Faithful Reader Online: The Truth Behind The Da Vinci Code - Yet another short book that contains a lot of information, including, in this case, details about Leonardo's writings and belief system that I don't recall reading anywhere else. Abanes, who really is a recognized expert (see Martin Lunn's dubious credentials) on cults and religions, arranges his highly readable text topically by chapter and according to the specific error within the chapter. It's well-organized and accessible, and yes, there really is a code embedded in the introduction. Abanes correctly identifies the problem with DVC as not a Christian issue: "The most flagrant aspect . . . is not that Dan Brown disagrees with Christianity but that he utterly warps it in order to disagree with it --- to the point of completely rewriting a vast number of historical events. And making the matter worse has been Brown's willingness to pass off his distortions as ‘facts' with which innumerable scholars and historians agree." Amen. (96 pp., including several images of The Last Supper)

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New Oxford Review: One noteworthy Protestant response (among several) is The Truth Behind The Da Vinci Code (Harvest House, 2004) by Richard Abanes. At less than 100 pages, it is an excellent compact resource that quotes from numerous reliable sources (including the articles by Miesel and Olsen which led to The Da Vinci Hoax).

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Vision Magazine: The author of The Truth Behind The Da Vinci Code, Richard Abanes, is an authority on cults and religions. In this small, accessible book, he convincingly takes Brown to task for the sheer sloppiness of what he presents as historical fact through the words of his two male “scholar” characters, Robert Langford and Leigh Teabing.

Brief quotes from The Da Vinci Code are followed by detailed refutations. Abanes’s extensive coverage of the Priory of Sion hoax is particularly well-documented. 

Another idea that is essential to the plot of Brown’s novel is the speculation that Christ married Mary Magdalene and that they produced a royal bloodline. One of Brown’s fictional scholars refers to this as a recurring theme in Gnostic gospels that have been rejected by mainstream Christianity. Abanes counters that “none of the Gnostic gospels . . . contain any references to a marriage between Mary Magdalene and Jesus.” He goes on to point out that the thesis proposed by Brown’s fictional scholar is oxymoronic. “Ironically, if this text [the Gnostic Gospel of Philip] does anything, it cuts out the very heart of any assertion about Mary and Jesus being wed. It does so by adhering to one of the basic tenets of ancient Gnosticism, which declares that all physical matter was inherently evil. Consequently, sexual relations were intrinsically debasing!”

If one book stands out for rapidly and convincingly debunking The Da Vinci Code, it is this small volume.

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The Huntress Reviews: To answer the challenge, a host of noted Christian writers have come out with books to expertly tear apart the allegations and mistakes made in Mr Brown's fictional novel. Although much material is repeated in every one of them, the format does vary. Mr. Abanes has utilized a most efficient style of presenting his facts, one that is easily readable. Even those who have not read DaVinci or one of its clones may find this educational as it presents a great deal of historical fact in a palatable manner.