When I was questioned as to whether I planned on reading this book, my typical response fell somewhere in-between the lines of the ‘maybe later’ reply. The stories from the two previous books featuring Robert Langdon proved themselves entertaining, but there was nothing compelling about either one to convince me into dropping my current reading list to join ‘Lost Symbol’ mania.
Then a coworker set the book on my desk in an almost challenging gesture, forcing me to respond…
Not to my surprise, what I discovered was another page-turner. Just as with “The DaVinci Code” and “Angels & Demons”, Brown leads a reader with promises of historical teaching moments, pseudo-conspiracy theories, villainous brilliance, and the possibility of simple truth revealed for the first time. There is a wonder at how much of what he alleges is actual reality versus embellished beliefs. That curiosity creates a sort of American mythology that could possibly be true, or could be the impossible-to-prove stuff of legend. The constant ‘is it real; or is it mere fiction’ quandary draws the reader forward to the story’s culmination.
Then there is the question of the Masons. Are the Masons as intricately connected to American success as proposed? From this one reader’s perspective, whenever the Masons are discussed, that discussion is always followed with a litany of famous historical characters claimed as Masons. When those same historical characters are written of, any involvement in Masonry is never mentioned. It seems Brown masters the ability of offering just enough truth in his fiction to make whatever is not actuality, a possible fact; hence part of the reason this book is so easy to turn from one page to the next. You not only desire to see how Robert Langdon solves the riddling mystery posed to him by the villain, but you also find yourself wanting to know just how much of what Robert Langdon states is real.
Then a coworker set the book on my desk in an almost challenging gesture, forcing me to respond…
Not to my surprise, what I discovered was another page-turner. Just as with “The DaVinci Code” and “Angels & Demons”, Brown leads a reader with promises of historical teaching moments, pseudo-conspiracy theories, villainous brilliance, and the possibility of simple truth revealed for the first time. There is a wonder at how much of what he alleges is actual reality versus embellished beliefs. That curiosity creates a sort of American mythology that could possibly be true, or could be the impossible-to-prove stuff of legend. The constant ‘is it real; or is it mere fiction’ quandary draws the reader forward to the story’s culmination.
Then there is the question of the Masons. Are the Masons as intricately connected to American success as proposed? From this one reader’s perspective, whenever the Masons are discussed, that discussion is always followed with a litany of famous historical characters claimed as Masons. When those same historical characters are written of, any involvement in Masonry is never mentioned. It seems Brown masters the ability of offering just enough truth in his fiction to make whatever is not actuality, a possible fact; hence part of the reason this book is so easy to turn from one page to the next. You not only desire to see how Robert Langdon solves the riddling mystery posed to him by the villain, but you also find yourself wanting to know just how much of what Robert Langdon states is real.
The bottom line, in my opinion, is anyone who enjoyed the previous stories from Dan Brown, they will enjoy this one as well. It is worth the read; it holds a person’s interest quite easily. However, and I include this as a caveat, the ending fails to coalesce with the plot. Not only does the villain (a superb blend of brilliance and insanity) alter his focus from ascending into heaven to become like God (what the ‘lost symbol’ is meant to reveal), but the summation given by two of Brown’s characters in the final few chapters makes no sense. Brown is obviously trying to infuse his story with a bit of heart, to lift it above the status of mere thriller, i.e. some ‘meaning’ readers can take away after the last page is read, but he misses that mark. ‘The Lost Symbol’ is an excellent thriller. Period.
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