I was initially fascinated by the premise of this book. Although I had come across a reference to the Voynich Mystery somewhere, I had to check my favorite online reference (Google, of course) to get up to speed. A complete novel written in code, that's never been cracked? Possibly actually an alaborate hoax, and so effectively gibberish, even if it was cracked? A mystery involving political intrigue, social injustice and 21st century technology set in a modern monastery; a sort of 21st-century "Name of the Rose"? It had to be a great read.

Unfortunately, the book didn't live up to its billing in Booklist and Publishers Weekly. I should have paid more attention to the Kirkus Review, which says, in part, "Attempting to combine enlightenment with entertainment, the author offers too much of the former and not enough of the latter. In addition, many of the solutions to the puzzles the trio encounters aren't satisfying; the required clues are not necessarily provided, or they hinge on knowledge of esoteric topics in science, history and architecture. Finally, the trio never seems to be in any real danger, which robs the story of drama. Too many history lectures and not enough tension. (Kirkus Reviews, May 15, 2009)"

Without getting into the area of a "spoiler", I would suggest that I did find myself relating to the protagonists and found the last few chapters a disappointment. In the end, the book left me unsatisfied, wishing it had been closer to Walter M. Miller's "A Canticle for Leibowitz" than his eventual followup "Saint Leibowitz and the wild horse woman".