Dan Brown's THE LOST SYMBOL

It's the summer of 2004. . .

It hasn't been a good year for me so far. Two deaths in the family and a shitload of crap forced me to make a decision. I needed to get away and be far from everything and everyone I knew. I boarded a BA flight that fateful day in June with only the stuff that fitted into my bags and a desire to get the hell out of Montréal.

Didn't exactly know at the time that I would spend nearly 4 months in Europe. Nor did I expect to make my way through 14 different countries. No, it wasn't my first time in Europe. Actually, it was the fifth year in a row I was crossing the pond to visit some place new.

Dan Brown was already big at that time, but it hadn't reached the crazy point where his books somewhat became larger than life. The dumbass fuckwits from around the Bible Belt had yet to create the uproar that would come, people were not reading The Da Vinci Code like a textbook, and the Vatican remained silent on the issue. Back in those days, you read Dan Brown because the guy wrote exciting thrillers.

And no matter where I went, it seemed that every single backpacker who knew how to read was reading a Dan Brown novel. I hadn't brought any books with me, what with me not wanting to deal with dead weight in my packs. But it reached a point where I had to give this author a shot. I mean, everybody was reading his books!

I bought Angels and Demons and The Da Vinci Code at the WH Smith in Paris following the most boring train ride between Luxembourg City and Paris. I came close to opening my veins, so I knew I needed some reading material. Robert Langdon became a trusted companion for many train rides afterward. I bought Deception Point in Zurich, and The Digital Fortress in Budapest later on.

They were all page-turning, fantastic reads. What thrillers are supposed to be, in my opinion. In the end, they became such a big part of my trip that I brought all four books back home with me. They were dead weight for a few months, but I just couldn't bear to see them go.

So this morning I placed my order for Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol (Canada, USA, Europe). At 50% off, I can't go wrong! And I can't wait to read it, no matter what people say about the author. No, he's not the best writer to ever see the light. But the man certainly knows how to keep you turning those pages.

It will feel mighty weird not to be discovering what Robert Langdon is up to while the countryside of various European countries is passing me by on the other side of the window while the train is taking me to my next destination. . .

8 commentaires:

Anonymous said...

I enjoyed both of the Langdon books, but I though both Digital Fortress and Deception Point were crap.

Todd said...

I agree, Brown's a great author. He sure knows how to keep you turning the pages and just knows how to write a good, fun story. Crichton was my favorite author growing up, for many of the same reasons. Doesn't mean you have to believe the Dinosaurs are actually running around some island right now.

I loved all 4 books, Digital Fortress being his weakest imo though. Angels and Deception are my favorites.

cedunkley said...

I've read The Da Vinci Code and generally enjoyed it. The book was certainly a fast read and a page turner.

However, I had some problems with Brown's writing. A couple of times he cheated and withheld information that the POV character knew just to prolong the suspence.

That really threw me out of the story a couple of times. And the password on the device was so obvious the moment they walked into the palace that it really annoyed me to have to read for page after page with these supposed puzzle genius' not being able to figure out the password.

Overall, though I can see why the book was so popular.

Jaltus said...

As someone with a PhD comparable to Langdon's, he makes some stupid mistakes and does not come off as a believable expert, especially since so many of his "facts" are incorrect.

I do think the books are fun page turners, but Brown should have done more research than to read (and plagiarize) Christ myth books.

Jim Shannon said...

Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh did a better take on this subject matter. For more details of this see here:

http://www.cesnur.org/2005/mi_02_03d.htm

Mimouille said...

Totally agree with Jim on this one. I think the Da Vinci Code is utter plagiarism, and and VERY bad book on top of that. Of course it's a page turner. There are three sentences per pages and three pages per chapter, its so empty you HAVE to turn pages...I will never open one of his books again...

Anonymous said...

Doesn't really matter since he is richer than all of us combined. He can pretty much do what he wants and could care less if you don't read his books.

Anonymous said...

I was reading Da Vinci on holidays at the beach. 100 pages from the end, I threw the book away in exasperation. Couldn't care less how it concluded.
Yes anonymous, he may have more money than God, and fools may buy his books, but that doesn't mean he can write. World is full of hacks getting into print (Robert Jordan anyone?) because there are not enough good writers to satisfy the market. Publishers have to publish something to stay in business. - Ian