Examines the background material for the secret history of early Christianity as presented in "The Da Vinci Code," including the role of secret societies, the contents of hidden manuscripts, and the history of the Merovingian bloodline.

Few mystery novels have stirred as much interest and sparked as much discussion as Dan Brown's The DaVinci Code (Doubleday, 2003). But what of The DaVinci Code's biblical intrigue is fact and what is fiction? What do we really know about the elusive Mary Magdalene? Was there a conspiracy to hide some truth about Jesus? Rather than just discrediting or debunking the theories posed in the novel, Solving the DaVinci Code Mystery provides a context for understanding the claims Brown makes in his quest for the Holy Grail. It explores scripture, non-canonical gospels, historical traditions, and current thought to help readers to discern the truth about many of the questions raised regarding the history and future of Christianity and the church. Whether you read it for personal interest or as the subject of a group study, Solving the DaVinci Code Mystery is sure to be fascinating, thought-provoking, and key to solving the mysteries of The DaVinci Code.

#1 WORLDWIDE BESTSELLER • Harvard professor of symbology Robert Langdon awakens in an Italian hospital, disoriented and with no recollection of the past thirty-six hours, including the origin of the macabre object hidden in his belongings. “One hell of a good read.... As close as a book can come to a summertime cinematic blockbuster.” —USA Today “A diverting thriller.” —Entertainment Weekly With a relentless female assassin trailing them through Florence, he and his resourceful doctor, Sienna Brooks, are forced to flee. Embarking on a harrowing journey, they must unravel a series of codes, which are the work of a brilliant scientist whose obsession with the end of the world is matched only by his passion for one of the most influential masterpieces ever written, Dante Alighieri's The Inferno. Dan Brown has raised the bar yet again, combining classical Italian art, history, and literature with cutting-edge science in this captivating thriller.

Explores both the ancient secrets and the modern purposes of the remarkable men known as the Templars.

Catherine Turrell, an intriguing and courageous young French woman, was drawn into the Opus Dei at a low point in her life. By the time she tries to leave, she has learned much more about its illicit Vatican Bank finances than the organization's leaders ever wanted her to find out. Catherine is desperate to move on from her past, but when the corrupt Vatican Chief Secretary unleashes a plot to make himself the next Pope using a relic linked to Jesus Christ Himself, only she can stop him. At Catherine's side is a scholarly priest and Stephen Hathaway, an American from the top level of the Opus Dei who has the knowledge to help her take on its leaders, their Mason friends and Knight bankers. With an assassin on their trail and time running out, Catherine races to find a secret which, in the wrong hands, could destroy the Catholic Church. Set against the backdrop of a 1990s Conclave in Rome, The Vatican Boys is an intricate and fast-paced thriller with seismic true events at its core.

'Football looked at in a very different way' Pat Nevin, former Chelsea and Everton star and football media analyst Football – the most mathematical of sports. From shot statistics and league tables to the geometry of passing and managerial strategy, the modern game is filled with numbers, patterns and shapes. How do we make sense of them? The answer lies in the mathematical models applied in biology, physics and economics. Soccermatics brings football and mathematics together in a mind-bending synthesis, using numbers to help reveal the inner workings of the beautiful game. This new and expanded edition analyses the current big-name players and teams using mathematics, and meets the professionals working inside football who use numbers and statistics to boost performance. Welcome to the world of mathematical modelling, expressed brilliantly by David Sumpter through the prism of football. No matter who you follow – from your local non-league side to the big boys of the Premiership, La Liga, the Bundesliga, Serie A or the MLS – you'll be amazed at what mathematics has to teach us about the world's favourite sport.

The murder of a world-famous physicist raises fears that the Illuminati are operating again after centuries of silence, and religion professor Robert Langdon is called in to assist with the case.

Offers historical background on the Bible, the life of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, secret societies, and other elements in The Da Vinci Code to refute many of the novel's claims about the history of Christianity.

#1 WORLDWIDE BESTSELLER • While in Paris, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is awakened by a phone call in the dead of the night. The elderly curator of the Louvre has been murdered inside the museum, his body covered in baffling symbols. “Blockbuster perfection.... A gleefully erudite suspense novel.” —The New York Times “A pulse-quickening, brain-teasing adventure.” —People As Langdon and gifted French cryptologist Sophie Neveu sort through the bizarre riddles, they are stunned to discover a trail of clues hidden in the works of Leonardo da Vinci—clues visible for all to see and yet ingeniously disguised by the painter. Even more startling, the late curator was involved in the Priory of Sion—a secret society whose members included Sir Isaac Newton, Victor Hugo, and Da Vinci—and he guarded a breathtaking historical secret. Unless Langdon and Neveu can decipher the labyrinthine puzzle—while avoiding the faceless adversary who shadows their every move—the explosive, ancient truth will be lost forever.