The Lost Symbol

Dan Brown's next novel with Robert Langdon is being released on September 15th.

I'm going down to pre-order a copy of it today to make sure I have it right away. When I read A&D, I couldn't put the book down and everything else that I was doing was put on the backburner. The DaVinci Code I managed to read in a little over a day and had trouble putting the book down even to go to sleep. His Langdon novels, in my opinion, are definitely his best. I've read his other work (Digital Fortress, Deception Point) and while they were good, I certainly prefer the Langdon novels.

Thoughts for the upcoming book?

After you get it, be sure to throw some reviews here. No spoilers though.

I pre-ordered it myself. As a Mason, I am curious to see what the plot entails and how the Fraternity will be presented in the novel. Even the release date is supposed to induce mystery.

Finished it yesterday. I was not overly thrilled with this book. I thought the premise was a bit weak. It did not keep me enthralled like the previous books, and I figured out the 'twist' about a third of the way in.

As for the Masonic theme that permeates the book, he has a good portion of the facts right but made just enough tweaks to keep people thinking that certain portions of the Fraternity actually have as much influence as he wrote.

In retrospect I should have tried to approach the book less analytically but sometimes you can't help yourself. This reminds me of M. Night's movies as they got progressively a bit less easier to believe and a bit more hackneyed.

Overall I give it a 6.5 on a 1 to 10.

Pluses to the history and information he brought to the book, minuses to the dragging and somewhat predictible plotline.

I definetly want to read it.

if its as bad as angels and demons im not gonna bother. man that ending stinked.

reply to post by chissler


Chissler, what did you think of the book?

I just finished reading it. He's not my favorite author by a long shot but his books do make me research more into the history of topics he covers, such as the artwork and architecture of DC (something I had previously never been interested in). I had read Holy Blood, Holy Grail prior to reading The DaVinci Code so the plot there wasn't a huge surprise. But again, it made me want to read more about the artwork and places/history of what he was writing about. As far as The Lost Symbol I agree that the ending could have been more exciting.

reply to post by chissler


Haven't finished reading it but so far, am halfway, it's a good read. IF you like Dan Brown's earlier books I can recommend it.

It's a pitty though that Dan Brown doesn't goes ALL the way into the Mason's symbolics. \ Freedom's Gate' however does go into ALL the way

For those who are interested, you should also read 'Freedom's Gate - The Lost Symbols in the U.S. Capitol' written by William Henry and Dr. Mark Gray.

The 'dude' posted a C to C interview with William Henry on the Tube

Part 1 www.youtube.com...

`Investigative mythologist and author William Henry talks about the significance of the art and symbols in the U.S. Capitol.´


www.williamhenry.net...

Have fun!!

I've read A&D and DC and enjoyed them both alot. He does like to get you thinking and investigating on your own. I look forward to the LS.

On a side note, I'm not sure if it's just me, but as I read A&D and DC I felt like he wrote like a first grader. I swear in DC (which I read first) had spelling errors and run-on sentences. I chaulk this up to an awful editor, but I wanted to know if any of you noticed this at all and whether he has a stronger editor in the new one.

But my parents read both as well and didn't seem to notice. So it might just be me.... :shrug:

reply to post by Morbo the Annihilator


its not just you, he is well known for this. the sentances are put together terribly. sometimes you have to reread a paragragh to get what he is trying to say.

Its kind of like he just writes, and never reads it again to see if its works.

[edit on 10-10-2009 by MR BOB]

Originally posted by MR BOB

its not just you, he is well known for this.

[edit on 10-10-2009 by MR BOB]

Whew! That makes me feel better. When I tried to speak to my parents about it they were like, "whaaaaaaa?" and looked at me like I had a second head.

Does he not have a reliable editor? Really, any reputable editor should be able to correct that. His books are so full of SUBSTANCE its hard to believe they've fallen victim to such simple grammatical errors. :shk:

I'm currently 25% through it as an audiobook.

I'm enjoying it, although I think it moves veeeryyy slowly.. And at this point I find it plotwise to be a mixture of National Treasure 1 and The Da Vinci Code.. Not very impressive IMO.

I haven't bought it as I'm sure it will be a Christmas gift...but when I read it, I'll reply back... I've loved his other stuff...even though I see lobsters now as sea cockroaches thanks to one of his books....

When I first picked it up I powered through about 30% of the book. Then unlike any of his other books, I actually put it down and due to many circumstances beyond anyone's control, I hadn't picked it up until about a week ago. This past week I finally picked it up and finished it yesterday.

I'll say I intentionally avoided this thread until I finished it.

I give DaVinci & A&D a 10/10! Both of them were spectacular books that I read in less than 2 days. Digital Fortress I felt was his weakest book to date and would probably give it a 7/10. Deception Point was really good I thought and at times I had almost wished it was a Langdon novel. 8.5/10 for that one.

For the Lost Symbol, I was back and forth.

His writing style is, in my opinion, superior to that of other authors. I love how he breaks the presentation of the story down into scenes and how each scene represents a chapter and how we bounce back and forth from different characters and perspectives. It really adds to the experience.

But this is the weakest "Langdon" novel to date. I'd even say Deception Point is better than it, but only by a slim margin.

I enjoyed it and at times I was on the edge of my seat. But at other times I felt myself having to push through the pages, something I never had to do with the other Langdon novels.

I thought it was a nice ending and he wrapped it up with an obvious theme, a theme in which I strongly agree with.

For me though the shock & awe that came with the plot surrounding the bloodline of Christ or Conclave was missing with Freemasonry.

Worth the read though. I'd say 8/10 for it.

Originally posted by AugustusMasonicus

..., and I figured out the 'twist' about a third of the way in.

you did better than me at figuring out one of the biggest "twists" in the book.

i had an idea of it a third of the way in, maybe, with the guy running towards the old bridge that was not there any more.

i had a strong belief on the same twist 52 pages prior to it being revealed, even made a note of it in.

i did enjoy the book, and learned a few things in the process of reading it.

pleasentries,
et

Originally posted by Esoteric Teacher
you did better than me at figuring out one of the biggest "twists" in the book.

I guess if you start looking for them they become a bit more apparent. Kinda like M. Night's movies, the twists got easier and easier to figure out.

It was certainly very interesting and informative about the D.C. landmarks. There was suspense and excitement. However, it was simply too familiar in other respects. You could almost describe the general plot of both it and the other Langdon novels with the same words.