Brown was in the witness stand on Monday, and the cross-examination was almost as much about the ... Author's wife played v

Brown was in the witness stand on Monday, and the cross-examination was almost as much about the role of Brown's wife Blythe in the process of writing Da Vinci as it was about his own input.

She played a crucial role in the 41-year-old's success. He was ranked number six in Forbes' list of wealthy celebrities in 2005 in terms of earnings, with income of $77-million(about R480-million).

Blythe, who helped him research Da Vinci and other novels, set her husband on the road to stardom, getting agents to accept his first book, Angels and Demons.

"She also lobbied hard for me to find a way to use a theory which concerned the legend of the Holy Grail - the so-called 'bloodline theory'," says Brown.

This is cache, read story here