The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown

Publishers: Bantam Press

Pages: 509 (Hardback 2009)

Main Characters:

Robert Langdon, Katherine Solomon

The Lost Symbol, is Dan Brown’s third book to involve and be based around the Harvard Professor Robert Langdon. Although two other books (Angels and Demons and The Di Vinci Code) feature Langdon, I don’t think it is necessary to read either of those two books to get what this one is about.

The novel is based in Washington D.C. where Langdon is invited to give a speech by his old friend Peter Solomon. Nothing seems unusual to Langdon, he is an expert in his field and Peter has asked Langdon to bring him a package which Langdon has been holding for the last few years. Everything seems normal to Langdon. That is until he finds Peter’s severed had on the floor of the Capitol Rotunda. After that Langdon is thrown into an unusual case of trying to find the kidnapped Solomon, where with the help of Peter’s sister Katherine, he has to look into the history of the United States, solve cryptic messages and try to work out the mysteries of Freemasonry.

This was a great book. I remember at the time when the book came out it was surrounded by controversy about the ‘demonic’ rituals of the freemasons. I remember thinking  that the statements would be all blown out of proportion and that people were just retaliating against Dan Brown for his ideas behind the Holy Grail and Christ in The Di Vinci Code, and I was right. This book does so much justice to freemasonry, showing that the men who are part of the order are just normal people, and that of course in D.C. it is likely that some of the Freemason’s there are members of government.

The book was also an excellent read. It defines the genre of a thriller book full of mystery, action, excitement and it has a brilliant twist towards the end. The detail in the book is also amazing. This is in Brown’s ideas behind the art and architecture in Washington, as well as describing what is in the Smithsonian and some of the artefacts and treasures that are hidden away in there.

If you liked the Di Vinci Code (book or film) you’ll love this book and it is definitely worth a read. I would also suggest it to anyone who is a fan of Robert Harris and any of his thrillers such as The Ghost and The Fear Index.

For author’s website click here