Tag / Robert Langdon

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Book 7 (of 52) – The Secret Of Secrets

The Secret of Secrets – Dan Brown

Symbologist Robert Langdon is in Prague along with his new love Katherine Solomon, a prominent scientist about to publish a ground-breaking new book on the nature of human consciousness.  A brutal murder and an overzealous police officer turn the trip into chaos at the same time that digital copies of Katherine’s manuscript start to disappear.  Can Langdon and Solomon stay one step of the CIA and figure out why she, and her work, are being targeted before they both are silenced permanently?

The Secret of Secrets is the sixth work featuring Robert Langdon from best-selling author Dan Brown.  Nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award for Favorite Mystery & Thriller, Brown’s latest doesn’t break much new ground when it comes to Langdon and his adventures, aside from giving him a love interest, but does tackle some interesting theories about consciousness and the human brain.  I have no idea how much of that was based in real science and how much was fiction, but if even some of it was real, we are headed towards some amazing breakthroughs in understanding the human condition.

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Book 52 (of 52) – The Lost Symbol

The Lost Symbol – Dan Brown

The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown’s follow-up to the phenomenon that was The DaVinci Code, finds symbologist Robert Langdon summoned to Washington DC to do a favor for a friend.  When he arrives, he finds that he has been tricked and, to save the life of his friend, he must stay ahead of the CIA and decipher the secret codes of the Masons to try and stop a madman.

The third of five novels in the Robert Langdon series, The Lost Symbol was the only one I hadn’t yet read.  I do have one of his standalone works sitting on the Kindle, which I am sure to get to one of these days.  Or years.

Book 52!  For the first time since I started this 52 books in 52 weeks challenge back in 2010, I actually made it to the finish line.  My previous high point of 31, which I managed to hit twice, was tied and surpassed back in August.  We’ll go into more detail when we wrap up the year in books in a few weeks.

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Prolific Authors – 4 Books

Way back in December of 2011 (and again every other December since), we’ve taken a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  This year, since I’ve far surpassed my reading output of any year on record, I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through August. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 60 books from 54 different authors. There shouldn’t be much movement over the past 2 years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span.  Today, we continue with the 6 authors I’ve read 4 times.

Scott Adams

The creator of Dilbert and all around internet crank, Adams has used his famous character to write a number of humorous business books, the most recent of which I read in 2012.

Angels & Demons – Dan Brown

Dan Brown

One of the most successful authors of all time, I’ve read four of his five Robert Langdon novels.

James Ellroy

The author of the L.A. Quartet, which I finished off with The Big Nowhere in 2014.

Gone Girl – Gillian Flynn

Gillian Flynn

The former Entertainment Weekly writer turned in to one of my favorite authors, though she hasn’t written a new full length work since 2012’s Gone Girl.

Diana G. Gallagher

All four of her entries are based in the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

John Vornholt

Three fourths of his works that I’ve read come from the world of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

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Book 18 (of 52) – Origin

Origin – Dan Brown

Dan Brown returns with the latest adventure of Professor Robert Langdon in Origin.  In this tale, the assassination of one of Langdon’s former students during a presentation leads him and the future queen of Spain try to evade capture while trying to release the expected scientific breakthrough that promised to devastate the foundation of the world’s religions.

Brown burst into the national consciousness in 2003 when The Da Vinci Code, his second Robert Langdon novel, became a runaway best seller.  Origin, released just about a year ago, is the fifth Langdon book, and the fourth that I’ve read.  His tales are always a unique intertwining of mystery, intrigue, and history.  One of these days, I will get my hands on that fifth novel and will finish off the set.  Of course, that’s what I said last time too.

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Book 12 (of 52) – Inferno

Inferno - Dan Brown

Inferno – Dan Brown

Dan Brown returns with his latest adventure featuring symbologist Robert Langdon, who has turned up in a Florence hospital with a gunshot wound and a case of amnesia.  He teams up with a child prodigy turned doctor to try and track down a virus that threatens to significantly thin the Earth’s population.  As Langdon gets closer to the truth, he finds out that everything, everyone, around him is not what they seemed.

Brown burst into the national consciousness in 2003 when The Da Vinci Code, his second Robert Langdon novel, became a runaway best seller.  Inferno, released in 2013, is the fourth Langdon book, and the third that I’ve read.  His tales are always a unique intertwining of mystery, intrigue, and history.  One of these days, I will get my hands on that fourth novel and will finish off the set.