I first bought this book because of all the furor it raged within the church. I am a practising Catholic that is willing to read about anything for or against the church, because I believe my faith needs to be educated and challenge.

But spirituality aside, I just like to read and so I bought it just to see what the fuss was all about.

In a book such as this, it was intriguing and engaging enough to make me wonder what were facts and what were made up. I stopped several times through out the book to check up historical facts of what was written in the book, going so far as to look at the prints of "The Last Supper" and finding out more about the texts of Mary Magdalene.

However, there are some inconsistencies in the book (such as one pointed out elsewhere, how could a dying man waste so much time writing up a clue?!) and there were many parts of the book that just didn't flow.

For a book that created that much fuss and was eventually incorporated into a movie, I find it just pretty average. I would have given it a 2 star, but for the fact that it made me curious enough to do some research... it is great that it made me question what was real and what was not so there's the 3rd star for making me work ^_^ ( )

It wasn't that great. The hype was over-publicized. Below average. ( )

Disappointing reworking of The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail with a disproportionate weight on description but little characterization. The caricatures of Catholics and the implicit message that Christianity is a depraved lunacy worries me. ( )

I've read quite a few books in my lifetime that have offended me as a Christian, but none as poorly-written and inexplicably popular as The Da Vinci Code. I recommend it to anyone who wants to be informed about the hype, but if you're looking for a good novel on its own merit, skip it. ( )

Well, now I know why so many people hated the movie. The book's ending is much more satisfying (and sensical). In case you missed all the hubbub, this is about a search for the Holy Grail, which is not a cup, but rather a dark secret of the Christian church. The evidence supporting this claim was largely suspect: the history was mostly inaccurate, and the symbology and mathematics was usually either misinterpreted or arbitrarily designated. Still, it was a fun ride and inspired me to look up several of the paintings and buildings described in the story. (Anything that makes me think or learn wins bonus points.) While I don't think it lived up to the hype - I was prepared for it to be far more blasphemous and insulting - it made for a good bit of light fiction. ( )