screen.

While it is not well-written this book will definitely keep your interst. I didn't want to put it down until I figured out what was going on and where the tomb of Mary was. I ended up finishing the book in one day because I had to know the ending.

This is one of those books where you really need to read it before seeing the movie. The film will make a lot more sense if you know the background & history behind it.

Also, don't skip to read the ending. Itwon't make as much sense to you & it won't be as enjoyable as if you went through and read how Sophie and Robert got to each place to dicover more clues.

Reader reviewed by Sandra F.

Who knew that religious things could be this interesting? If you are one of the few people who have not read this book, then run to the nearest library or bookstore.

The descriptions of Rome and the Vatican, especially the really creepy churches, have your hair standing on end. I never knew anything about the secret societies that existed in the church in the past and maybe still today. Is it really possible that Jesus has descendents in the world today? This book gives you a lot to think about.

Reader reviewed by mh

The Da vinci code is about protecting the true story of Jesus and the wholy grale. The story is really great because you could actually believe all of it really happened and it gets you thinking.The story is well-written with a couple of plot twists that turn the whole story around.
It keeps it interesting until the last page.
this book is full of cryptic messages which the lead characters have to figure out and they lead to the wholy grale in the end.