Like dolls that nest inside one another Dan Brown's newest book, "The Da'Vinci Code", is, a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma, as Sir Winston Spencer Churchill once wrote. And Like Sir Winston there is a Knight in this book as well, Sir Leigh Teebing. Sir Leigh and our protagonists are faced with constant puzzles, one of the most fascinating of which is the cryptex, or more sinister, nesting cryptexes invented by none other than Da'Vinci himself.
This book is a thriller, mystery and even a healthy measure of counter-factual history, how might the World have been different if only a certain what if had occurred? The variables examined are done with skill, a very clever pen, and most importantly with respect for the subject matter. Religion is as volatile an issue as there is; to successfully use it in a work of fiction is a tribute to the author as a writer and individual.
The brilliance of this tale is that you don't know, that as you open the first doll, that a variety of smaller ones wait within. Dan Brown sets a box in front of you. Open the box and you may find another cube or perhaps a pyramid, and inside that a sphere. And every layer you work your way through requires a different method from our protagonists to move forward. Open an object correctly and the quest continues, puzzle out your solution in a flawed manner....and who knows?
The author also firmly plants the book in reality with a real organization he mentions at the book's start and that you can visit on the web. The nature of the group lends credence to extremes in points of view, makes what could be fantastic possible.
The great news is that when you have finished the book the fun has only begun. The author has placed a quest for readers on the web, and I have spent a few hours puzzling through it and can state without condition it is wonderful fun.
This is the fourth book from this author and I feel it is his best. His previous work, "Angels and Demons", was number one with me, and now perhaps is 1A. This book is a fantastic ride, and will get you hooked on this man's work if you are not already one of his readers.