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List Price: $24.95 | | Publisher: Doubleday
Salesrank: 10040
Released: March 18, 2003 |
| Our Price: $0.01 |
| Used Price: $0.01 |
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| Media: Unknown Binding |
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Editorial Review:
While in Paris on business, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon receives an urgent late-night phone call: the elderly curator of the Louvre has been murdered inside the museum. Near the body, police have found a baffling cipher. While working to solve the enigmatic riddle, Langdon is stunned to discover it leads to a trail of clues hidden in the works of Da Vinci -- clues visible for all to see -- yet ingeniously disguised by the painter.
Langdon joins forces with a gifted French cryptologist, Sophie Neveu, and learns the late curator was involved in the Priory of Sion -- an actual secret society whose members included Sir Isaac Newton, Botticelli, Victor Hugo, and Da Vinci, among others.
In a breathless race through Paris, London, and beyond, Langdon and Neveu match wits with a faceless powerbroker who seems to anticipate their every move. Unless Langdon and Neveu can decipher the labyrinthine puzzle in time, the Priory's ancient secret -- and an explosive historical truth -- will be lost forever.
THE DA VINCI CODE heralds the arrival of a new breed of lightning-paced, intelligent thriller…utterly unpredictable right up to its stunning conclusion.
Description of The Da Vinci Code:
With 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 esoteria culled from 2,000 years of Western history.
A murder in the silent after-hour halls of the Louvre museum 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 granddaughter, 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 grandfather'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, the mystery leads Neveu and Langdon on a breathless flight through France, England, and history itself. Brown (Angels and Demons) 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
The Da Vinci Code Reviews:
Read it, but make sure you read it twice 
2008-10-06 - I heard all the hype, I saw all the criticism novels and I have to confess that I was intrigued. Then I was given this book as a gift and sat down to read it in one sitting and thought it was one of the best books ever. The suspense, the puzzles and the pace of it all. Two weeks later, I sat down and re-read it all and wondered what I saw in it at all. Interestingly, Tom Hanks said more or less the same thing in an interview.
I needn't outline the story, even on my first reading I found it a little far-fetched the theories surrounding Mary Magdelene. It may have been plausible, but I wasn't completely convinced. Then I found out that the whole thing about the Priory of Sion was a fabrication and that decided me. NONE of what is in this book is true, it's just a not-very-enjoyable pot-boiler that's going to be forgotten before too long and it already has, quite a number of books about the Da Vinci Code are now sitting on bargain tables.
This book may have been slightly better if Dan Brown was anything but a hack writer, but that's what he is. The Da Vinci Code is more than a blockbuster novel, it's a MOVIE disguised as a book! Brown should be a screenwriter and leave books to the more worthy, especially ones about dodgy conspiracy theories.
Read the book if you must but the movie is much better, Ron Howard's adaptation is much, much better anything that Brown could cook up.
This goes for a great book?
2008-10-05 - I know that the world is still somewhat obsessed with this book, and I I guess I can understand why. It's a lot of fun, I will admit, and Dan Brown certainly did his homework, authentic or not, on some awesome bits of history and religion. This provides a super-fun mystery--hey, who doesn't appreciate a super-fun mystery with lots of fast-paced action?
However, so totally overrated! I think so much of the hype came from the supposedly controversial nature. You know what? Make up your own minds and stop letting fiction decide your beliefs for you!
It is definitely a fun read, but the characters are ridiculous, cliche, and flat, as well as the relationships.
Amazing book 
2008-10-04 - An absolutely amazingly fascinating book. It has made even the most die-hard atheists interested in religion. No matter how much is true, it just doesn't matter. This book has made the average book reader think, discuss and question so many things in our everyday life and existence.
I spent an entire evening plus the following night reading it non-stop.
DO NOT see the movie, it sucks!!
ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I HAVE EVER READ!
2008-09-26 - I can't even go into detail about how amazingly compelling this book was to read, but one thing I have to stress is that nobody should watch the movie before reading the book first. If you have already watched the movie, read the book and then watch the movie again because it will make so much more sense and make so much more of an impact. Of course, the movie couldn't fit in everything that the book covered, but it did follow it fairly well.
The storyline, the characters, the dialogue, etc. in this book are all so incredible that you don't want to put the book down once you start reading it. However, most people would not be able to read this entire book in one day or even two. It took me a little over a week to finish it because most people can't read a book all day long if they work or even if they don't. I grant you, it's a lot of pages, but it is so worth the time because this is a very enlightening book in so many ways and gives insight into various aspects of not only religion, but things you never knew about famous art works. I was never very interested in art, but this book was quite eye-opening. I highly recommend this book to ANYONE.
I Put It On EBAY 
2008-09-24 - I was given this book as a gift- read it- and immediately put it on EBAY. Funny thing is that someone bought it. This may be the biggest piece of formulaic BS I have ever read. The writting is very weak, and although I am not an historian, I doubt any of it is true. Maybe it's me but, I cannot believe all the hype this book has recieved. It frightens me that so many people speak so highly of this trash. Maybe that's also why Sarah Palin is so popular. HYPE, HYPE, and more HYPE, with an intriguing cover. USA! USA! USA!
Save your time and money and skip this book. Or better yet, if you want to see great writting read the Best American Travel Writing. They also have collections for sports, science, and short stories.
