The Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason (#45, Reader's Choice)

The first time I ever heard about The Rule of Four I was sitting in an open air restaurant in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica. Ah, to be back in paradise--as opposed to here, in Maine, trapped in foot after foot of snow.

People said The Rule of Four was similar to The Da Vinci Code. I agree and disagree. When given a brief synopsis of each the two may sound reminiscent of each other, but in my opinion, The Rule of Four fell quite short of The Da Vinci Code. Clearly I enjoy the murder/mystery genre, which is a huge part of each of the books, but The Da Vinci Code also took place in France. While reading you were transported from the Louvre and through the streets of Paris, I could relate and Dan Brown did a good job of being accurate. The Rule of Four may speak to those readers who went to Princeton, and can follow the characters into the Princeton Library and through the underground tunnels. But I didn't find a story trying to be equivalent to The Da Vinci Code nearly as intriguing due to the dull backdrop of the adventure.

And the end. I am not going to give it away, but I found the end whiny, annoying, and predictable. It was impossible to feel sympathy for a character in mourning when you know there is going to be one last twist at the very end to snap him back to life. Next please.