The Lost Symbol – A Book Review
The Lost Symbol is a novel written by a renowned author, Dan Brown. The book was published by Anchor Books in the year 2009.
A story opens with a wintery morning when Robert Langdon, a famous Symbologist and Professor, gets an invitation from Peter Soloman, a well known Philanthropist, Historian, Scientist, Supreme member of Freemasonry, and Head of Smithsonian Institution of Washington DC to deliver a lecture on Masonry & Symbols at Capitol Building, Washington DC. On arriving at the Venue, Robert is stunned by an unexpected mystical invitation through Hand of Mystery; realizing he was not invited to deliver a lecture, rather was summoned by the hostile kidnapper of Peter Soloman who is a dear friend, mentor and a fatherly figure to Robert Langdon. The lunatic kidnapper is seeking a secret and wants Robert Langdon to help him decipher ancient symbols to unveil the secret of centuries in exchange for Peter’s Life. The unexpected arrival of CIA Director Sato at Capitol Rotunda even before official reporting of the gruesome event by the security personnel and her special interest and involvement in the case makes the events of the evening more interesting. At the same time the kidnapper, Mal’akh, is a mind-blowing villain, and adds twists to the story at every turn and surprises the reader with heart-throbbing moments.
The book is full of surprises, symbols, secrets, mysteries, and science. It also involves a lot of stuff about ancient architecture in Washington DC, history, mysteries of masonry, rituals of freemasonry, science, technology [TLV (Total Liquid Ventilation), EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse) Guns, Thermal Imaging] and faith of various cultures which is equally amazing. Reading about Noetic Science which proposes that ‘thought’ like any other thing has mass and can have an impact on the physical world, peculiarity of number 33 and a few of the world-famous arts, a belief that today’s inventions are rather revisiting esoteric and ancient knowledge, renowned scientists and their secrets and so many other things in the book will leave you surprised.
Will Robert Langdon be able to decipher the symbols to reveal a secret to save the life of Peter Soloman? Was it a national security concern that involved the CIA? And ultimately, what is that secret?
One needs to read it to unveil it and get answers through thrillful writing of Dan Brown.
To sum up, undoubtedly, it is one of the most amazing thriller books spanning events within 24 hours, and highly engaging. The writing style and language takes you through the live experience. The end part is good but not intriguing. None the less one should not miss such an epic work by Dan Brown. You should know the secret too!
I would rate 4.5 / 5.
