Audiobook: The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

“The Bible did not arrive by fax from heaven. The Bible is the product of man, my dear. Not of God. The Bible did not fall magically from the clouds. Man created it as a historical record of tumultuous times, and it has evolved through countless translations, additions, and revisions. History has never had a definitive version of the book.” 

― Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code

Read by Paul Michael
Duration: 17 hours 6 minutes

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.

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*may contain spoilers*

My Thoughts: It took me many years to finally let myself read, I should say listen, to this book. I saw the movie when it first came out and I was fascinated at the idea of Jesus Christ being married to Mary Magdalene. The movie made me question everything I knew about the Bible and I became obsessed in learning more about it. However, I could not make myself read the book until I came across the audio version many years later. I have to say, I am so glad that I finally got to the book.

I was completely hooked from beginning to end. I was enthralled with all of the details concerning the Church and the Priory's secret. I found myself looking up information that was given by the book and I kept studying Da Vinci's works, especially The Last Supper. This book also helped me further understand the characters that I wondered about in the movie. For example, now I knew why Silas did anything for Bishop Aringarosa. Also, the book taught me that the Bishop was not as bad as I thought like in the movie. He was just really misguided and easily manipulated. 

Now, the downside of watching the movie first before "reading" the book was that the ending was spoiled. The ending in the book was slightly different than the movie, but it still carried the same gist. I was not as shocked or awed at the big reveal and I felt a little saddened by that. This reminded me why I MUST always read the book first before watching the movie so things don't get ruined for me. 

Next, this audio production was read by Paul Michael. I have to say, I highly enjoyed listening to him. The sound of his voice was captivating and it had my attention at all times. He also did a decent job when it came to portraying the characters. For a book that was over seventeen hours long, Paul Michael was able to keep me hooked. 

Overall, I was glad that I finally "read" The Da Vinci Code. It reminded me so much why I enjoyed the movie as well as reminded me why the book should be read first before watching the film. I now want to read the rest of the series. I rate this book: