The Rule of Four, by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason

Retrieved from: my library
(0385337116), 2004
Suggested by: I think I noted it when I cataloged it...
My Ratings: 8 Merit, 8 Interest, 8 Fun

Similar in tone to The Da Vinci Code, this is a story of a document called the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili written in the 16th century in code using four languages and multiple riddles and puzzles. No one has been able to figure out all the symbolism and suss out the author's hidden purpose, although a small obsessed group of scholars has poured their careers into it.

The story opens with four Princeton seniors, one of whom is writing his senior paper on the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili. Another of the four is the son of a man who was a leader in its study. Tom grew up hearing about it like other kids hear about baseball cards. Paul, the Hypnerotomachia scholar, has managed to untangle almost all the riddles with a lot of help from Tom, but he has realized he's missing an important document that has been removed from the book itself. When he is given the map, he puts the final touches on the solution only to find that the scholars he has relied upon for help are not behaving at all collegially. In fact they are more than willing to do anything to get their own hands--and names--on his results.

Good story. A lot less frantic than DVC, and less of the whole International Intrigue concept.