The Secret Supper
by Javier Sierra
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Book Reviews of The Secret Supper
Book Review: Another Fictional Novel Involving Da Vinci
Summary: 3 Stars
With the success of THE DA VINCI CODE and the upcoming release of the movie based on Dan Brown's best selling novel, it's not all that surprising that Javier Sierra's THE SECRET SUPPER is catching readers' attention. It is a suspense novel based on the painting of Da Vinci's "The Last Supper" but unlike Brown's novel, it is set in the late fifteenth century rather than the present day though like Brown's novel, it is filled with the religious intrigue and has the artist as a proponent of a form of Gnostic Christianity.
The book does have some merits that will endear it to many readers. It is beautifully written and based on a somewhat sophisticated premise. The author uses codes and puzzles that can at times engage and baffle the reader (in a good sense). There's also some interesting information about the Cathars and the Inquisition and the book's protagonist does sound like a Dominican priest of the time.
However, the book also has some weaknesses that made it at times a somewhat laborious read. There are many characters in the book, many with similar sounding names which made it confusing, and a good number could have been eliminated. In some cases the characters are intriguing and developed with great promise, but it's difficult to see how they connect to the overall story. There are also small details that some Catholic readers will say, "wait a second, is this correct?" Many readers will probably not pick up on these details, but in a suspense novel any extraneous characters or incorrect details have the potential to distract.
My guess is that people who have read THE DA VINCI CODE will feel that this book is a cheap knockoff and may be disappointed. Those who have not read Brown's saga will find it original. The fact is that Sierra wrote this book prior to Dan Brown's book, so he did work with original material and it`s the publisher, not the author that is hoping that some of Dan Brown's success will help this book. If you're looking for another DA VINCI CODE, you probably won't find it in this book, but if you enjoy historical thrillers, this book does have something to offer.
Book Review: Riding on Dan Brown's Coat Tails.
Summary: 1 Stars
With "The Secret Supper: A Novel," Javier Sierra is merely capitalizing on Dan Brown's success with "The DaVinci Code" without bringing anything new to the table. The success of this book is made possible only by the popularity of its theme...a theme which is still only theory. Readers will do well to remember that this is a novel, and not a true historical account of Rennaissance Milan and its people.
"Secret Supper" promised to be an enthralling mystery, portraying the historical power struggle between the Church, the Nobility, and Reason in Rennaissance Italy. However, it turned out to be just another quick read.
The plot is shallow, predominantly because Sierra never truly develops a single one of his many characters. Motives are never explored to full potential and crisis of conscience are all too quickly resolved. Our protagonist--a Roman Inquisitor who has previously been exposed to countless heretical theories through his professional duties--is sent on a quest to uncover the secret behind Leonardo's DaVinci's Cenacolo. Someone with such entrenched religious convictions, who accepted the rule of the Vatican for so long, would struggle to come to grip with the idea that everything he has fought for may be wrong. Instead, he is allows himself to be convinced otherwise with no moral conflict...a wasted opportunity to develop the character.
More disappointingly, another key character's motives are never fully developed. By using his large cast of characters in this superficial manner, Sierra squandered the opportunity to instill more mystery, conspiracy, and human intrigue into the novel.
Thanks to the publisher for printing a copy of The Last Supper into the inner cover pages for easy reference.
Overall, the book is just another drop in the DaVinci bucket.
Book Review: The Ultimate Pivot Point of Modern History
Summary: 4 Stars
Javier Sierra's "The Secret Supper" takes place at the ultimate pivot point of modern history - the end of the 15th century when the medieval mindset was crumbling under the bright spotlight of Renaissance ideas. In less than a hundred years, the entire power structure of Europe would shift dramatically, leaving the Catholic Church reeling and setting the stage for the modern scientific revolution.
Sierra's novel counterposes two main characters: Father Agostino Leyre, a Dominican monk, represents the old order. The Vatican sends him to Milan to investigate heretical forces within the ruling class and art world of Lombardy.
The modern world is represented by Leonardo Da Vinci, a brilliant artist and inventor who hides dangerous messages in his paintings through the use of symbolism, riddles and codes. It's Father Leyre's job to decipher those messages and make contact with a shadowy informer known only as "The Soothsayer." Along the way, the author stirs up a violent maelstrom of murder, conspiracy and corruption. Through his characters, we can see the powerful forces at work in early Renaissance Italy. And it ain't pretty.
Sierra's workman-like prose is clearly intended for a popular audience, and it never rises to the exquisite level of Umbertco Eco (who wrote a similar novel called "The Name of the Rose" that was made into a movie starring Sean Connery). Nevertheless, this book is a fun read and well worth the time if you like a good mystery. Best of all, it forces you to become intimately familiar with a great painting, which is reproduced in color on the end pages for quick reference. Why was St. Peter holding a dagger, anyway? Hmmm....
Bottom Line: A fun historical mystery without the grandiose self-importance of "The Da Vinci Code."
Book Review: Interesting occult/conspiracy theorist book - makes me want to do more research
Summary: 4 Stars
I enjoyed The Secret Supper (TSS) although it takes a while to get you hooked. I enjoyed the somewhat academic but deeply interesting yarn which the author describes as a novel, not as patently commercial like Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code (DVC), not masquerading as fact, and containing no gun-toting albino crazies, gun-toting middle eastern killers, gun-toting GIs, gun-toting NSA killers etc (that being Dan Brown's ouvre. By the way I think Brown's Angels and Demons is a better book than DVC despite also having a tendency to guns, destruction and airport potboiler plotting).
TSS has been summarised by other Amazoners so I won't restate it. Interesting aspects for me were:
- excellent overview of the various cults, occult (i.e. conspiracy minded) movements in the early Church
- how it shared the author's research on the Inquisition, which can be seen not as the bloodthirsty overblown modern perception of it but in fact a necessaary part of the Church needing to stay focused on a consistent approach despite the pressures of many (like today) to introduce wild conspiracy theories, alternative takes and veer off course
- how my enlivened interest will now see me researching the Council of Nicea which led to the Nicene Creed and the process which saw the Gnostic and other lines winnowed out from the formal beliefs of the Church
- how the author, who I reiterate calls this a novel, very cleverly reads a code into the Last Supper painting, an original and clever invention.
This is not an action adventure, and those expecting an Arnie movie or just a rehash of Da Vinci Code will be disappointed. In fact, having finished the book a fortnight ago I find the identiy of the killer of marginal relevance, focusing on the interesting story.
Book Review: Lower your expectations....
Summary: 3 Stars
I am a fan of the recent spate of historical mysteries. Put the words Templar or Grail in the title, and I'm going to take a look.
Saying that, I was disappointed in this book.
Brief summary, no spoiler:
This is the story of Agostino Leyre, a Papal Inquisitor who is telling the story of his assignment to investigate Leonardo DaVinci, and his painting of The Last Supper (the Cenacolo).
This was a time of religious intrigue and violence, and anyone who opposed the Catholic Church was deemed a heretic and subject to horrible punishment. In order to express their beliefs, many artists used symbols in their works, both as messages to their followers and future audiences.
This book does a good job of explaining some of the mysteries surrounding the Last Supper. You learn a lot about the Cathars, and about what life was like in the time of DaVinci.
However, perhaps partly because this is a translation, I found this book slow-going. I had to push myself to finish, even though I was curious how Sierra was going to resolve his "puzzle".
I ended up thinking that Sierra gives an interesting and enlightening interpretation of what he believes DaVinci was trying to say in his masterpiece; but the puzzle was very convoluted and there is no way the reader could've figured it out on his own.
Overall, I am glad I read this book. I learned a lot. But I was often bored, and thought the hype surrounding this book didn't serve it well.
Recommended for those who enjoyed the DaVinci Code. This book's denouement is just as clever, if not more so - but the ride getting there isn't nearly as much fun.