Customer Reviews

The Da Vinci Code (Chinese Edition)

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Well, well... the book deserves all the accolades that have been lavished upon it!

For rarely does one come across a book where the author skillfully is able to take the reader along with him on a journey through space and time, in search of the Holy Grail! Another book on the Holy Grail (groan......!!!) Before u say that, let me confirm that this is not just another book on the topic. At least, for most of the uninitiated (me included) about the Holy Grail, this book is quite interesting. For, how many of us would have read that super-duper (?) bestseller of the 1970s on the subject, "Holy Blood, Holy Grail", by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh and Henry Lincoln? Not many, let me assure you.

In which case, this book is just the right spark to ignite your imagination, so much so that whenever in your life you happen to visit the Louvre, you will no doubt look for the "Inverted Pyramid", and also look for the 13th "man" in "The Last Supper"! All that notwithstanding, DVC is at its heart a murder mystery, but with the murder inter-twined into such far-reaching implications that the reader cannot but be amazed by the width of the canvas portrayed by Brown. He excels himself at this genre of story-writing. Those of you who have read "Angels & Demons" would no doubt concur with me here :) As far as the length of the book is concerned, did you know that the complete book, most of the 450+ pages of it are crammed into a time period of less than two days?!? Amazing how much action can pass without time passing by :) It is almost impossible to read this story and not come out of it feeling as if it all happened right in front of you, and was happening for the past so long a time period, when you sadly realize that, like every dream, even this story must come to an end.

Ah, that brings me to the climax of the story... just to mention here that the identity of the chief antagonist of the story is a letdown, one realizes that this is perhaps the weakest link of the story. But the climax... yes, now that is one satisfying portion of the story. For, after all that running around, and everything falling into place (almost too!!) perfectly, the truth (as depicted in this book only, mind you) is quite satisfying... and rewarding in itself, if you follow the philosophy of the Holy Grail given by Brown. Err........., did I hear you say that I missed out on those brilliantly crafted puzzles? But of course, no review of DVC is complete without a commendation of the puzzles given in the book, which all fall into place like a jigsaw-puzzle pieces. But for them to fit into place, the research that must've gone behind it all is immensely impressive :)

A must read - and unlike many other ppl, I would add here, not just on long flights, lazy weekends, or holidays... but when, you want to re-live the excitement of joie-de-vivre, for it is a wonderful tale, told by a wonderful author, on a wonderful subject... Let me end this piece by quoting the legend of the Holy Grail... if u end up reading this book and are fascinated by the story, remember... "...you do not find the Grail, the Grail finds you..."

I bought this for my father for father's day and he was delighted except for the fact that it is written with simplified chinese characters, and since he was educated under traditional the chinese system, it is painstaking for him to read it.

In terms of the read itself, everyone knows this is the book to read with the skyrocketing sales numbers to warrant it and those numbers are for a real reason. Awesome book, Dan Brown definitely hits paydirt. All the controversy i.e. people criticizing Dan Brown for rocking the religious boat are just either jealous or insecure. In fact, the church itself is totally insecure--if the book is indeed just fiction, why do you need to go sooo far to defend yourself against the ideas proposed by the book? Just shows that the church really does have something to hide! But I digress...

Final comment, there is not enough information on the product description such as the distinction of chinese type being simplified or traditional, and there should. Calling out to Amazon!!

P.S. DO NOT WATCH THE MOVIE UNTIL YOU FIRST READ THE BOOK!!!

Not knowing the contents of this book, I picked it up and read it ahead of any knowledge of its contents. From beginning to end, I was attached to my laptop discovering the internal details of all the global arenas Dan Brown takes one to visit. Inside the Louve, I felt as if I was present in the sorid details of the mystery's that envelope the world of Da Vinci's works and Dan Brown's presentation of possible facts being hidden from the world. I, absolutely, got lost in this book and couldn't put it down until the very last written word. Being a christian this book both intrigued me and disturbed me. For me, I walked away, not knowing if I was glad or very upset that I read its contents. It certainly identifies very real "secret societies" and the possibilities of brilliant minds that are housed in those societies. So I am left feeling either very betrayed and deceived or left feeling that those brilliant minds of those secret societies have set up the best distructive device known to faith....doubt. Either way, to me, as a believer, the book is a good disturbance to a very solid faith.

For a while I resisted reading this book, thinking that it could not possibly be as good as its hype. Well, I was wrong. This is simply one terrific book that will keep the reader riveted to its pages until the very last one is turned. It is a very well-written, intricately plotted thriller in which a great number of esoteric historical facts and interesting theories of a religious nature are woven. Those who read it should, first and foremost, keep in mind that this book is simply a work of fiction.

All hell breaks loose when Jacques Sauniere, the elderly and revered curator of the Louvre, is murdered inside the museum. The crime scene and the body itself are laden with symbols and cryptic messages pointing to renowned Harvard symbologist, Robert Langdon. He is invited to the crime scene by the wily Captain Bezu Fache, of the Central Directorate Judicial Police, the French equivalent of our Federal Bureau of Investigation, ostensibly to assist the police. Little does Langdon know that he is, in fact, the prime suspect.

When he meets police cryptologist, Sophie Neveu, they join forces. They are then led on a merry chase by a series of riddles and ciphers that are ground in a historical context. They are always just one step of the French police, who seem determined to charge Langdon with the murder of Jacques Sauniere. During their voyage of discovery, Langdon and Sophie come across a secret society, the Priory of Sion, that has a startling list of former members, which list includes Leonardo Da Vinci, as well as the late Jacques Sauniere. There is also some interesting historical detail about the ancient Knights Templar, as well as Opus Dei, a conservative religious organization currently in existence.

Langdon and Sophie peel back layers of historical clues that point to a secret of such magnitude that some would kill for it. As Langdon and Sophie surreptitiously travel from France to England and seem to be headed closer to the heart of the mystery that they are trying to unravel, an unknown nemesis is closer to them than they would dare imagine. This unknown adversary is marshaling resources in order to obtain the long hidden secret that Langdon and Sophie appear to be on the brink of discovering. It is one that has the potential to have earth shattering implications.

This is a fast-paced, plot driven, rather than character driven, thriller. It hurls itself into the reader's consciousness at break-neck speed, and before the reader realizes it, the book holds the reader in its thrall: hook, line, and sinker. For those readers who love historical detail and unusual facts and coincidences, this is definitely a fascinating book that will hold their interest. It is a page-turning thriller in which nearly every chapter leaves the reader on the brink of a precipice. The book is written in clear, effortless prose, which makes the most esoteric historical details surprisingly easy to understand. Simple in its presentation but intricate in its plotting, it is no surprise that this book has become a runaway, international bestseller. Bravo!

For quite some time, I heard people taking about various new things about Christianity, which were not known to me (not that I knew a lot about it). And when I asked them as to where did they get these new finds, all of them generally said that they are reading `Da Vinci Code'. That got me interested in this book.

Well, even if it is a work of fiction, the story line is convincing. It appears to be well researched to the extent that at least I felt " is it true?" . The story has been progressed in such a manner that it never fails to keep the reader glued to it. Once a reader gets in to reading this book, it is very difficult to get rid of it till one finishes it.

Most of the events depicted are well conceived to appear to be realistic. There is no slack in the story and the reader is forced to think as to what is going to happen next. It is only at the end that some amount of predictability sets in.

Many a concepts of mainstream Christianity are under scanner in the book. I don't think any body is going to forget Bible because of this book, but it is also a view propagated by author, though only as a part of fictional book.

I don't know to what extent events depicted are true or historically correct, but the book is immensely readable. Must read of every one.

With all the talk about the Da Vinci Code, I decided to pick it up and have a read. I personally prefer Brown's Angels and Demons to this book. Dan Brown is a convincing writer, and I am surprised at how many people take the Da Vinci Code as truths and rejects the Bible. There are enough books and coumentaries to counter the claims of the Da Vinci Code, and the concept that Brown brought up that Jesus had a wife in Mary Magdalene and they had children are not new. It was brought forth in another fictional book marketed as historical "The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail" by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, Henry Lincoln.

The acclaim that this book is getting is like the movie "The Last Temptation of Christ" years ago. Know that when you read the Da Vinci Code, it is fictional, and it was not marketed as fiction for nothing! It is a fun read, none the less, and what keeps the book moving is not only the plot, but that the whole book is written almost as a minute to minute account of what was happening, displaying in full view for the reader the action and suspense that it brings.

I actually am still waiting on the credit for returning this product. I was sent back the day I received it. I got the wrong product.