I have to add "The DaVinci Code" by Dan Brown. I absolutely could not put it down. Read it shortly before our trip to Paris, and then visited the locations in the book.
While in st. Sulpice, looking for a brass line in the ancient floor, we were approached by a tall young man who asked us, "DaVinci Code?" He was also checking out the various sites, and turns out, he had been the pilot on our plane from Miami that morning!

Thanks erinb! I've been looking for this one.

The daVinci Code!!!!!!!!!!!!

I LOVE this book! My biggest disappointment is that I didn't read it before I went to France. I was in France when it came out and didn't really know about it til I got back. I have tried and tried to remember the sights mentioned in the book like in the Louvre but I really wish that I read the book before I went. If you are going to Paris, read this first! It just means I have to go back and look for lines and other things. :)

I just finished BEL CANTO by Ann Patchart and am giving it to my DH for our trip over to Spain in Nov. It was fantastic and is in paperback. Highly recommend it.

Try Angels and Demons, or The Davinci Code, both are by Dan Brown and they both focus on mysteries set in Europe that are based both in present day and ancient times. Angels and Demons is set in Rome and the DaVinci Code is set in Paris and continues around france and then into Scotland. I couldn't put either book down and after I was done read every other book that the man wrote.

I didn't read through the whole thread prior to posting my first message so I was unaware at all the others who had posted the DaVinci Code. I have to agree though that after reading this book I too went and searched the various mentioned sights, not only in Paris, but I followed the path laid out in Angels and Demons in Rome. It was a lot more difficult that it looked. I also want to recommend Hannibal. I read this book on the train from Vienna to Florence and the moment I stepped off the train I was waiting for Hannibal himself to walk past me.

just testing the build index

fabulous read 1

Great thread thank you for bringing it back up Erin..
I just bought the book "Spygirl: True Adventures from My Life As A Private Eye" by Amy Gray. It was humorous and made for light reading on a recent road trip.

The "Da Vinci Code" was one of the worst books I have ever read in my life. Working in the art and antiques world, I thought the book would appeal to me. NOT! I used to teach eighth graders who were better writers. The author's work was full of cliches and factual errors (anyone who has been to the Louvre knows that there are TWO enterances to the room that houses the "Mona Lisa"). And no art historian with any validity would ever confirm that Mary Magdelen appears in Da Vinci's "Last Supper." That is just plain bloody nonsense. The characters were also very one-dimensional and had no appeal whatsoever. As someone who was born into the upper class in the UK, I can confirm that the "voice" of Sir Lee Bing was off. British aristocrats don't speak like that, but untalented American authors assume they do. (Do some research, darling.) Just my two pence, sweetie. :) A much better, gripping, intelligent read is "Attonement," by Ian McEwan.

I love this thread!! We are leaving for Europe in 2 weeks and there are so many here to choose from. If you like horror/suspense, I have to agree with an earlier recommendation of The Stand by Stephen King. Also a page turner was The Talisman and it's sequel Black House. The Bad Place by Dean Koontz is excellent.

Others I have enjoyed:
Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follett
The Gold Coast - Nelson DeMille
Inheritance - Judith Michael
Anything by Patricia Cornwell
The Winner - David Baldacci

I guess I'll have to try Corelli's Mandolin. I didn't like the movie so I've shied away from it. Just too many great recommendations to ignore. Enjoy!

Dang! Dis beat me to it. (Did Dis "dis" me?)

Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett is the greatest book EVER!!!!

No wonder this thread is soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo long, it's been going for nearly 3 and a half years!
Gina - how was your trip?!

i bought the "da vinci code" too - The accents are horrendous - you know there's going to be a riddle to open everything that openable - and he can't spell. Aston Martin on page 282 of the hardcover - ASTIN - I forged his siganture and am now asking an exorbitant fee on EBAY for this rare edition or it can be yours for $1.99

Thanks to Rex for bringing this old thread to light. It's interesting how many of these books or authors works have been made into film-unsuccessfully
except for Byatt's, "Angels and Insects." Ecco's, "Name of the Rose." "Cold Mountain"I haven't seen but the clips on Charlie Rose looked promising.

Aw shucks... but really, the credit goes to erinb - - http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34449236 - - aftr thi thread fell into one of the Fodors' indexing "black holes". She credits me for teaching her (some of)the methods she used to find it - - maybe I did that - - but she di the atual ob of relocating it.

Best wishes,

Rex

erinb, a toast to lovers of books and you.

Evolution, Baxter...May may you think.

Another much-touted book with quite a few typographical and factual errors is the recent "John Adams." The author should have been ashamed of himsel for the French inaccuracies.

Some people have lately asked what a good "bite off and chew" book would be, one that will really keep your attention on a long flight. Our newspaper recently suggested "And Ladies of the Club" which is over 1000 pages long but supposedly is guaranteed to hold your interest. Haven't read it myself but would like to know your comments. I would also add the tip that anything by Jodi Picoult is great and I really enjoyed "Bird by Bird" by Anne LaMotte. Happy reading!

I don't know if these have been mentioned yet (I'm NOT going to read all 400 posts!), but what about the classics? Just about anything by the literary genius John Steinbeck grabs me (I've read "East of Eden" three times and can't wait to again)...Ayn Rand's novels, especially Atlas Shrugged, are thick, engrossing, make-you-think doozeys.