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The Lost Symbol

  • Written by: Dan Brown
  • Publisher: Transworld Publisher
  • Published: 15 September 2009
  • ISBN: 059305427X | ISBN-13: 9780593054277
  • RRP: £18.99 | Binding: Hardcover (528 pages)
  • Dan Brown's new gripping thriller, The Lost Symbol, is the eagerly-awaited follow-up to his No. 1 international phenomenon, The Da Vinci Code, which is the UK's biggest selling paperback novel of all time. The Lost Symbol follows the suave symbologist Robert Langton as he journeys through a new and unexpected landscape, inundated with history, codes and the usually dollop of conspiracy.

    The plot takes place over a 12 hour period, so moves along at a very fast pace, taking the reader along for the adventure. In this book the Harvard hero is summoned to Washington DC and ends up being sucked into a life-or-death quest which involves the usual race against time to decipher codes and forgotten histories along with a brainy female companion.

    This time the plot revolves around the Freemasons; a fraternal group founded hundreds of years ago, which believably once had some control over government and politics in America. Langton must hunt for a Masonic treasure in Washington, dodge a special ops squad who's hot on his tail and find his mentor who's been kidnapped by a strange killer.
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Reviews

  • David Stone - 27/09/2009

    4 Stars

    Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol must be one of the most reviewed books on the internet at the moment although, strangely, a good percentage of the reviewers haven't bothered reading the book before posting their views. Despite (or maybe because of) being one of the most popular authors in the world, Dan Brown seems to generate strong opinions in people and masses of readers seem to have decided that they love/loath The Lost Symbol (delete as appropriate) based solely on his reputation. I have to say that I'm a fan of both The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons but I did at least read The Lost Symbol before making up my mind about it. The Lost Symbol is the third outing for Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon in which he agrees to deliver a lecture at the Smithsonian in Washington DC after apparently receiving an invitation from his former mentor, Peter Solomon. As well as being a respected academic, Peter Solomon is also a Mason and, after arriving at the Smithsonian, Langdon discovers that Solomon has been kidnapped by a mysterious figure known as Mal'akh. Mal'akh demands Langdon's help in unlocking the Ancient Mysteries of the Masons in return for sparing Solomon's life and so Langdon is once more forced into a race against time to follow the clues and solve the puzzles that unlock the historical mystery. Teaming up with Solomon's daughter, Katherine, Langdon embarks on a game of cat and mouse across Washington as he pits his wits against Mal'akh, a tattooed, self-castrated and brilliant villain who is in search of an ancient source of power. I suppose it is true that Dan Brown's books are pretty formulaic, but it's also true that it's a formula I enjoy. The story this time is set over only 12 hours so is particularly fast-paced and action-packed and I like the mix of history (although I can't say how accurate the details Brown gives are), mystery and adventure. There are a lot of coincidences and occasionally the characters sound like they are reading from an encyclopaedia but that didn't spoil my overall enjoyment and I still found The Lost Symbol to be an entertaining page-turner.