Search - The Da Vinci Code

What a load of codswallop this book is. I read this to oblige someone else (a boss; no one else would have gotten me to finish it), and was floored by all the pseudo-learned nonsense Dan Brown throws at his poor benighted reader. I'm no expert - but I'm also not an idiot, and I did have a very good art history teacher when I went to art school. It didn't take me long to spot an ever-growing list of factual errors in the "proofs". I posted a webpage outlining what I found for the benefit of the person who made me read this piece of ... fiction; I wish in a way I still had it, but it never seemed worth wasting the webspace on for more than the time I needed it.

One review said "Though some will quibble with the veracity of Brown's conjectures, therein lies the fun." It isn't exactly "quibbling" when there's solid proof showing he was blowing smoke up our ... eyeglasses, but let that pass. The conjectures themselves were amusing enough, but I've seen them posited in far more convincing and intelligent formats. It still makes me sad that the Vatican chose to distinguish such pure boneheadedness by paying it any attention at all; it so richly deserved to sink into utter oblivion, and so very much the exact opposite happened. "Fun"? Perhaps - if the book had been remotely well-written. I found it absolutely painful.

The only positive thing I can find to say about the book is that it made people look at da Vinci and his work who might not have ever done so otherwise. Perhaps more of the semi-literate now know who da Vinci is than previously. So - yay. But having art education expanded microscopically at the cost of having this great steaming pile of inanity inflicted on a willing public... God help us all.

I really enjoy a well written, well researched, mystery/adventure/detective historically based fiction novel. Unfortunately, this wasn't it. This book is poorly written and barely keeps the readers interest. I could forgive all of that if the author didn't make a point of stating that the places and organizations in the novel are true. In fact, it has been proven that he created most of the plot out of thin air and fabricated all of his "facts". Sure it is fiction, but he makes fantastic claims that seem to have no more point than following an anti-religion agenda. I'm sure that some people are satisfied with that, but I don't enjoy reading an author who has such an intellectural dishonesty. Having ruined his credibility as an author with this book, I know now to never read another of his offerings.

This is the second book featuring Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon. Unlike the movies, 'Angels and Demons' actually comes first.

As far as action thrillers go, this book was good but not great. Yes, it kept me reading. It was interesting enough to keep me engaged. But there was also a lot about the book that I hated.

I understand that this book is fiction. And I would have no issues with the religious animosity and blatant anti-Christian propaganda if this book were strictly claiming to be just a work of fiction. But it's not. Brown clearly states in the opening pages that everything in the book (minus the actual fictional characters and plot) is fact. He attempts to present his fictional story around what he claims to be well-researched, documented, historical and religious fact. People who hate the book because of its anti-Christian content are told, "Lighten up, it's only fiction!" while people who love the book because of its anti-Christian content proclaim, "Look at what the Church has never told us! And all of it's true!" Brown has expertly played both sides and it seems that he has the book sales to prove it.

For anyone with even the slightest understanding of early church history (or any early history at all) they will find the claims in this book to be laughable. Sadly, millions of people have taken this work of 'fiction' as gospel truth (and have used it as 'credible' ammunition when rejecting the real gospel as truth.) Brown's hatred is obviously directed specifically at the Catholic church. I'm not sure why the multitude of Protestant denominations were left unscathed...perhaps he is saving their inclusion for a future book.

In all, if you can completely suspend all sense of accuracy when it comes to history (this is fiction after all, right?) then this book is an interesting read on an Indiana Jones/ conspiracy theory/ international scandal type of level. But the moment you take it as more than fiction, it sinks into poorly veiled ideological propaganda and the story itself becomes nothing more than a means for Brown to attempt a rewrite of otherwise well-documented history.

It's no surprise that so many books have been written in response to this one. Since Brown claims that everything in the book is true, it's only fair for others to point out the difference between what is true and what is embellishment, fabrication, and blatant misrepresentation of fact. For a solid, well-researched, well-documented counterpoint to The DaVinci code, I recommend 'The DaVinci Hoax' by Carl E. Olson and Sandra Miesel.

This book is a great read. Action filled and full of mystery. I read it in about 2 days b/c I couldn't put it down and had to find out what happens next.

I found this book fasinating. A good read that made me think!

hated it